“Guess what’s in my hand?” he said, emerging from the Mong Kok train station bathroom at the end of our date. There aren’t many things that can fit into a man’s fist. And even fewer from a bathroom. Inside his hand was a live cockroach. I pushed him away but then thought about what a cat does when it leaves a bird or a frog on your bed because it likes you. He smiled gently as he emptied his hand over a bin. The cockroach clung and climbed and caressed his fingers like a better lover than I ever could.
Fall Contest 2024 “Flirt” Finalist. (link) Natalie Wong is a writer from Hong Kong who writes about the magical and horrifying things that happen when people can't express themselves. Instagram: @nataliecactus. Of “Bug Lover,” Contest Readers said: “love this juxtaposition between sexy and ick” and “story held me from the title to the opening line to the progression.”