Stories

Carl Waite goes out for his morning walk in the park, and along the way he passes an old man sitting on a park bench. Since the man looks sad and appears down in the dumps, Carl wishes him Merry Christmas. The old man, who we later learn is Bob Swartz, responds, “What is there to be merry about?” Carl immediately stops so he can find out why the man reacted this way.

Hunter Benjamin is gay and has had a rough time at his school in Texas. Unexpectedly, his father announces he has accepted a new job and the family will be moving to Maryland and explains they will live in an older, remodeled home in the suburbs. Once they get there, Hunter discovers a boy who used to live in the house was killed back in the 1980s and now haunts the property. How will Hunter and his family cope with this situation?

Gavin and Danny Berger are a married couple and want to either foster or adopt a child. When a toddler named Eric is brought to their house to meet them, they instantly fall in love with him. It starts out with them being Foster parents, but eventually they’re able to adopt him. His parents relinquish their parental rights because they’re in prison and he’d be a grown man by the time they got out. It didn’t take long for Gavin, Danny, and Eric to form a very loving family relationship.

Tony and Sean Morgia-Mulligan had been married for quite a few years, but recently they’d lost some items that they felt could never be replaced. One day, a young man named Jeremy Reinhart approached Tony and began chatting with him, and during their conversation Tony learned that Jeremy had a unique ability. In fact, Jeremy might even have a way to make up for their loss, but does it have a chance of working?

This is my entry for the Fall/Winter 2021 anthology, ‘An Unconventional Gift’.

Two high school students run into each other in an unexpected way. What happens when they cross paths the next time may surprise you!

Thinking back upon a Christmas when he didn't receive any presents, a man is determined to make sure that no other child has to go through something similar.

Deputy Anderson is out patrolling the back country roads on Halloween, to make sure the kids have aren’t still out raising hell. That’s when he happens upon a badly beaten Randy Hoover. Who did this and will Randy be ok or not?

Justin Doyle moved to Georgia to find a job, but it’s also where he met his partner, Andrew Livingston. They were doing well until a recession gripped the country and the situation turned bleak, but then a stormy night turned into one they’ll never forget.

A man has reached his senior years and thinks back upon the seasons of his life.

A free-verse poem about a man reflecting upon his life.