The rock had been there since they planted the tree, the first summer they moved in, before the flood, before the fire, before that day they first met Isack Green. – Paul Nord

When Robert and Carine Pech planted the small hawthorn sapling, they hadn’t expected to dig up anything more than soil and pebbles. The clank of Robert’s shovel signaled something much larger was in the spot on the bluff overlooking the hollow below. He excavated down and found a large round granite boulder just below the turf. Carine liked the look of it, so they uncovered more of it and planted the tree just behind it.

I have an invisible pig that I bought from a kid in my first grade class for $1.63. – Nathan Clinard

It was the last of my lunch money. I named him Sparky. We got along great! Once I got home, I introduced him to my parents and my sister. No one was as taken with him as me. Of course, being invisible, they couldn’t see how awesome he was or his twinkly smile.

John paused at the heavy double doors, and steeled himself — how to break the news to Her Majesty? – Jen Luby

She hadn't had her luncheon martini yet, but it couldn't wait. He knocked smartly and the door was opened by a footman. John squared his shoulders and walked into the room, noticing the bright early summer sunshine shimmering through the tall windows. Queen Elizabeth II sat at table, a crisp white napkin in her lap, tidily finishing her meal. She looked up at his brisk steps.

It's important to remember that everything that follows began with the simple squeaking of a door while opening. – Jhon Baker

The plan was going so well until then. Sheila had forgotten about the door until David arrived and climbed through the top half of the Dutch door, not the bottom. The shrieking iron hinge would have raised the dead, let alone woken up her foster parents. Brothers clearly were never to be trusted to do anything right.

It was usually around midnight when the sobbing started, in the deep quiet when traffic lights seemed to dim and the boom of truck traffic died to a murderous rumble. Kevin hated midnight. Yet, it was better than the daylight when humans wandered the aisles, occasionally spinning one of his brethren hung solemn from the rafters. No one knew the truth on the farm. The myths, the gospel teachings, all praised the noble sacrifice. They celebrated how they would be decorated and feted and honored as demigods. No one at the farm knew the cruel truth of being a Christmas tree.

"The headlines you're writing just aren't click bait-y enough," he sighed. – Jen Luby

Ruby swallowed her aggravation and nodded. "Got it," she muttered. She attempted to not bang her head on her desk or throw her laptop across the office. It took unwrapping three chocolate kisses in a row to reach sufficient calm. All the while, Ruby muttered under her breath, "We're a toilet company. We make toilets and plumbing fixtures. How click-baity could I possible go with that?"

The storms of the day before, and of the day before that, and the floods of the previous week had now abated. The skies still bulged with rain, but all that actually fell in the gathering evening gloom was a dreary kind of prickle. – Douglas Adams via Paul Nord

Anna trudged down the long drive to the mailbox in her ancient wellies. Most of the crops were in, but not the hay. She didn't want to think about it rotting in the fields. It fed the sheep and goats each winter. Growing her own hay made her cheese and soap business profitable. Now, Anna had at least three new ponds and she hadn't checked the woods yet. It would have to wait until tomorrow.

Doing pedicures all day long for a living must be a special kind of hell. – Scott Pettit

It wasn't just the long raggedy nails or the ticklish ones. The ladies with foot fungus curdled Mei's stomach. Each time, she would dart back to the utility sink and scrub her hands until they were almost raw.

His finger trembled as he held it over the large, red button… - David Kusnierz

The prizes in the vending machine beckoned. Eddie had fed all his Skee-Ball tickets into it and now it was decision time. He had enough for the fan-powered floating fish, the LED head lamp, or the mysterious metal oil lamp. He paused and chose the lamp.