Relationships

Miles in Between
Theo used to think that love would find him by now. In his twenties, he’d watched his friends meet, date, and marry like clockwork. It was as if everyone else was given a map, and he was handed a compass with no North. Now in his mid-thirties, he was tired of pretending that dating apps were exciting. The endless bios, the swipe culture, the way it all made intimacy feel like a transaction — it exhausted him.
By The Kind Quill9 months ago in Pride
The Quiet in Room 17
I always knew something was different about me. Not the “gifted child” kind of different, or even the “she’s so quirky” type. This difference didn’t come with praise or pats on the back. It came with whispers, narrowed eyes, and the lingering silence after I entered a room.
By Zakir Ullah9 months ago in Pride
No Matter the Result: Pinky Promise
⋆｡ﾟ☁︎ ✧ ⚢ ☾ ﾟ｡⋆ "Ouch!" Mara hissed, louder than she meant. People in the waiting room stared, mildly annoyed. But Mara was more bothered. Her thumb throbbed. She’d bitten through another nail. A fresh crescent of red peeked out from under the polish Doreen had painted just an hour ago.
By Dalma Ubitz9 months ago in Pride
I Am Angry At My World, Today.
"How can you be bisexual if you are married to a man, and you have children?" "Are you sleeping around?" These are questions I get asked, usually by people who work with children.
By Carol Ann Townend9 months ago in Pride
Happy Pride Month!
In the middle of Maplewood Park stood an old wooden bench painted in bright rainbow colors. Weathered by sun, rain, and time, the colors had faded slightly, the wood creaked when someone sat — but the bench still stood proud. It wasn’t fancy, but it had a story.
By Lucious9 months ago in Pride
Baseball is For Everyone: Part 4
Greetings, Vocal readers and Happy Pride Month! I've addressed the many reasons why America's pastime is for everyone in previous stories, which I'll have down below. I know I said that the previous story of me discussing this topic was the last time addressing opponents of LGBTQ+ people and anything that's related to it. Now, I have even more things to discuss and helpful advice for them. Once you have read this story, please give it a like and subscribe to my page on here. Also, follow me on my socials. Finally, please send me a one-off tip at the end of this story to support my work as I continue to write and publish more stories.
By Mark Wesley Pritchard 9 months ago in Pride
I Didn’t Disappear. I Refused.
They outlawed my name first. Not the one on my ID — that one they kept, with its masculine “Matthew” and that stiff, false “M” stamped next to sex, like a scar carved into paperwork.
By Rukka Nova9 months ago in Pride
The Half-Elf. Top Story - June 2025.
1. It starts in a club, as so many crucifixions do. - Seven years ago, today. Neon spills on my chest like fake blood. My wife—full lesbian, full moon—orders something tart, something red.
By Iris Obscura9 months ago in Pride
Two Aces Talking Smut. Top Story - May 2025.
You know it's True Love when your partner listens to you ramble about your writing woes without ever once begging you to shut up.
By Natasja Rose9 months ago in Pride
The Truth Beneath the Northern Lights
Janice Liu had grown up in a household where achievement wasn’t just encouraged—it was enforced. The daughter of Chinese American immigrants in the bustling suburbs of New Jersey, Janice was raised in a home characterized by discipline, deference, and diligence. Her parents, both engineers, believed in structure, order, and the absolute necessity of excellence. Her path, as they envisioned it, was straightforward: top grades, a prestigious university, and a respectable, high-earning profession.
By Anthony Chan9 months ago in Pride
We’re Just Here for the Chicken
I used to stick a pin on a map and go. Pack a bag. Be there in a day. New life, new start. That was my little segment of white privilege. Sure, I wasn’t always safe as a woman. I was born poor and short. And Welsh. I could, if I so chose, bugger off to wherever. Whenever. Teach the language of my closest living relatives, all because the English white dispensation had made it possible. Through blood and rape and tears. Not something I’m proud of. But not an opportunity someone like me was going to pass up either. Bottom line is I could. Because they did.
By River and Celia in Underland 9 months ago in Pride
Passionate about my problems
So I flopped onto the couch on Memorial Day wondering why I feel so desperate. Then I realized I don’t have decent company, I’m drowning in debt as I maxed out all four of my credit cards, I don’t have cash, and my love life is not real.
By Christina Yegiazaryan9 months ago in Pride