Write a story that includes the line “my lips are sealed.”

Posted in Adults on May 26, 2023

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✍️ 96 stories

“The Case of Arnold Palmer” by Nicholas Thomas

Submitted to Contest #200

(TRIGGER WARNING: Physical violence, gore, or abuse. Mild substance abuse.) I had been attending law school for a few years now and was excited to finally be able to watch a trial in person. This wasn’t just any trial, either – this was the trial of Arnold Palmer. Before I tell you about Arnold Palmer, I should tell you about the town in which I grew up, and the town Arnold had virtually destroyed. Though we are technically considered a “company town,” which is to say all housing – and stores, if we had any outside the general store - are ...

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“What Wasn't Said” by Sarah Martyn

Submitted to Contest #200

I can’t trust my own thoughts, but they’re sometimes my safest places to run to… only sometimes. * * * “Hi bro. How are you today?” “Eh… I’m tired. I woke up tired. I didn’t even do that much today,” Thomas replied. Dumb lazyass… how could you lay around and complain about your day? “What’d you say, Drew?” “I said don’t sweat it. We all have days like that. It’s okay to have a chill day and still be draggin.” “You’re probably right.” “I know I am, Thomas. Chin up. Mom says she loves you and will see you later this week. I’ll ...

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“Mirrorline” by John Werner

Submitted to Contest #200

A click and a spark.They say things come in threes. Special Agent Darius French considered the fact that just maybe the cigarette lighter has some inherent design flaw so that it can only light his cigarette after three attempts. He inhales deeply, the burning edge coming alive with angry red heat and a satisfying crackle as he takes in the surroundings and his lungs fill with smoke.An empty motel room. No one to be found. Walking softly across the Berber carpet he kneels down to assess the trail of cuts which have left it shredded and gouge...

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“The dark secret ” by Sasan Sedighi

Submitted to Contest #200

Taking a break from work, I was in a coffee shop, sipping my flat white and passively listening to the muffled sound of the news coming from the TV on the wall. The news was about the recent interest hike and its impact on ordinary people. “Homebuyers like me who have to downsize their life to meet their next mortgage payments. If the interest rate rises again, I may stop having coffee outside,” I thought with dread.The news moved on to a tropical storm in the southern part of India, the war in Ukraine, and so on until I lost my interest. Bu...

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“Love Wouldn't Melt” by Tom Skye

Submitted to Contest #200

Evan averts his eyes upwards as he meanders through Queen Victoria square tightly grasping Chloe's hand. It looks like 20-25 fresh melts in the square that day, dotted sporadically from corner to corner, each illuminated by the moonlight. The thick Yorkshire clouds had cleared at approximately 2:15 pm against forecast, and those misled had met their end."Don't look sweetheart" he says. "Come quickly". Unable to hold his averted gaze, it strays back to the melts and he and is stung with a familiar guilt. His late father's voice pierces him: "...

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“The Moonlit River” by Tamra Holms

Submitted to Contest #200

Jeremy watched as the boats slowly drifted through the river nearby where he hid in a bush. It was a ceremony for a goddess they said. Not for mortal eyes. He wasn’t going to live much longer, so this was the last thing on his bucket list. He hid behind the bush so as not to be found out. He had argued with his mother about going out. She made the argument he was too sick to go anywhere, especially on such a cold night as this. He argued it did not matter, because he was not getting better, and...

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“SECRETS OF A SMALL TOWN” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #200

My lips are sealed, that's all I can say. I was sworn to secrecy by the mayor and the town council. I couldn't tell nobody not even my family. If I told anybody what I saw I would disappear that was a promise the mayor made to me. What the mayor and the council didn't understand is that in a small town, rumors spread very quickly. The mayor nor the council could not have stopped the rumors. People talked and they talked a lot. The rumors spread like wildfire. I heard it all. The mayor and the council are stealing the town's money. The m...

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“Gossip is a Thing with Feathers” by Ellen Neuborne

Submitted to Contest #200

Deb was sure she had him by the balls when the Corrine tidbit surfaced. She’d been draped over the bar, mocktail Cosmo in hand, pretending to be tipsy. It wasn’t hard. She just mirrored the gaggle of office girls around her. They were downing the real thing. They hadn’t slipped the bartender $20 to quietly serve them sober drinks all night. They could afford their fun. They weren’t trying to save their careers from the chopping block. “The buns on him – Oh. My God!” “I know, right? Gimme some!” The women of Max Allen Communications w...

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“TWO SAUCERS OF STRYCHNINE” by Susan Catucci

Submitted to Contest #200

**WARNING: A tad profane, though in keeping with the times. *** * *The telephone was ringing off the hook in Louella Parson’s penthouse suite. If a ringtone could fit the caller, this one would spit nails.“Hellooo,” trilled Louella.“Don’t hello me, you backstabbing little ingrate.”“Why, is this the Queen of Hollywood Gossip? Oh no, I forgot. That’s me." “I have a bone to pick with you.”“That’s hardly news, Hedda. You’ve gnawed on more bones than all the beasts at the San Diego Zoo.”“And don’t you forget it, Louella.”...

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“The Eternal Offer” by Daniel Rogers

Submitted to Contest #200

The two of them looked ordinary. Nothing stood out. The clothes. The hair. The shoes. All typical. Moving among the mass of New Yorkers and tourists, they easily blended in. Admittingly, this wasn't a challenge in Time Square. There were so many nut cases; ordinary people looked odd. And odd was par for the course on this street. “I hate New York!” Said one of the two–a tall man with white hair pulled back into a ponytail, a muscular frame, and a stern look. “Messed up Time Tickers! Why do they try so hard to be freaks?” “They are just t...

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“A Far, Far Better Thing...Really?” by Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #200

A Far, Far Better Thing…Really? “You should not honor men more than the truth." - PlatoCursed by a moment, plagued by an image, and torn between two loyalties, the torment persists. Friendship, love, conscience, and truth swirled around in my brain, engaged in a debilitating battle that could have no winner. Why must I suffer for that which I did not do? Images planted in the mind take root, grow with the passage...

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“Programmed Danger” by Arjun Goel

Submitted to Contest #200

I pressed my ear against the dark brown oak wood, trying to make sense of the faint whispers coming from within the room. It was difficult to decipher the complete sentences, as the words were all jumbled up and blended. As I continued to listen, I realized that the people inside the room were three FBI agents. I wasn't sure why they were there, but I knew it had something to do with my older brother. After about four minutes, I heard someone approaching the door on the other side, prompting me to quickly scramble back and hide in the k...

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“The Demon in My Head” by Justine Buhl

Submitted to Contest #200

I was born with a demon in my head. He is not the crazy type, just an old regular demon with bad jokes and a thirst for blood. My blood. We did not talk much, during those first years: he was not interested in me, and I was too young to understand that he only lived in my head. It all changed around my sixth birthday when I made my first deal with my demon. It was a stupid thing really, but I had lost this small knight toy and I desperately wanted it back, enough to trade an hour of my life for it. Asmodeus — this is what I call him now — t...

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“The Keyblade Chronicles (Chapters 1-4)” by Ian T. Smyth

Submitted to Contest #200

THE KEYBLADE CHRONICLES CHAPTERS 1-5 Prologue In the future, a fascist dictatorship known as The Authority has taken over the known universe. The Authority has set up trade routes between neighbouring star systems using a device known as a Starpod, invented by Baxtar CEO Maurice Hepburn. The people of Manoor have long held a prophecy that a saviour would come with the Keyblade, and item capable of cutting through the fabric of the universe itself so they can escape into an alternate reality where The Authori...

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“Thou Shalt Not Speak” by Pryor Rose

Submitted to Contest #200

"My lips are sealed, I promise." No longer did those words leave the safety of her tongue had she seen the fire sizzle within the gaze of her captor. Truly she wished she hadn't seen the actions before her, hoped even that what she saw had been a mirage of her own delusions brought on by the heat of the desert and dehydration, but such was a lost prayer as the person met her gaze.In that moment she cursed her love for horror and science-fiction. If she had not seen the show on television about skinwalkers she wouldn't be out here walking thr...

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Write a story that includes the line “my lips are sealed.”

Submissions are closed

✍️ 96 stories

“The Case of Arnold Palmer” by Nicholas Thomas

“What Wasn't Said” by Sarah Martyn

“Mirrorline” by John Werner

“The dark secret ” by Sasan Sedighi

“Love Wouldn't Melt” by Tom Skye

“The Moonlit River” by Tamra Holms

“SECRETS OF A SMALL TOWN” by Melinda Madrigal

“Gossip is a Thing with Feathers” by Ellen Neuborne

“TWO SAUCERS OF STRYCHNINE” by Susan Catucci

“The Eternal Offer” by Daniel Rogers

“A Far, Far Better Thing...Really?” by Murray Burns

“Programmed Danger” by Arjun Goel

“The Demon in My Head” by Justine Buhl

“The Keyblade Chronicles (Chapters 1-4)” by Ian T. Smyth

“Thou Shalt Not Speak” by Pryor Rose

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about a piece of gossip that becomes more and more distorted as it passes from person to person.

Your character is known as the town gossip. One day, it comes back to bite them.

Write a story about someone trying to track down the source of a rumor.

Your main character has a secret superpower; the gossip they spread always comes true.

Contest #200

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

210

Contest entries

116

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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