365 Short Horrors

M oney is something that can make us do crazy things out of desperation. It could be anything from dangerous and fatal to back stabbing and betrayal. Often landing you in places far worse than where you had begun. Following this, let me ask, what would you do if you desperately needed money? It had been about a week since I lost my job. It was unfair how it happened, someone hating me there just enough to hide drugs in my hung up jacket and telling my boss that I was the one that brought them in. I had begged them to check the cameras but they refused, saying the cameras inside didn't actually work. I was furious. But after leaving that day and turning in my uniform, I wasn't thinking about revenge, I was instead thinking about how I was going to pay my rent. The pay period hadn't started but a few days ago, meaning there's no way I could afford rent. It'd probably only hold less then $200 on it. I'd need at least twice that. In the passing days, I'd p...

H ave you ever walked somewhere at night? The darkness you rarely find yourself in, mixed with the eerie and unnatural silence. You feel uneasy, as if you're in a dream. Perhaps you're alone, perhaps you're with some friends. Either way, you can't shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen. The shadows of the trees, cast by the ominous full moon, filled me with unease. The way they swayed in the winter breeze left me feeling that I was all but alone tonight. It was incredibly late, not a single car in sight, as I walked home. It was a late shift at work and I was exhausted. I wrapped my jacketed arms tighter around myself as another strong gust of cold wind blew past me. If it was going to be this cold, why could there not even be a hint of snow falling to the ground? It was nearly Christmas, after all. I continued my way down the familiar neighborhoods, not glancing up as much, as the wind would otherwise blow down my jacket and make me freeze even...

R emember that one person you never got to say goodbye to? It was unknown in the moment but you'd never be graced with their presence again. Perhaps they weren't as gone as you might believe. They're still around but just as distant as they were before you met. It wrecks the heart, shattering but not completely. It's when the mending is nearly restored that they find you where you least expect. I struggled to get my son's shoes on as my wife finished getting everything together for my dad's birthday. My son, James, wouldn't stop fussing and trying to kick his shoes off just as I had managed to get them on him. He giggled as he did though, as if watching me struggle filled him with some kind of twisted joy. My wife, Meghan, finally finished what she was doing and came in the living room to help me. Somehow, what took me nearly ten minutes took her less than one.  Finally, I grabbed my dad's gift from the kitchen counter and we all headed out the doo...