"Why have you moved back to town?" Her question gnawed at me. How do you explain such a decision? The real answer: My life was a heap of poorly conceived choices bound together. I felt pressed against the wall. My feet and my back were an inch away from staging a mutiny, as my mind forced them to stay put. But I barely knew her. "It was time," I replied. She seemed puzzled. "I missed my family," I added. There. Fixed. I sounded normal, just enough. I looked into her eyes. She was trying. We were both desperately, painstakingly trying.
Antonio Sodré is a student of English Literature and Linguistics at the University of São Paulo, Brazil. He enjoys turning stories into short tales. Instagram: @acasodre