In dreams, I lose teeth. I wake, jaws sore from clenching. My supervisor reprimands me for scowling. My shrink interprets my obsession as a fear of intimacy.

I disprove this by having a casual fling. Then my supervisor tells me to stop smiling. Customers are complaining about my toothless grin.

Sally Basmajian’s first three novels (a rom-com, a thriller, and a middle-grade fantasy) were published traditionally in the USA in 2023. She has won prizes for her short fiction and non-fiction, and selections of her work may be read at sallybasmajian.com.