“City People” by Lydia Davis
In his review of Everything Must Go, David Edelstein refers to a former teacher’s characterization of Chekhov’s stories:
The author began by writing conventional narratives with twist endings and then, over time, lopped off the beginnings and twists, leaving only the suggestive essence—the model for the modern short story.
In this story, Davis has lopped off too much. The remaining essence no longer suggests.
