Don't Turn Around

by 6S Halloween Contest Winner Sean Kennedy

Whatever you do, don’t turn around. She’s standing right behind you, silent as the grave and staring absently at this very screen, just waiting for you to look deep into those white, empty voids where her eyes used to be. Her long, black, tattered hair falls around her shoulders, framing the rotting face of a once sweet and innocent child. In a few seconds you’ll feel something brush the back of your hair ever so slightly, but I warn you not to look; for it’s only her fingers, or at least what’s left of them. When something that horrific happens in one place, it leaves a scar in the world which stays throughout the corrosion of time. Just remain still and she’ll disappear for now, but she’ll always be here somewhere; standing in silence, gazing at nothing, waiting to catch those unfortunate souls who look into her eyes and make them feel what she suffered that day.

6S

Sean Kennedy, who just scored a free copy of 6SV1 and a $20.00 Amazon Gift Certificate, attends the University of Salford in Manchester, England. (Congratulations Sean! And thank you to everyone who participated in the contest! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!)

Flowers

by Sean Kennedy

The flowers are the first thing I see, lying across the kitchen table like a seductive glamour model with a note from you to me which simply reads “I’m sorry.” All I’ve been thinking about is the way we left things this morning; you asking me to calm down and me telling you to go fuck yourself. I guess I can really be a bitch sometimes, when the stress becomes too much and I feel the need to lash out at those around me; you’re just in the wrong place at the wrong time and catch the brunt of my aggression. The flowers are beautiful; a mixture of exotic colours – the likes of which I’ve never seen before – which remind me of how much I love you and how lucky I am to have you with me. I inhale the sweet, but sharp, fragrance and feel an immediate lightness rush to my head; that’s when I realize something is wrong. I collapse to the floor, body contorted in an unnatural mess as my mussels begin to react against the poison soaring through my veins, and as the world slowly fades away and my heart begins to stutter, I find myself not angry, but relieved by an overwhelming sense of peace; because the flowers are... just... so... beautiful...

6S

Sean Kennedy attends the University of Salford in Manchester, England. His full catalog is here.

Tick Tock

by Sean Kennedy

It’s a frequently mentioned idea that in the seconds before you die, your entire life flashes before you in the blink of an eye; Tick. So, putting this theory to the test, I started to think of my childhood and all the wonderful times I had playing football, building tree houses in the woods behind my house, exploring down the river in my Welles, and staying up late with my mother watching A Touch of Frost while she ran her fingers through my hair; Tock. I thought about those rebellious teenage years of smoking behind the swimming pool at school, getting drunk in the park with friends on a Friday night, and spitting back in the face of the "Machine;" Tick. And the first girl I ever loved, how the breakup felt like a knife carving a gash through my heart, leaving a scar which took months to heal; Tock. I thought about all these things which rested in my memory and knew there were more times which I had forgotten; memories that had been lost in the endless abyss of my subconscious; Tick. Then just like that, I saw everything; Tock.

6S

Sean Kennedy is a maverick renegade.

Alone in the Snow

by Sean Kennedy

It’s cold out here, standing in the dimly lit street with the gentle flakes of snow dancing around me. My whole body has gone numb, but it’s worth every icy second. I can see that old lady, the one who always comes into the shop around this time, buying another box of truffle delights; she must have a sweet tooth. What is it she says to you that always makes you smile like that? Seeing you that happy, on the other side of the road, warm and safe behind the shop window, always makes my heart flutter. If only I had the courage to walk in there and say hello; rather than standing out here like a lost soul in a frozen picture, dreaming endlessly of a love that doesn’t exist.

6S

Sean Kennedy, who recently won the 6S Halloween Contest, attends the University of Salford in Manchester, England. His full catalog is here.

It Was All Part of the Plan

by Sean Kennedy

When a random man fell from the sky and hit the pavement with an echoing thud, most people in the street started to panic. A young lady, who was unfortunate enough to be in close proximity to the splat, was decorated with a scarlet spray which ruined her white, silky shirt. Like most people, she started to scream. But I stood their calmly, amongst all the chaos, and laughed at the coincidence of the situation. It was the fact he landed in the same street I was on at the same time I was walking down it. The man falling from the sky hadn’t surprised me; it was all part of the plan.

6S

Sean Kennedy is a maverick renegade.

Six by Six, Issue 4

an Online Magazine from Six Sentences



6S

Our fourth issue of Six by Six features original pieces by Rod Drake, Alisa Rynay Haller, Thomas Mundt, Tessa Scoffs, Sean Kennedy, and Absolutely*Kate. Enjoy!