“Mom!”   My screams and sobs echoed through the airport security line.   “I don't want to go. Please let me stay.”   I became more desperate as I got closer to...

Rita Isbell turns on the TV. As she scrolls through the endless options of Netflix’s catalogs of k-dramas and knock-off horror sequels, she comes across a new show about serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. The...

The tiny girl pranced through the library’s glass doors hand in hand with her father. She gazed up at him with her giant eyes, and he smiled back down at her. Pure joy reflected in her features, too.  I...

S TIER Birds Aren't Real Very random in terms of other conspiracy theories. We can all postulate about the government watching us but birds being drones? Iconic. The official conspiracy theory website...

Sobbing, she rushed back into the classroom of my old school. It was the uncontrollable kind, the kind where you can’t even get a word out. Catching her breath, she was finally able to answer my question. “What...

I wake up to my mom resting her hand on my shoulder. “Garrison, you need to get up and come downstairs right away.”  Immediately, millions of things rush through my mind as to what could be...

I blame my older brother for a lot of things, but I have to give him credit for his obsession with getting a dog. When I was in 4th grade, he convinced my mom to get us a black lab puppy we named Maggie. Maggie...

It’s 3:15 p.m. on a Thursday afternoon and all I can taste is blood. For the past hour I’ve been bouncing my leg and biting my inner cheeks as I race to finish my human geography test. The words...

Editor’s note: This story was part of the Jan. 19, 2022 in-depth package that won superior in-depth package in the 2022 TAJE Best in Texas contest. It went on to win Best 0f the Best for Objective Writing....