#crwr213

[crwr213pictureperfect]

Picture Perfect Series List

CONTENT WARNING: HORROR, UNSETTLING IMAGERY, DESCRIPTIONS OF VIOLENCE

Table of Contents

- I: Awkward Encounter - II: Flash Photo - III: A Means to an End

About the Series:

Picture Perfect is a series of linked horror fiction stories exploring the fine lines of Lara and Moe’s newfound siblinghood while the fine lines of their own reality threaten to collapse. They are from the perspective of Lara, an awkward teen who tries her best to bond with Moe. This piece is meant to outline the difficulties of navigating such a relationship; despite their shared interests, Lara and Moe are not picture perfect siblings in the trauma they carry, which is reflected in the horrors they encounter.

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©crwr213whoareyou 2024 please do not copy, repost, or translate any of my work anywhere without my permission | reblogs are ok!

[memoirsofacitygatherer]

The Gathering Trilogy - Guide

1. The wonders of being an urban scavenger - ★ Short story #1 ✶ Catherine Deneuve in Les Parapluies de Cherbourg ✴ The Halloween Garden ✹ Broken Wings, The School Scene 2. Who did this belong to? ★ Short story #2 ✶ The Hoarder's Desk ✴ Grandma's House in the Summertime ✹ Françoise Dorléac in Les Demoiselles de Rochefort 3. The End of an Era ★ Short story #3 ✶ The Bookshelf of A Social Scientist ✴ Catherine Deneuve in Le Vent de La Nuit ✹ Lost in Translation, The Restaurant Scene 4. Epilogue ✺ One Thousand 20th Century Chairs by Kahimi Karie

(Photo credit - Amelie, 2000)

This blog was created for assignment #3 of the CRWR213 class; please consider that all of the stories and their characters are fictional.

[thesamspot]

La Mort De Reggie

Like the grim reaper had just rung the doorbell, my grandmother cautiously made her way to the entryway, her ankles popping. The knock had surely sent some violent form of adrenaline coursing throughout my grandfather, and yet, he smiled. Which can’t have been easy to do, given the pain he was in. Reg had chosen to withgo his prescribed pain medications for the past twenty-four hours, in the hopes that he wouldn’t be so loopy in his final moments. And I think he was happy with where he found himself, as his life’s own grandfather clock ticked down.

Still, the knock at the door put an end to whatever we had been discussing before; it didn’t matter. I leaned into Reg, placing my hand atop his shoulder and giving him a squeeze. In this moment it was impossible not to interpret his body as simply the decaying vessel through which his soul had lived, and was moving on from. The reason Reg had bullishly rushed through this MAID process was because he still had his mind, he was still sharp. But who knows how long that would last. And, as the pain got worse and the medications got stronger, he got a taste of what it would be like, when it did eventually happen. Only, he would lack any context required to be comfortable in his weighted vest of a body. He would be scared.

I know so because of the stories told by my own father of his own mother, the grandmother I never got to meet. She passed several decades before I appeared, when my father was just eight or nine. He said goodbye to her, not long after the cancer had spread to her brain. She spoke gibberish, and her eyes bulged from their sockets, her remaining consciousness fighting for dear life, terrified. That was the last memory my father would ever have of his mother. She scared him. 

No one wants to experience that with a loved one, and Reg knew this. That’s why, with his death nigh, his daughter was not by his side, and it broke his overworked heart.

Instead, my mother stood on the stoop, and burst into tears upon my grandmother opening the door. They embraced, and Reg’s eyes lit up. His hearing wasn’t great but you can bet his hearing aids were cranked, and the sound of my mother’s warm tears brought him back down to earth. 

When the physician finally did show up, almost an hour had flown by. Reg was calm, my mother was supportive, and Mary couldn’t have been more pleased to see them pleased. A few hummingbirds even floated past the window we had propped open, bringing one last smile to my grandfather’s withered face as the sun set below the Rockies.

*All images AI generated through: https://www.bing.com/images/create?FORM=GENILP

[joshpsj]

- at Howard's shoe shop- 

"There you go!" exclaimed Howard, leaning back to admire the shoe he just polished. "You're good to go!" Howard laughed, extending his arm out to collect payment and dismissing his 15th customer that day. Sigh. Howard indulged in his regained privacy and allowed his expression to drop. He pulled out a meager collection of dirtied coins from his pocket and looked down at them. Three dollars and 35 cents. Howard shook his head as if to clear it and ushered home. $3.35 is enough, he reminded himself, to afford bread for his brother for today. 

Amidst rising political tensions in Western Europe and an economic recession, Howard's spirit remained unwavering. I will send Ted to college, Howard repeated quietly, walking home. His dream to fund his brother's education persists.

- at their house - 

"OPEN THE DOOR" a voice amplified by a loudspeaker announced. "WE NEED OUR MEN TO GO TO WAR." The soldiers' voices broke the otherwise continuous murmur of civilians frantic and children crying. 

Thump. Thump. Ted's heart pounded as he peered between the curtains at the soldiers approaching his front door. 

"HOW MANY MEN DO YOU HAVE?" A soldier barked, kicking open Ted's door. 

"Uh.. Um.. Howard .. my brother.. he's not home right now" Ted answered, backing away into the corner. 

"Come with me. Don't worry boy, we're just going to need to ask you a few questions." The soldier coaxed. 

Ted took another step back and tripped, falling at the soldier's feet. 

"No, wait! Please, my brother will be home soon" Ted pleaded, but it was no use. Without another word, the big soldier dragged him away. 

- Howard comes home -

Howard's eyes widened and filled with dread as his house came into view. Howard dropped the bread and sprinted in the direction of the train station, barely visible in the distance. Unrelenting, Howard ran to the train station and caught up to the soldiers. He rushed onto the train and spotted Ted. 

"LET MY BROTHER GO!" Howard yelled. Howard flung himself at the soldiers and urged Ted to flee. "GO! TED, RUN!" 

"SHUT UP!" The soldier screamed, pushing Howard onto the seats. Howard's body slammed against the other men sitting on the train. He turned around to resist only to face the soldier's rock-hard fist. The soldiers repeatedly punched Howard, while Ted was forced to watch as his hands and arms were restrained by a soldier. 

Eventually, Ted and Howard were forcefully drafted and escorted to their seats on the train. As the brothers were following the soldiers to their seats, Howard continuously complained. “My brother has a heart condition, he can’t even run properly!” 

“We can talk about this further when you get to the campsite. Shut up and follow me” said the soldier. 

Howard and Ted spot their mother outside the train as they are being escorted to their seats. “Mother!” yells Ted. The brothers rush to the window and scream for their mother. “Mother! Mother!” 

Their mom hears their cries, and runs towards them. “I’ll take care of Ted, and don’t worry mother”, said Howard. 

“What happened to your face?” she asks. 

“Please take care… we’ll be back no matter what” Howard said firmly.

“Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine. Take care of Ted — Ted you take care of your brother too” she said with concern. 

Howard and Ted were pulled back by the soldiers and separated away from their mother. The brothers were seated side-by-side, and they rode the train in silence. 

Finally, they arrived at the war encampment. The brothers lined up with the other drafted men, facing the battlefield ahead. They took it all in: the dust stinging their eyes, the stench of the dead, omnipresent and persisting. Ted turned to see Howard facing him. The brothers shared a somber look while Howard squeezed Ted's shoulder.

[vivaantheblaze]

All By Myself (Part 2)

Vivaan, Age 31

I was obsessed. I had spent the last 15- no 20 years of my life for this. I isolated myself and spent every waking moment working on this. I sacrificed my life, sleep, relations, everything for a shot at redemption. Now, finally, the fruits of my labor had arrived. My experiments were a success, I had finally done what no human had every done before. I had built the world’s first Time Machine.

I had one goal in mind these last few decades. Its what gave me the motivation to keep going. I needed to save my father. If I could go back to that alleyway on that day, I could change the past. I could make it so he never dies there. If I did that, young me would be able to continue his childhood normally, maybe even overcome his loneliness and make some friends and integrate himself into society. If he did that, he also wouldn’t turn into me, obsessed with this time machine having sacrificed everything for it. All of my grief and I would simply cease to exist from the timeline.

I set the date in the time machine and I crank the lever. I sat down in the seat as it begins to take off and make a high-pitched buzzing sound. The inside of the machine is filled with a bright white light so I close my eyes. A few minutes later, it turns completely dark and silent.

I stumble out, my head still spinning and I see bright sunlight. I feel like I hadn’t seen the sun in weeks as I had been rotting away alone in that cold dark lab of mine. I was still unsure of whether or not it really worked, whether I was truly in the past or not.

I begin walking toward where the incident had occurred 20 years ago. On my way I hear voices so I hide behind a wall and see who they are. I spot myself, 11 years old at the time, without a care in the world. Next to him I saw my father after so, so long. Kid-me then notices me which alerted my father too.

I looked directly into his eyes. These were the same gentle eyes I was so used to but they had a fierce expression right now. He looked right through me almost as if he recognized me. It was too much for me to handle emotionally so I just turned away and ran with tears in my eyes.

I ended up in a dark alleyway and I felt overwhelmed, joy from my machine being a success, trauma from the memory of the incident and a bittersweet feeling from seeing my father again, so I let out a loud scream. I pull out the gun which I kept with me after all these years, I planned to shoot my father’s killer with it.

In the darkness I saw a figure run towards me, with a gun pointed right at me. I fire in the direction of the assailant and they collapse. I close my eyes, happy that I had avenged my father, and prepare to be erased from the timeline.

Nothing happens. I open my eyes in confusion and look closer at my assailant.

I had just shot my father.

undefined

Opening for the television show “Steins; Gate” which is explores time travel and grief. 

[xinyinghe]

Witches Town (2)

⚠️Warning: This story tells the collapse of fairy tales, and the content contains blood and violence. People under 19 are prohibited from viewing the following content.

Every day at dusk, there is always a person sitting on a park bench. Yes, she was a witch too. She sits there every day and looks up. Not one knows what she is doing. She never talked to anyone either.

I sat next to her two days before my vacation ended. 

“What are you looking at?“ I asked her.

She was silent for a while

“My life.” Her voice was surprisingly nice.

“Your life?”

“Yes. Do you want to hear a story?”

She didn't wait for my reply and started telling her story.

I was a princess. People call me Rapunzel.

My hair has the magic power which keeps human being young forever.

My foster mother is a witch. Many years ago, she found a golden flower that can keep people young forever, but the golden flower was eaten by my mother. Then, the golden flower became my blond hair.

This is what the witch told me, she never concealed my lot. I was eager to leave the tower where I have been lived. She opened the window of the tower and told me that I could leave at any time - if I was willing to face the cruel world. I am timid. I dare not leave. 

Later, I met a man, who passed under the tower on a horse and held a bow and arrow.

Once he heard my singing, he was fascinated. He wandered under the tower every day.

One day, I hung my washed long hair down the tower to dry. When I took it back, I found a white lilac flower at the tip of the hair. I poked my head out. He held a large bouquet of lilacs in his arms, held them up high, and knelt down to me on one knee.

This is the first man I've met in years. He loves my singing, and I take him up the tower with my long hair.

Later, I fell in love with him and decided to follow him out of the tower.

I left at dusk. There were green grass and large white dandelions under my feet.

I went far away and heard the singing of the witch, which was sad and lonely.

She didn't break her promise. She said, as long as I want, I can leave.

He is a prince. We married in his kingdom.

But on the wedding night, he suddenly cut off my long hair. As the long hair fell to the ground, it lost its magic and became dull, and even the rest of my hair lost its shining gold and turned maroon.

I was at a loss. He looked at me and smiled. Then he washed his face in the clear water basin. It was a face as white as snow, with especially bright lips.

When he slowly took off his clothes, I realized that he was actually a woman.

She said her name was Snow White and she was the princess of this kingdom. She has a stepmother, who is as beautiful as her. Her stepmother is getting older, and she is looking for ways to stay young forever.

The secret of the golden flower was discovered by the magic mirror of the castle, so her stepmother ordered her to come and take me back.

I was shocked and sad. She tricked me out of the witch's tower with a white lilac. 

She stretched out a finger, raised my chin, and smiled with crooked red lips: "An old woman should grow old, and should not ask for a permanent beauty. I should be the most beautiful woman in this kingdom.”

"Don't you want to stay young forever?" I asked.

She laughed: "What does it matter? She got your hair, and I will grow old. If I keep your hair, she will kill me. So the best way is if your hair doesn't exist, she becomes older and older. I'm still pretty.”

“She is such a BAD, MALICIOUS, EVIL WOMAN!!!” I said angrily.

It was getting dark. The witch next to me smiled at me and patted my head. “you are a good girl. But it's getting late and you need to go home.”

“Are you still here tomorrow?” I asked cautiously.

“Of course.” She said to me with a smile.

“See you tomorrow. Princess Rapunzel.” 

I stood up, waved to her, and turned to leave.

Tomorrow will be another better day. 

[nowordsareenough]

Forever. (Pt. 3)

Pit. Pat.

"Anna, could we talk about a couple of things before we sign the papers?" Mr. Kang viciously smiled.

"Yes, of course… Am I in trouble?" I asked with a puzzled face.

"No, of course not. With the skills you have, you're outstanding. But honey, with the weight you still have, we're not sure if we could let you debut. But there's an offer on the table. Do you want to hear about it?"

Offer? What offer?

"Yes, of course… What would it be?" I stuttered.

"We have these people called sponsors in our industry. One of those sponsors decided to fund us if you were to debut in this group. However, you need to do a deed for him. Does that sound fair?" he questioned.

I was again utterly shocked by the words I was hearing. I've waited 6 months in this rathole for this?

"I think I need a breath of fresh air," I stuttered as I tried to leave the room.

"Where do you think you're going?" Mr. Kang's voice boomed throughout the room.

Mr. Kim quickly entered the room after hearing all the noise from outside.

"What's going on? Is everything alright?" he asked, walking towards me.

I ran out without thinking twice. Mr. Kim quickly ran after me yelling my name. As I reached the end of the hall, Mr. Kim arrived where I was and gasped out, "She's waiting for you…"

"Pardon?" as I wiped the uncontrollable tears from my face.

"Jinny. She decided to leave the company, she wanted to say bye to you before she left. She's in the locker room." Mr. Kim smiled as he patted my shoulder and left.

I ran towards the locker room to see Jinny packing up her bags with the other girls who didn't make the team.

"Jinny!" I screamed as I ran towards her.

"Anna! Good timing. I was just about to leave! How was everything? Tell me all about it," she exclaimed as I saw the hurt in her eyes.

"I don't think I can do it… I don't think I can do this, Jinny…" I whimpered as I pressed my face into her arms.

"Jinny! Girls? Are you guys still out there?" Mr. Kim's voice echoed throughout the locker room.

"Yes! We're coming!" Jinny exclaimed. "It's time for me to go, but Anna… Always remember. You're not alone. We're always going to be together. Don't worry," she smiled as she quickly left the locker room.

Present Day

And that was my last memory of Jinny. Like a dream, she disappeared the next day without even leaving a trace. From what I heard, Mr. Kim said she fled back to the States and would live there forever. On the other hand, I decided to not take the offer and moved back in with my family, and I am currently attending university as an ordinary girl. But Jinny, if you always want to come back or even miss me. You should know that you're not alone. We're alone together in this cruel and hurtful world that keeps no promises.

[makaaaa24]

GameDay

Game time is all I'm thinking about before getting onto the bus. I'm sitting down on the gym's bleachers waiting for the bus’s arrival adding new songs to my playlist. Coach said it’s going to be a 7-hour bus ride, I’ve never been that far from home before even though we won’t have time to walk around I’m still excited to see the city. Coach gathers us all around in the gym and tells us he assigned seats to each of us, I thought that was lame, I wanted to sit beside my best friend Jackson and I know coach isn’t gonna sit us together. Everyone seemed annoyed at the coach's decision especially me because apart from Jackson there aren’t many guys that I am close to on the team like I am with Jackson. Jackson and I joined the team around the same time and both of us play defence so we’re side by side each other basically all of the time. We watched film together, studied our opponents together and come to each other's house every weekend. There's no one else I'd wanna sit with for 7 hours. 

Coach is about to start calling names and i look to Jackson and i tell him 

“Don’t get your hopes up, I already know coach isn’t gonna seat us together” 

“Yeah I figured, I just hope I don’t get seated with Fart bug” Jackson replied. 

“Shoot!” I say to myself, I totally forgot about fart bug, I already know coach is gonna sit me with him “ugh.” 

Coach Starts calling out names one by one i see all the ‘good’ candidates to sit with going 

Coach calls out a couple more names before he finally gets to me. I look around the gym and I see six more guys standing around and one of them is fart bug. I see Ramel and we lock eyes, Ramel is also on the defence and we’ve spoken a couple times so I wouldn’t mind sitting with him, it would only make sense we’re the last two defensive guys. 

“Malik! you’ll be sitting with Tariq”

I already knew it was going to be fart bug… I just got my bags and got ready for what was about to be the worst 7 hours of my life. Someone please open a window… 

The bus comes and everyone gets seated and I take the window seat and Tariq aka fart bug takes the isle, I turn my music on and i close my eyes as the bus takes off, I wake up about 2 hours later, my music still blasting i see mostly everyone on the bus sleeping except for fart bug, I notice he’s looking at pictures on his phone. 

“Who are they to you?” I ask, he looks at me for a couple seconds then back at his phone 

“My family” he replies, “my mom and my two older brothers” 

“That’s cool, i use my family photos as motivation too” 

Tariq and I spoke for hours on the way to the game. He shared his family stories and I shared mine. We had a lot of things in common I never would’ve thought. Tariq told me his older brothers are the reason he plays football because his oldest brother was shot and killed just before he was going to play division 1 football in Alabama. I felt so bad for him, once his brother died his mom went into a depressed state and has been struggling ever since it’s only him and his brother who do try their best to make a living. Everyone on the team calls him fartbug because he smells pretty bad often but it’s really only because he can’t afford to wash his clothing. I’ve seen a whole new side of him and I was taught that I should never judge somebody without knowing their story on that ride to our game I made a new close friend 

[adventuresofthehacker]

Also, I ended up getting my beyond meat, cheddar, and egg sandwich from Starbucks. There was a huge line up, though. Overall not bad, but mine is probably better.

[crwr213pictureperfect]

Picture Perfect: III. A Means to an End

I think something is watching me. It comes in flashes; short glimpses when I rub my eyes, or in the mirror as I look up from the sink. It’s like I’m transported to another world–a world like ours but dark; an inky, floating abyss if it weren’t for the unblinking eyes and brightly coloured figures with cracked smiles.

Original artist unknown, found by poppetmeimei on Pinterest

I don’t know what they are. I don’t know what they want from me. Whatever it is, they won’t let me sleep. Or maybe I’m too scared to. I can’t really tell from the frenzied buzz in my head. 

I turn my head to the right, towards the window. The moon is waning, just barely illuminating the area outside. A deep sigh escapes through my nose. I don’t even want to know what time it is. Instead, my legs drag over the side of the bed, feet meeting the cold wooden floor. 

Image found by Sadiya on Pinterest

My eyes settle on the film camera Moe gave me. It’s sitting on the nightstand, tucked snugly next to my bed. Some of the moonlight catches on the broken lens, glinting in the dark. I should throw it out, I know that. But something’s stopping me, as if there’s a string tugging me away from the mere thought of it.

Shaking my head, I push myself off the bed. Maybe a drink will clear my mind. The buzzing in my head dulls as I approach the door. I swing the door open and I come face to face with a figure. I yell and stumble backwards, body thudding against the floor.

“Oh God, sorry!” The figure shifts into Moe, who shoots forward to help me back up. “I didn’t know you were leaving.”

Being pulled onto my feet, I give Moe a light jab. “The hell were you doing in front of my door?”

Moe looks away. “Couldn't sleep. Didn’t know what else to do” Looking closer, I can make out a tired-looking droop in his eyes.

I take a sharp breath and turn towards the direction of the camera. My mind reels. “I think I know what we can do.” 

Moe follows my gaze. “It’s too easy.”

“Wanna bet?”

In moments, we’re sweeping the broken camera into a garbage bag and running down the street with it, along with a baseball bat and a shovel. The glimpses of darkness are worse outside; there are more of the coloured figures, splitting grins, and piercing eyes. I thought it was endless in the house, but now it feels beyond endless.

Moe and I enter the town’s forest, where we can barely make out the waning moon between the branches. Immediately, Moe smashes the camera bag into the dirt and I follow it up with a swing from the bat. The world around us flickers between itself and darkness and my head sputters with energy.

Original by Swayzo on Distrokid, found on Pinterest

I wince, just barely catching myself.

“Hey, stay with me!” Moe grips my shoulder, eyes blown wide.

I squeeze my eyes closed and see a glimpse of the dripping blue figure. My eyes shoot open. “I’m fine, keep going.” Another swing, another wince, another glimpse; I grit my teeth to stave it off.

Shortly after, Moe plunges the shovel into the earth, and for a moment the dirt is replaced with a screeching eyeball. Moe grimaces, but continues digging.

Eventually, we’re able to bury the camera bag and we waste no time running home. When we get there, we sit on the living room couch. The buzzing is gone, the world is quiet. I don’t know when it happens, but I fall asleep.

I wake up to a dripping blue figure with glowing red eyes and a cracked grin, its claws piercing through Moe’s head as it creeps over the couch.

[memoirsofacitygatherer]

The wonders of being an urban scavenger

Yesterday, I was walking around my hometown, lurking between the small streets. I tried to find which sentimental objects were hiding in plain site to become part of my collection. While it is not a menagerie or a pompous exhibition, my collection is how I visualize my memories for all to see in my humble room.

I already have a few posters on the wall: a movie synopsis featuring the glimmering Isabelle Adjani acting in the bone-chilling Possession, a striking Lucian Freud painting, and a print of Marc Chagall's masterpiece, “The Birthday.” Below them lie my postcards, glued to the wall haphazardly with some painter's tape. I tore them from my grandmother’s scrapbooks. Some are eerie birthday cards from the 1970s, and some are photos from a long-gone era where excessiveness and glamour were the standard. 

On the desk lie the books and CDs I found during my previous urban gathering efforts. On the left lies Morrisey’s Bona Drag in a shining jewel case. I found it on a bench, mixed in a garbage bag of old 80s clothing. It was hidden between a stirrup pant and an angular blazer. Besides, it is my most sacred CD, a copy of Haircut 100’s Pelican West Plus. When I was only a child, it was my mom’s favorite to listen to around dinnertime. 

On the far right are my books. So far, I have only read Michel Houellebecq’s Lanzarote and Marcel Proust’s Swanns Way. All of the other books capture the latter’s air. They are reminiscent of a marvelous era now quashed by cynicism and consumerism. I read not to learn nor to entertain my boredom. Instead, I read to see what life is like from another perspective, one that is so drastically different from mine. 

After reading on the bus, I could sense some nearby treasure. Like a pirate with a map, I began to explore the playing grounds. It is important to state that I do have boundaries- I do not steal, nor do I take away anything that seems to still have a purpose. I never aim to cause emotional distress to anybody. I only take what I am allowed to and what is absolutely earmarked for disposal. 

The best places to look are always the little street libraries. They contain the most abundant mixtures of books, CDs, and posters. With those, I take what I can. I try to disregard the sentence carved on their glass doors. It declares that I should only “take something and give something back.” I cannot afford to be generous, especially since people leave what they do not want to use again or what has surpassed its time.

I often finish these trips after checking nearby parks or when my side bag is too heavy to carry. This time, I ran home quickly and threw my findings on the bed. After the sunset, I turned on my candle, sat on the bed, and went through everything. It was another successful catch.

(Original photo)

[thesamspot]

Reg's Meaning

Perhaps I should have been more upset, but I really couldn’t be. I mean, here was my grandfather Reg on what was to be his ultimate day, being made to wait. It was deathly ironic. Everything went rather smoothly in the morning; my grandmother rose early enough to prepare coffee for the palliative care nurses who would soon be by to lift him from his slumber via crane and Uline sling, a WhiteSpot breakfast was delivered through courier service not long after, and after eating what little he could Reg relaxed in his chair listening to albums until lunch. 

That was about when I arrived, after standing on the stoop and inhaling nicotine for half an hour of course. Reg had Oscar Peterson playing away on the stereo when I entered the surprisingly cheery atmosphere. The ‘brown bomber of boogie woogie’ was to shepherd my grandfather into whatever the next stage was; Reg was pretty devoutly agnostic, which likely explains the mysterious amount of respect I hold for existentialists, and skeptics alike. One thing he always made sure to imprint upon me was the bible, but not in the religious sense. The bible, according to Reg, was simply a beautiful tale, and, just like any other book or novel, it had some universal meanings that could be applied to life in many instances. It meant a lot to him, specifically his own grandfather’s Masonic bible which he had kept by his side these many years to study, if only to feel closer to a man he could never again talk to. But, Mick Herron’s series of British spy thrillers “Slough House” meant just as much to Reg, and I always liked that. He just found the art of storytelling so beautiful, be it the alleged words of the lord or a group of misfit intelligence agents. 

So, as the three of us waited for the man with the cyanide to arrive, my grandfather picked up a doorstopper from his side table: American Prometheus – the triumph and tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer. Reg held the book in his feeble hands and flipped through it for several minutes, until he came across a bookmark, not fifty pages from the end. Reg stopped at the bookmark, running his fingers along the edges of its blue paper frame for a moment, when his eyes suddenly appeared as though they had been knocked forward some millennia and witnessed the heat death of the universe. Seeing him frozen, lacking excitement regarding his own mortality for the first time in months, was scary. There is no other way to put it. The given context of impending doom was impossible to ignore as Reg realized there were things he still wanted to do. 

“I was hoping to finish this,” he said, adjusting his eyelids, “and see the movie. Did you see the movie?” He turned to me, and I crumbled with a knock at the door.

*All images AI generated through: https://www.bing.com/images/create?FORM=GENILP

[joshpsj]

The air was thick, tents were scattered amidst the mud and dirt, and soldiers were crouched in trenches, eating their meals. The food wasn't great, just a lousy mess of potatoes and ham. As new recruits, the brothers met their team as they ate.

One of the senior soldiers advised them, "Always have your helmets on. Soldiers often die without them."

Suddenly, missiles struck the soil and chaos erupted. Shells hit the floor, throwing up plumes of dust and debris. The ground shook with the impact, and a deafening explosion echoed across the battlefield. Men shouted for their lives and missiles whistled in all directions. The noise was overwhelming, a deafening roar that made it impossible to hear anything else. The soldiers scrambled for cover, diving into trenches and ducking behind barricades. The brothers stumbled through the mud, their hearts pounding with fear as they tried to find a place to hide. One of the missiles lands beside the brothers, and blasts them away like leaves. 

"Ted, are you okay?!" Howard yells, as he struggles to get up. 

Ted, unable to reply, only winces in pain and gasps for air.

From the shock of it all, Ted soon had a heart attack. Howard, in a state of panic, carries his brother into cover. 

- moments later -

The two brothers survived the attack, but not without scars. Covered in mud and blood, with white eyes staring out from their faces, they were a far cry from the men who had joined the military just a short while ago. 

After the attack, Howard grew concerned about Ted's ability to adapt to the war environment, especially because of his heart condition. He wanted to protect Ted at all costs. Howard went to his commander's tent to beg for Ted's release.

"Please, sir, my brother is unfit for war. He has a heart condition and he needs to support our mother," Howard pleaded.

The commander scoffed at his attempt. He picked up a clipboard and started listing off names, “Brock Hendricks, arthritis, Daniel Drysdale, epilepsy, Armeen Sadigpour, pneumonia”, he slammed the clipboard on his desk. "Should I send all these soldiers home too?!" he yelled. "Before asking the country to do things for you, do something for the country first."

Howard walked out of the tent frustrated but with a realization that there was only one way to protect his brother. To make an impression on the military team so that he could ask for his brother's release.

[daihyyy]

Miss.dirty face (Part 2)

As soon as I approached the path , I felt a person following behind me. If it was just an ordinary person, he wouldn't be able to cover his footsteps. The surrounding area was so dark and quiet, it was the perfect place for a murder to take place. At that moment, I felt I was screwed. If I was really killed, would I be on the news? After all, I'm an actor with ten years in the industry. Yes, I was an actor, but a failure who hadn't played a leading role in ten years. But I had just gotten a relatively important role this time, and I would be too unlucky to be murdered at this time, so I must live. I wasn't sure what the man behind me was up to, I just knew I had to meet his demands in order to survive. From the time I started falling down on the ground, all the crying, storytelling and so on after that was just to lower this man's guard. I hid my fears and started playing the role of a naive and stupid drunk girl. Fortunately, I succeeded. When I stood under the streetlight and made sure that the man's back was completely out of my sight, my feet nearly lost their strength because they were trembling. I didn't dare to stay a moment longer and ran back home as fast as I could. But I never dreamed that the next day, the man actually reappeared in front of me. I went downstairs to buy breakfast like I always do, but I saw him standing not far away watching me. I was followed by him. This man didn't hurt me, he just appeared wherever I appeared. He went to breakfast with me, went to the movies with me, just like an infatuated suitor. He believed the drunk woman's words "you being in front of me gives me warmth", but he did not know that the real me was not the drunk woman he liked at all. He fell in love with a person who did not exist.

When I was terrified and worried by the presence of this man, the director suddenly informed me that the role that had belonged to me had been replaced by another actor of greater fame.

I stood motionless in the film site, refusing to leave no matter how much the staff persuaded me until the director called for some security guards to take me out. In fact, I had experienced this kind of thing countless times before, and each time I had endured it silently. But this time, even if I became a joke of the crowd, I did not want to compromise.

In one night, I lost the reason to support myself to live. My world was raining heavily from then on, and wherever I fled to, I was drowned in despair. When the man appeared in front of me again, I finally stopped running away. I ran up and grabbed him by the collar and said, "Don't you like me? Then you help me kill someone." The man stood still and did not answer me. I sneered and said, " Loser, you couldn't have done it that night even if I wasn't acting."" "Acting?" The man asked incredulously. "I knew you were going to kill me that day, that's why I put on a show to survive. Everything I said to you that night was a lie, but you actually believed it, were you too stupid or was my acting too good?" I did my best to mock him. But instead of getting angry as I thought , the man whispered, "I can help you kill the director." I froze. "The condition is that you have to act Miss.dirty face again the other night.”

[vivaantheblaze]

All By Myself (Part 1)

Vivaan, Age 11

As far as I can remember, I have always lived with my dad. It has always just been the two of us and no one else. I never managed to keep my friends from school for more than a week, but why would I have to? I had my dad and that’s all I would ever need.

I always wanted to grow up to be just like him, he was the most kind, gentle and generous man. I copied all of his little mannerisms and looked like a tiny version of him. Everything I had learned I had learned from him. Sometimes I felt alone, not truly knowing anyone else, but it was fine as we were both alone together.

One day we were both on a walk in the city to go and buy some groceries. Something didn’t feel right that day, a chill ran down my spine as we left the house. As we entered downtown, I felt something eerie. I could feel someone watching us. I turned around and saw a young man in the shadows watching us.

I stared at him for a couple seconds until dad turned around too after noticing me. They seemed to lock eyes for a moment before the man scurried away. We continued walking towards the grocery store. Right before we went in, we heard a bloodcurdling scream from a small dark alleyway next to us. I looked at dad who had a weird expression on his face, almost as if he recognized that scream.

He turned to me and told me he was going to go check it out. I begged him not to, the eerie feeling from that morning had by now transformed into a looming sense of dread. He told me that he had to do this and he was sorry. There was a look of understanding and acceptance on his face. I just could not understand why he couldn’t ignore this. He tells me to wait there and heads on in into the alley.

A few seconds pass or a couple hours pass, I couldn’t tell. It seemed like forever waiting there until I finally heard the sound I dreaded. *BANG*. A gunshot echoed the streets. I ran into the alley, disregarding any care for my safety to find him. I see him collapsed on the ground bleeding out. I saw a gun fallen a few inches away from his hand. Unable to think straight, I just picked up the gun and ran away while crying. I was now all alone.

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Video by: Anna Freud NCCF on Youtube

Artwork by: DonnaBellas on Pinterest

[nowordsareenough]

Together (Pt. 2)

"Oh… My gosh…" Silence filled the room as we stared into the document that our future depended on. "Anna… You got in. YOU GOT IN!" Jinny screamed as she jumped up and down while tears were rolling down her pale and delicate face. "I can't believe it…" I stuttered as I tried my best to hold back my tears.

"Congratulations, Anna, Min, Ian, Jane, and Song… You guys will be our final members. As for the rest of you, we will get in touch with you guys shortly," Mr. Kim silently said as he looked at us. "Congrats, guys," another trainee said as she wiped her tears. After what seemed like forever, I could recollect my thoughts and think straight. I looked at Jinny as she continued to cry with a smile on her face. It was strange. I didn't know what to say. While thankful for the opportunity, I had to face another goodbye with a person I adored. While Jinny may have been a trainee friend ever since I joined the company, she was the little sister I never had. From crying to sleep for countless days and nights to sneakily eating snacks between practices, we were together in all situations. Don't get me wrong, I loved all of the girls equally, and we all tried our best despite how angry, tired, and mad we were at the lifestyle we had to go through. However, no words could fully fathom the way I loved Jinny.

"I'm sorry to interrupt. But Mr. Kang and the other managers and teammates will like to meet the debut group. Practice group, you guys could wait in this room a bit longer, and Mr. Park and I will talk to you guys about what we're going to do with you guys," Mr. Kim said in a quiet but firm voice. All the debut group girls wiped their tears as they were still in shock from the sudden news. As for myself, no matter how hard I tried, the tears wouldn't stop coming out until I reached our CEO, Mr. Kang's room. "Anna... You got in. YOU GOT IN!" Jinny screamed as she jumped up and down screaming while tears were rolling down her pale and delicate face.

"I can't believe it..." I stuttered as I tried my best to hold back my tears. "Congratulations, Anna, Min, Ian, Jane, and Song... You guys will be our final members. As for the rest of you, we will get in touch with you guys shortly," Mr. Kim silently said as he looked at all of us. "Congrats guys," another trainee said as she wiped her tears. After what seemed like forever, I was able to re-collect my thoughts and think straight. I looked at Jinny as she continued to cry with a smile on her face. It was strange. I didn't know what to say. While I was thankful for the opportunity, I had to face another goodbye with a person I adored so much.

While Jinny may have been a trainee friend ever since I joined the company, she was the little sister I never had. From crying to sleep for countless days and nights, to sneakily eating snacks between practices, we were together in all of the situations. Don't get me wrong, I loved all of the girls equally, and we all tried our best despite how angry, tired, and mad we were at the lifestyle we had to go through. However, no words could fully fathom the way I loved Jinny. "I'm sorry to interrupt. But Mr. Kang and the other managers and teammates will like to meet the debut group. Practice group, you guys could wait in this room a bit longer and Mr. Park and I will talk to you guys about what we're going to do with you guys," Mr. Kim said in a quiet but firm voice.

All the debut group girls wiped their tears as they were still in shock from the sudden news. As for myself, no matter how hard I tried, the tears wouldn't stop coming out until I reached our CEO, Mr. Kang's room.

The door flung opened as Mrs. Chun greeted us with a warm smile. "Congrats, girls. You guys did it," she squealed. As we entered the room, our whole company's staff was there hollering and congratulating us. As for Mr. Kang, he was in the center holding a big file. "After much thought and debate, we have decided to launch you as our final members for this long-awaited girl group. As much as this is our first group, we have put in a lot of effort. We're going to talk about a couple of things, and then we're going to do a contract signing tomorrow since everyone except Anna is a minor, which means I need your parents to come in tomorrow," he calmly said with a smile. "All of you may leave, except for Anna," he said while turning his gaze to me. "Oh no…" I screamed internally in my head.