Joshua G. J. Insole

“Gender Reveal” by Joshua G. J. Insole

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #93

CW: Pregnancy and Gore###Rosemary wouldn’t survive to see the birth of her child, and that might be for the best.She didn’t even live long enough to register that something had gone wrong. The others — covered in bits of bone and flesh — would endure the real terror of that day’s events. She got as far as a furrowed brow and a puzzled smile, and then… gone. Existence one moment, utter annihilation the next. At least she didn’t have to endure the agony of physical pain or emotional torment. Rose didn’t have the time.The furled-up banner — rea...

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“Brothers Until (and Beyond) The End” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #92

The closet door shuddered. Teddy Burton paid it no mind. The chair wedged beneath the handle continued to do its job. Henry wouldn’t be able to get out without an axe. And Teddy didn’t think he could use one of those, even if he possessed one. Either before or after. Teddy had once watched him try — and fail — to use a tin opener on a can with an easy pull tab. Headphones on, computer screen bright. The chatter and clatter of buttons. The squeak of the joystick as it wiggled back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth ...

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“Quiet, Please” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #91

Barbara Males waited for old Mr Bina to shuffle through the door.“Buh-bye, Mr Bina!” she said. “See you tomorrow!”But she wouldn’t.Rafiq smiled and waved and said, “Not if I see you first.”A few minutes had ticked past their seven o’clock close time, but she didn’t mind. Ever the gentleman, Mr Bina. He looked after the books he read. He asked insightful questions and held pleasant conversations. He never dragged the exchange on too long, and always got the hint when she needed to get back to work. And — most of all — he never made too much n...

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“Daughters of the Earth” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #90

Nathaniel Thornton thought he had found a haven.But, as he tried — and failed — to wriggle free of the pillory, it occurred to him that he’d been wrong. The post wobbled when he fought against his shackles, but the trap would not break. The wooden framework, into which they’d locked his head and hands, remained steadfast and shut. At least no sharp blade hovered above the stocks, ready to guillotine him. Although he’d later reflect that decapitation would have been a preferable fate.“Now, now, Nathaniel.” Heledd Cadigan, dressed in a white r...

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“Imogen Jumps” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #89

Imogen Ross jumped from the roof of the ten-storey building. The wind tore at her hair, flung it around her head in a dirty-blonde halo. The cold chill raced down into her lungs and filled them. Exhalation at this point seemed like an impossibility. She closed her eyes as the rush of air buffeted her face. Pure. Icelike. Clear. The grin on her lips belied her actions. Yet, the smile did not lack sincerity. An honest laugh bubbled up inside of her, like the inner turmoils of a carbonated drink. She screamed a victorious cry into the gust ...

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“Removed From Office” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #88

Hanley Norris feared it might come back to bite him in the ass, but he never thought it would be in a literal sense.No matter how many skeletons he stuffed into his closet, a part of him clung to the belief that he’d never get found out. At some point, the house of cards should have collapsed, but it didn’t. So, he stacked the layers, higher and higher. Until the worry that it’d fall abated. And thus grew the ridiculous notion that he might be invincible after all.Hell, he thought as he swiped the contents of his desk to the floor. You could...

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“Captain Bounce” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #87

Tristand David grinned at the advert on the side of the bus stop.The Captain Bounce poster mimicked the front page of a newspaper, black and white. Even the fonts matched those of the national rags. The picture — which occupied a good 60 per cent of the poster — showed a family. A father, a mother, two children — a boy and a girl. Of various ethnicities, to try and get the inclusivity vote. Whatever helped sell, Tristand didn’t care. Each hung in suspension, mid-air. Limbs flailed. Hair splayed away from heads, flung out at odd angles. Mouth...

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“The Unserved” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #86

No flowers adorned the grave, and even the blades of grass had wilted and yellowed.Kemp read the name, his face the carved granite of a gargoyle. His mouth pinched tight together, the lips thin and pale. Back and forth his eyes flicked. Although he could glean in seconds what little information the epitaph shared.‘LEROY DICKINSON’ read the name. And beneath that: ‘1978 - 2016’. The etched sentence at the bottom of the stone reflected little of the man that had been. ‘May the turbulence of his life finally come to an end.’Kemp chewed his inne...

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“This Place Is Dead Pt. V” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #85

The flames of Greywood cast an orange-black glow over the ruins of the city.   What remained bore little resemblance to the Tilgreen she’d grown up in. The city she’d fallen in love with. What remained looked to be little more than rubble and toothpicks. And what remained had sapped the last vestiges of love from her heart. Had drained her of her fondness for the streets she’d once called home.   Polly used the inferno as cover and made a break for it. What else could she do? Sit and burn as the conflagration swallowed all four bui...

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“This Place Is Dead Pt. IV” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #85

The evening’s amber light trickled through Greywood 13D’s front door, thick and viscous.The light bounces through and glints off the broken glass like golden fragments.Chelsea Harding walked in, a large cardboard box held in front of her. Various knick-knacks and miscellany poked out of the top. An old football trophy. A couple of dog-eared paperbacks. A lamp, shade skewed to the side like a drunken man’s hat. A small houseplant, its fronds dangled over the sides. The words ‘Randumb Stuff’ scrawled across the side in black ink.Chelsea runs t...

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“This Place Is Dead Pt. III” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #85

“That’s the thing about this city…” The early-morning light came in through the back door to Greywood 13B, filtered red. Two silhouettes wobbled there, pressed up against the glass. They smeared the blood with their fingers. It reminded Ike of the paintings his grandchildren had made for him. He’d pinned them to his fridge. Darell coughed. He lay sprawled across the tiles, leant against the wall like a drunk. Specks of blood flicked from his mouth, and a pink foam frothed at the corners of his lips. His hand clutched Ike’s wrist with suc...

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“This Place Is Dead Pt. II” by Joshua G. J. Insole

The bright sunlight shone upon Greywood Courtyard with a resolute gaze. Polly Wade stared down from the stairwell of 13A. In her white-knuckle grip, she held her drill, its battery charged. Impossible to tell where the grass ended and the concrete began. There were so many. A hundred, if not more. They’d occupied the quad for the better part of a week. Mrs Tyler’s assertion that they’d leave once they got bored had turned out to be false. Like most of what came out of her mouth. Stupid old bat. Her footsteps echoed as she made her way do...

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“This Place Is Dead” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #85

The pale blue moonlight bathed Greywood Courtyard in ethereal brushstrokes.Darell Porter eased the back door to 13B shut, a dull click as the latch caught. In his hands, he held his DIY weapon. A broom with a six-inch butcher’s knife secured to the end of the handle. A bundle of string and duct tape bound the blade to the tip. He’d used too much, but he’d rather it be too secure than not secure enough.From the opposite side of the yard came the rattle of metal. Snarls and grunts. The clink of a chain. Something scraped and slapped against th...

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“Perry & Izzy” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #84

Perry nodded at Izzy, who looked about as ragged as he felt.He waved her down, sucked in a breath and joined her. They clustered together over a cafe table to the side of the hubbub. The throngs swarmed back and forth across the plaza. Fragments of conversation bounced through the air. “Hey, Iz.” Perry nodded. “How’s it going?”Izzy raised her eyebrows, face ashen. She blew air out of her mouth, cheeks puffed out. “Terrible, Per. I can’t even do my job as I normally did.” She shook her head. “Life’s awful now.”“Tell me about it.”“I mean—” Izz...

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“Aitch Two Oh” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #83

It might have been the dehydration, but Innis wasn’t surprised when a shape swelled out of the ocean. The protrusion rose above the dingy’s inflated edge. The sunlight sparkled its way through the turquoise, diffracted a thousand different ways. At first, it was nothing but a smooth tendril, rounded and faceless. But as the seconds dripped by, features emerged from that liquid countenance. A nose. Two eyes. A mouth. Ears too. Locks of curled hair, which cascaded over a shoulder and spilled over a clamshell bra. All that same shade of aqu...

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