CHRONOTOPE
and hope.“Can I join you?” he asked with a lopsided smile. “Of course you can,” Brenda said. Martin looked at Ray. “You were always worried you’d be outed. You’re lucky it was your cousin.” He glanced at Brenda’s bag. “You must’ve bought a lot to get a Walt Whitman Bag.” Brenda smiled. “I don’t like to smoke and I have a weakness for sweets.” “Did you get the carrot cake?” “Uh-huh.” “I got a chocolate chip cookie,” Martin said. “I’m getting fat. But they have a genius baker.” Ray moaned. “I’m hungry,” Brenda said. “Me too. Cafe La Folie is just down the street.” Martin gestured in the direction where the rainbow flag brandished its colors at the foothills of San Francisco. “They have the best crème brûlée.” “I like it with a really thick crust,” Brenda said. “You know, where it’s hard to crack.” “Let’s have dinner. I’ll save us a table on the patio.” Martin took off. “He’s a nice young man.” “Yup, he’s a keeper.” “Let’s go break some crème brûlée.” “Ah, I need to lose weight.” “We all do. What else is new? C’mon Ray,” Brenda said, taking his arm. DC Diamondopolous is an award-winning short story and flash fiction writer with over 125 stories published internationally in print and online magazines, literary journals, and anthologies. DC’s stories have appeared in: So It Goes: The Literary Journal of the Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library, Lunch Ticket, Raven Chronicles, Silver Pen, Scarlet Leaf Review, and many others. DC was nominated for Best of the Net 2017 Anthology. She lives on the beautiful California central coast.
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