By the time Claire admitted defeat, she was standing on the third rung of an aluminum ladder, holding what looked less like a string of lights and more like a glittering python that had given up on life. “Okay,” she muttered to the strand. “How are you more tangled now than you were in the […]
The first time the snow globe tried to escape, it was almost poetic. Lena had been dusting half-heartedly, balancing on the back of her couch in socks that were definitely not OSHA-approved, when the base of the globe slipped from her fingers. She watched it fall in slow motion, heart leaping into her throat. It […]
The first time the snow globe tried to escape, it was almost poetic. Lena had been dusting half-heartedly, balancing on the back of her couch in socks that were definitely not OSHA-approved, when the base of the globe slipped from her fingers. She watched it fall in slow motion, heart leaping into her throat. It […]
After a spectacularly awkward break-up, Julie hadn’t expected to spend her Tuesday evening sandwiched between her grandmother’s old friends, clutching a pair of size eight needles and a ball of soft lavender yarn. Yet here she was, sitting at the Pine Street Community Center, unsure whether she’d come for the knitting or just for a […]
Ella balanced the tiny kitten carrier on her hip as she pushed open the door to her apartment. The little gray tabby inside shivered and mewed, wide eyes peeking through the mesh. “You are going to be just fine,” Ella murmured, setting the carrier gently on her kitchen floor. She had said it a so […]
Martha had been serving cocoa at the Riverbend Ice Sculpture Festival longer than some of the sculptures lasted intact. Every year, she’d watch artists carve magic out of frozen blocks, and every year, she set up her little stand at the edge of the plaza, filling the air with chocolate and spice. This year, she […]
The old wooden sled felt strange in Patricia’s hands after so many years. Twelve years, where had the time gone. She shouldn’t have come to Larkin Hill. The sledding spot sat just outside town, far from her parents’ inn where she was supposed to be helping with the holiday rush. But nostalgia had pulled her […]
Emma stared at the gingerbread man in her hands, frustrated by its crooked icing smile. This was her fourteenth attempt, and still, something wasn’t right. The bakery competition was tomorrow, and she needed everything to be perfect. “Too wonky,” she muttered, tossing the cookie into the growing pile of rejects on her counter. The turquoise […]
Every year since their wedding, Alex and Mae had the same tradition. They would wait for the first genuine frost of the season, when the world turned silver-white overnight. One would wake the other before dawn, and together they would prepare their special spiced tea while the world still slept. This morning, Mae’s phone had […]
Day 1 of 31, and Beth’s skates felt heavier than she remembered. The doctor had suggested “getting outside more” to combat her seasonal depression, but standing at the edge of the frozen lake at 4 PM, with the winter sun already setting, Beth wondered if she’d lost her mind. “Thirty-one days,” she muttered, tightening her […]