The brothers were in back of the old Voyager van, silver-blue, arguing over Mario Kart. Luke wanted Yoshi when they got home—Victor had him last time—but Victor said he’d won, and winner got to pick. Then Luke called Victor a jerk, and Victor called out, “Mom! Did you hear?”
The next instant Luke was slammed against his seatbelt. Victor was thrown into the back of their dad’s seat, then just collapsed. Luke remembers to this day, shaking Victor to wake him up: you reach out to touch something you love, but suddenly it’s something you don’t recognize.
Beau Lee Gambold is a writer from rural Mississippi, currently based in Richmond, Virginia. Beau has an MFA from Columbia, and his writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Third Coast, The Rumpus, Permafrost, Passengers Journal, Eclectica, and others. His short fiction has won several small awards. He has also served in the Peace Corps, worked in politics, waited tables, bicycled across America, maintained wilderness trails, been nationally ranked in karate, and worked the front desk at an abortion clinic. Read more at bgambold.com. Twitter: @BeauGambold.
The Centifictionist 
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