Alec kept his eyes on the floor, intent on avoiding the giant’s stare. Principal Becker was a fit man of six feet with neat white hair and eyes that could penetrate a
The school bell rang. There were five minutes until the next class period. Shutting his locker door and swinging on his backpack, Carlos started toward his last class of the day, economics. As
Some monsters went easier than others. Her father’s monster crawled away to die after three sharp kicks from his soccer cleats. Her mother’s monster was fatally wounded after being sliced by
“Time.” With the final finishing touches complete, the room stretched to life as the examinees tensely rose from their seats, accompanying the echoes of two dozen pencils clattering to a stop. Helen released
In the other world, I can sense when trouble is at hand And resolve each problem that I meet. In that world, I can heal injustices And counsel lost souls with prudent voice.
The inability to love: You search and find the one! But your past: Burning up inside of you, while cold and lonely. The cold and loneliness disable you. The inability to love feels
I want to have lunch with a red-lipped girl and make her smile, To call her the flesh of my flesh and hold her hand without guilt or fear. I want to make
Laughed at, scorned, and alone, Looking for a direction to go— Lost in the crowd, longing for a friend. You're told you are helpless, never shown A way to grow— Battered and tired
September sunlight toasts the assortment of modern-day chariots dutifully freezing in place in the parking lot. A fledgling breeze gushes energetically but quickly exhausts itself. I stand behind a blue and white Bruins-wrapped
She hobbled, bent out of shape, like the Hunchback of Notre Dame. My heart tightened in my chest as I watched my mom struggle with a movement we take for granted: walking. I
My cousin Joel and I have always had an interesting relationship, although by “interesting” I mean “deeply dysfunctional.” One year older than me, Joel had latched onto me, his only source of friendship
I amble through the narrow hallway, my fingers lightly skimming the peeling cream-colored wallpaper. The smell of mothballs and paint fills my nostrils, and I deeply inhale the comforting scent. The museum closed
Beeping from my alarm clock stirs me from my all-too-short slumber. I pound the snooze button before burrowing underneath my favorite blanket. Fatigue creeps through my body and gently shuts my eyes for
When I was eight years old, a doctor told me I had a disability, And deep inside my heart, it didn’t bother me; What bothered me was how the world portrayed it