Two stories from Norbert Kovacs

CYCLIST

(Response to Dynamism of a Cyclist by Umberto Boccioni (Italy) 1913)

He powers forward on the bike. Helmeted head low to the handle bars. Back shifts, humps up, sinks. Bottom rises high. Abdominals pump. Legs push down then rise. Shirt flaps behind, lifts his number, 15, in the breeze. The bike wheels whirl, spin and spin, the spokes whipping circles. He charges, propelled. His wheels glide over pavement. The pavement runs towards him, dashes behind; the stripes painted there zip away--blurs. Pebbles pass like flashes, far off stars. Road signs streak by in bright red, yellow bands, their words and images flying too fast to be known. He feels his speed.

SWIMMER

(Response to The Swimmer by Stefanie Rocknak (USA) 2006)

The race starts, and he is charging through the pool. Water bursts from either side of him, his arms cutting the water's top. The sloshing white churn swallows his face. His legs kick like a storm. He is glad realizing he leads the pack. His chest barrels through the water, ramming it aside. His body advances. Then it takes more work to move his arms. His triceps cannot relax; fire burns them. Somehow, his legs are losing drive. He punches the water, trying to power. He sees he must take a good breath, deep but fast. His head lifts longer than he has let himself that race. His face turns; he breathes a cool, deep.breath. The new air rushes through his mouth. His nostrils dilate; his mind cools; he feels the relief. His arms lift, and he can go on. He remembers to breathe at every stroke now.

Norbert Kovacs lives and writes in Hartford, Connecticut. He has published short fiction in Blink Ink, Timada's Diary, and Ekphrastic Review. His website: www.norbertkovacs.net.