Original Author: Ariel Goodbody

I Bet I Could Taste It

In this episode, I present the story I won second prize with in the 2022 Summer Reflex Fiction flash fiction competition, and I also talk about my recent ADHD diagnosis.

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Hector the Snail

Hector is a snail, so of course he’s very slow. But he dreams of becoming fast. He decides to find a wizard and ask the wizard to swap his body with an ostrich’s. What could go wrong? Well, a lot, actually…

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The Digital Fugitive

The war is raging on, and the government needs a part from her wheelchair. The only problem is, her wheelchair is now a part of her body. And she’s illegally modified it.

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His Latest Experiment

God is trying to make humans, but something is wrong. His calculations look right, but the humans are staying babies for fifty years. What is the problem?

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A Lucky New Year

Harold has terrible luck. Bus shelters collapse on him, he makes his dates vomit, and no matter how many good-luck charms he wears, his luck won’t change. So he decides that this New Year’s Eve, he’s going to follow every tradition and superstition in the world, to see if he can change his luck around.

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The Very Hungry Dragon (Beginner)

She flew down and took the roof off the cart. The people with the cart saw her and ran away. Grella laughed, and picked up the cart in her hand. She emptied it into her mouth, eating all of the jewels in one go.
Grella understood now. Her mother had been right. Jewels were amazing. They made her feel wonderful inside, like there was a party inside her stomach.
Grella flew off to find more food.

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The Tattoo

‘I know you think you don’t want it,’ said Gary’s girlfriend, Claire, ‘but just think. When you turn 18, most of your friends will have their tattoos already. People will want to see yours. Look, you can tell them that you’re getting it later, that you couldn’t book an appointment, but how long can you lie? One day, you’ll look around and think, “God, why don’t I have a tattoo? Everyone else does.” ’

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The Flesh and Blood We Share

It was the place he and Bulan had first kissed.
Hale fell to his knees and threw up all his beer onto the dirt. The edges of his armour plates cut into him, and he felt like a skeleton dancing inside it, like a sorcerer had used magic on him or something. He threw up twice, then three times, and finally stopped. A bit of sick slid down his chin and neck, leaving a stain on his shirt.

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Have You Seen This Woman?

She was singing. She was drunk, I think, the way she sang. Maybe she had drunk a big glass of vodka. But her singing was good. She sounded sad, but the music was good. We were all so surprised to see her there.

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It’s a Small World

‘You know, for an apocalypse, we live quite well.’
The soldier was eating seeds with honey. Normally, the food would have been very small, but he was small, too. So each seed was the size of his head. They were sitting in a small house made of dried grass.
‘You know I hate that word,’ said his friend.

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