30 Comments

Crisp prose, great premise, good turn, yeah, I don't think I had read any of your fiction before this. I knew there was a reason I liked you. For as short as it is, you did a lot, and I loved it. Out-fucking-standing. Can't wait to read your non-Twilight Zone related work.

Expand full comment

Thank you so much!

Expand full comment

The ending was a pleasant surprise! Well done! Such a head trip. 😵‍💫

Expand full comment

My stove is on and my door is unlocked almost always but it's because I like to have people over for cupcakes and stuff.

This is beautifully unsettling. My kinda thing. Super well done. (I grew up in Thunder Bay btw)

Expand full comment

Oh nice! We're a rare breed hahaha. FW or PA? Just out of curiosity.

And thanks!

Expand full comment

Fort William, Westfort then Northwood.

Expand full comment

Current River/broader PA here. CR and Westfort are still pretty much the same. The main downtowns have changed a lot though (depending on when you left.) Especially downtown PA.

Expand full comment

I was there recently for a quick drop-in, and yes, it seemed very different. Kinda lifeless in a way. I'm old tho, left in the eighties.

Expand full comment

--that said, I love the mystique and aura of the place. It is definitely part of my voice and character.

Expand full comment

It's true. For all the flaws, it's beautiful. I lived in southern Ontario for a while but tbay is my blood.

Expand full comment

A couple more windows have been boarded up since then 🤣

Expand full comment

this is so delightfully twisted

Expand full comment

Knocked it out of the park! Really enjoyed your story! Can't wait to read more of your work!

Expand full comment

Thank you!

Expand full comment

What a twist!!! (And great image 🥰) Love how you worked in the window reference.

Expand full comment

Thanks!!

Expand full comment

You had me going down one path only to pull the rug out from under me at the end. Fantastic addition to the Substack Zone casserole of darkness.

Expand full comment

Thank you!

Expand full comment

Cruel and unusual in the best way possible.

Expand full comment

Fantastic! I really loved this premise. And the coffee cup from Niagara is a really nice touch of her extended neurosis.

Expand full comment

Is the coffee cup even real, or is it planted in her head? Hopefully she doesn't think about that too much because it might be upsetting ;)

Expand full comment

D’oh! I hadn’t considered that. 🤯

Expand full comment

#justneurosisthings

Expand full comment

yeah. this is great. No idea where it was going until the end. superb idea and skillfully crafted, the malice at the end delightfully mean and nasty. want to be a fly on the wall when the beef + rash hits!

no words wasted. wish I had written this.

Expand full comment

Total chaos in the kitchen, I expect! Lots of hand washing.

And thanks!

Expand full comment

Loved this. The first bit reads like neurosis and intrusive thoughts, and the twist to what's actually going on... Well done.

Expand full comment

Thank you!!

Expand full comment