A Collection of Flash Fiction

Bits and pieces that Gio Aranda has written over time.

Created by: Gio Aranda
Written by: Gio Aranda
Edited by: Gio Aranda

A Collection of Flash Fiction

Sean’s Family

September, 2001. Sean’s little brother Franklin was around 13 years old and struggling greatly. Sean and Franklin’s mother had terminal cancer. I told him “Up there, is God, and He’s got a plan for all of us.” with my finger pointing to the sky. I didn’t really believe it, but there was still a sliver of hope in me. Sean and I had finished a nice sparring session at our martial arts gym. Sean and I were close as brothers. On our way to the bar, a truck driver had fallen asleep at the wheel and drove straight into the passenger side of my car. Sean was squished instantly and died. Broken glass flew into my face, arms, and chest, and I looked to my right to see Sean’s obliterated body and dead eyes. Paramedics rushed us to the hospital and I stayed up the whole night in horror knowing that no matter what the doctors tried, nothing could work. It was morning time by now when I was lying in the hospital bed wrapped in gauze, and I heard a loud boom. The ground seemed to shake beneath me. The nurse to my side opened the window blinds. An airplane had just crashed into the World Trade Center. It wasn’t long after until another followed. That night, Sean and Franklin’s mother succumbed to her cancer, but if you ask me, I think people die when they don’t want to live. Franklin lost his brother and mother in the span of 24 hours. I told Franklin there was no God, and that we are all suffering without purpose.

Nightmare

Friday, January 23rd, 2026.

I was on my phone dealing with her through Instagram DMs. We were arguing about something. We weren’t dating, talking, or even friends, and she was saying awfully hurtful things to me. Things like I’m a loser, idiot, and not a good person. We argued back and forth as she continued to break me from the inside out. I figured that it would be better to talk to her in person. She completely misunderstood me. I am a good, caring person. I can come off as a jerk, but I’m not a bad person, I know it. She was saying very hurtful things. Very hurtful. Basically just saying that I’m a waste of life and a bad individual. After putting it off and waiting for hours, feeling ill second after second and getting a stomach ache from her words, I saw her in school. School was different, indoors. Like Vision Academy from Spider-Verse. Like I said we weren’t even friends, but as soon as we saw each other, there was this intense care. An infatuation. Love, almost. It felt like love. Her hair was cut very short, shorter than a bob, only a tad longer than mine. I put both of my hands on her cheeks and caressed her face. She smiled. Her eyes were gentle and wonderous, big and dark brown. Like an animal. We touched heads together and I felt my nose touch hers. She smiled as I did. We were intensely intertwined. For once, what I felt for someone, they also felt for me. I can’t remember exactly, but she said something along the lines of “I wish you were a good person.” I replied, “What do you mean?” She looked at me worried, sad, and even angry. I swallowed in worry and fear and looked behind me in nervousness because I couldn’t stand the way she had looked at me just then. It was only a second, however, when I turned back around, I saw her walking away, gaining distance. Everything in my body screamed at me to follow her, to make her understand, to have her stop misunderstanding me. She hated me and everything about me. My jokes, things I say, my personality, my interests, my humor, all of me. In her eyes, I was a bad, bad person, but why? Who put this idea in her head? How did she misunderstand me so much? Did I accidentally do this to myself? It was a huge misunderstanding, and if I could just get her to understand me, we would be in love without limits. Everything in me wanted me to chase after her. I could feel my soul in my body pushing me to go after her. I kept telling myself, “Go get her!” I decided to turn around, and walk away, knowing that I didn’t have any closure or that I fixed the situation at all. I woke up immediately and groaned in fear. My heart was physically hurting, my head was hurting, and my arms and calves were a bit numb. I was so glad it was a nightmare, it felt so real, and it was horrible.

My Baby and My Baby

Astrid told me a week before that she was pregnant.

A week later, right before the school dance, Astrid’s brother, Kevin, drove us. Kevin revealed to me that he’s a serial killer and threatened to take my life if I kept being a superhero and interfering in his business. The 15 second walk from his car to the dance in the school gym felt like hours. I saw white spots then everything turned black. I was dizzy, nauseous, and I couldn't breathe. Each step felt like I was a feather shrinking in height and fear. My ears rang as I walked up the steps to the door.
 “Hey! What happened in there? Took a little while! I helped myself to some punch. You want some?” She had a big smile on her face. She was always gorgeous and sweet.
 “Astrid.”
 “Yeah?” She tilted her head sideways and smiled at me, looking directly into my eyes with her beautiful, vast, cute, sweet, and amazing brown eyes.
 “Augh-” I couldn’t bring myself to say anything.
 I ran out of there full speed. I ran out the gym and into the hallway. l and pulled my mask and gloves out of my coat pocket. I ran out the side entrance of the school and I saw Kevin right there. Wearing his mask and suit. He was expecting this.
 “I knew you couldn’t help yourself, you little maggot piece of shit.” He said.
 “Shut the fuck up you goddamn cockroach.” I replied.
 He chuckled.
 “After I hospitalize you, I’m going to kill your mom, and then I will come back for you. You cannot stop me.”
 “You don’t ever fucking threaten MY FAMILY!”
 He charged at me and I at him. We fought long and hard. He had no weapons and neither did I. Out of all the times I’ve fought and all the people I’ve beaten, this was the worst. It was the most gruesome and grueling fight I have ever been in. It lasted two minutes before it ended. He cut my face and broke it as I cut his face and broke it as well. We fought with all the passion we had. I had never felt so much rage and adrenaline spike in my body, soul, and mind ever before. I was going for the killing blow, but before that, I wanted to tear him into little pieces with the weapons I was born with; my hands. We broke each other's spirits, minds, and bodies all over. Then I was on top of him, trying to get a hold, and he threw me across the side to the front of the entrance. I stood up and so did he. We each caught our breaths. Before I tried to charge, he took off his mask. I paused for a bit. I took it as a challenge and I took off my mask. Then he pulled out a gun.
 “Doesn’t make me any less of a man.”
 I stepped back and froze in fear. I was very surprised, I didn’t think he would do this and I didn’t think it would end like this. He shot two times. Right before I fell to the floor, I was pushed out of the way. I didn’t even realize at the time that someone had pushed. I frantically touched my body, thinking I got hit. My right shoulder was painfully grazed. Kevin started screaming. I looked back and Astrid was there, standing with two holes in her body. She fell and her head cracked on the pavement. I crawled over to her and wrapped my arms around her, pleading to God and begging for it to be a delusion. I turned my back to Kevin, ready for him to fill it with bullets and put me out of my misery, but he didn't, instead, he continued screaming, and shot himself through the head. My partner with our baby. She was pregnant, and he gunned her down. In reality, I killed her. I killed my baby, and my baby.