A constant game of keep
away, he returns home, empty
apartment, grease-stained
cardboard boxes, strewn about,
crusts, maybe.
He peels off his signature
red suit, wrinkled from sweat,
smelling faintly of
mozzarella, and plops down,
parmesan bites in hand.
Turns the television
on, hoping to avoid advertisements,
having left work at work,
he's lonely. Binging
romantic comedies and
weeping a little each night.
Avoid, they said, and it
was catchy and it pays
the bills, but he'd trade
fast food infamy for real human
connection, any day.
Hawaiian-Italian author, Jessica Gleason, is a lover of horror and fantasy in their various shapes and forms and can usually be found penning gory tales deep into the night. She enjoys painting monsters with acrylics and singing a mean hair metal karaoke. Her daytime persona teaches college English and Communications in the American midwest. Her recent releases include ‚The Dangerous Miss Ventriloquist,and ""The Fabulous Miss Fortune'' (Evil Cookie Publishing, 2023) and ""Madison Murphy, Wisconsin Weirdo"" (Champagne Books Group, 2023). For information on her projects, follow her on Instagram (@j.g.writes) where she hosts a monthly horror writer challenge, #WeWriteHorror.
https://jgwrites.carrd.co
