UNHEALTHY COPING MECHANISM BY EMILY DORFFER

Harriet whisked the batter as if it had been the one caught downing shots of tequila on a so-called business trip instead of her husband. The remains of eggs broken with more force than necessary lay in a blood-speckled heap in the trash. Oh well, she thought as she sent droplets of batter flying. It wasn’t as if Walter would notice a little extra crimson in his cake.

The heat of her anger faded as that of the oven rose.

Unhealthy Coping Mechanism is the twenty-second of the announced features in The Needle Drops... Volume One - a succulent treat of domestic horror and aggressive baking. With Flash Fiction, we aim to highlight smaller pieces rampant with imagination and experimentation.

In her desperation to release her negative emotions, stay-at-home mom Harriet’s stress baking threatens to become an unhealthy coping mechanism in more ways than one...

"The heat of her anger faded as that of the oven rose."

Emily Dorffer is a technical editor who has quite a sweet tooth. When she isn’t busy writing, she can often be found with her hands covered in flour and her mouth covered in chocolate.

Over the course of the pandemic, she has found herself turning to the warmth of the oven for comfort more often than she used to, although she likes to think she’s better at coping with her stress than Harriet is.

Emily’s short stories and poems have been featured in a variety of markets, including Daily Science Fiction, Short Édition, and Breath & Shadow. You can read more of her stories on Wattpad @sandydragon1, including a novel-length version of Unhealthy Coping Mechanism.