The Benji Karmis Website Experience

 Short Story 9 – Hell Yeah  Finished on 11 November 2024               The bathroom door flung open, its handle punching the growing divot on the wall behind it. A man stumbled in and crashed a beer can on the counter as he grabbed the side of the sink. His body wavered as he watched the unsteady beer can rock beneath him in a sea of empties littering the counter. Would it fall over, his hazy mind wondered? Once the can managed to find its balance, he dropped his elbows down to the ledge. Something about this manoeuvre made his head spin again, so he closed his eyes and rested his forehead on his forearms. Without looking, he fumbled around the faucet until he managed to turn the water on. “Ugh,” he grunted. He knew the spins were temporary, so he held tight for about a minute as the soothing sound of the running water consoled him. When he opened his eyes, he noticed drops of blood on the grimy counter b...

"Hobart’s Heroes" Finished on 6 October 2024      Hobart was, by most accounts, a rather average man. He grew up in one of the many suburbs of an entry-level big city. With a rather forgettable reputation, he’d occasionally lurk in the background of high school parties before it got too late and he headed home, the red solo cup in his hand mostly there just to fit in. His parents, in a marriage that was neither good nor bad, supported him every once in a while as normal parents do, but never tried to inspire him enough to have anything but the same, average trajectory in life as they did.      At the same time, children are, by nature, more idealistic. Hobart’s mind ran free with possibilities, so he covered the walls of his room with all his favourite heroes – astronauts, superheroes, athletes, and even Army recruitment posters. But this was hardly unique, as most people had such untamed imaginations while growing up.      Perhaps th...

"To the Edge of the World" Finished on 12 December 2023              In his slumber, the man thought about how sour it turned out. Promises, unkept. Plans, broken. The blissful joy that she had regularly brought to his heart, not even an afterthought. All he could think about was their last argument before she left, poised in the rose-tinted bedroom of his settlement with a brilliant view of the crystal field that only reflected their lucid colour when the sun hit them at just the right angle twice each day, weather permitting. That once-treasured haven in his home had been tainted by countless arguments where he forwent discussing his deep-seated issues with their relationship to settle for peace because he didn’t want to lose her. If she had just given their relationship the same amount of effort she gave to herself, the memories wouldn’t have curled. Instead, all that time letting her into his settlement, into his bedroom, i...

"A Dance with the Angel" Finished on 25 September 2022 A fan dully spun above, hardly going more than a spin every few seconds. The humidity from the sticky room had put sweat on the skin of its two occupants. A lone fly buzzed about before settling itself on the table in the middle of the room, crawling over charred tinfoil before taking off again. The eyes of one of the men opened just a sliver. He stared directly ahead as they opened further, in the middle of the circle where the fly flew. He just laid on the floor, resting his back on the bottom of the couch. A slight burning pain emanated from his chest, but he accepted it without question. Nothing entered or left his brain, as if he was an old computer without enough processing power to complete any tasks. His brain soon warmed up enough to allow just enough processing power for his eyes to follow the fly. He didn't think about why it flew, but the movement, whether out of interest or instinct, enamoured him. The f...