'Christmas, snowman, Santa, presents, baubles, sleigh, reindeer, crackers, stocking, pudding.' Dr. Wichser held up each picture one by one, taking notes after Penny had looked at them. This confirmed his suspicion: it was the reading of the words or hearing them spoken that triggered a reaction in her, not the visual interpretation of the images. "That's quite unusual and, I imagine, socially challenging," the doctor said...

Another lonely Christmas loomed. Imprisoned by circumstances, Stella rarely spoke to people, and when she did, it was only a matter of time before she slipped up. Stella couldn't believe her eyes when she saw him walking past with a message on his sweatshirt. 'I want to tuck your sits, but that's my issue,' it said. Joey had worn the sweatshirt as his act of defiance. The world laughed at him, but he wasn't giving up just...

"So, the vice squad has been disbanded, and you'll all be working for the vibe squad starting tomorrow." The room fell silent, aside from a stray fart that echoed around the room. It seemed to sum up what had been said so perfectly. The police chief was a powerful man, more like a character from a movie than in charge of a northern town ravaged by the loss of its industrial roots. His announcement had been shocking, but t...

Sally was heartbroken, and she suddenly hated the job she had as a mystery shopper. Sally had been asked to write a review of the phone-based ordering system and had used the opportunity to enjoy getting something that would add to the collection she had built up as a hobby. Serious nerds would have had this in their stash for years, but Sally hadn't. When she'd seen the unused and boxed item advertised, she had ordered i...

Beth had always been a little bit different from other kids growing up. While they were content with playing video games or scrolling through social media all day, Beth dreamed of something more magical. She wanted to be an elf at the North Pole. Every year, when Christmas decorations started popping up in stores, Beth would get more and more excited. She'd spend hours imagining what it would be like to live at the North...

For several weeks after their trip to Maui, Kathy and Brock continued to forge their relationship and both saw the possibility of wedding bells. As the trees turned color after an Indian Summer, they started discussing the plans for the upcoming holidays. By now, Kathy had met all of Brock’s family, his parents, his brother and sister, and their spouses, and some of the extended family. The entire Roberts family was large...