The New Flesh

Lance hated to hold hands in public. Yet, for some reason he was compelled to. His various girlfriends’ hands were always so dainty, so beautiful - that it was a crime not to hold them.

Invariably, he would be fine with holding their hands until he made it to Lakeview Park. He always felt so awkward there. There were so many gawking faces, so many people judging him.

One day he will build enough courage to tell them what for. But not today. Today, like all other days in the past, he’ll drop the hands into the nearest trashcan and run.

"The Man Who Held Hands"

Brian Barnett lives with his wife, Stephanie, and son, Michael, in Frankfort, Kentucky.

To date, he has published over forty-five stories since he began publishing in November 2008. He has been published by MicroHorror.com, Flashes in the Dark, Static Movement, The New Flesh Blogzine, Midnight Screaming Magazine, The Monsters Next Door, Sonar4 Ezine, Blood Moon Rising, Flashshot, Black Lantern Blogzine, Dark Fire Fiction, Burst Fiction, The Daily Tourniquet, Yellow Mama, The Lesser Flamingo, and The Short Humour Site.

He was co-editor the anthology “Toe Tags: 21 Spine-Tingling Tales from the Best New Authors of Horror” with William Pauley III.