A child walks into a half-abandoned city with half-crumbling skyscrapers and gardens half-turned into deserts. The child, a twelve-year-old boy in sturdy hiking boots and a hydration pack, with tears pooling in his eyes and blisters on his feet, arrives in the city near midnight, and because of that … [Read more...]
Short Story
The Caretaker of Tears
December 28, 2025 by
Lia Tjokro offers a restrained and emotionally exacting meditation on grief and care. The story centers on labor that is invisible yet essential—emotional maintenance performed without recognition or relief. Silence, repetition, and ritual structure the narrative, allowing sorrow to surface … [Read more...]
The Last Supper
December 28, 2025 by
Lia Tjokro shares a poignant tale featuring love and loss, making a reader go through a roller-coaster of emotions. It was a night when the stars hid behind the bulbous stormclouds and the nocturnal insects were silent. The eerie shadow and protruding branches of the frangipani trees that lined … [Read more...]
Breakfast Without Mama
December 28, 2025 by
He hated morning, he wished the night could stay longer and the sun never rose again. At night he could hide under the blanket, pulled it all the way to cover his head, folded his legs in, clasped his hands, and just let the quiet darkness swallow him, and the bonus was: If he was really quiet … [Read more...]
Fate ball
November 14, 2023 by
Kivlan dribbled the ball. Not a leather ball like the one Aroma FC players used, but an old plastic ball that was not balanced when rolled. It made aiming more complicated: if a striker kicked the ball, it would not reach the intended target. Because it was so light, the ball would fly away from the … [Read more...]