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The Cultivator
By, Melissa Brooks 7:02 PM. Polly peered at the tiny, neon green numbers on the microwave, staring intensely at the numbers as if she were trying to change them with her mind. 7:08 PM. Still too early. Her gaze trickled down as she skated her fingers across the smooth, icy surface of the grey marble […]
New Flesh
The weekend after Jon had broken free of unemployment, his car hit a body. He hadn’t been the one to do it, but the fingerprints were scuffed while he went to make the hole. It was hard to believe a man who hadn’t killed someone had any reason to prepare a grave. He was alone […]
Overachieving Student Underachieving at Self-Love
By Bryanna Tersigni Julie jumps off of her bed and gently smooths over the indent she just made. She walks over to her crystal clear mirror and stares at her reflection. Her eyes flutter to her hair as she combs her fingers through. “Perfect,” Julie declares as she smirks. She glances at her phone; 5:20 […]
The Demon’s Nest
The Adventures of Valery Callaghan Part 3 By, Shay Maniscalco Valery watched in terror as the man stalked toward her and Gavin. It was impossible to see his face in the low light, but she could see his eyes and was convinced it was the demon. He had come to collect the little flies that […]
Language and Our Food
By, Lobsang Dolma I come from a family of meat lovers. I have only seen them actively refuse a meat dish for a vegetarian substitute once. We were passing through a village in India, and we had stopped at a restaurant for lunch. My family and I were ready to order our favorite meat dishes […]
Breaking and Entering
By, Britney Nam
Levi leaned over from his not-so-sturdy position and peered over the thick leaves down at the daunting twenty-foot drop. “Nope, nope, nope,” Levi whispered to himself as he scrambled backward until his back crashed against the rough bark, and he quickly flung his arms behind him to hold onto the only thing keeping him from becoming a bloodstain on the ground. Consciously reminding himself to breathe, he closed his eyes and rested his head against the tree in an attempt to slow his erratic breathing and calm his pounding heart.
Peas in a Pod
By, Patricia Paulynn Mallari 07:38 I arrived at the vaccination point of distribution (POD) at 07:00 sharp. I signed in, grabbed breakfast, and attended whatever was left of the briefing (of course I was late). I also made sure to greet my supervisor before heading over to the registration area. Right now, I’m waiting for […]
The Eyes that Stray
By, Shay Maniscalco When you take a stroll down Moriches Lane, you are surrounded by the trees. The trees are old, and they are wise, but not so sympathetic. While you pass, they laugh at you but never say a word. You watch them as you go, wondering why they look so gnarled, and you may […]
We Were Racist
By, Scott MacKenzie We were racist. Some still are. How did I escape the fear, the insecurity, the fragile illusive strength in numbers? The only way to belong was to not be the “other.” It was a shifting pattern; you had to be ever watchful. It took me 30 years of long, slow desertion. To […]
Coronavirus: From the Inside
By, Sai Chaddha
March 8th. What started out as a normal weekend in early March 2020… ended up being the last normal weekend I can recall. It was Sunday night, and my thoughts were filled with getting this week to come over with. I lived conveniently close to Stony Brook’s campus, meaning I could go home every once in a while whenever I needed a break. Spring break was after this week and I couldn’t have been more excited. I received two Facetime calls that day: one to tell me that our high school friend group is going to Buffalo over Spring break, another to tell me my best friend is coming to visit this Thursday. It seemed like I was going to have the best time of my life, yet little did I know everything would change in a flash.