The Thing That Betty Has
She asked where the knife was. All he said was, “It’s on the thing that Betty has.” Anytime they had all gotten together for dinner, Betty always talked about…
E. Williams
52 stories written on Ficly, 2009–2014, shared under CC BY-SA 3.0. Their page on ficly.com
I'm Worried About Santa...
I answered the phone and there was heavy breathing. “Santa, is that you again?” There was just some mumbling, but the area code on my phone was definitely the…
William and Jack
William lived in the poor part of town. The houses were peeling from sunburns. The yards were choking on spiky weeds. Shutters hung off the windows drunkenly…
Penny Pockets
Ricky thought he heard a rattle. He looked at his little sister and asked her what she thought it was. “You weren’t supposed to hear that,” she said. He asked…
The Fifth Sign
It’s the fear that strangles his movements and pauses his actions. He gazes past her eyes and watches the people living. They sit and eat dinner, they butter a…
The Fourth Sign
You know what else is primal, she thinks. Eating flesh. A spasm quickens down her spine, electrifying her nerves, and her eyes begin watering again. She dabs…
The Third Sign
“The heart starts to beat something else through the body, other than blood, and it keeps you alive,” he says. “That’s the third and final sign.” He steps…
The Second Sign
“It’s not too late,” Sally says. Her date doesn’t nod and he just stares at her. It is too late. After the spots of blood erupt onto the napkin, or sleeve, or…
The First Sign
Sally’s eyes are red rimmed. She stalls during the conversation. Something comes over her. Her date asks if she’s alright, why she looks so sad. She responds…
More Survivor's Guilt
Another thing that didn’t find it’s way on the monthly statement was the knock on the door. It’s been few a weeks. I just wrote the first check to my lawyer…
The Gala Goes Dark
The lights went out in the large ballroom and a few gasps cried out, grabbing the air and clinging on to people’s skin, erupting goose flesh up and down their…
Sailor, Oh, Sailor!
After three summers, across the solid white quay, the red-haired sailor trudged through the ankle-deep shore back to me. Since his departure, a coastal war…
Anne
She was tired. So tired. Her arms felt like hanging wet rags. Her stomach swished around like a fishbowl half-filled with water. Or acid. She was…
99
Her hand dangled over the balcony, the ring he gave her last Christmas slowly slipping off. She was to meet him at 1024 Riverside, but she was stuck at 99…
The Wrong Twin
After I pulled the trigger, I realized I shot the wrong twin.
My Neighbor's Necklace
The older neighbor sighed. “Dogs like me,” she said. “I’ve never had a problem before.” Are you sure? That’s what I wanted to say. They like you? I could…
The Special Books
Once the ash settled from the explosion, the book store was still intact. I scrambled past the corpses of book spines, opened the door, which fell off its…
Waiting for Godot...and Zombies!
Vladimir: You said he would be here? Estragon: Of course, but where is here, right? Vladimir: I thought here was over there under the tree. Estragon: Ah, yes…
The Girl That No Longer Was
Watching from the shadows, the Girl That No Longer Was watched as the man shoved the piece of paper in his mouth and then pull it out. He struck a match and…
The Pink and Green Ones
The pinks and greens, one night, started tapping on my window. They were mad.