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Karen C

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jan, 2021

Stories (8)

Comments

Library

8 Followers

6 Following

8 Stories

155 karma pts

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The First Date (or, The Bouquet of a Dozen Mistakes)

Karen C

Submitted to Contest #170

In my defense, it had been six years since I had been on a date. Yes, you read that part right. Six. Long. Years. And yes, you read the next part right, too. Not “in a relationship”, but “on a date.” If you haven’t already guessed, my “in a relationship” time chasm was even wider.It’s not the sort of thing you want to put on your dating profile, you know? Tall and slender, early thirties. Likes working out. Dog person. Has been 2,193 days since any meaningful contact with the opposite sex.Lucas and I had messaged each other on an online dati...

9 likes

The Other Side of the Window

Karen C

Submitted to Contest #169

I hadn’t intended to stop - in fact I was in a hurry - but, as I walked briskly by, a black flash of fur caught my attention. I turned to look in the window. It was just past dusk in Seattle. October evenings were usually dark and dreary, but this one seemed darker and drearier than normal. The light rain drizzle spattered the layer of wet maple leaves on the ground. Fremont was a charming neighborhood with plenty of old sprawling brick homes, large trees, and small friendly shops. Tonight, it seemed determined to push back against the gra...

8 likes

Vitalité Des Saveurs

Karen C

Submitted to Contest #162

Sean and Andrea Carmine stepped from the comfort of the warm limousine out into the frigid December air.They were a handsome couple, both in their thirties. She wore a form-fitting burgundy dress and three-inch stiletto heels; he was attired in a modern-fit dark charcoal suit with a shawl lapel.As they walked quickly from the dark street to the restaurant, arm in arm, Sean glanced at his wife. Her brown hair was perfectly smooth, coiffed into an elegant twist at the crown of her head. The multi-strand black diamond necklace lay stark on her ...

7 likes

The Taste of Tears

Karen C

Submitted to Contest #161

Pain is often the only word I have to express it.But, on the rare occasion that I’m feeling articulate, I describe grief like this:Have you ever felt like your heart has grown icy cold, frozen over, and then shattered into a thousand shards inside your chest? And afterward the shards remain, cutting you up from the inside out with every breath you take?A year ago on Thursday, I watched my dog die. And I knew I had killed him.Ronan was given to me before breakfast on a Saturday, early in my 10th grade year. His red collar had a tag that said,...

6 likes

The Statistics of Morality

Karen C

Submitted to Contest #158

He flinched in surprise when it was cold instead of hot. His eyes flicked from the words “empirical methodology” to the partially-full mug of coffee which he had subconsciously set down in disgust. The black liquid, no longer steaming, looked like a miniature oil spill in the white ceramic.He rubbed his eyes. Gotta be at least 2am. Refusing to look at the nightstand clock as he passed it, he refilled the mug with burned coffee from the too-hot coffee pot. Half an inch of utter darkness, mirroring the bedroom window, still remained at the bot...

12 likes

The Library Book

Karen C

Submitted to Contest #156

Author's Note: This story alludes to a real children's book - I've noted the Title and Author of that book in the comments below.********************“Don’t you remember?”He looked up at me with big eyes. “No. That’s why I’m asking you.”He had a good point, if I had been a librarian for any number of years over zero. Unfortunately for him, however, today was my first day. And I had no idea what I was doing.I looked down at the big stack of books in my arms that I had been instructed to shelve, and then over at my tiny petitioner. “Okay,” I s...

9 likes

Roundabout Repairs

Karen C

Submitted to Contest #155

Barry, the big chestnut with the white blaze, stared back at Pete with a look of defiance. Pete, intimidated by neither the horse’s glare nor the sheer size of his subject, crowded closer to the rippling shoulder muscles and knelt down. He ran his hand down the smooth red leg until he was touching the gleaming hoof. There it was! He could see a stray bit of rusty metal sticking out at the bottom. He grasped it with his pliers and yanked. The metal shard came out much easier than expected; Pete smashed his head so hard against Barry’s under...

7 likes

Tea and Me

Karen C

Submitted to Contest #154

Anachronism. I repeated it. Jessie’s blank face stared back at me, and I couldn’t help but smile. “Look it up on your fancy phone there,” I said as we both sat on the edge of my small bed. In the next 15 seconds she had tapped at least 40 characters on the screen. She read aloud, “Anachronism: An error in chronology.” “Or?” I prompted. She looked at the second definition. “A person or a thing that is chronologically out of place.” She looked up at me and I could tell she was a little sad. “You feel like that, Nana?” “Sometimes,” I ...

8 likes