Cathryn Grant's Blog, page 3

1-Minute Fiction: Safe

Everyone hated wearing the masks, but it was necessary, for now. And truthfully, she didn’t resent the discomfort as much as others did.

For her, there was another benefit—along with her sunglasses and new hair color, he would never recognize her. She was finally safe.

1-Minute Fiction: The Chair

The chair was empty.

But she always saw him sitting there.

1-Minute Fiction: Passing Thoughts

Her: Why is he looking at me like that?

Him: Smile, bitch. Would it really kill you to admit I exist?

Her: If I smile, he’ll think it’s an invitation.

Him: If you smile, I won’t do it. They’ll all be allowed to live.

Her: Maybe he’s just…lonely?

Him: I can pull the trigger or not. Your call.

As they passed by each other, she offered a hesitant smile.

A moment later, she’d forgotten all about him.

1-Minute Fiction: Finesse Required

She inserted the weeding tool into the soil. Carefully, she worked the metal prong around the roots, pushing deeper. When she thought she’d found the largest part of the root, she grasped the weed and pulled. All that was in her hand were torn bits of stem and leaves. The root taunted her from deep in the earth, working its way into every corner of her life.

1-Minute Fiction: Do Try

When the woman smiled, her teeth were individually perfect, but the smile overall was off-balance. “I prefer you call me mother-in-love.”

Tami’s throat tightened. Her neck stiffened, refusing to allow her head to nod politely of its own volition.

“Love my son like I do and we’ll get along just fine.”

Tami thought her breathing might stop entirely.

The woman’s smile disappeared. “Of course that’s impossible, but do try. You should try.”

1-Minute Fiction: Going Dark

She stepped outside, squinting, then waving to her neighbor who stood bathed in the sunlight

falling across the pavement.

The ping of a notification diverted her. There were three Instagram updates. A text. Four tweets.

Putting the phone in her pocket, notifications dismissed, she crossed the street.

The two of them spoke. They laughed. They hugged. They danced.

The phone in her pocket went dark.

1-Minute Fiction: The Tasting

A small pour from each bottle. Flowery words that sounded the same after a while, disconnected from the taste on her tongue.

When they walked out into the afternoon sun, they carried a box of wine bottles, uncertain how they differed from one another.

The tasting at home would be a rediscovery, followed by her fury at the money spent on pretension.

Novel Excerpt: The Guest

Other girls got bullied, not her.

She was not going to be afraid walking alone at night. She was strong and resourceful and not at all worried. People, bullies especially, smell fear. No one would sense an ounce of fear coming off of her carefully made-up skin or her long, bronze-streaked hair.

The streetlight cast a light on the pavement that made it look as if it were covered in a sheen of ice. Behind her, the sound of footsteps emerged from the darkness. She walked faster, taking a deep b...

Novel Excerpt: The Woman In the Taxi

Four million dollars.

The number floated through my mind, drowning out the pounding notes of Chopin that filled my ears while I ran. The number woke me every morning. It skittered across my computer screen in ghost letters when I was at work. It had hugged my brain during most of the fourteen-hour flight home from visiting Tess in Australia.

Id never put a number around my desire to have a life of freedom, a life that wasnt handicapped by thoughts of what I could and could not afford. Id...

Going Dark

She stepped outside, squinting, then waving to her neighbor who stood bathed in the sunlight falling across the pavement. The ping of a notification diverted her. There were three Instagram updates. A text. Four tweets. Putting the phone in her pocket, notifications dismissed, she crossed the street. The two of them spoke. They laughed. They hugged. They danced. The phone in her pocket went dark.