Polite Stories

"If I sit in your lap, at least I'll give my feet a break, if nothing else," Dawn said after discovering a computer glitch had assigned the same train seat to two passengers. Lee smiled at Dawn's philosophical take on the chaos and felt it warranted a response in keeping with her light-hearted style. "If you do that, I'll get thrown off the train, so you'll get a seat anyway," Lee replied, making Dawn laugh louder than sh...

Andy walked through the dark December drizzle feeling unusually sorry for himself. He was proud of his ability to remain upbeat and cheerful in times of adversity, but he hated the darkness and cold. Experiencing both together because his poor memory had let him down saw him wishing things were different. With just milk and bread to buy, Andy hoped he could be in and out of the shop quickly, although Saturday evenings wer...

"I'll pick you up at the bus station," The words were straightforward, and their meaning was clear, with a loose agenda already agreed upon. The bus journey lasted a few hours, taking him to the largest town near her. During the trip, his mind drifted back to the early chatroom banter they had shared. He remembered it fondly; it had been delightfully childish and utterly carefree. They had truly enjoyed it. His thoughts m...