Alayna Cooper

" Beyond that gate, beyond the dirt road and wretched forest, all he could see was white. A bright, warm white that drifted into an earth. No evil, in this place past his imagination. He wondered what it was like out there."

- The Barbershop Quartet that Sings at Midnight, pg.190

She takes my head in her hands, removes it from my shoulders lovingly, and her eyes are teal mist and her wings are that of a sparrow. Free, free, free, she chants, her citrus tongue lapping out like a snake. Free, free, free.

And the arms on my body wave around in joy, for I have had nothing to give her, my wallet was empty. My wallet, in my jeans, on my body that dances without me.

I crack a smile, like a broken egg, sure that what is happening is good, sure that it is right. There is a galaxy in her mouth and she uses it to kiss my forehead, crack my skull. Blood pours out but it is not blood it is thick and gelatinous and the hue of a grapefruit; my skull is not bone but shell; and from my brain pops a tiny baby sparrow.

Free, she chants, as my body claps and dances.

Free, free, free.

- Even My Bones

"It was burning the air. Set ablaze. Scorching. He could smell it, but he didn't look back. His lungs were about to burst, thighs aching from the strain, gold-rimmed glasses shining brilliantly in the light. Melting. And then there was nothing at all."

- Caston Creek

"The tree line, and the brilliant orange light past it, casting red shadows across the plains. There seemed to be nothing beyond it. The shadows stretched and stretched, reaching towards their little car like grasping claws, whispers of ghosts."

- All Hail Sparrow

"Even when I close them, my eyes are still there. Still looking, through my paper-thin eyelids. There is a light, but I do not open them. I smell the beach, and hear the laughter, and feel the sand between my toes. It is a trap. It is a trap because I feel her there, hands wandering down my face and lingering on my neck, as if she might strangle me."

- Celine