Diamond Keener

“Wilting ” by Diamond Keener

Submitted to Contest #279

Content warning: Themes of substance abuse and mental illness.“Just because a dog doesn’t have a soul, that doesn't mean you get to treat it badly. You still pet it, feed it, and take care of it. Isn’t that right Martin?”Simon put out his menthol which was only half smoked and then gave his dog a wink. Atop the empty sardine can with all the other butts, the cigarette sat smoldering. A dog so plump next to a man so withered, they made quite a pair.  Martin did not respond to Simon’s question. Instead he rolled over and showed the ...

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“Roadkill ” by Diamond Keener

Submitted to Contest #250

“Is she dead?”  “She sure is, poor thing. I hate to see that. She shoulda listened to her momma.”  The older girl standing with the bus driver was waiting to get off. The girl's purple backpack had bright chains of beads hanging from it. They made a swishing noise as the bus passed over the bumps along Cherry Street.  It was the first day, so everyone’s clothes, their shoes, their bags, all looked new and uncrumpled. And there was a certain smell in the air inside the classrooms and even now in the old bus. Like a fresh coat ...

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“Denial of Devils” by Diamond Keener

The opening notes of Some Velvet Morning tinkled in from a source that sounded far away. The black cat padded down the long dingy bar and silently leaped to the sliding feet of his owner. There was something strange about the cat even before he uttered a word. And I didn’t remember the cat being at the play, no one mentioned it, and they invariably would have. But then again, I didn’t remember walking into the bar either. Or why we had chosen it. The cat’s golden eyes were round and shining. Saucers that made him look like more of a cartoon ...

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“Andy's Journal” by Diamond Keener

Submitted to Contest #243

I feel used. That’s how I’m supposed to feel, that’s my purpose. But because all this time has passed, and I’ve been sitting here, just a pretty thing on your shelf. It all feels different. I don’t know you. The wry sense of humor you had is gone. The dreams, the plans. You’re not even close to where you promised me you would be. Those checklists are a real laugh now.  When you open me up now, I’m unhappy, not excited. And you’re unhappy too. I’ve never wanted to talk back to you, to fight. But if I could rise up past myself and shout a...

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“No More Apologies ” by Diamond Keener

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #240

There are shards of glass in my face cream. The first time I used it, I didn’t notice until it was too late, and my fingertips had massaged the glass into my skin. It was only when I pulled back my hand and saw the flecks shining that I realized. You broke the thick jar weeks ago. It was an accident, and I don’t care about objects, and I wouldn’t have been upset anyway. But you were upset. You don’t like making mistakes. It’s not part of the written character.  I can see you there on the floor scraping the remaining stuff into...

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“Oh, Vienna” by Diamond Keener

She picked up, or someone had. He checked the oven clock, which had been three minutes fast ever since he could remember. It read 12:03 but it was really midnight.  There was breathing, deep, not sexy or anything like that. More like they had been running or jumping, being chased and the chase had now ended. It was desperate. There was phlegm in it, fear even. He heard the fireworks outside the window. On the other line, they were crackling too. She was close to the park where they lit them off.  A car horn and brakes squeaki...

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“Lifeline ” by Diamond Keener

Barbara felt the worst pain of her life while scrubbing the stains from her new white button up. She didn’t cry out, but she did shed a few tears. At first she thought it was just a reaction to the cleaner. But she’d used it before, the same old soap. There appeared on her hand a line as if drawn by marker. It was purple, not the shade of  a blood vessel, felt hot to the touch. Looking at the other hand, there was nothing. Yes, the other hand felt fine.  And when she showed the line to Darren, he put on his cheaters and squinted. ...

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“Vindication ” by Diamond Keener

“I’m not feeling this. I don’t think it’s working Lysander. Let’s try again. With feeling! Remember our notes we all made on the script everyone?”  Mr. Clarke stared at Scarlett as he said this. The class wound up consisting of twelve girls. So she wound up as Lysander in a very short version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream set in the late 1960’s. The stuff of nightmares.  It was either that, or scenes from Romeo and Juliet set in the 1950’s. The girls had gotten a vote. So here they were. And here she was, completely mortified. ...

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“Little Sister, Little Sister ” by Diamond Keener

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #221

TW: References to self harm/suicide and sexual assault. It turns out that hell is real. Its physical location is in Ohio, go figure. The calendar on the refrigerator is the only thing that reminds me of how long I’ve been here. I'm not in the future, I'm in the past. My mother, who is the same age that I was when I died, keeps forgetting to tear off the calendar pages on weekends. She is oblivious to the torture this causes me. It’s been September 9th for three days. She will remember soon, I keep telling myself that. I’ve been dea...

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“Green Eyed Beast” by Diamond Keener

*TW: light mention of violence and reference to suicide. People let their dogs off leash at Sound Park all the time even though they aren’t supposed to. I don’t like dogs, and my dislike is indiscriminate. I don’t like any of them, big or small. Too needy.  It scuttled right past me. A few seconds slid, then a few more. No person calling out or following behind. Irresponsible owner. The dog was gone. And a woman screamed somewhere close after a moment of lightning. It didn’t sound like she had spooked, but rather like something ...

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“The Soft Stars” by Diamond Keener

“Who’s this?”She replied that the little drawing was of her father's face. She sounded natural. It was comfortable in the room by the big fire. It felt like a home now so far away.Mr. Kummern laughed and took another swig of whatever it was he had poured into his own cup. Something cold and as dark as the night itself. Andy Blacka. She carried a likeness of him in the star shaped locket that she wore around her neck. It was a gift from her Mama who had worn it with a picture of her first husband on the inside. And Constance wore the lik...

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“Some Girls Are Meaner Than Others ” by Diamond Keener

Submitted to Contest #202

HannahShe smacked Ahmed’s hand away from her shoulder. He was moving his hand absentmindedly. His fingers kept circling around the letters. As if his touch was emphasizing the name. Those four letters she wanted so badly to have removed. It was like having a permanent third degree burn. It irritated her to no end. In the middle of the night she would wake with deep scratches. It was as though she had been trying to dig it out of her flesh. It was her idea to get the tattoos in the first place. Her fault, Nina hadn’t wanted to. Nina said...

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“The Diary of Char Willis ” by Diamond Keener

He was trapped between life and death. If she saw him watching her cry, and understood he’d been there the whole time, she’d think he was a freak. She might say something to him. Or yell at him. Or worse, give him one of those wounding looks that can only come from a stranger. The moment they make up their mind about you. A one star review. He held his breath and tried to shrink behind the hedges. He had meant to walk past her. But she was crying with absolute abandon and he spooked. She thought she was alone in the park. It would make s...

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“If there were Two” by Diamond Keener

Submitted to Contest #196

“There are two of them. One of them is already here. And the other one has yet to arrive.”  Not said with any hint of mystery. Like she was reading some numbers off a spreadsheet. She squinted at the cards one more time before she gathered them back up and put them in the little paper box. The same one they’d been originally packaged in. She didn’t even let me write down which of them she had drawn. The only thing I could remember was The Tower. I wasn’t even sure what part of my question that applied to. I just knew the card meant tr...

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“A Portrait of Ellen ” by Diamond Keener

The same thing every Sunday. On a quest to get my ten thousand steps. Telling myself to breathe easy and let the sunshine in. Not a chance. Sun, the poor bastard is always hidden this time of year. He’s cowering behind the clouds.  The sky tore open between two sad gray patches and spit a message down to me. Direct from Tarragona. The sender is new but the effect the same. A little scrap of paper singed on the sides and dipped in poison. The inky stuff staining my fingertips immediately.    Hungover as usual, it ...

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