Miramichi Flash showcases four outstanding flash fiction in its July Issue. “Cetacea” by Erin Calabria; “Palimpsest” by Sutton Strother; “Cupola” by Jiksun Cheung; and “Tomorrow at Cafe La Nuit” by Sara Hills. Enjoy!
“CETACEA” BY ERIN CALABRIA
When a riptide comes, mother says to swim crosswise against it. But I am already thinking of the whales. Of all the heavy millennia before they went back to the sea—a dwindle of limb, a lengthening of spine and fingerbone steering them out, deeper and deeper, into such softness and hush, it would carry their voices for miles.
“PALIMPSEST” BY SUTTON STROTHER
After I built my time machine, I collected lovers across millennia – women with mechanical arms and regenerating cells, thick-bearded men perfumed with cave damp.
One by one I carried them home with me. We threw parties, traded knowledge, made love in unthinkable configurations.
“CUPOLA” BY JIKSUN CHEUNG
The sea breeze whips at my bathrobe and whistles beneath the floorboards of the front porch. Something seems off again, but I can’t put my finger on it. Millie says the isolation will do that to you.
“TOMORROW AT CAFÉ LA NUIT” BY SARA HILLS
1 You’ll meet your Uncle Dubois for dinner. He’ll order for you in excess, he always does, peering through perched spectacles at le menu while stroking the salted tail of his lamp black beard.
He’ll want to discuss finances. Your future.