Horror and Wholesome
Mrs. Grady was the first to go. Then Mr. O’Toole and Mrs. Shafford. One after another, starting just after my night shift began at 10. I only knew because Bill, one of the nurses, came in with an abundance of bedding and towels. Being in the laundry room, I was usually one of the last... Continue Reading →
The internet is great for a lot of things, like keeping up with the news of getting help with a research project or finding that one song that keeps playing the only line you know over and over in your head so you can learn the rest of it. I thought it would be a... Continue Reading →
The bright light game was simple. All you had to do was draw a salt circle around a little homemade doll, usually nothing more than some cheap fabric stitched together in a vaguely human shape and filled with dry rice and a few strands of your hair, and recite the words of invitation. Nearby spirits,... Continue Reading →
(Art: "Infestation" by Charlie Cody) I didn't want much from my last year of employment with the hospital; just to keep my head down, do my job, and get out with as little fuss as possible. Of course, for that to happen, I'd have to keep my mouth shut and ride out the wave of... Continue Reading →
Marian walked out during dinner. We’d been eating quietly, a rare thing in our house, when she’d asked to borrow the car to go to a party later in the week. Mom said no. Marian was already grounded for sneaking out and coming home smelling like booze. The quiet was gone. Marian was shouting, so... Continue Reading →
I was over the moon when I got my job. The local market for medical assistants had become saturated since the community college started an accelerated program that churned us out like an assembly line and landing an interview, much less employment, seemed like a miracle. I'd heeded every warning that the program head had... Continue Reading →
I had never tried online dating, I'd never had a reason to. Usually my luck with guys was pretty decent and, even when it wasn't, I was just fine doing my own thing. After my last relationship fizzled out, I decided to avoid playing the dating game for a while; I had other things I... Continue Reading →
I used to run a vlog/comedy channel on YouTube, GoodEeveening. I say used to because I shut it down recently. The whole thing, three years of content, gone with a single click of a button. I didn’t even say goodbye to any of my 248,000 followers. I didn’t feel safe anymore. I still don’t. I... Continue Reading →
Granting final requests is a kindness that my company specializes in. While we offer our services to anyone in need of them, our primary clientele is the elderly. Oftentimes their desires are simple: Sit with me, listen to me, remind me that I’m worthwhile. Remind me that I’m still human. It’s a heartbreaking line of... Continue Reading →
Julien was arrested when he was fifteen. The cops said it would be a pretty open and shut case: traces of the victim’s blood were found on his keyboard and the murder weapon was on his desk beside him. I wasn’t home when they swarmed our house with a warrant. I didn’t have to see... Continue Reading →
Stories By S.H. Cooper 