Short Stories

  • The Trilogy Part II: Seen

    The Trilogy Part II: “SEEN”Part II of a three-part fictional character study examining miscommunication, intrusive thought, and self-reflection.A Multisyllabic, Whimsy, Stream of Consciousness Rhyme. (A character study of emotional immaturity)By: Emmitt Owens(Index #01042026) [Verse 1]Texted this bitch Tuesday, she ain’t answer ’til Friday night“Sorry, been so busy”—nah, you just ain’t think I’m rightFor your stuck-up… Read more

  • Me vs. Me: The Scroll

    Me vs. Me: The ScrollBy: Emmitt Owens(Index #01052026)    The blue glow painted my face as I scrolled through another profile. Single. The word sat there like an invitation I couldn’t accept, couldn’t ignore, couldn’t do anything with except stare at it until my eyes burned.     My thumb hovered over the message button, frozen in… Read more

  • Red Flags, Red LightsPart I of a three-part fictional character study examining miscommunication, intrusive thought, and self-reflection.A Multisyllabic, Whimsy, Stream of Consciousness RhymeBy: Emmitt Owens(Index #01042026) [Verse 1]I said “maybe lunch” like a shrug with a smileShe heard “future plans,” heard “pressure,” heard “trial”I got more free time than a retired clockEven my hustle hit… Read more

  • B-12: A Love Vitamin

    B-12: A Love NumberBy: Emmitt Owens(Index #12312025)    Look, I’m fifty-four, and I’ll tell you right now: the house didn’t echo when my youngest daughter drove off to college. It just got quiet. The kind of quiet you’ve been waiting thirty-four years for, even if you didn’t know it. The last of the kids to… Read more

  • Rest in Peace: 2025

    R.I.P. 2025 By: Emmitt Owens (Index #12302025-8:07am) Diddy’s baby oil stash went from bathroom accessory to courtroom exhibit, and the whole internet got LUBED, MOISTURIZED, AND SIDE-EYEING EVERY SHINE Suddenly nobody trusted a glow, a gloss, or a man with “good skin.” Taylor Swift got engaged to Travis Kelce and that announcement PENETRATED DEEP—timelines expanded,… Read more

  • A Tuesday Poem

    A Tuesday PoemBy: Emmitt Owens(Index #12302025) Tuesday weighs heavy like wet wool, this day that pretendsto be productive but really just slouches between the bookends—and I’m thinking about how we’ve built this elaborate theaterwhere everyone’s both audience and performer and no onecan remember their lines but we all keep showing up anyway,swiping left on our… Read more

  • The Opt-OutEpisode 5By: Emmitt Owens (Index #12292026) “Tolerance for not knowing is the quiet skill modern relationships no longer teach. It’s the ability to sit inside uncertainty without immediately labeling it, fixing it, or defending against it. It’s trusting that meaning can emerge over time instead of demanding clarity on demand. Relationships don’t unfold through certainty—they… Read more

  • The Physics of Sleeping With YouBy: Emmitt Owens(Index #12012025)    Every night, the same accusation flies across the mattress like a thrown pillow.     “You’re doing it again,” Marina says, her voice carrying through the darkness.   I open one eye. I am currently occupying approximately seven inches of mattress space—what Marina has taken to calling “The… Read more

  • The Bug, I Didn’t Remove

    The Bug I Didn’t RemoveA Whimsy-Whirly, Topsy-Turvy, Tale of Delightful NonsenseBy: Emmitt Owens In two-thousand-seventeen, so the story goes,Everyone was keeping score with their…fingers and toes! Of a game nobody wanted, a game with no rules—I said, “I won’t play!” and they thought “he’s a fool”. Ten years before that (or was it eleven?)I found… Read more

  • Tuesday feels like everyone’s got a checklistof thingsthat shouldn’t bother thembut doHoward wrote three posts this weekabout baseball caps facing backwardThree separate postsSame capSame complaint.Same energy of a man who says“I just keep scrolling”while absolutely…not keeping scrollingInstead…He stopsHe has to post about itHe has to post about howthe plastic strap bothers himThat little adjustable piecestretched… Read more