Maria Bray

“Do You Know What I Mean? ” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #224

I’m having my first cup of coffee at the absolutely ridiculous hour of 2:20 a.m. At 42, which might be the meaning of life, but a shit age to be female, my body went completely rogue on me. I gained 40 pounds in the course of three months; my circadian clock decided that anywhere from midnight to 3 a.m. were perfectly appropriate times to say, “Wakey-wakey, eggs and bakey.” Quite enthusiastically at that. But at 46 now, I'm used to it in a weird way. I don't curse about much anymore at least. The husband tells me, “Just go back to slee...

3 likes 1 comment 1

Read story

“Angie ” by Maria Bray

We have plenty of time. ***I’m sitting at the foot of her hospital bed at Kaiser Hospital down in El Cajon. She’s not doing well. Okay, so that’s really understating the fact: she is in fact dying. She’s down to around 70 pounds and has a bedsore the size of dinner plate where her tailbone is. She’s in diapers and is only conscious for perhaps a minute at a time.She wakes up and looks at her mom and then me. “You,” she says.“You,” I say back, my eyes tearing up. “Go home. You have a life,” she says, looking at me pointedly. It’s a strug...

1 like 0 comments 0

Read story

“Pismo Beach ” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #109

As it so happens, the words, “I QUIT” were quickly followed by, “You can’t quit! You’re fired!”Fine. Quit, fired, who gives a shit? I don’t qualify for unemployment anyway in the field I was in, so it hardly matters. If my demanding, never satisfied boss wants the last word, let him have it. As they say, no skin off my ass. My last thought as I walked away was, “Good luck filling my position, dickwad.”I might have also thought, “See you in hell,” but that’s not very nice, is it?I probably should have applied for something else before I quit,...

9 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Home” by Maria Bray

There are monsters all around me.They tower over me by at least three feet and I’m hand-to-hand with one. He (she?) lands a good blow to my ribs and then does it again. I try to move away to no avail; the monster lands another blow and I wince at the pain in my ribs.“GET UP! YOU DON’T BELONG HERE!”I open my eyes slowly and comprehend. A dream is all it was, but the pain in my ribs is real. I look up at the man who obviously was kicking me, only partially awake. He’s beyond angry and into the range of outright venomous. “I said get up. You ho...

3 likes 2 comments 2

Read story

“Three Words” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #100

When Eric woke up, he patted the bed next to him, mildly disappointed but not surprised that Emily wasn't there. It was normal for her to leave before he woke up when she spent the night over there. He stumbled out of bed to get to the bathroom, peed, and put his boardshorts on. When he opened his door, he smiled a bit at hearing Emily's voice talking to his youngest daughter, Amber. Maybe they could swing by her place and she could get her board and they could hit the beach, and spend the day together. Both stopped talking when they heard h...

10 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“The Pacific” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #99

How long has it been? A pathetically long time, I finally decide on.I live a mere 20 minutes from the beach and the last time I've come out to see the sun set here was at least 30 years ago.Sad, right? I pay the price for the good real estate that is San Diego County. I should be enjoying the perks of it all.Cardiff is my beach. We all have one here. The families migrate to Oceanside or Moonlight. I remember Cardiff before an El Nino season took away the sand in 1981 leaving big rocks in its place. I learned to surf here, a hobby I gave up a...

12 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“God and the Atheist ” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #98

Everything had gone wrong for Alex since his dad got sick.Only 22, he felt like Atlas, carrying the weight of the world on his back.He dropped out of college in order to come home and be of help to his dad and his mom, but not before accruing a nice little sum of $32,000 and some change in student debt, having had only one more year before graduating with honors, which Alex had considered that was some shit indeed looking back at his poor performance in middle and high school, Mom even commenting proudly that she always knew that he had it i...

12 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Poker Night ” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #98

TW: spousal abuse Their dad had all taught them to play poker. When he died, twelve years ago, all six of them agreed to start assembling once a month for poker night. In his honor, as a way to stay connected.   Jonathan lived in Eugene, Oregon and Gene lived 20 minutes south in Springfield so Jonathan would pick him up and the two would make the two and half hour trip to Coos Bay together. Jonathan, having a lead foot and zero fear, not only scared the living shit out of Gene but made the trek in well under two hours.   “For fuck’...

16 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Enough ” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #97

Dave Dearborn loathed his wife.Since they had started working together, she had changed from the compliant housewife that she once was and considered herself above him, which was a joke. The bitch couldn’t sink a sale if a three-ton weight were attached to it.He sat on the couch and considered the state of things as he scrolled through Netflix to find something to take his mind off of his crappy life. Pam was out shopping and sure as shit, she’d forget most of the things he’d asked her to pick up at the store. He knew this because the airhea...

11 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Do You Know What I Mean? ” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #97

I’m having my first cup of coffee at the absolutely ridiculous hour of 2:20 a.m.At 42, which might be the meaning of life, but a shit age to be female, my body went completely rogue on me.I gained 40 pounds in the course of three months; my circadian clock decided that anywhere from midnight to 3 a.m. were perfectly appropriate times to say, “Wakey-wakey, eggs and bakey.” Quite enthusiastically at that. But at 46 now, I'm used to it in a weird way. I don't curse about much anymore at least.The husband tells me, “Just go back to sleep,” as if...

24 likes 4 comments 4

Read story

“Strangers to Friends and Back Again” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #96

TW; child abuse I came to work one day, and my three coworkers were all abuzz with gossip, Courtney breathlessly approaching me and informing me that John had a stroke.   “Who’s John?” I asked.   Courtney rolled her eyes at me. “The guy next door.”   “Shogun’s dad,” I replied with a nod of recognition. It’s funny—dog people are like that with each other. We aren’t John or Emily or Jane or Bill, we’re Max’s Mom or Shogun’s Dad. I mean, funny, right? We obviously didn’t produce a different species from our wombs or ejaculate. &n...

8 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Broken Trust” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #96

Allie Peters stood and looked wistfully at the spare bedroom. Once Samantha’s room, now tastefully outfitted in her mama’s furniture, a mahogany bed with matching dressers and nightstands, with the quilt her mother had always dressed it with carefully covering the bed, the walls painted a pale yellow now, a task made difficult by Sam’s insistence on painting her room in her preferred hot pink and black, two walls of each color.She sat down on the bed, reminiscing about Sam and all the talks they had had or had tried to have, Sam being every ...

11 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“The Door” by Maria Bray

Submitted to Contest #95

“You always do that,” Amie said angrily, crossing her arms and her legs away from Paul. Dr. Greer interjected, “Amie? What have we said in here about hyperbolic statements such as that?” “He does always…” “I don’t fucking do that.” Amie threw up her arms and looked at the slightly built blonde therapist, raised her eyebrows. “It’s not hyperbole. See?” “Paul. Would you let…” “No. What SHE has to say is stupid.” Amie caught Dr. Greer’s eyes and raised her eyebrows in a ‘so how do you like being interrupted? Not cool, right...

10 likes 0 comments 0

Read story