Paige Winters

“Trial by Water” by Paige Winters

    “Thomas Swain, thou stand accused of witchcraft. Mr. Laton, if thou wouldn’t mind.” Pastor John guestures widely for Mr. Laton and two of his daughters to come forward with a thickly clothed arm. The white robe is edged with gold and, since arriving at our small village, in mud. Mr. Laton is a heavy man who could easily swing the ax to chop off my head but his daughters are almost mirror copies of their mother, who stands silently to the side with the rest of their several children. The two of them step forward, one nervou...

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“Upside Down Life” by Paige Winters

My phone blares with the standard iPhone wake up alarm. Or, as I call it, GET YOUR A** OUT OF BED YOU LAZY SON OF A B****. I groan and roll over, groping for my phone on the nightstand. I find it hooked into its charger and jam my finger against the screen until it shuts up. I yawn and stretch then roll over and hug my pillow, smashing my face into it. I lay there for about five minutes, contemplating how sick I have to act to get out of school, when my second alarm rang. I groan and reach over, jabbing at my phone with no success. I lift my...

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“Tiny Glass Bottles” by Paige Winters

It was built tall and rectangular with four shelves, all equally spaced apart. The wood was old, not rotten but aged with dents and scratches that could never be fixed. The rusted nails tacking it together can be seen clearly through the plexiglass plane. Running down the left side of the bookshelf is a row of three hinges, but these are not connected to any door, only the plexiglass plane. The hinges are still shiny. Running down the right side of the bookshelf is a series of several locks, all using different keys. Outside of the plexiglas...

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“People Like T” by Paige Winters

I lay back on the soft blue grass, staring up at the swirling purple-red sky as the blue ball of flames hangs above me as if suspended on a thread. “Does the sky look different where you come from?” “Yeah, a lot different. Our sky is blue during the day and black at night and you can see so many stars. Our sun is yellow but you can’t see it all the time.” “What’s a sun?” “It's a big, yellow star that my planet revolves around.” “Wow… that sounds beautiful.” I laugh. “Yeah, but if you look at it too long your eyes hurt.” ...

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“Z” by Paige Winters

“We have plenty of time, Master Saif,” Lord Xavier said. “Master Arron won’t be arriving for another two weeks. I promise you, everything will be perfect for his stay.” I lean back against the side of the throne, quietly playing with the Rubix cube as I tune out Lord Xavier. An old friend of Master Saif is visiting soon, so of course, Master Saif wants to show off his prized possession. And by that, I mean me. I close my eyes and twist the cube randomly, then solve it in a few minutes. I’ve had this cube for so long that the colorful boxes ...

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“A Black Tree And A Field Of Crimson” by Paige Winters

I sit in front of a campfire, the heat warding off the night’s chill as cicadas and laughter floats around me on a gentle breeze. Music starts to play and I realize Dad had picked up his guitar, strumming while my Mom starts to hum along. In a matter of moments, my entire family is singing, the noise drowning out the bugs and scaring away the critters. Everyone is here, my grandparents, my uncles, my aunts, my cousins, and all of my friends. Their voices blend together in the song, the night stealing away their features but for what the fire...

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“Penetrating Keratoplasty” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #105

The hospital smells of some kind of cleaner and metal. I can hear people moving outside the small room the nurse left me in. Well, I think it's a small room. It felt small when I was stumbling around in search of pants. The scrubs that she had given me to wear are itchy and uncomfortable. I shift in the seat, the cold of the metal chair seeping through the thin fabric. There's a steady beeping coming from somewhere to my left‌—‌the nurse told me it was a heart monitor before she left. I try to swallow the filmy paste forming on my tongue but...

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“I'm Sorry, Jessie” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #92

I watch my little girl chase a butterfly in the front yard, her new boots tramping through the fresh mud from last night’s rainfall. Trees sway in the wind, sending shadows dancing crazily across the yard. I stand in the shadow of the house, the only relief from the boiling sun. I inherited the old farmhouse from my parents when they died in a car crash three years ago. There’s a lot of memories in it, from when my older brother shoved me into the stone walls to when Mom and I used to work on the flourishing garden outback. I’ve never had a...

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“He's Still Smiling” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #92

I stand in the back of the room, fiddling with my tie and trying not to look at the box at the front of the room. I loosen my tie then tighten it and repeat.I keep my head down, my eyes on my shoes. Anything to keep from making eye contact. The last thing I want is to get into a reminiscing conversation with someone when I’m already fighting back tears. I tip my head back and blink rapidly. I catch sight of a table of water bottles and walk over to grab one, purposely turning my head to the wall opposite the box. I weave through a group of ...

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“Canned Chili and Stale Crackers” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #84

I run through my morning chores like clockwork. It used to be boring until I found an MP3 player stashed away in a spare bunk. I’ve never been able to figure out who left it in the bunker and I’m not sure if I want to know. I brought it to Sarge (It’s short for Sargent, his military ranking. But his real name is Isaiah) and he gave me some spare batteries then showed me how it worked. I bob my head to the beat as I walk down the long metal hall, checking gauges and dials, marking it all down on my tablet. Water pressure in the filtration sys...

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“Breathing Apparatus” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #78

I stand in front of the bathroom mirror, watching the geezer reflected back at me. His hair is white and wispy around his ears but the rest is bald and bumpy. Wrinkles have long since made a home in his skin, the crevices deep around his once lively brown eyes. He stands hunched over, knobby knuckles gripping the sink. The geezer blinks once, twice, breathing shallowly. The tube pumps oxygen into his lungs at a steady pace. In and out. In and out. In and out. I step back from the mirror and sit on the toilet lid, the porcelain’s cold seepin...

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“Shy Hero” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #70

WARNING: Suicidal Ideations Tony: Why do they blame me? I didn’t do it. I would never hurt her. I laid back on my bed with the lights off, tear streaks drying on my face. I don’t know how long I’ve been laying here, maybe days. Time has no meaning to me anymore. Not after today. I’d tried to help, I swear I did. A burning ball of depression had been unfurling in my chest since that day. Every day has been worse than the last. I’d finally gathered up all of my courage to go to school and…  And my friends looked at me like I was a ...

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“I Couldn't Protect My Heart” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #70

His locker is stuck, again. I watched him for a full minute from across the hall before strolling over to him. Without a word, I knocked my boot against the edge of his locker, simultaneously grabbing the handle and throwing it open. I leaned against the locker next to his and smiled. “Hey,” I say. Adrian shook his head. “I still can’t figure out how you do that. I can never get this stupid thing open then you waltz up and BANG.” “I have the magic touch,” I teased, waving my hands around like I was about to pull a rabbit out of a hat. “W...

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“UNO Fixes Everything” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #69

The house was quiet and simple. Two stories with pale yellow walls and red-brown shingles. A brick walkway leads up to the front door with a sign on it that says, Happy Thanksgiving. A dying flower garden lay in front of the house. The short driveway was packed full of cars, some spilling out onto the street. We were parked on the other side of the street from the small house. “Cassie, can you help me with this?” Faith calls from the back of the van. I close the car door and walk back to her, tucking my phone into my back pocket. I pick up ...

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“Its Christmas After All” by Paige Winters

Submitted to Contest #69

I slump in the car seat with my arms crossed over my chest, glaring out the window. Familiar houses sped by as we approached Aunt April’s house. Usually, I was always so cheerful this time of year. Christmas is My Time. But, not this year. When Mommy pulls into the driveway, Daddy turns around and gives me his best smile. I won’t look at him. “Come on, sweetheart. This is going to be fun!” I clicked the button of my seatbelt and dropped out of the car with Fluffy, my favorite unicorn stuffed animal, tight in my grasp. I head towards the fr...

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