Story Archives - Page 4 of 4 - James Kirst Short Story and Novel Blog

A True Friend, Part of Short Story Saturday!

Posted on November 17, 2018December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! Introducing for the first time a new feature on my blog called Short Story Saturday! Every Saturday I will be posting a short story for your perusal. While some may be connected to other stories, they are going to be, for the most part, one-offs. I hope you enjoy them. The first one is entitled A True Friend.

I gradually awake from my unconscious slumber. I’m lying on my side on the cold, damp muddied dirt on this foreboding night struggling to breathe. My chest heaves up and down deliberately as I take deep, measured pants of the air, each gasp sending shockwaves of pain in my chest as if tiny little knives were stabbing my ribs. An oppressive cold seizes my shivering body. The trees that surround me with their limb-like branches that extend towards the heavens like giant, arboreal fingers shield even the most basic illumination making visibility an issue.

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What I Learned In School Today

Posted on November 9, 2018December 3, 2023 by jkirst

As a bit of a supplement to my upcoming book, Ghosts are Assholes, here is another vignette into Vincent’s life that I hope you enjoy. It is entitled What I Learned In School Today.

“What’s the answer to number 2?” the young boy asked the dowdy ghost floating over his left shoulder just above a whisper. He didn’t want to risk attracting the attention of his fourth-grade teacher sitting behind her desk.

“Vincent!” the apparition admonished. “Are you asking me to cheat?”

“Uh-huh!” the boy replied eagerly.

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Just One Date

Posted on November 7, 2018December 3, 2023 by jkirst

As a bit of a supplement to my upcoming book, Ghosts are Assholes, here is another vignette into Vincent’s life that I hope you enjoy. It is entitled Just One Date.

“You have a lot of nerve showing up here after what you did,” Vincent said after seeing the thin apparition in the reflection of the bathroom mirror.

“Look, I know I dropped quite the large one,” a young brown-haired man said as he turned off the faucet next to Vincent. As he shook his hands above the sink, he continued with, “But there’s no need to embarrass me about it.”

Vincent’s awkward attempts to apologize fell on deaf ears. The man gruffly dried his hands and left in silence. After this time confirming that nobody else was in the bathroom with him, he turned and faced the poltergeist. “You know that girl I was with? She’s my girlfriend! And today is the first day we’ve been able to get together in over a week! Couldn’t you just let me enjoy the show with her without making an ass of yourself?”

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Do I really have to do this?

Posted on November 5, 2018December 3, 2023 by jkirst

As a bit of a supplement to my upcoming book, Ghosts are Assholes, here is a vignette into Vincent’s life that I hope you enjoy. It is entitled Do I really have to do this?

“This place is really nice,” Vincent told the apparition as he waited for the elevator. Based on the way Edward Freeman had described it he had expected the place to be decrepit. Instead, he found himself in a beautiful ten-story glass building. It even had a pianist in the lobby which is the most definite sign of a classy establishment.

“A gilded cage,” Edward snarled floating above Vincent’s shoulder.

“You made the place sound like a dump.”

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