Kayley Dickins

“Families” by Kayley Dickins

Submitted to Contest #97

The block of flats in front of him was newer than the rest of the road, it was more grey, more solid, and one could say it had less character, but one could also say it had simply none. It was just tall enough to make it look uncomfortable. Like it was placed in the wrong spot in some kind of workplace error, but when they came looking for wherever it was they had left it, it was just too plain and inconspicuous for them to notice. So they walked straight past, and there it had sat, amongst strangers, looking wrong in some intangible way. ...

7 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Grass” by Kayley Dickins

Submitted to Contest #97

There was grass in their hair. He had seen it about five minutes ago, as his partner had climbed up the bank of the river, shoes slipping on the dew left over from the early morning. So perhaps the time of day was at fault. Surely if it hadn’t still been midday the grass would not still have been so wet, and they would not have tripped in it, rolling down the bank and arriving at the bottom with significantly less dignity than they had had at the top. And then there would have been no grass in their hair. He wanted to reach out and remove ...

12 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Game” by Kayley Dickins

Submitted to Contest #97

The decision as to whether to knock on the window or ring the buzzer next to the already open gate had taken him longer than he would like to admit. He would like to admit even less that it hadn’t occurred to him for a very long time that the reason the gate was open was that his arrival was expected. Eventually, he decided to take the risk and knock on the window, secretly enjoying the slight advantage it gave him. It conveyed that he was comfortable here. That he felt he was welcome, that he wasn’t asking permission to come in but rather h...

12 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Inaction” by Kayley Dickins

The flat window looked exactly as you imagined it. It was housed in a stocky grey building, which gave off the impression that it was more of a building hunched over than a building that stood as intended. On the second floor starting from the edge of the building, was a smaller, higher window, and then further in, a larger window, wide and spacious, looking a little too luxurious for a small block of flats in London. The kind of window one might find in a bedroom of a hotel in a location significantly sunnier and warmer than Britain. The ki...

1 like 0 comments 0

Read story

“Shards” by Kayley Dickins

Submitted to Contest #97

He had, admittedly, seen glass break many times before; soapy hands dropping glasses on the floor, test tubes in a science lab filled with rowdy children, and naturally windows being broken. Sometimes by bullets, sometimes by bodies, sometimes by bomb blasts. But there was something about watching it happen again this time that caught his breath.  It might have been the sunlight, or it might have just been the angle at which he was standing. He couldn’t decide, he rather suspected it was just a combination of the two. It struck him as...

15 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“House” by Kayley Dickins

Submitted to Contest #42

The first letter appeared on Clara’s doorstep just four days after she moved into her new house, so it ended up unexpectedly whizzing across country toward the forwarding address that the previous owners had left behind for this exact purpose. Clara had moved down south following a promotion at work, jumping at the chance to leave the cold north behind and earn more money simultaneously. Owning her second house on her own was overwhelming at first - the sight of it made Clara shiver as she drove toward it the first time. It was twice the siz...

5 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Dog” by Kayley Dickins

Submitted to Contest #40

“You will never guess what happened” Said Clara“Oh yes I forgot about that” Said Mark“Wait no can I please tell him” Said Jemimah“No Jemimah, you told Old Roger. I want to tell him” Said PollyThe children sat together around the table, Polly’s little blue shoes clunking against the wooden bench as she shuffled around, unable to contain herself. A silver spoon flaked with porridge waved startlingly through the air as Jemimah flung herself in front of her little sister, clasping her hand over Polly’s mouth. A tongue fought its way through Jeme...

4 likes 1 comment 1

Read story

“Fans” by Kayley Dickins

Submitted to Contest #38

“Yo”Clara shuffled on her seat. Was she close enough to the camera? She wasn’t sure. Maybe the lighting would be all wrong and she would come across as an amateur, people would leave within the first minute and she would be left talking to herself. Maybe her best efforts at editing would be underwhelming and people would get bored of her, or maybe she would get hounded for copying the style of other people that she had never even watched before. The truth was, she knew she didn’t really care anymore. “I’m Clara and welcome to my channel...

4 likes 1 comment 1

Read story

“Reliance” by Kayley Dickins

Submitted to Contest #37

“Sorry, is this seat free?” Clara’s hands were shaking again, so they were subtly enveloped between her thighs and the harsh fabric of the train seat and one problem was solved, as the stranger now seated beside her nodded absentmindedly. As the train creaked away from the platform, her hair fell into her face, but the pattern of her jeans was definitively impressed upon the backs of her hands, and she had no desire to move them just yet. Limited in her movement, she settled with her only option of entertainment for the short journey; r...

4 likes 0 comments 0

Read story