American Chordata: Magazine of New Writing Issue One, Spring 2015 | Page 29

11 • FICTION

Shrubs, and The Collector’s Gallery of NASA Photographs. All three
of these feature faded, full-page photographs, and the last one shows
early astronauts suited up for travel, as well as red planets lost in
swirling constellations.
Sometimes I like to sit on the ladder-loft next to one of the
ferns and flip through the books. I think spending more time with
them will help them lose their musty library smell so that they can
adopt a new smell that is more similar to the smell of my books. If
I see a nice photograph I shout to Carson, and he jumps up onto
the second rung to take a good look. Then he leaves me alone again.
Carson already has two jobs but he is looking for another, because
neither of the jobs is as fulfilling as a job could be.
“I just want us to be as happy as we possibly can,” he says.
But happin W72