Liberado

The old man strolls down Avinguda Gaudi, shopping sack in hand, unburdened by clothing. He seems perfectly decent with his trim, white beard and hairless torso. His body inked with yin-yang symbols, fork-tailed swallows darting about his chest and belly, a fiery sun ringing his navel. Just below—the pièce de résistance—a fierce, ruddy face tapers seamlessly into his neatly tucked package. His nonchalance and easy gait inspire a startled passerby to drop her own bulky bags and stare briefly, before gazing up at the soaring spires of the Sagrada Familia she’s accustomed to walking past without a glance.

Kathryn Silver-Hajo’s work appears in Atticus Review, Centaur, CRAFT, Emerge Literary, Ghost Parachute, Gone Lawn, Milk Candy Review, New Flash Fiction Review, Pithead Chapel, Ruby Literary, The Phare, and others. Her award-winning books include flash collection, Wolfsong, and YA novel, Roots of The Banyan Tree. kathrynsilverhajo.com.