Not All Heroes Wear Capes
About forty years ago. I had a holiday hitch-hiking around Ireland. It took me hours to get a lift out of Dublin – but that was the exception. For the…
Marmalade
‘I got the gig. At Comedy Queens.’ ‘That’s fantastic Ryan. So why the worried look?’ ‘It’s on Friday. I’m not sure I’m ready.’ ‘Honestly darling. You’ll smash it.’ ‘Hrmm.’ ‘Come…
Odd Socks
The storm started at sea. A little wind, lifting a little wave. Unnoticed. Unremarkable. Dave couldn’t find his other sock. Couldn’t find any of his other socks. He held at…
Keeper of the Keys
Martin couldn’t believe he’d found it. Here in his own town, squashed between a baker and a bank. He watched from across the street as the man behind the counter…
The Peloton
Connor instinctively flinched as the first rays of sunshine struck. He didn’t need to worry. The Isle of Hull was fully shielded behind the massive glass filter-wall. He watched as…
None
Sarah ignored her phone and continued painting another Christmas card. It rang again. It was Eddie. He rang again. And again. She placed her loaded brush on her palette-board plate…
The Lily Flower
Lily had been looking forward to starting school. Her new mum and dad had told her how good it would be. She would learn how to get strong roots, learn…
The Beach Hut
It was further than she expected. Her large backpack weighed on her shoulders. Maggie laughed at herself. She looked like a long-distance walker but she was only walking ten minutes…
The Park Avenue War
Mathew King was the first casualty of war. He got shot in the back of the head. It was Uncle Robert’s fault. He was a favourite uncle, mainly because of…
Man and the Cow
The cow was reluctant to enter the darkness. The trees looked wrong and stretched so far into the sky that they disappeared into the clouds. No sunlight reached the forest…
The Temple of the Seven Songs
I bet you haven’t heard of the Temple of the Seven Songs. That’s my doing. I’ve written hundreds of online reviews of the place and never given it more than…
Unfiltered
Politics Live rarely had more than a million viewers and the latest programme was no exception even though it featured the Prime Minister. It covered all the usual subjects with…
Accept Charlie
I was grateful for the interruption. I’d been stuck for hours and was beginning to wonder if there really was better way to market tampons. I could see that there…
Dead as a Dodo
“What’s happening?” “It’s still not doing anything.” “Have you clicked on it?” “Course I have. It’s just whirling round. I think the wifi must be down.” “The egg is about…
The lily pond
Patches of sweat stuck Jon’s t-shirt to his chest. He swung the sledge hammer and knocked down a few more bricks. ‘God it’s hot. Maybe you should make the windows…
Final Notification
His phone beeped. The dishwasher had finished and wanted emptying. He marked the message as read and went back to his spreadsheet. He needed to complete it by four. His…
The door
You shouldn’t have a door like that in a place like this. It should lead you into a gallery, selling colourful paintings of islands and sailing boats on a beautifully…
The impossible chord
His casual confidence caused people to move out of his way even before they noticed his size or the bag slung over his back. He wasn’t aggressive, or threatening, but…
Taken for a ride
Tom was pleased to see the official rickshaw stand. He’d read about unlicensed rickshaws overcharging, or worse... You're going to have to work a little harder to read this story.…
One good turn
“No. Honest. I’ve had such a shit day. Doing this will mean there’s been one good thing in it.” Before Mark had time to reply the man had tapped his…
The elephant tree
I launch myself at the branch. My arms tightly embrace it and I feel the rough bark cutting into my forearms. My legs fall away from the trunk and pedal…
The Butterfly effect
At the very last minute he saw the butterfly on the pavement and managed to divert his foot to the side. Unfortunately the butterfly saw his foot descending in a…
Happy Bloody Birthday
It’s not my birthday yet, and I’m not happy. It’s all Boris’s fault. He’s right that people should wash their hands but why did he have to choose that song.…
The people collector
“But that’s not how I want to spend the bank holiday.” “It’ll be all right.” You looked at me with a slightly raised eyebrow. “It will. I bet there’ll be…
Professor Magnus
“He always lands on his feet.” “That’s not true. He always lands on someone else’s feet.” They laughed, but not as much as they would have, if it hadn’t been…
Meraki
Calvin woke early and started plotting his way through the day ahead. He’d already planned it. Everything was ready but experience told him that things wouldn’t go exactly as written…
Play time
Dad almost crushed Batman beneath his size ten boot, but managed to divert his foot at the last moment. “Damn it. Not on the stairs Sammy. Why can’t you play…
Hoodie
Everything went dark. The television turned off, the lights blacked out. The only illumination was from Ruby’s mobile where it lit up her face. “Damn. Where’s a torch?” said mum.…
One boy and the sea
The bright sun reflected off the wet sand and dazzled him as he stood before the calm sea. He held his hand up, covering the sun, and allowing him to…
Raising the barn
Paul was there almost every day. This decrepit oversized shed would become his inheritance and he wanted his parents to remember that. Scott didn’t come often but when he did…
Flying with condors
“Checks” Rob held his hand up with five fingers extended. As Dave made each check he lowered one finger. “Helmet. Harness. Risers. Wind. Traffic.” With all the checks completed Rob…
Recipe for success
She swore at the prime minister who had just announced a covid lockdown. Like many people she’d been obsessed with the covid data and knew that lockdown made sense, but…
The queen’s trouble
It was all a blur. One minute she was surrounded by ladies-in-waiting, the next she was flying through the countryside in a tiny carriage alone with her baby daughter and…
Do you love me?
“Do you actually love me?” He hesitated and she took that as an answer without waiting to hear what he had to say. It was raining, he was cold and…
The story-teller
The story-teller arrived by magic. At least that’s what she told everyone who came to listen. At first that was very few people. Her show wasn’t attractive. She had no…
Wings of an angel
Two angels watched the man as he trudged through the dark streets. “Tell me,” said the Elder. “What do you see?” The younger angel studied the man. “I see sadness.”…
The last day of school
Alice looked at the haul of presents spread across her desk. It didn’t seem much of a reward for another year of her life. She’d always imagined that at the…
Time of life
George toasted himself with orange juice. “Happy Birthday.” He derived a huge amount of childish pleasure in picking out two of his favourite mini cereal boxes from the selection pack.…
Prize blooms
“Betty, they’ve done it again. Look, over in that corner.” In front of the fence was a riot of colour, dominated by the yellow of daffodils. Betty looked where Mark…
The black bears
Once there was a black bear who had the best territory in the forest, and the best ideas too. Each day he would sit in a clearing under a giant…
A blank canvas
Jack didn’t know what to paint. He’d applied the magic white undercoat like the man in the video suggested. Ideas usually flowed with the paint but not this time. The…
The writing desk
Charles Dickens had one. It’s made of mahogany. That’s about the only carpentry detail they tell you. I couldn’t believe the drivel in the museum, “The back shelf was adorned…
Reckoning
The sculpture tumbled to the wooden floor. One leg snapped at the knee and pinged against the skirting board. The neck severed and the horse’s head flew across the hallway…
Angels watching over me
“They can’t do that?” “What?” “They’re pulling the church down.” “Yeah. Right.” Liam opened the curtains and looked out at the Fenny Church of our Lady. “Don’t worry Bridgette. It’s…
The Orator
“I’ve been selected. Tommy. Tommy. Look.” Alison held out her phone. Tommy saw the distinctive orange lettering on a teal background marching across the screen and displaying one of the…
Mudita
Owen met Serena over a potter’s wheel. It wasn’t like the film Ghost. Although it was equally messy there was no romantic spark and Owen stayed well back from the…
A marriage made in heaven
Meeting typescript: recorded by Archangel Pravuil, grand scribe and record-keeper for the AlmightyLanguage: many concepts cannot accurately, or even remotely, be translated from Angelic to English, for example English has…
Hummingbirds don’t fly
Hummingbirds don’t fly. Not as kite’s anyway. It seems that flapping wings are essential. I saw a video on the internet of a remote control flapping bird. I’d love to…
Elements of joy
There was nothing special about Tuesday morning but Tom was seeing the world like he’d never seen it before. Everything looked and felt different, ever since he’d survived the incident…
Beyond Acceptance
Six months ago the old school was knocked down. Carla smiled every day at the sun that now reached her windows. Her house was a back-to-back. Dense terrace housing with…