Texas was the first to declare independence when martial law was imposed on the citizens of the old US. Given the wars in Central America along with the economic collapse, the "Gang of Four" ruling Washington could do little to stop the states in the west and southwest from declaring secession. A shoot-on-sight policy was implemented for curfews, which led to dozens of incidents involving US troops firing on civilians. Ev...

I’m down on my knees with the scrubbing brush when my phone buzzes against the tiles. I wipe my damp hand across my leggings and swipe to see the notification. Dentist appointment: 2pm. “Oh, shit!” I had it in my head that my appointment was tomorrow, and now I realise I’ve only got twenty minutes to get there. My stomach drops. I’m flushed from cleaning already, too warm in my pink marble leggings and the stretchy pink s...

I really fucked up this past weekend. Like in a life-ruining way, and I desperately need to get it off my chest. Hopefully, putting it out into the void will do the trick. Forgive me if this ends up a jumbled mess. I never even post on Facebook, so this kind of thing is way out of my wheelhouse. I’m going to change names to keep this anonymous, but I know if he reads this he’ll know it’s about us. But I really only care a...

The glass is cold against my forehead, unforgiving and sharp, whilst beneath my skin, feverish heat coils and burns. Outside, the autumn night lies still and shadowed. The only light spills soft gold from his window across the dark lawn. My room is a cave of darkness, a guilty secret I wear like skin. He doesn’t know I'm here, watching him. That furious, wicked thrill tightens beneath my ribs, a yearning both wrong and im...

I’m standing outside Thrust and Velvet, of all places. A sex shop you glimpse from the motorway, large neon pink sign hanging over the door and mirrored windows. I’ve driven past it a hundred times, always with a smug little as if smirk. But here I am, engine still ticking, hands gripping the wheel ready to reverse back onto the road. I’d thought about ordering something online, scrolled through pages of glossy, suspiciou...

It was a little after 8 pm when Tanya returned to her apartment, “Thank god it’s Friday,” she said out loud. The day was brutal, she ached all over, was tired and hungry and only interested in two things, a hot bath and a glass of wine. She stood in the middle of her bedroom and undressed. Steam cascaded out of the bathroom as the bath filled. Soft music playing in the background and a chilled glass of Semillon close by....

The door clicked shut. A sound so final, so soft, yet it echoed in Vic’s skull like the slam of a prison gate. Or was it the opening of one? He was still on the couch, his body a landscape of ravaged nerves. The air in the room was heavy, humid, carrying the metallic scent of the rain outside and the musky, intimate aroma of sex and power that had just unfolded. It was a perfume that clung to the back of his throat, a tas...

I cycle to the café like I always do on Thursdays with the usual vague hope that I’ll get one of the big tables by a socket point before the laptop crowd takes them all. I’ve felt sluggish all morning and the ride wakes me up a little, pulling my mind into my body. By the time I arrive I’m flushed and a bit too warm, legs humming and skin prickling with the remnants of effort. I don’t think of it as going there for him, n...

Evelyn McDonald, his sister's future mother-in-law, caught him dressing in a nightgown; she forced Gary to confess he was a cross-dresser and demanded his obedience. Gary now sat on a lounge chair poolside, Mrs. McDonald had selected, and his eyes darted from his phone to watch Mrs. McDonald. The adults had returned to their conversation poolside. She didn't glance his way and seemed to ignore him, but he couldn't focus o...

It was early in the afternoon when Mr. Kent pulled into a driveway. The McDonald home was a large, two-story colonial-type house with a manicured lawn and flower garden; a tasteful fountain sat in the middle of the drive. As the trio began to exit the red sedan, Monica opened the house's front door, shrieked loudly, and ran to embrace her mother. The young coed hugged her father, and she squeezed a surprised Allen tightly...

At 23, I finished my bachelor's degree in accounting and, after several interviews, received and accepted a job offer from an established firm in Miami. I was both excited and anxious at the prospects that awaited me. My moving strategy was simple. I would set up appointments to see potential apartments and fly down from my parents' home in New York to pick one out. Once accommodation was secured, I would return to New Yo...

For three years now, I had been dating my girlfriend, Maddie. What started as a whirlwind romance had slowly settled into something deeper, something steady. Two years ago, we took the next step—we moved in together. At first, it was a small apartment in the heart of the city, a place that was truly ours, filled with late-night take out, quiet mornings, and the soft hum of shared routines. But life has a way of shifting c...

Sitting in the late afternoon sun, leaning back against the wall of the pub, Caroline looked absolutely in her element. not because of the location, but the presence of the sun and her burnished skin. It's the sort of thing doctors advise against these days; we're all supposed to wear a hat, slap on some factor 75 and hide from the rays. Caroline was from a generation that grew up without such fears. With her black hair a...

Farooq's lips curled into a soft smile, his thumb brushing her cheekbone tenderly. "Then let’s make it unforgettable," he said and as he leaned down, capturing her lips with his own. The kiss was gentle at first, a delicate exploration that sent shivers through Soni's entire body. But as she responded, twining her arms around his neck, it deepened into something more fervent. Farooq's hands roamed from her waist to her ba...