At an old-fashioned poetry reading the audience is polite even when the poetry sucks. At a slam, crowds sometimes hiss and boo. Things aren’t quite that bad tonight, but I’m not surprised when my name is not one of the four second-round winners. Ebony advances and so does a skinny guy called Mike...
We sat close to Joshua near one of several fires the group had built in a clearing. The men’s faces glowed from the warmth of the firelight as they chatted and drank. “Do you suppose God notices when men treat their animals bad?” Bart asked me quietly. In the near dark, I shrugged, then stiffened...
The chestnut mare galloped across the flats outside Salt Lake City. “Go!” I pressed my heels to her sides, wrapped my fingers in her wild tangle of mane, and urged her on, my own hair whipping about my face. I laughed, thinking of the warm biscuits and gravy Ma would have ready when I got home. I...
Someone is singing out in the aisle. “Hi, guys!” Pippa says from the doorway. “Got any work for me?” “Isn’t it a school day for you?” Ryan asks. “Isn’t it a school day for you?” she shoots back. “We have hours to go before normal humans start their days,” Ryan says. “Exactly. The sale’s coming up...
“Spencer—where’s your head?” Grandma glares at me. “I asked if you wanted another spud.” “Sorry. Yeah.” “Yeah?” “Yes, please.” Grandma drops the baked potato onto my plate. “What’s on your mind?” Em. Em. Em. I’m not about to tell my grandmother that I can’t get a girl out of my mind. Ever since t...