Outside, a haze hovered near the ground, stirring the shallowness that hovered over my sensitivities. I was sitting at my desk over coffee, typing letters to anyone… Read more “Connected: Wed To Infinity”
Mapping Affection
(Published at The Writers Club) From the glitz in Kara’s eyesto when she last said goodbyebreathed distrust as a mistin the bed of a pickup trucksomewhere back… Read more “Mapping Affection”
The Basement: Secret Crush
It was three o’clock, and I sat at the dining room table in the dark, cupping a mug of warm coffee. I peered out the large, tinted… Read more “The Basement: Secret Crush”
Damaged Date
(Published at The Writers Club) Time fell through the cracks of despair,waiting for a fucking date; she’s late.It was the lines to my dating life’s story;I tap… Read more “Damaged Date”
Sober Dad
(Published at The Writers Club) A man lifts his headas puddled droolspreads on the floor.Piss wets his jeans.A cigarette burn stainsthe edge of the sofa.The woman he… Read more “Sober Dad”
Pictures Don’t Lie
(Published at The Writers Club) In love withghosts by choiceface first fastto sink inthe stain ofan excuse toview on camerareels of uspassing by,checking over theother’s shoulderWe loved… Read more “Pictures Don’t Lie”
Perfect Timing
(Published at The Writers Club) I drifted down a thoroughfare.I was ghosted by an internet date.My car broke down on the 501;I sipped a latte as if… Read more “Perfect Timing”
Forest For The Trees
The forest satiated me through the brush of Elizabeth’s touch along a trail to nowhere in particular. Nothing tasted as it was, nothing appeared as it was,… Read more “Forest For The Trees”
Withered Beauty
(Published at Withered Beauty) A sinister smileput a whole planin motionwith the ghostof my fatecrossing pathswith a requestfrom God’s lipsto cherish an entwinedfriendship spilling as waternurturing red… Read more “Withered Beauty”
Sinister Sunday Drive
Tara enjoyed Sunday evening drives. I was getting sick of driving in the winter chill. Not even the light forecasted snowflakes slapping the windshield could deter us… Read more “Sinister Sunday Drive”
Memories Unwritten
(Published at The Writers Club) We’d met at a cafe over coffee.I swallowed spit, stuttering over my words,and loosened my tie.A rose bore its red petals on… Read more “Memories Unwritten”
Unbearable Humor
(Published at Spillwords) I planned this all along.No, really, I did, she said.I found no humor in the November weather,but her eyes stirred warmth in my soul.With… Read more “Unbearable Humor”
Gasoline Over Coffee
I’ve seen some things, things about Alisha that I can’t unsee. My eyes gaslight my memories, setting ablaze the simple fact that, although I tried, I’ll never… Read more “Gasoline Over Coffee”
Buried Secrets
“I’m kind of iffy on this whole thing. I mean, I’d die of laughter if someone told me they did what we’re doing. I’d think they’re fucking… Read more “Buried Secrets”
Stalking November
(Published at The Writers Club) A reckless summer, in caseyou don’t recall,drew to its conclusion,traveling the windy roadover a torn, beaten path.The house we sharedis home to… Read more “Stalking November”
Cabin Lust
(Published at The Writers Club) At a cabin, we engage in softconversation with pithy introductions.Our tongues roam as travelerswithout warning signs,leaving no crease untouched;we lie over crimson… Read more “Cabin Lust”
Closet Stalker
(Published at The Writers Club) A pounding at the doorseized my chest and me upright.I tumbled out of bed,wiping a sleepless night frommy eyes. I flipped the… Read more “Closet Stalker”
Sweeping Dreams
Sample: It was eight o’clock, and the dappled sun shone through the trees, creating mysterious shadows through the blinds. I was exhausted and curled with a fleece… Read more “Sweeping Dreams”
Belated Engagement (Published at The Writers Club)
(Published at The Writers Club) Esoteric expressionsslip through her red lips,stripping wrist stitches,bruising downcast scars,opening decisive nervesto her cracked spine,shattered with the desiresof the flesh, broken inside.The… Read more “Belated Engagement (Published at The Writers Club)”
Running from Love
(Published on The Writers Club) A delicate strokeof an old nude paintingrests between her lipswith a kiss wakes hernot in the glimmer of affection.Her phone is breaking… Read more “Running from Love”
Tasting Autumn’s Hips
(Posted to The Writers Club) A cliche death grip rips my shirtin the back seat of a car,theft of a heart isn’t a crimein her mind,with an… Read more “Tasting Autumn’s Hips”
Rebound Fail
(Posted to The Writers Club) Writhing on your knees, wasting space on memories, searching for him in me someone I can’t be on an autumn afternoon through… Read more “Rebound Fail”
My Weakness
(Posted at The Writers Club) My strength escaped when our eyes locked;not knowing the combination to peel away,I swallowed hard and gave a nervous smile.I used to… Read more “My Weakness”
Lovely Relapse
(Published on The Writers Club) If nothing matters,why do you meaneverything to me?I’ve been cleanof love for the betterpart of my life,but with you, I get high;I’m… Read more “Lovely Relapse”
Life in Love
(Published on The Writer’s Club) I naively embraced our memories in technicolor.I should have listened to my friends.I blinked the red flags to the trash bin full… Read more “Life in Love”
A Lonely Place to Sleep
(Posted on The Writers Club) She’s tossing and turning in sheets in a home we own;the silence drags violence along defensive wallsframed with insecurity.The portrait we paint… Read more “A Lonely Place to Sleep”
Check Engine Light
(Posted at The Writers Club) I killed the headlights in my mind,ran through every red light,following the curve to a decisionI made it between thick fogand condensation,blurring… Read more “Check Engine Light”
Nightfall Truce (Published on Spillwords Press!)
As the night draws to a conclusion,this war between us explodes withlandmines, tripping overwires of insecurity,cutting through the tensionof our invention.After consuming red wine,distraught tears flow througha… Read more “Nightfall Truce (Published on Spillwords Press!)”
Happiness is Seeing You
(Published on Spillwords) In a bar, I sat over vodka. I’d pick up women through lonely eyes, promising long conversations and drinks for which I’d pay. It… Read more “Happiness is Seeing You”
The Unemployed Catch
I sat over a cigarette and a local newspaper at the kitchen table. I was going over the classifieds. I shifted my notepad and glasses and reached… Read more “The Unemployed Catch”
Sinning in Jeans
I sat in the library over cold coffee and opened books, going over notes for a twelfth-grade biology quiz. I wanted to prove to Mom that I… Read more “Sinning in Jeans”
Righteous Murder
The Rainer Cemetery ash trees had shed their leaves, crunching golden-brown beneath the feet of the funeral attendees. The brisk September breeze hung over Leah’s father’s closed,… Read more “Righteous Murder”
Evicted on Christmas
A forecasted snow-bearing Christmas was three days away. The sun was climbing out of the deep well of winter, but it was still brutally cold. The living… Read more “Evicted on Christmas”
Autumn Gazebo
Guys like me don’t usually do things like this, but I’ve been up since three o’clock, sitting here in the dark, waiting for the brisk October sun… Read more “Autumn Gazebo”
A Robbery On Christmas
It’s Christmas time again. Jodie, who lost her teaching job after budget cuts, is on a mission to buy her kids’ gifts by any means necessary. So… Read more “A Robbery On Christmas “
Who Killed Hannah?
I so have to figure out who killed, no, who murdered Hannah and why, Francis thought, staring eye-level into a half-empty wineglass as though it were her… Read more “Who Killed Hannah?”
Buried Alive
Shannon hated her mother. I didn’t care for the woman either, but I had no reason to see her dead, at least not at first. But Shannon,… Read more “Buried Alive”
Mindy’s Secret
Mindy’s father hated me, especially when he found out we were more than friends. I couldn’t help that I fell in love with his daughter, and she… Read more “Mindy’s Secret”
The Uber Date
Where is she? I glanced at my watch. She should be here by now. I folded my arms across my chest. It’s too cold to be waiting for… Read more “The Uber Date”
Sarah’s Choice: I’m Not Good Enough
I’d been with Sarah for five years, and she was getting anxious, anxious for me to pop the question or move on with her life. And rightly… Read more “Sarah’s Choice: I’m Not Good Enough”
The Weekend Affair
Dan is going through a mid-life crisis, wondering what happened to his relationship with his wife (Tara), and how she hardly notices him anymore. After Tara found… Read more “The Weekend Affair”
Love at a Cemetery
It was the bone-chilling Northwest winter of 1994 when I stood with my shaky hands folded before Granddad’s grave. I stared at his name with a million… Read more “Love at a Cemetery”
Caught in the Act
It was the bone-chilling Seattle winter of 1994 when “Breakdown” by Mariah Carey played on Mary’s radio. Outside was a winter wonderland with five inches of snow… Read more “Caught in the Act”
The Angelic Cheater
As I closed the door behind me, the scent of her naked body and cologne, someone else’s cologne, didn’t escape my attention. I raked my fingers through… Read more “The Angelic Cheater”
The Stalker
It was the winter of 1995, and Christmas was three weeks away. I was out with a couple of friends at Mojo’s sports bar. We’d meet… Read more “The Stalker”
Sammy
Becca’s eyes were cold and lifeless as she stared at me. We stood in a crowded hallway, but our eyes locked and all I heard was the… Read more “Sammy”
Divorce Papers
If it’sover, sayas much.Burn downour dreams.Rip openhealed scars.Sign thedamn papers. Twitter – @AC0040 (© 2023 AC) (Wattpad, Amazon Kindle, Spillwords, The Writers Club, The Indie Book Store)
Escaping Hannah’s Mother
The essence ofher presence presentsa delirious substanceof a concept,sipping her secretsin a passengerseat over gasolineon a fulltank, heading southsomewhere her motherwon’t show up,won’t find us,at least nottogether… Read more “Escaping Hannah’s Mother”
Charity Over Chastity
I wrote her name in a poem, hoping to crack into her unbreakable obsession with abstinence. Absent my faith in someone like me, a crooked smile with… Read more “Charity Over Chastity”
The Sloppy Cheater
Pursed lipseasy eyestilted headred hairsteepled handssun-kissed skinmissed textfucked exsick ina bedcaught meyou did.Your mercyI’m at. Twitter – @AC0040 (© 2023 AC) (Wattpad, Amazon Kindle, Spillwords, The Writers Club, The Indie Book Store)
Deaf Forest Of Infidelities
Humdrum mistrusts triggerplacid misery throughan altruistic mistake.Ambling through thicketsafter a deluge,we expressed betrayalsthrough a drizzleof teary eyes.Indecision plays thefatality as yourlips drip withveracity in gasps,breaths of faintregret… Read more “Deaf Forest Of Infidelities”
Engaged In Reality
Whispers brew breezesthrough life-like smiles.Escaped irony restson a sultrygrin with quickadmissions of infidelitiesexchanged for undecidedvows in a steeplewhere the peoplesulk in regretbecause we bothknow this willnever work… Read more “Engaged In Reality”
The Weekend Affair
(Repost 2021) Dan is going through a mid-life crisis, wondering what happened to his relationship with his wife (Tara) and how she hardly notices him anymore. After… Read more “The Weekend Affair”
Engaged To A Cheater
A forever underworldpromised the valleybeneath engagement ringsto the essenceof an excusethrough a whisper,that of cheatersring all true.I’ll feign thisdecision I madein a drunkenslumber of anardent voice, succumbingmy… Read more “Engaged To A Cheater”
Reward Money
“This cup of cold coffee is barely keeping me awake,” Sandra said, yawning with her hands planted firmly on the steering wheel. Sandra glanced over, then returned… Read more “Reward Money”
Drink Coffee Write 