*after Dick Laurie By Janice S. Fuller How do I forgive the passage of years,the melancholy of remindersas I sit in Starbucks writing. Businessmen do deals,tutors teach their students,nurses study for exams,loners treasure time alone.Espresso squirts a whssssh!Adele serenades us. Laughter, squealsof babies rocked in car seats by their mothers.Doors slam. Suddenly I’m disoriented atContinue reading “Years”
Author Archives: embryoconceptszine
Window with a View
By Joseph Markell It’s dark outside. The metal window frame is cold, and I have to be careful not to breathe too heavily or too close to the glass. I don’t want to fog the window and block my view. I observe the hundreds of buildings in my view, lain out before me like dimlyContinue reading “Window with a View”
Temptation
By Dana May I am a squeamish person. My body overreacts to certain triggers, causing my heart rate and blood pressure to drop suddenly. I learned the technical name for this—vasovagal syncope—following an ER visit after fainting while driving. Thinking too much about something stuck in my eye sparked that particular episode. After CAT scans,Continue reading “Temptation”
My Quarantine Birthday
By Kate Pashby we entered the virtual strip clubor rather, we all played the prerecordedstrip show at the same timehalf a dozen queers in thesolitude of our own homes I Venmoed the hottest strippera redhead with thigh-highblack boots and nipple ringsand she messaged me soon after“Was this a mistake?I don’t think we know each other”beforeContinue reading “My Quarantine Birthday”
Blunderland
By Ben Nardolilli Trying to turn my room into a positive place,A house where yes is heard more than no,And all of the swears come from a place of joy,So far, I’m starting small, saying FUCKAnd SHIT whenever I reach a solitary climax,Then saying nothing when I stub my toe Has it made the spaceContinue reading “Blunderland”
Cast Iron Skillet
By Sarah Henry A TV cook says,“If you don’t havea cast iron skillet,you have no life!”He waves his ownto warn the viewers. Mine is used forbaking cornbread.Southern style lackssugar. A new typehas added protein.Another’s madesweet with honey.I want all three. I love the wetblend of eggsand cornmealsliding throughmy mouth easily.Guilty pleasuresmean carb bombs,not Keto fare.Continue reading “Cast Iron Skillet”
Next Morning, Picking Blueberries
By Karla Linn Merrifield In ready fruit, fruition:warm, plumpas nipplesto finger,to thumb,to palm,to tongue,once nimbly poppedin open mouth —one tender nibble—plush the explosion. I swallow blueberries wholebecause I was as I was.
Both Sides Now
By Shieva Salehnia They say what breaks your heart open also opens your eyes, and in that moment, you have the chance to grow, to become the person you have always wanted to be. But it’s hard to let go, to give in to the breaking. I turned 30 years old in Brooklyn. Three yearsContinue reading “Both Sides Now”
After-School Mumble Rap With Tevin
By Liz Posner Every day after school, the squeak of rubber on linoleum told me Tevin had arrived. I’d been a Title I classroom teacher for one week, and already Tevin Walker latched on to me like a duckling. He rolled his bicycle into my classroom for tutoring, whether he needed help with an assignmentContinue reading “After-School Mumble Rap With Tevin”
In My Life
By Samantha I remember him hunched in front of the desktop computer in jeans and a baby blue ribbed merino wool sweater with a V-neck – the one I’d helped him select at the Gap. Eyes solemn, mouth resting in a quiet line. “My sister had our dad put together her wedding playlist,” I toldContinue reading “In My Life”