The house slept around me, its stillness a seemingly endless barrage on the senses. Every movement I made in bed sounded throughout the room and the residence. Occasionally I’d hear the odd pair of drunken partygoers passing through the neighbourhood on their way home. An hour ago, I’d listened as my brother came home, drunk and stumbling up the stairs noisily. Since then I couldn’t sleep, and I had idly trawled through my phone, its blue light a detrimental factor to my failin

It was almost
another regular day for Riley Jones. The blazing Californian sun bore
down across the landscape, coating the city in a golden hue that
glorified the hazy sky. The hot, breezeless morning weather signalled
another beautiful day in the city and for this Riley was glad. It had
just turned 9.00AM and the young and pert Californian lad was walking
to his job, ready to do his last ever shift. He’d been up for a few
hours preparing himself and getting ready for the day making sure he
lo

The
office was abuzz with chatter and consistent typing from workers sat
inside cubicles. The interior, lavishly white and modern, was home to
a large technology firm that dealt in everything from small household
appliances to military grade computing software. Seth sat inside his
office, staring blankly at the long list of emails that he had to
reply to on his PC. His mind was elsewhere, though professional in
his smart, slick designer suit, he had neglected his work that day.
Last night he and

The smoke in the room hung in the
air, thick and scented in its perfumed state. Low light cascaded
around the crimson covered walls, emitted from the candles that were
placed on every table in the restaurant. Shadows danced around the
room as waiters rushed to and fro holding trays of luscious and
exotic foods, and the heavy scent of spice wafted through the air.
Seth hated spice. The aroma of it made his eyes water and even mild
dishes made his mouth and body intolerably hot. Here he was though