Contemporary Literary - Stories

I remember my life now as if I'm looking out a window. Streaks of my life flash by me. I try to open the window and catch them, but the window won't open. So, I sit and watch them, and I wonder did they really happen or was it just a dream? Take a journey back in time as 78-year-old Phil Reid relates his life experiences to a younger man.

Charlie and Michael Baxter lost their father at a young age. They have been brought up by a hard-working mother who loved and treasured her boys. Unfortunately, she passed away before they finished college and through no fault of their own, they found themselves homeless. This is their story.

This fictional story is set in Manchester, England. The locations are real and existed in the recent past where this story is set, many of the locations still exist and can be visited. All characters are fictional and do not exist, any similarity to any person living or deceased is purely coincidental.

14-year-old Bryan Padilla is caught between worlds he doesn't feel connected to. Having been abandoned by their birth parents at a young age, Bryan and his younger brother, Caleb, were adopted by a family friend, Diego Padilla, and raised in a culture not of their own. Though it is the only life Caleb has ever known, Bryan inwardly struggles with his feelings about life, death, race and sexuality. Things escalate shortly after the death of his birth mother. Can Bryan come to terms with his situation as a figure from his past tries to upend his entire life?

Newly coming to terms with being gay, following an abusive childhood and a failed relationship with a girlfriend, electrician Keith meets Thomas, who runs a local arts charity. Despite coming from vastly differing backgrounds, the two discover much in common, not least the need to come to terms with complex relationships to their fathers. But they also learn to enjoy exploring life together.

A stranger rides into town on his motorcycle and pulls up in front of the local coffee shop. Once inside, he starts up a conversation with one of the locals.

Many people believe that before you die your life flashes before your eyes, does it? Or is it just a part of our life, you know like special memories, I think that's possible. John is lying in hospital, he is at the end of a long life. As he sleeps he dreams for one last time of some of his special memories. About his car, the perfect car, and how it played a part in a long and beautiful relationship.

The Easiest Thing in the World, and other poems to mark third anniversary of the Pulse attack

**Warning: I don't think these should be read by anyone**

Karma is seen as a powerful thing, we often hear how this affects bad people and bad events. But did you know that karma can also come to those who are good people? Good karma can be more powerful and can come in surprising ways.

Please note that this story has been revised and re-edited to improve the reader's experience. However, the story has not been changed.

A young boy aborts school and walks away from home, fed up with his almost perpetually drunk father and his almost always hysterical mother. He goes to Prague but, being without qualifications, he finds life hard there. His only asset is his astounding, even stunning beauty. But is that a blessing…or is it a curse?

Dedicated to those beautiful boys, who suffer, so that we can have some “fun”.