It wasn't the whispers that bothered Meredith; she was used to the sound of indistinct voices all around her, a constant blur of noise that bordered on musical...  No, the problem with these whispers was that they originated from the living.

"She's always talking to herself." This was followed by giggles.

"Might as well, nobody else'll talk to her ( Read more... )

An electronic cacophony enveloped Shannon the moment the doors closed behind her. The tinny, discordant jingling sounds were irritating, and she wondered if there was an area of the casino where she could escape them. Somewhere behind the noise of the machines, eighties dance music played just loudly enough to be recognizable. The lights were dim, ( Read more... )

Her "gift", grandma always called it. More like a curse, Meredith thought for at least the hundreth time. Maybe it was a gift when it kept your loved ones around you, whispering endearments while you made the bed or keeping you company in front of the tv at night. It was a totally different story when the spirits in question were college students. ( Read more... )

"Can you believe that girl has the nerve to show her face here? I heard she was practically getting naked on the dance floor last weekend with Micah. I mean, Micah of all people -  her best friend's ex! Girl's suicidal or something." Elisa sidled up to a group of girls she'd seen twittering and posing for the guys - appearance-conscious social ( Read more... )

Kellie’s parents told her lies, and she hated them for it.

Daddy called her his little princess, when everyone knew that princesses were slender and graceful with smooth, perfect hair (quite unlike her frizzy brown mop) and beautiful dresses. Mommy told her it was more important to be pretty on the inside than on the outside, but the popular girls ( Read more... )

Once upon a time, in a land just across the river and over a wooded hill, a Princess named Rosalie lived with her father the King and her mother the Queen in a large castle in the very center of the Northern Kingdom. Rosalie loved dancing, and pretty dresses and needlework, but not quite as much as she loved puzzles and history and getting to know ( Read more... )

Kristie hadn't realized she'd be so nervous. This wasn't some stranger she was about to meet. It wasn't a scary blind date. She and Storm (Eric, she corrected herself - his real name was Eric) had been talking every day for months, first through LJ comments, then text chat, then Skype. He was as familiar to her as her own family, as her best friend ( Read more... )

I've never failed at anything in my life. Never felt the devastating humiliation of a spectacular, dramatic crash and burn. I've had bad relationships, sure, and I've tried out for roles in theater and choir that I didn't get, but that's not the same as throwing myself heart and soul into something that gags and chokes on my inadequacy and spits me ( Read more... )

Once upon a time (wait, no, strike that - wrong story...)
I woke up one morning and (No, just NO.)
It was a dark and stormy night (really? You're going to steal from SNOOPY?) (Am not! Sometimes it really IS a dark and stormy night!) (Ok, fine, dark and stormy night if you insist...) and Heather's friends were doing what they always did when stuck ( Read more... )

Practically skipping down the street with excitement, Brandi glanced at the scrap of paper on which she'd scrawled a hasty shopping list. Today of all days, everything had to be perfect.

First stop, peaches and wine from the co-op grocery store. Then around the corner to the drugstore’s holiday aisle. Brandi filled a basket with Valentines candy - ( Read more... )