Fiction

Melatonin

a story by Jd Hamilton

Brett goes to war and comes back as a folded flag. There’s a check too, for a little over $38,000. Brett’s life insurance after government taxes. Dad puts that money in the bank and says it’s for my college fund. Coming home early from school one day I watch Mom through the kitchen window cut the flag to pieces. Shreds of red, white, and blue scattered about the linoleum. »

Haruki Marukami’s “Eater of Clothes”

A story by Devin Walsh
Arthur had planned a feast for Hannah’s homecoming and so had splurged at the grocery store. They’d begin with a spread of French cheeses, Spanish salami and gluten-free crackers. He would recommend a sprightly white: she would take a delicate sip of his and opt for the bloodiest red available,. »

Slip

a story by Jeremy Garrett

The darkroom reeked of tobacco. Yesterday had been Andrew’s turn to empty the fix trays and banish the glossies to the drying cabinets for the night, so it must have been the ghost of his cigarettes the teacher smelled. Paul didn’t think to reprimand his student. Mingled with the chemical fumes, the tobacco scent took him back to his own nights of afterhours chain-smoking in his art school. »

Our Best of the Web Nominations

The Splinter Generation is pleased to announce our Best of the Web Nominations for the last year. A big thanks to all our contributors, and a special congratulations to Amber Sparks, LaToya Jordan, and Timothy Marsh!

We’re going to take a well deserved break until the New Year, though we may be posting a bit here and there.. »

Gone and Gone Already

Fiction by Amber Sparks

Kay keeps lists of everything; it’s her illness. So when she told me she has a List of Attempted Suicides, I wasn’t surprised.. »

NO MORE UGLY SURPRISES™

Fiction by Xenia Schiller

No More Ugly Surprises™ asks the tough questions that other matchmakers never even consider. At No More Ugly Surprises™, we pride ourselves on being the only dating service in the world that provides full disclosure to our clients.. »

Sarah’s Email Reply After I Dumped Her Via Email

I can’t believe I thought you were cute telling me you stuttered. We’d been going out for a month. You acted like you were letting me in on a secret. You acted like you were letting me in on a secret. You must have forgotten trying to say your name to my Uncle Jack. He gave me grief about it for weeks, how you looked at the ceiling and bit your lip.. »

States of Water

When Zooey says I do, I close my eyes and watch dark clouds drift across my eyelids. On the sidelines in my sky blue dress, I clutch my bouquet of tulips, my hands beginning to sweat. I wish I could see her face, but I’m confronted instead with the elegant knot of her hair, remembering how I braided it for years, all our sleepover nights. A few curls fall on her neck and blow slightly toward me in a goodbye wave. . »

Swamp Cowboy

Last call brings out all the old hounds. Grey haired men in wifebeaters, bulging guts and speedos appear like cockroaches and try to snatch up the so called “cute ones” who are too drunk to drive home. I’m thirty-five, so neither young or old pay attention to me.. »

The Music Of Psychology And The Schizophrenic

Fiction by Shome Dasgupta

Did you know? Did you know that he and he took out my spinal chord and used it as a piano-. »

The Death of Kelsey Moore

Fiction by Ryan Napier

PLANT CITY—Amid ongoing legal battles, Kayleigh Moore will give her first live, televised interview on The Oprah Winfrey Show Friday, more than a year after the disappearance of her daughter Kelsey made national headlines. The special episode will air tomorrow at 4pm on WFLA-TV Newschannel 8, the Tribune’s sister. »

Duality

Fiction by Rae Beatrice Nelson

I ran my hand down her ribcage that night. I counted the vertebrae in her spine, there were too many. Collarbones begged to be forced through, to give her some blood for her efforts. »