M.K. Lee's Blog: Telling Tales, page 2

Smile

There’s something about him that’s not as it should be.

At first glance, he seems fine; untameable sticky-out hair, big, pale green eyes that look open and honest.

It’s the smile that doesn’t seem right. Not quite reaching the eyes, it appears as though it were a misplaced sticker over something you were never meant to see. The edges, ominous, protruding from underneath.

The steamed mirror reflects predator; eyes enticing in, smile seductive, poised to strike whenever he chooses.

You...

Move

© M K Lee

The Only Thing That Ever Made Sense

Navy vet Aiden Cadotte might just be firefighter Beto Cepeda’s undoing. Beto thought he had left him in the past, both on the joint base they operated from in Iraq and in the parts of himself Beto has tried to deny. But when Aiden shows up while Beto is on a call with his crew, Beto is transported back to a time when he wanted things from Aiden he could never let himself have. What is stopping him from having those things now?

Beto ...

Shadow

Out of the corner of his eye, Declan sees it; a small, prowling black shape slinking across the floor in approach. Declan keeps his focus on the laptop screen in front of him determined not to show his awareness, just like he does with his own cat, Smudge, when he wants to practice stalking. This thing is even more skittish than Smudge is, which Declan hadn’t thought possible.

There definitely is a second cat here. There has to be. He’s lost count of how many times he’s caught a tail twit...

Hopeless

Every day is a direct reminder
That no matter the efforts of sane,
Rational,
Qualified voices,
Those with ignorance
Will still choose to elect a figure
Whose only interest is in perpetual personal gain.

© M K Lee

Scurrying

The scurrying sound starts on a cold Sunday evening, when she’s comfortably slouched on the sofa and on a second glass of wine. Her gaze lifts to the ceiling unworried; this is a top floor flat with the only thing above it an unused attic. They get the occasional bird, and bat, and who knows what other wildlife half the time.

She continues to watch the ceiling as the burrowing sound continues, picturing a Labrador happily digging a hole in the park at the bottom of the road. She knows it’...

Mauerbauertraurigkeit

The word need is a scary one. For me too.
To hear, to know, to think, to say.
It’s one I’d never willingly force on you,
No matter how much I need you to stay.

But when it gets dark, and the storm comes in,
And the umbrella I hold is broken and torn,
I never know quite when the thunder begins
If I want to be near you, or alone to mourn.

On mourning days, all I can be is alone,
Even though these days are full of nothing but hate.
I need solace and silence, and somewhere to roam,
From the ri...

Memory

Cold, dark stone reveals
Memories long forgotten
As carved eyes observe

© M K Lee

Stinging Nettles

When weeding stinging nettles,
It’s best to approach it with the acceptance
That no matter what you do, you’re going to get stung.
No matter the thickness of the glove,
The swiftness of your wrist
Or the air in your lungs,
Your skin will come alive in a cacophony of colourful language,
Biting barbs,
And bulbous blisters.
Long after you have pulled them out by root,
Soil clinging to their lifelines as though sheer will will keep them living,
The pain, on fingers, arms and thighs will shoot
Up and...

Beware

There’s no need for technology to know that he is there.
Even in this pitched darkness, you are ensnared in his stare.
When they warned this place was haunted maybe you should have had a care,
But then, you always did disdain at those who cautioned: beware.

You moved into this old house and replaced corroded locks.
You blamed the age and creaking wood for all those unknown knocks.
Whispering scorned, footsteps dismissed, unsettled feelings mocked
Until you woke from slumber, startled by a chair...

Still

Stillness is the wish

The pause in the in between

Chaos made tranquil

© M K Lee