i'm dying—there can be no other explanation forthe way my heart beats against its bone cagethe way my lungs tighten and swellas your tongue maps the arch of my throatdescendsto the curve of my breasts. i'm dying—burning to deathas your hands...

The Dangers of Falling in Love with Bad Men

"She's in another kind of trouble, though she hasn't yet figured out what."

Briana Dawson is seventeen years old when she first falls in love. Her English teacher, Mr. Ramone, is in the hospital, though none of her teachers will tell them why. There are rumors, though—there are always rumors—that he fell down...

La Petite Mort (Part I)

"Trembling, Rebecca watched him go."

Rebecca thrummed her fingers against the table top in a mindless tune and eyed the door in front of her worriedly. For the nth time in the past two hours she checked her watch, and then the large digital clock...