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Little Will

August 1, 2019 By Patricia Q. Bidar

Little Will

Will was born as a little friend for his mother. His scorched hometown was the site of an oil boom, and the murder capital of the country.

His sisters had married and been carried off to make homes in Houston, in St. Louis, in Knoxville, Tennessee with the earnest and citrus-smelling men they’d ensnared.

The wildcatter’s kids would bully Will for his blonde curls, his soft life. To make it up to him, his doctor father bought him a Shetland pony. He wasn’t allowed to tell.

His father turned away a silver miner and his family because they couldn’t pay. The family staged a protest where they walked on their knees to Will’s dad’s practice. The local paper sent a pimpled high school student who’d been hounding them for an assignment. The receptionist had cried and been fired.

In the mornings after his father strode down the walk with his leather satchel, Will would cry to stay home, and his mother would give in. He wasn’t allowed to tell.

A handful of ladies would arrive for luncheon. Taking in the interior of the doctor’s house for later gossip and speculation. They all knew what his mother didn’t: little Will was curled under the table with a fistful of lemon cookies. Filled by the women’s most intimate scents; the sight of their restless legs. Spectator pumps lined up alongside stockinged feet.

One wore bracelets that tinkled prettily. Another had daubed bitter orange behind her knees. A transporting sight: the metal clip that secured a stocking to a flesh-tone panty girdle. Will experienced his first erections there, gnawing on sweetness. His whole life, he’d have a thing for older women.

About Patricia Q. Bidar

Patricia Q. Bidar is a lifelong Californian with family roots in New Mexico, Southern Arizona, and Utah. She is an alum of the U.C. Davis Graduate Writing Program, and also holds a BA in Filmmaking. Her work has been included in numerous journals and anthologies including Flash Fiction America (W.W. Norton, 2023) and Best Microfiction (Pelekinesis Press, 2023). Patricia’s stories have been nominated three times for the Pushcart Prize, also garnering multiple nominations for Best American Short Stories, Best of the Net, and Best Small Fictions. She lives with her family and unusual dog outside of Oakland, CA. Visit Patricia at https://patriciaqbidar.com

Artist Credit:

Felix Roman “baddietrash” Sanchez is an artist currently residing in Portland, OR. He does traditional and digital art and doesn’t like labels. He is open to comissions. Check out his instagram @baddietrash.

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