I got her a book called The Secret of Cooking for Cats. “I already know the secret,” she said. “A can opener.” I laughed. But felt a little hurt too. She had four cats. They twirled around her like small dust devils always looking to eat.
She worked from home. Designed patterns for children’s mittens. Snowmen and Christmas trees were big around the holidays. I told her I’d always preferred gloves with fingers. “What about a little mystery?” she said, giving me a look. “What might be underneath? She was a friend. Just that. I’d thought. Till that very moment…
Robert Scotellaro has been published widely in books, journals, and anthologies including: W.W. Norton’s Flash Fiction International Anthology, NANO Fiction,Gargoyle, and many others. He is the author of seven literary chapbooks and two full-length collections: Measuring the Distance (flash fiction, 2012) and What We Know So Far (micro fiction, 2015). The latter was the winner of The Blue Light Book Award. A forthcoming collection of his 100-word stories is due out by Big Table Publications in 2016. He was the recipient of Zone 3’s Rainmaker Award in Poetry. Robert currently lives in San Francisco. Visit him at rsflashfiction.com.
A Quiet Courage 