Three Fiction Pieces
Chelsea Utecht
In a Name
She had a name once that fit into the palm of her hand. She remembers because she used to offer it up for consideration. It was a thing of potential, and she traded it for Honey that dripped down her arm. She licked it off her fingers, sweet, then rich, then choking. She became heavy and round with it until she no longer remembered that once-name, until she ran out of Honey and fell backwards into Mama, a name she cannot hold, a name that rises up around her. She stretches, stands on tiptoes, holds her hands above the ledge of it, holding up someone else's name, someone else's potential, forgetting that there ever was a name she held so carelessly.
Smudge on the Mirror
There’s a beast within the glass, its twin behind me. Both gnash their teeth and roar, “Not a smudge!” They never say why, but I can surmise they want to be together on this side, where they can both reach me.
It’s still not clean, as each swipe of the cloth leaves new streaks and pinpoints of fiber behind. They watch and rage until their voices crack, and they grow hungry or tired and leave. Fear pushes me on until the mirror shines, flawless to my untrained eye.
In the end, self-preservation wins out, overrides my fear, and I leave an inconspicuous thumbprint in the corner – my rebellion and protection at once.
Eat My Grass
My teacher tells a story. She was young, as young as us with our wide eyes and Jansports. Rough hands grabbed her and threw her down. Her keys like claws – the way we’re all taught – slipped away and out of reach, lost in the dark. Useful advice, the same advice she was giving us, lived deep in her mind and resurfaced then: act crazy. So, she yelled, “I have to eat my grass!” shoveling handfuls into her mouth. The man left quickly, leaving only temporary bruises and permanent fear.
It must be a funny story because the boys all laugh. The girls take notes.
Bio
​
Chelsea Utecht is an American living abroad in Tbilisi, Georgia with her husband, two sons, and former street dog/current princess. She is a recent participant in the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and her work has been published in Shooter Literary Magazine, The Gravity of the Thing, Friday Flash Fiction, and Fifty-Word Stories.