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Pope Urban by Stephen Lisle

29/3/2021

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I was dressed as the Pope and standing in the sunshine at the intersection of Flatbush and Snyder. It was so hot that the asphalt bubbled.
The cars crawled, with their windows dropped, too parched to go faster, and on the street, a chef sat on a plastic chair, head slumped between his legs, sweat pooling.
The walk sign was white hot and the crossing tutted at me to cross. I couldn’t hear it because underneath my Papal tiara I wore my headphones. A ridiculous flourish to my costume.
The robes were now anything but pure. Around the collar and cuffs, they were soiled where my sweat had leached. This was just one of the outfits they supplied at the start of the contract. A banana suit, unbranded superhero and knight in man-made fibres.
It was easy work. As long as I had music, I just kept moving, along Flatbush, and kept my sign up high. I kept moving and Dave’s Costume Shop kept pushing the money to my account.
A man leant out of a car and shouted. I took off the headphones.
“What you doing?”
“What?”
“What you doing with that sign?”
“My job.”
He looked unsure as he drove off and when he reappeared on foot.
“I own it, Dave’s.”
“Really?”
“How long have you been standing there?”
“Since 9.30. Honest.”
“No, I didn’t… Look, the shop closed two years ago. Dave, my dad, he died. I guess no one said.”
I took off my hat.
“Are we still paying you?”
“Someone is. Every week.”
He stood for a moment then he said he would keep paying me to advertise a shop that died. I saw him, maybe every other week, driving slowly past, smiling at the sign in my hand.​
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    Issue 10 & 11

    March 2021


    The Stories

    All
    A Flawless Defense By C.E. Tidswell
    A Mother's Love By Jo Winwood
    And Chaos Ensued By Hilary Taylor
    An Emperor By Felicity Edwards
    Another Chance By Jeff Jones
    A Ritual By Victoria Kuzmina
    A Sociologist On Brick Lane By R.T. Hardwick
    Blessed By Amy Harte
    Blood Is Thicker Than Water By Cindy Periera
    Date Night By Caitlin M Kearns
    Drama Queen By Elaine Peters
    Dying With A View By Felicity Edwards
    Flirting With Benefits By Hilary Taylor
    For Better
    For Worse By Liz Berg
    Getting Lost By Liz O'Shea
    Inaction Speaks Louder By Rachel Smith
    Justice In A Kidney Tray By Cindy Pereira
    Lost By Steve Goodlad
    Married In D Minor By Ryan Coull
    Mary And The Spirit By Graham Crisp
    Midday
    Officially Dead By Emily Dixon
    Pope Urban By Stephen Lisle
    Race Ya By James Northern
    Say Cheese By Steve Stucko
    Short Changed By Liz Berg
    Snow Angel By Steve Goodlad
    Soap By Gilles Talarek
    The Affair By Graham Crisp
    The Barista Of Verona By Steve Goodlad
    The Beacon On The Shore By Darren Arthurs
    The Doctor’s Peculiar Boy By Katrina Hayes
    The French Connection By R.T. Hardwick
    The Night Cleaner By Darren Arthurs
    The Right Place By Sven Camrath
    The Shopping Trip By Hilary Taylor
    The Suicide Tree By Beverley Byrne
    The Vaccination Centre Volunteer By Steve Goodlad
    Thursday By Darren Arthurs
    ‘Tis Goodbye By Hilary Taylor
    Wrong Number By Rachel Smith


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Secret Attic - Founded March 2020