literature
Whether written centuries ago or just last year, literary couples show that love is timeless.
The Nordic Legend
The sweat dripped from her brow as the glaring afternoon sun burned her skin. Yet that was the least of her worries. For years she’d succumbed to the rough and scorching terrain, of the Sicilian coastline, and had obtained enough freckles to prove it. For years she’d persevered through the dreadful aches in her joints, enough to put an elderly to shame; nevertheless, that was all a part of the job and all a part of the thrill and adrenaline that coursed through her veins on a day-to-day basis. Any archaeologist would agree that digging was as addictive as gambling. Each day was a new day and in it lay the possibility of it being the day that one would unearth what that had lay untouched for centuries. Her father had always said, “if you give up now another fool will come along and brush away an inch of dirt to reveal what you’d been searching in for the past four metres.”
By Hannah Grace6 years ago in Humans
Everything and Nothing at All
Her knuckles rap quickly on the rough, wooden door before she loses the nerve. She turns away, chewing the inside of her lip and crunching the fallen leaves underfoot. Seven beats of her heart pass before the latch draws back within the mechanism. She misses a beat, a terrible fluttering in her stomach, but turns back in time to see a piercing, dark eye glowering at her from a crack in the door.
By Cheyenne Goetz6 years ago in Humans
Unprincipled Error
“The total amount, A, equals the principal, P, multiplied by the summation of one plus… where n is the number of times interest is compounded…” I feigned Herculean effort and grunted like I had just successfully squatted mom’s minivan. Mr. Purdue’s Advanced Algebra was my final labor. Pass the exam, and summer was mine.
By Nom de Guerre6 years ago in Humans
Short-changed
“C’mon, Billy!” He snapped his gaze up from the palms of his hands. His heart leapt into his throat, his stomach sank. Billy’s body was already riding the roller coasters right beyond the amusement park’s turnstiles. Two sets of anxious, questing eyes savaged Billy to the brink of tears.
By Nom de Guerre6 years ago in Humans
The Gratitude Journal
When my sister told me I should start a gratitude journal, I rolled my eyes. Really? After the year I’ve had? What could I possibly have to be grateful for? I lost my aunt, best friend and entire business to Covid. The idea of “giving thanks” seemed completely paradoxical. But she insisted. I didn’t even know where to get one.
By Christina Walkinshaw6 years ago in Humans
HEEDLESS
“This book contains $20,000 cash. Whoever comes to own this book is free to spend this money however they like. However, every purchase made with the money within this book will cause the death of someone known to the owner within 12 hours. This person can be anyone the owner knows by name or face.”
By Andy Salads6 years ago in Humans
$20,000 and Some Time
“Are you going to be recording this?” “Not at all.” “Then why are you holding that tape recorder?” “Well, I mean, I couldn’t have recorded this, I hadn’t pressed play yet. Now it’s recording.” The doctor set the tape recorder down onto the middle of the table, between himself and the volunteer. The room was lit with a single fluorescent bulb, dingy and yellow and buzzing. The damp cement hadn’t been cleaned in ages, and cobwebs gathered in corners of the stale-aired room. The volunteer had short, patchy hair, and sunken eyes. Their jawline was sharp and their expression was blank. The doctor leaned back in his chair, which squealed under his weight. “You understand the terms of this study? My good friends outside explained it to you?”
By K C Phillips6 years ago in Humans
The Book
He held the package suspiciously. The brown tattered bundle neatly folded into a rectangle. One lone string strapping the edges down. The previous owner taking great care in wrapping the package, despite the reused and crumpled brown paper bag. He held it with both hands, not heavy, but felt solid. The return address showed foreign characters with the stamp “international” shining bright red against the dingy brown.
By Heidi Gifford6 years ago in Humans
A Place for Magic
In the hazy blue light of dawn on a cool morning, there was calm. She breathed in deeply with her eyes closed. These precious early moments of the day felt like her alone time with the city. These moments - before throngs of people emerged from their apartments seeking transportation and jobs and coffee and human connection in a world that feels increasingly isolated. Right now there was no mayhem - only the stirrings of others mad enough to start their day at the crack of dawn and brace themselves for the hustle.
By Sarah Gavin6 years ago in Humans
