Fictive Dream
Five Forbidden Friends
Who are we when our life doesn’t allow us to let anyone get close? It’s the question that sparked my flash fiction “Five Forbidden Friends.”
Thank you, Fictive Dream (and editor Laura Black), for publishing my story and for pairing it with the gorgeous artwork of George Saru, entitled “Golden People.”
An excerpt
The gifts lie carefully wrapped and labeled on the glass side table like museum items on display. Anabel will receive my emerald ring; with her trust-me face, she extracted the true story from me of how my grandmother swallowed that ring in a jewelry store and used it, cleaned of shit, to purchase a boat ticket and escape the war. Lexi, my book club pal, will get my mom’s fake pharmacy diploma, and her perfectionist’s eyes will spot the spelling mistake my mom’s employers missed. For Femke, I packed the blond wig that she’d spied on my head when we ran into each other unexpectedly near the gym where we usually hung out and that had made her suspicious of me for a while; it might soothe her anxiety to know she wasn’t paranoid in that case. Kes will delight in the secret pockets of my long leather coat to smuggle snacks into the art cinema where we first met. And Malou will own the calligraphy pen I used to practice my signatures; she runs the health food store where I buy my raw cacao, and with her sixth chakra so beautifully balanced, she will feel what I’ve been up to just by holding the Lamy in her hand.
Curious how it ends? Please read the full story on Fictive Dream.
Looking for more? Here’s a selection of my published short fiction and nonfiction online.
