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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write a story in which someone says “You'll never be content.”

Posted in Adults on Oct 28, 2022

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✍️ 51 stories

“The Broadcast ” by Sharila Surpal

Submitted to Contest #163

Years had passed, and the dreary apartment barely lit up. Just like the dusty, musty, and messy rooms, Ileana was unkempt. An oversized, stained white t-shirt covered her lithe figure, perhaps the only bright thing in sight. She was enveloped in perpetual darkness, sequestered in solitude. During the day, her shadow kept her company, while at night she remained deprived. Among the dusty mahogany shelves of her bedroom, stood an ancient radio, bought many years back by Ileana’s grandfather. He went away but left it behind. Ileana lay lifeless...

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“Candlelight” by Alyssa Belfiglio

Submitted to Contest #163

“I can drink water too, you know,” Isla blurted. “You didn’t have to order me wine—”   “Isla,” Will smiled, the wrinkles around his eyes deepening, darkened by the shadows of the candlelight perched on the table between them. “It’s okay. You’ve always been willing to support me, and I appreciate it, but I’m not your burden anymore,” Will said. “I haven’t been for a while.”   “It’s not a burden,” Isla shook her head, leaning into the table. Isla felt as though she was replaying a conversation, practicin...

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“Why Did You Leave Me?” by Liz Masters

Submitted to Contest #163

*Trigger Warning: Substance Abuse, Mentions Suicide/Self Harm I’ve driven this same route more times than I can count, but somehow this time I almost pass the last major turn. Damnit! I silently curse. At the last minute, I look over my shoulder and swerve to change lanes. I glance down at my phone hoping to see your name flash across it with a new message. No such luck. Why won’t he answer? The wheels of my silver “toaster,” as you call it, skid to a harsh stop at the suddenly red light. Taylor Swift blasts from my speakers. It’s a muggy Te...

1 comment 1
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“Behind the Wall” by Kayana Fillmore

Submitted to Contest #163

CONTENT WARNINGS: Implied sexual violence (not explicit), mentions of child abuse and domestic violence (not explicit), kidnapping, cultural erasure, alcoholism. The photo that sat on the fancy fireplace with the mantle and the gold-framed mirror hanging above showed a beautiful, blonde-haired, blue-eyed, All-American family. But behind that photo, there was a wall that contained secrets, a wall that hid a room. The room had no windows and a hidden door, and inside of the room was nothing but a pile of newspaper, feces on the floor and a sad...

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“A Girl in Pieces” by Catherine Charron

Submitted to Contest #163

This story may be triggering to those who have experienced self-harm or mental health issues. Read with caution. Thank you. When I look at myself in the mirror I see a sad little girl, cut into pieces, and pasted back together with Elmer’s glue. I carved all my desires and wishes and wants out of myself and threw them out like trash. I see, and have always seen, wasted potential. I could have been beautiful, I could have been confident, I could have been whole and unbroken, and remained that way my entire life. But he...

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“Boots the Cat” by Audrey Harmon

Submitted to Contest #163

Boots the Cat  “A few years ago I was living with someone, but she died a few weeks back. Stacy was her name. And Stacy had a cat named Boots. I never liked that cat, but once Stacy was gone, guess who was in charge of Boots?  “Me. It was me.  “I met Stacy because when I moved to New York City, I really needed a roommate. Everyone needs one to afford living. Everyone normal, anyway. We lived together for two years and said almost nothing to each other the entire time; It was perfect. But when Stacy got a cat, I was pretty...

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“Flowing Content” by Keila Aartila

Submitted to Contest #163

You’ll never be content, taunts one of the unwanted voices echoing in my head. What does that even mean? My brow wrinkles in contemplation and remembrance. I’ve been called a lot of things throughout my fifty plus years - intense, bossy, independent, but never content. (Usually with a “too” added in front.) Funny - I am a lot of those. I actually find them empowering, even though they’re usually tossed at me negatively. Am I discontent? I don’t think so. I was also called enigmatic once. I determined that suitable. Though, co...

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“Ordinarily Extraordinary” by Greg Gillis

Submitted to Contest #163

           “You’ll never be content,” are the words that resonated inside his head every time he thought of his father.            Rick grew up in a dysfunctional home. His mother was a lieutenant in the United States Army, and his father was the manager of a bank. Both parents were extremely structured and disciplined, but Rick seemed to deviate from the path of order. He rarely saw his parents because of their careers, so he was ra...

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“A Quiet Night” by Dable Champ

Submitted to Contest #163

Quiet nights like this were pretty rare in this part of town. No sirens, no parties, no loud neighbors. For once Mike’s apartment was as tranquil as a Buddhist temple. He couldn’t wait to fall asleep, The bed, under all its blankets looked warm, and comfy in contrast to the icy chill of his bedroom. Perfect. But the peaceful night was interrupted with a bang. Complete terror overtook Mike. He had locked his bedroom door, and stood so quiet that the only sound he made was the uncontrollable thump of his heart beating. Somehow through the ruc...

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“Minor Niggles.....” by Julie Grenness

Submitted to Contest #163

Kenny tidied his beer belly into his shirt. He smoothed a strand of hair over his baldy bit. Only minor niggles. He sauntered along down to Tinytown. Had the bride arrived? "At last!" thought genial, affable, balding and paunchy Kenny. After a few months of online emails, and with slightly drunken late night phone chats, she had arrived. Instant attraction. The nuptial express train pulled into his small town railway station. His hopes were rising that, at last, Kenny was going to grow old disgracefully. His two ex-wives had taken their toll...

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“By Many Names” by Zee Boyce

Submitted to Contest #163

Breathe in. The world moved too fast and too slow all at once, the edges of my vision black and spotty.  “Get an IV started immediately, we might need to start the surgery.” I didn’t recognize the voices that swirled around me, in a way, I felt very much like Alice trying to understand Wonderland through talking flowers and smoking caterpillars. Breathe out. I took a catalog of what hurt, I knew there was a burn somewhere on my arm. I knew there was pressure building in my head, and bruises blossoming on my chest and neck. “The assai...

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“Gone” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #163

You’ll never be content The note is there on my bedside table when I awake.  I have awoken to an empty bed in a room that holds some familiarity, but little comfort, and I turn to see the note. The note is leaning casually against an untouched glass of water and I can read it from where I lay. You’ll never be content That is all that it says. There’s no greeting and there is no name to sign it off. I sigh as I stare at the note and will it to reveal at least some of its mysteries. It does not. Instead, it glowers at me baleful...

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“Cherry Bomb” by Jim Firth

Submitted to Contest #163

Despite being a successful television actor, Cherry Adams is a wayward young woman. Tonight, she fixates on a shopfront with pulsing neon signs—pressing her face on the glass and bathing hungrily in the rainbow light. She smears the windows with her oily skin, but the despondent newsagent who usually shoos her away with his broom has not made his presence felt yet. An automated street cleaning vehicle follows its preset route along the street where Cherry is ensconced. The sleepy nightshift operative who is supposed to be looking out fo...

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“Closing The Circle” by Kate Kilbee

Submitted to Contest #163

Damn the traffic. Three hours sitting in a traffic jam, horns blaring, angry drivers thumping their steering wheels even though it was futile. The sun went down in a blaze of red, burning like hot coals. It was a stunning contrast to the concrete of the motorway, the traffic moving slowly now, too slowly. I had meant to get there in daylight. I'd hoped to see the outside and inside of the house, a house I'd left hurriedly twenty years before. It was not to be.I dissociated from all the cars. My mind was full of the past, the rustle of beauti...

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“Midnight Drive” by Wesley Osigian

Submitted to Contest #163

Tires squealed as Chris Jerked the stirring wheel, his palms burning against the leather. The back bumper took out the mailbox, scattering letters across the unkempt lawn, as he came to a stop. Inside a seemingly perfect home, he heard screaming. Dashing inside, his nose wrinkled at the smell of tobacco, liquor, and Febreze. “Alice!” he called out, following the cries upstairs. Where he found her bawled up in a hallway as a man kicked her. Chris’s knuckles cracked as his fist met the back of the attacker’s head, head, knocking him to the gro...

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