About rkpaulus

Writer. Mom. Wife. Basketball coach. Lover or all things chocolate. Winner of bubble gum jar! Grace is my oxygen.

Crush Me … Part Nine

Posted on March 8, 2013 by rkpaulus

Wanted to tell you about a new find of mine. A place to host my YA Serial that makes it easy for readers to catch up on missed chapters and pick up from where they left off, even if that happens to page one! 🙂

Dive Into CRUSH ME

So, if you’ve been following Meena, and her world, pop on over to continue with her on her journey! Happy Friday Fiction All!

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Anyone reading other free stories or posting their fiction on another site other than Wattpad? Would love to know! And just curious, are you enjoying getting to know Meena? Can you relate to her pain? Or do you know someone turning to the same escapes?

Masala in Prose

Posted on March 6, 2013 by rkpaulus

masala

“Are you a writer?” pops up on my computer screen about a month ago.

Ummm? Depends on who’s asking.

“Yes.” I type my reply. I suppose it couldn’t hurt to tell this stranger since it’s not like I’m telling him where I live or that I’ll be vacationing in Bermuda from August 7 though the 15th, the perfect time to rob my house.

“Are you published?” Next question pops up.

I should ask you the same thing. Or at least, Hello, what did you say your name was?

“Funny you should ask,” I type, “My first book, Swimming Through Clouds, launches this June.”

“Great. Would you like to read a little bit at my book reading event?”

As in, out loud? And, wow! Really? Me?

“Sure. I mean, yes! I’d love to. What did you say your name was?” Continue reading →

To Sleep, Perchance to… Snore

Posted on March 4, 2013 by rkpaulus

© Sarrobi | Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images

Growing up, most girls had their “Must be” lists, you know the ones. With their top five or ten deal breaker attributes their future spouse must be.

Must be hot, as in six feet tall, manicured nails, perfectly tan, and a cross between Liam Hemsworth and Ashton Kutcher with George Clooney’s eyes.

Must be funny, but not be constantly making fun of me.

Must be educated.

Must be able to do laundry, wash dishes, and take out the garbage.

Must be all about me.

I had a different list. Can’t be. As in…

Can’t be a doctor. I know what you’re thinking. But, your hubby, he’s a doc. Well, he wasn’t when we got married. He was a med student.

Can’t be too serious. Life is serious enough on its own.

Can’t be all about himself and his ethnic background. I love diversity.

Can’t be unforgiving every time I mess up. Because I will. Mess up.

Can’t be a snoring sleeper. Possibly the most important criteria on my list.

You see, I grew up, hearing my dad snore. Continue reading →

Crush Me … Part Eight

Posted on March 1, 2013 by rkpaulus

© Jarenwicklund | Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images

FICTION Friday. Already!?! Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7. In case you’re new. 🙂 Dive right in returning Crush Me seekers!

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Bang. Bang. Bang. I don’t see anyone through the small window on the exit door. The door that locked behind me. When I stepped outside to run away from Gage and his broken Kermit heart. Bell sounds, and students begin to flood the hallways. Someone? Anyone? Just open the stupid door already. But they stream by like I’m invisible. Invisible Meena. For the fleeting moments Gage or Jay make me feel alive, so quickly I return to my usual state. Of here but not all there. I turn around and measure the fence with my eyes. I can climb most trees. Maybe if I start—

“Meena?” Door pushes toward me, and I see Jay balancing his crutches with his books. “What are you doing—? Forget it. Just get back in before you get another deet from Mr. Deadhead. He’s roaming the halls now, pen and pink slips cocked like he’s hunting or something.” Jason laughs at his own joke.

I’m still stuck and struck by the fact that he opened the door for me. What a gentleman! “Gimme your books. Lunch right?”

“Awesome.” Without hesitation, Jay pretty much drops his books into my arms, and we start making our way toward the scents of cafeteria casseroles. Continue reading →

Hats… The Invisible Ones

Posted on February 27, 2013 by rkpaulus

www.freestockimages.com

“I need water, Mommy.” Sarah, my precocious five-year old tugs at my black dress. I’m running late. To a funeral.

“Here.” I put the green cup in front of her on the kitchen table as I debate with the mirror. Eye make-up or not. Chances are I’ll cry. I’m a crier. And the make-up will just end up making me look like I have two black eyes. Skip the eye-liner.

“Mommy, here.” Sarah pushes a stapled paper book she made in school into my lap as I pull on my boots. “You forgot to read this to me.”

Now? I’m thinking? You need me to read this to you, right-now? Zip up my second shoe and prop my princess in my lap. Ten pages. I can do this. Continue reading →

Here Sat a Brat. Who Pat her Hat. Her Hair is Flat.

Posted on February 25, 2013 by rkpaulus

www.freestockimages.com

I’m not a hat person. Was. I was never a hat person. Until recently. And not by choice.

I grew up avoiding hats at all costs. Let the rain mat my hair. I wasn’t wearing a hat. Let frozen ears lay bare. No hat on my head sat.

Bottom line, I was too vain for hats. Had to keep the hair looking good. So even in sub-zero temps, I would walk into school with a non-slurpee induced brain freeze and proudly assert a teeth-chattering, “Sorry, I don’t do hats.”

Fast forward a few years. Okay, more like a decade or two. My head is cold. And when I’m old. A hat is sold. And truth be told. I thought I was bold. When in fact, I was just…stupid. Continue reading →

Crush Me… Part Seven

Posted on February 22, 2013 by rkpaulus

http://www.stockfreeimages.com/

Welcome back to Friday Fiction! Crush Me began almost seven weeks ago, in my attempt to introduce myself as a YA Fiction writer. Not just a writer of whimsical events in my daily life. 🙂 With my debut novel launching in June, I want to give you a taste of my fiction voice. To be honest, Meena’s story in Crush Me is new for me each week. I’m discovering it only days, sometimes hours before you read it. So bear with the rough edges. 🙂 And, if you’re stopping in for the first time, take a short detour to the start of Meena’s story and I’ll meet you back here in a few! Thanks, always, for reading.

*Hugs* -Raj

Crush Me: Part One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six…

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Part Seven:

The first time. Nothing like the first time. Once in a while something triggers and I remember the first time I cut like it was yesterday.

As I bypass the girl’s restroom, widening the distance between Gage and me, wishing foolishly to return to the time I didn’t know. Couldn’t tell. Hadn’t seen. His feelings for me. That look in his eyes when he said, “I care about you,” and opened Kermit’s heart, punctuating his find with “It’s broken,” he let me see him. A peek into his own heart. And I wasn’t ready. Never asked. And now I’m wondering if he thinks I wanted him see a part of me. My cut. On purpose. An invitation to share a secret? But does it matter anymore? I can’t undo the day. Just like I can’t undo the first time. Continue reading →

Tummy-Turning Date Night

Posted on February 20, 2013 by rkpaulus

photo-6 When you first fall in love, you go out on a date, and it doesn’t matter where you go, because you only plan to look at one thing. In one direction. Into each other’s eyes. This happens a lot in those early days, when you’re dazed and in crush, and all you want to see are his eyes captivated by you and that smile that curls up just a tad when he’s tickled by how into him you are. Those are fun days. Happy days. Days of infant love.

Then, years go on and you enjoy sharing experiences together. Attend a show together. Share a blanket in the stands during a game. Squeeze the life out of each others’ hands on the rides at an amusement park. All the while, your eyes are fixed on the world in front of you, but the end of the night, your eyes are back on each other as you relive the thrill of the day, the awe of what you shared, the moments that you experienced. Together.

More years pass and you go on a date, and your eyes are everywhere. On the menu. On the big screen TV on the wall over the bar. On your iPhone, just in case someone posted some earth shattering news on Facebook. Yeah, you’re a little distracted. But, so is he, and you’re still enjoying each other’s company, and you still end the night, eyes on each other, kisses and cuddles. You’re just not fixated with the new, because you’re cozy with the years behind you and looking forward to the years ahead of you. Like a good wine or a good, I hear, it gets better with time. But it also needs to be savored and not gulped as we often do with each other in those wrapped around each other, cling-on, young love days. Right? Sure, I suppose.

But you know what? Sometimes you have to get a little crazy and do those things that you used to do when you first fell into each other’s gaze. It’s called being creative. Takes a little time and energy. And you’ll often find, when you take some initiative, smiles grow wider, hugs get tighter, and the one you love is reminded. That he’s loved. That she’s cherished. I think it’s worth the effort. Continue reading →

Prison Bathroom Upgrade

Posted on February 19, 2013 by rkpaulus

http://www.stockfreeimages.com/

When you move from most anywhere in the world to the vicinity of New York City, the price tag on just about everything doubles and you learn to make do with less space and, simply, with less, in general. Unless you’re related to the Rockefellas or the Goodfellas!

I still remember driving around North Shore Long Island eight years ago as Hubs and I decided to search for our first house. We had rented for more than three years when we got the memo that the monthly rent would double when he no longer served as a resident [Attendings didn’t get the same breaks.] We knew it was time to become a home owner. Not sure which, if any, home we could afford, but we had to try.

So we drove around different neighborhoods within a ten-mile radius of Hubby’s job. Because we hoped we could find something that would at least cut out the commute time out of his day. Hearing him tell me he dozed off at the wheel after working all night during residency one too many times had me convinced that we had to be a hop, skip and a jump from the hospital. Little else mattered. Continue reading →

Crush Me … Part Six

Posted on February 15, 2013 by rkpaulus

Part One,

Two,

Three,

Four,

Five.

“I’ll take your books, Dude.” Ben picks up Jay’s stack before he can oppose.

Jay shoots me a shoulder shrug, follows Ben toward the door and then turns to say, “I’ll catch you at lunch?” He’s talking to me. Catch? Already caught. So caught up in you, I can barely manage a nod.

I rise to hurry to my third period, Bio lab. Gage and I are lab partners, our desk next to the window looking out to the school courtyard. Perfect place to daydream on write up days. Today is a lab day, Operation Dissect Kermit, phase one. Continue reading →