Rachel Bacon

“Good Things” by Rachel Bacon

I’m not the best guardian angel. It’s not like I was down there watching Adam and Eve. Or Cain and Abel. Still, I’ve been around a long time. We all have. We watch these puny little humans live out their whole lives and then we move on to the next one. Sometimes, I feel like I’m living every moment along with them. But once it’s over it feels like it’s only been a second. I have been alongside 40,956 humans. I keep count. I remember them all and their greatest triumphs. And their lowest lows. And right now, I’m standing on an interstat...

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“Sweaty Palms” by Rachel Bacon

‘Thank you for taking the survey. Take a seat and someone will be with you soon’ The words shine brightly on the screen before her. Cara steps away from the computer, and leaves the small booth. Back in the lobby, she finds a seat. Her leg starts bouncing up and down as she sits. She wipes her hands on her jeans. Why are my palms so sweaty? There are other people in the lobby, waiting as well. Most of them are her age, though there is an older woman. They don’t look nervous. Someone else’s name is called. Cara watches a woman get up and fol...

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“Miracle” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #102

In the way one climbs a ladder, ambition led him to climb the bodies of everyone he could step on. He was ruthless. Heartless. Borderline cruel. His name was Lloyd Mauldin. Lloyd always wore black. Black slacks, a black suit, a black tie, and a black coat. Intelligent eyes glistened behind his glasses. It was said he would sell his own mother for a dollar. Impossible though, as his mother died when he was eight. He had a corporate job for an insurance agency checking insurance claims. And he was very good at his job. His black attire a...

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“Infinite Orchard” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #63

“I’ve never had an apple before.” She reached up with one pearly white hand and plucked a crimson orb from the tree. The shine on the skin glistened as she examined it. For as far as she would see there were lines of trees reaching into oblivion, each with gleaming apples hanging from their branches. High in the sky above them, a warm sun shined gently upon the leaves. She looked back at her father, Elijah Wilts, who was standing back under the shade of a nearby tree. He nodded, “Go on, Jamila, collect some.” Jamila hesitantly placed the ap...

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“Autumn Sun” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #62

There is beautiful graveyard in my future. I will stand on an autumn carpet of leaves before a grave of someone I do not know. Someone from my past no doubt. There will be a notification on my phone. ‘Bring flowers to Ellie’ I will be holding a bouquet of daisies and I will wonder if she liked them. I will look at her grave and realize from the dates etched in stone that she was only eleven when she died. And my heart will break. I will wonder many times in my next thirteen years of life how many loved ones I have forgotten. And even as I di...

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“EveBrooke High School for the Super Powered” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #61

We hereby invite you to the Reunion of Class 2010 of Evebrooke High School for the Super Powered to be held at the following date, please RSVP.Andrew Weng, also called ‘The Griffin’, landed on the pavement of the school’s parking lot, his cape flowing gently behind him. He was dressed in his hero suit. It was purple with dramatic black lining and the image of a griffin on his chest.It was a large gorgeous building reaching three stories high with multiple training facilities. With a rate of 87% of attendees joining hero firms, the school rec...

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“The Day the Dead Died” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #60

There was a vaccine. Developed in a bunker in the middle of Montana, a bunch of surviving scientists and government officials found a way to counter the infection. And the world was saved. But Gabriella Lotus knew the truth, and she would have to take it to her grave. She was the only survivor of bunker 5624. And this is what really happened the Day the Dead Died.   August 18th was a warm sunny day with a gentle breeze. In any other circumstance it would have been the perfect the day. But that was ruined by the flesh-eating cannibals th...

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“Keen to Change” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #59

There was a red Chevrolet parked outside of the Iron Star Bar. The only cars that were ever parked out there were John’s pickup, Marcy’s little Hyundai, and Thomas’ motorcycle. The townsfolk weren’t too keen on Thomas’ motorcycle, because it made a ruckus and he would race it down the highway at night. Nonetheless, they were familiar with it. But that night parked in one of the spots, the spot that was always open, was the little red Chevrolet with a scratch on its side.  Old McGinty lit a cigarette as he stood in the dri...

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“Just Out of Reach” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #58

The most gorgeous planet, lush green and deep blue, hovered in space just in view of the spaceship. And behind it, a glowing star gave it halo. They almost made it. The spaceship hung in space as it had for the past two weeks. The engines had gone out. And then the lights. And then the water. It was only a matter of time before the oxygen ran out too. The doors wouldn’t open. The intercoms didn’t work. The ship that was supposed to be their salvation was now their grave. Ivan, one of the engineers, had gotten trapped in the hallway before th...

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“The Cradle” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #57

I didn’t give my daughter a name when she was born. They told me not to. They said it would make it harder. She was born crying. Fighting. Loud and heard. They let me hold her, and she was beautiful. Her eyes looked so much like mine, and I held her so closely. Then they took her away. You see, there’s a cradle in the forest. I saw it once before when I was chosen as the Giver. It was made a beautiful oak wood and it swung so sweetly in the wind. The leaves above it created a gentle shade. I was fourteen when I chosen. They handed me a litt...

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“Merry Christmas ” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #56

My boyfriend and I had been dating for four months when he invited me to his work’s Christmas party. I had just gotten a cute new red dress. It was perfect except for a lack of pockets, so he had to keep my phone. He insisted on wearing green, to go along with the red. A regular hallmark couple. The whole drive there he keeps saying how excited he is for me to meet his coworkers. Arriving at the office building, I already feel out of place. I am a vet and working with animals has always felt right. Now in a cramped office filled with people...

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“No one can ever know” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #55

Mary Eldrige never liked her Grandpa’s mansion. The doors creaked when they opened, and the floor groaned underfoot. Throughout her childhood, any time she spent the night, she was sure she would be brutally murdered by ghosts. Now at the age of twenty-nine, Mary still had a deep unsettled feeling as she walked throughout the mansion. Her mother, Adeline Elridge, felt just the opposite. The old building warmly reminded her of her childhood and the good old days. After the passing of Mary’s grandpa Jack, the mother and daughter had been task...

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“Let Go” by Rachel Bacon

Submitted to Contest #54

I didn’t recognize her at first. She had grown her hair out and wore makeup now, something she had sworn to never do. She had come up to the hostess stand and smiled at me with a charming smile. And for a second, I thought I was experiencing love at first sight. “Reservation for Sato,” she said. I realized that it was not in fact love at first sight, but a relighting of an old flame. Mai Soto had been in my chemistry class sophomore year of high school. We were both transfers and didn’t know anyone, so while everyone else partnered with the...

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