Place your characters in a tough situation, where nobody wants to acknowledge the reality of what's happening.

Posted in Angst on Jul 12, 2024

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✍️ 84 stories

“Sis” by Joe Smallwood

Submitted to Contest #259

Sis didn’t like attention. “Oh, Foo Ferrah!” were her favorite words, especially if everyone else was having fun. But the hill was way too icy, and that last bump was killer. Her airborne toboggan banged down so hard, you could squish your jelly with your backbone, though mine was safe at the side of the hill. Through my frozen breath, I watched her roll away like a pro. She managed a smile right there at my feet, grimacing only when she looked away from me. “It was nothing! What are you staring at, Jeff?” she moaned, holding her mits with o...

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“the Elephant in the Grave” by Lastka R

Submitted to Contest #259

Trigger warnings: suicide, grief, mental health and many challenges that come with the loss of a loved one. Author's note: This short story was a spontaneous challenge I took upon myself after reflecting on how this prompt could pertain to my life. Six months ago my partner killed themself and ever since, the elephant in the room wasn't just the tapestry on my wall; my elephant became all the heavy themes I hold in relation to the grief, especially when I no longer feel welcome to share and discuss the things I now deal with. Turns out there...

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“2000 Pieces of Sky” by Jane Andrews

Submitted to Contest #259

My first marriage lasted less than two years but was extremely eventful. Looking back now, one incident in particular stands out: a week in Aubigny-en-Artois in the north of France: a week when I realised that my husband couldn’t be trusted. It is August 1988 and Steve and I are about to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. We are both twenty-one, both students, and we have a baby girl, Lily, who is six and a half months old. Our marriage was precipitated by my unplanned pregnancy, following in the footsteps of Steve’s parents, Mark and ...

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“A Book at the Dinner Table” by Eccles Garstang

Submitted to Contest #259

Getting ready to come home wrapped me with sweet anticipation. I was dropping the pressures of final exams in favor of returning to the best place on earth. The airplane trip was over in a blink and I was already rushing down the airport escalators, eager to catch the first glimpse of my parents waiting for me at the bottom of the arrivals corridor.I excitedly scanned around and then I saw them. Two beautiful people, side by side, gently smiling with their arms crisscrossed behind each other’s back. They didn’t both have to come but they did...

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“Trunk or Tail?” by Carol Stewart

Submitted to Contest #259

Ten years on, and there I was, looking down on him again. At least I would have been had my gaze possessed the power of the scorn it contained, and had it been intent enough to bore through the various layers of dirt. Not that there would be much of the man left to see beyond the macabre, but the six-foot distance between us, for all it was indisputably vertical now, brought his rodent-like, bespectacled features so clearly to mind, I might as well have been back there in that flat we'd once shared, staring across the floor to where he’d slu...

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“walls” by Amanda Stogsdill

Submitted to Contest #259

Walls by Amanda Stogsdill Crash! In their room, Christy and Logan awaken, eyes wide. As the angry voices drift to them, both cover their ears. Not this again! Next, the house shakes with a slamming of a door, followed by the roar of a truck's motor.The house is accustomed to this uproar, its walls would have cried if they had been able to. Patched holes, damaged doors, and askew pictures, are evidence of Father's anger.*****"Christy, what's the capital of New York?" The teacher waited, expecting an answer. Silence. Christy slouched in her se...

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“Reality” by Fern Everton

Submitted to Contest #259

CW: This story contains themes of terminal illness and death. It also contains light mentions of alcohol and swearing. Viewer discretion is advised. Victor was only nine years old when he was watching his parents argue constantly, the two of them separated from him by a pane of thick glass that blocked their words from reaching his ears. He followed their increasingly erratic gestures and watched their faces flip through expressions like channels on a TV, but paid special attention to their mouths, scanning the shapes they formed to decode ...

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“Not in Vain” by Christina Miller

Submitted to Contest #259

They line us up, our hands chained behind our backs. The guards refuse to look us in the eyes. The other prisoners refuse to look up. We're all pretending that today's just another day, that this change in our strict routine is normal. "Weather's nice today, isn't it?" Tomas, my friend, asks from beside me. My eyes sting as I nod. It's been weeks since I'd seen the sun. But maybe they won't pick me today, and I'll get to see the sun again. At least one more time. The crowd before the dais murmurs at Tomas's nonchalant tone. They know w...

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“A Deserved Ghosting” by Jeff Meade

Submitted to Contest #259

A Deserved Ghosting I had taken it a little too far. I always take it a little too far! And this time, I lost a potentially awesome connection with an old flame. But every fire dies out eventually. Sometimes they were never even lit. In the matter of just a few days, I both lit a flame and extinguished it. One lazy Saturday afternoon, I told my 9th grade crush that I had, well…a crush. She was flattered by that, and we struck up an interesting conversation. But then my ADHD tendencies took over and I got carried away with excitement an...

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“For Better or Worse” by Ian Unger

Submitted to Contest #259

*This story contains references to pedophilia. As a society, we collectively share this proverbial joke of a creepy-old-uncle who got divorced and married someone less than half his age. The thing about proverbs is that they’re so borderline mythological you don’t think they could actually happen, least of all to you. You don’t even have a creepy-old-uncle. Then the next thing you know, your dad is calling to tell you your aunt and uncle are separated a month after you were all riding bikes on the beach like one big happy family. Then at ...

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“Picture Perfect ” by Aless Delgado-Piercy

Submitted to Contest #259

A house but not a home, it never will beFull of people, but not a real familyIn the eye of the beholder, it’s perfect right?But, behind closed doors they don’t seeWe are all sinners of God whether in hell or heaven--------------------------------------------------------------- The Johnsons. Four placemats. Four chairs. Four knives and forks. Four; the perfect American family. A picturesque house of suburban bliss, adorned with decorations of amber and chestnut. The kitchen alive, bustling in preparation for Thanksgiving. Equipped with ...

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“Sinkhole” by Lexi Harris

Submitted to Contest #259

I don’t know when the crack appeared in our living room floor, but I noticed it as I tidied up on a Tuesday evening. I shoved the coffee table into its rightful spot, its leg landed in a tear in the carpet, a fissure beneath. It wobbled in the unevenness until I repositioned it at an awkward angle. By Thursday morning, the crack had expanded into a sinkhole. It had already taken our loveseat and an end table, along with my knitting project and a stack of books my husband had set aside for his winter break from teaching. The couch teetered p...

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“The Last Day of Summer” by Chloe' Noever

Submitted to Contest #259

Waves that lap against the shore tell the time. The ebb and flow, the push and pull, they pump one second in and one second out. The ocean is constant. It does not bend to circumstances and is infinite. In its infinity is an all-consuming awe if you choose to see it. The ocean is the same ocean that it was millions of years ago, yet it remembers nothing. The explorers that first stormed through this beach in Florida left footprints that were to be erased, and the ocean forgets them. There is too much to remember already. The ocean stays the ...

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“Concealer” by Allie Garbini

Submitted to Contest #259

Trigger warning: Implied sexual violence and language Just close your eyes and wait. It can’t last long. It will be over just as soon as it started. Just keep reminding yourself of that. It will be over soon. Distract yourself from what is happening to you if you can. Think of anything else. But what? What could possibly distract you in this moment. It will stain you for the rest of your life. You will never escape the haunting lifelong trauma that you have become saddled with mere minutes. I crawled myself up in a ball on my bed. My fa...

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“The Maharaja, the Elephant and the Prime Minister” by Rebecca Hurst

Submitted to Contest #259

The Maharajah of Phutim, whose name was Dorji, surveyed his small kingdom from the east-facing balcony of his palace. He had been educated in the finest of England’s schools and spoke the language with the clarity and diction of a statesman whom people remember long after they are dead. His voice was deep and commanding, and his charisma was such that even the snow pigeons and the fulvour whistling-ducks dipped their heads in respect as they flew over his majesty’s dominions and balconies. He was the sixtieth son of the last M...

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Place your characters in a tough situation, where nobody wants to acknowledge the reality of what's happening.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 84 stories

“Sis” by Joe Smallwood

“the Elephant in the Grave” by Lastka R

“2000 Pieces of Sky” by Jane Andrews

“A Book at the Dinner Table” by Eccles Garstang

“Trunk or Tail?” by Carol Stewart

“walls” by Amanda Stogsdill

“Reality” by Fern Everton

“Not in Vain” by Christina Miller

“A Deserved Ghosting” by Jeff Meade

“For Better or Worse” by Ian Unger

“Picture Perfect ” by Aless Delgado-Piercy

“Sinkhole” by Lexi Harris

“The Last Day of Summer” by Chloe' Noever

“Concealer” by Allie Garbini

“The Maharaja, the Elephant and the Prime Minister” by Rebecca Hurst

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about two people who aren't admitting their true feelings for one another, despite it being obvious to outsiders.

Write a story that includes the line, "Is nobody going to say it?".

In a small town, a powerful family have a dark secret that nobody wants to discuss. One day, an outsider arrives, who's not happy to simply drop it.

Set your story in a world where conversation about one particular topic is banned — but there are ways to get around the rule.

Contest #259

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

297

Contest entries

143

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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