fact or fiction

Is it a fact or is it merely fiction? Fact or Fiction explores relationship myths and truths to get your head out of the clouds and back into romantic reality.

The Misery of Safety
Harriet woke up on Thursday morning at 6:15, just like she did every single morning of every single week of every single year. She used the bathroom, put on her robe and slippers and headed out to her kitchen. She popped the little pod into her coffee maker, made her daily cup of coffee, added exactly two tablespoons of light cream and sat down to drink it while skimming her email. She allowed herself exactly twenty minutes every day, then headed to the bathroom where she flossed and brushed her teeth before hopping into a very hot shower. She always started by washing her hair and applying conditioner, which she left on while she washed her face, rinsing it out before proceeding to wash the rest of her body and shave her legs and armpits. This regimen took exactly seven minutes. She squeegeed the shower door and grabbed a towel, wrapping herself tightly before stepping back into her bedroom. As always, her clothes had been carefully laid out the night before, and after applying body lotion and allowing it to dry, she stepped into her outfit of the day. She sat down on the foot of the bed to put her shoes on, and suddenly began to cry. She was inexplicably overcome with sadness at the fact that her life had become so horribly, boringly routine. Ever since her mother had disappeared when she was twelve, she had become more and more bound by habit and predictability.
By Toni Licciardi5 years ago in Humans
The Girl with Nine Roses & No Name
I come from the incredible India which, over centuries, has evolved into a very unique ecosystem of cultures and collective behaviors. The influence of the West on the East isn’t a myth either, rather a stark reflection of the contrast between the rising aspirations and ambitions of India’s middle class towering over the ill-fates of a larger number of low-income groups. Debating income and class differences is a different arena of reality altogether, especially in countries like India. But there exists an interesting reality, amongst many other such realities, in the outskirts of New Delhi, the capital city of India. In the hustle bustle of Noida’s Sector 16 area, within a 10-mile distance from the capital’s center, one can find all kinds of materialistic pleasures at one’s disposal, if one has pockets deep enough. Fine dining restaurants, gourmet delicacies, luxury cars, lavish shopping malls and what not. Two 5-star shopping malls and an amusement park grace the area within a square mile radius which also has the Metro Rail connectivity to cater to the footfall. More megastructures are coming up in the vicinity including a full-fledged film city by 2023. And right outside these megastructures an ecosystem flourishes, comprising cooks who light the ovens inside the royal kitchen, the mechanics who repair the exorbitantly expensive cars, store attendants who spend their days selling items they cannot afford themselves and the notorious auto drivers of Delhi/NCR infamous for their rowdy traffic manners.
By navnS5 years ago in Humans
The Ticket
Grandma sat in her old wicker chair, rocking back and forth fervently as she gripped the pencil in one withered wisp of a hand. In the other she held firmly open a worn, leather-bound black notebook, the pages stained from decades of mug bottoms and spills. It was Grandma’s one prized possession; I am ashamed to admit that if forced at gunpoint to choose between saving me and the book, there was a very real chance that she would opt for the latter.
By P.L.5 years ago in Humans
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity
I. At some point it wasn’t clear whether my eyesight had begun to blur or the writing had become illegible. I squinted, pulled my glasses low on my nose, squinted harder, and pushed them back up. A bead of sweat dripped off the tip of my chin onto the page, obfuscating it further.
By Leigh Dollard5 years ago in Humans
Time Will Tell
Ellie waited patiently by the fireplace in the kitchen, fumbling with the broken edge of the brick as she stared into the low burning flames. Aimlessly she watched as they grew, consuming the small cherry logs. One of her fathers' trees last summer had been split apart by lightning and he was forced to fell the rest of the tree. Cherry trees have the most delightful smell as they burn. Calm and warmth waft from the fireplace as it crackles in its final moments. Such a contrast to the sweet and tangy fruit it would have provided had it lived.
By Elizabeth Dowden5 years ago in Humans
Leather-bound.
I wondered listlessly through the aisles, fingertips brushing over the worn leather spines of books. I often wondered how people could part with a book. The thousands of lives lived through pages as disposable as the next, leaving them to grow dusty in dimly lit op shops.
By EJPark5 years ago in Humans
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity
I. At some point it wasn’t clear whether my eyesight had begun to blur or the writing had become illegible. I squinted, pulled my glasses low on my nose, squinted harder, and pulled them back up. A bead of sweat dripped off the tip of my chin onto the page, obfuscating the writing further.
By Leigh Dollard5 years ago in Humans
Dissolution Pt. 2
It's actually insane how real visions can seem while you're deep in your mind. In this exact moment I couldn't even decipher whether this exchange with you was genuine or not. Not going to lie, it's slightly hazy in this room and everything is quiet. I only seen your lips moving but nothing comes out only these slight frequencies which I can't seem to decipher. Most times during this interaction my memory is immaculate and I visibly write these points in my head and remember them. My dwelling was abruptly interrupted by this beautifully aged lady next to me as she whispers, "Are you okay?" "Water please and a flame," I reply and before I could even ash my perfectly rolled fronto leaf I find myself in the passenger seat of this spirits 76' pumpkin Chevy Nova.
By Sani Believes5 years ago in Humans
Silence is so freaking loud.
2 I woke up the next morning, strange headache as usual, I look for my phone under the sheets, it’s almost 9 in the morning, I have thirty minutes before my first class begin. I’m not quite familiar with the place yet, I rush out hopelessly to find my class before it’s too late, at last after running around in the same circle for about 40 minutes, I found it, I stand by the door, catching my breaths, after few seconds, I open the door, feeling like all the voices in the world has faded, everybody is staring, of course they are. “You’re late ... Mr...” I swallow in my throat, “Alex.. I’m sorry, I’m late, you see it’s my fir...” he cut me off before I can finish my explanation which obviously he doesn’t care about, “please have a seat” I take place at the nearest chair to me which is the only empty seat in the room anyway, slowly everyone eyes drifting away from me and back to the professor while he continue talking about what are we going to study in this semester in his course.
By Sky5 years ago in Humans
A world below.
A world below. I stood, looking over the side of the boat and watching the water race beneath me. The sky’s golden eye reached its arms toward my face and stroked my cheeks with its warm fingers. My skin was clammy under the wetsuit, which clung to me like a damp cloth, and my muscles tensed in anticipation.
By Juliet Emaranth5 years ago in Humans
Full Circle
Gazing up at the century old farmhouse, a wave of peace and grief swept over Raven. It had been a tumultuous year. A year ago, she would never have thought that she would be digging into the earth to grow her own food yet here she was with humus under her nails; cuticles that never seemed to get cleaned; and a happiness that was growing more every day.
By Sarazine Savoie5 years ago in Humans
two
For whatever reason, Bianca doesn't like to come to the city unless she's accompanied by someone, and most of the time that person is me. As long as I've known Bianca, I've always been the older one but I thought she was the prettier one. She'd always get the guys, she bloomed earlier than I did. I always thought she was so lucky. When we were in middle school, Bianca was the early bloomer out of our grade. Boys flocked around her whenever they could and she loved that attention. Unfortunately, the attention was garnered by just about everyone. Girls included. But the one whose attention it grabbed the most (and annoyed me the most) was this guy I had a crush on, Elliot. He'd call me every day after school, just to make sure I got home okay. He told me it was something his father told him to do. One day, while they had a class together, he asked the class for a spare writing utensil to take notes with. Bianca had one. And apparently, it was love at first sight from there. No more phone calls for me. Bianca took it all in stride, it was just another guy. She got bored of him once someone else looked her way. Elliot and I never spoke to each other again.
By Taylor Ranae5 years ago in Humans