Start or finish your story with a speaker unable to finish their sentence, perhaps overcome by emotion.

Posted in Angst on Feb 16, 2024

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✍️ 93 stories

“You are my sunshine” by Aryana Scheiern

Submitted to Contest #238

The soft glow of the bedside lamp cast a warm light over the room, illuminating the delicate features of the elderly woman lying down on the hospital bed. Her breathing was shallow, a rhythmic reminder of the fragility of life. Her daughter sat beside her in a chair close enough to stroke her thumb along her mother's palm. Only a few days ago they had been laughing together, sharing memories of joy with each other. The hard truth slipped beneath the cracks as she savored the small amount of time she had left with her mother. The realization ...

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“Untied Shoelaces” by Suhani Patel

Submitted to Contest #238

“Lockdown. Locks, lights, out of sight.” That was the third one. By then, the class had stopped celebrating the interruption to class and was settling into our usual spot by the door. We had these drills every month, but my heart still picked up a bit every time. What if this time, it’s real? But of course it never was. Why would it be? We were a random school in a random town in a random state. I mean, what the fuck ever happens in North Dakota. But still, this was America, the land of the free and the home of lunatics who go on mass...

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“A Girl Called Allison” by David Townsend

Submitted to Contest #238

A Girl Called Allison You will know about castles. Hundreds of years ago many people in Britain lived in castles. The walls were thick and the gates strong so that enemies and thieves could not get in. Most of the time some people went out to work in the fields during the day or herd sheep and cattle when it was safe. At night and on some days the gates were shut and people went about their business inside. Men who were Knights and boys practiced with lance, sword, and archery. They practiced fighting because they needed to know how to prote...

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“A Familiar Face” by Terry Hyland

Submitted to Contest #238

“Oh for f…” Mel said into the phone, unable to finish the thought. She breathed. Gathered herself. It was Brittney, head caretaker at Brightside. Fred was refusing to get out of bed again.“Actually,” Brittney continued, “it looks like he never got into bed; just laid on top of it. Now he won’t get up. He already missed breakfast.”“Mmmm hmmm,” Mel sighed, staring up at the ceiling from her very comfortable bed. “Thanks, Brittney. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”She hung up, rolled back onto her side, and let go of the phone. It slid to t...

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“Family ” by Anastasia Mellovich

Submitted to Contest #238

trigger warning: abandonment. FamilyBy: Anastasia Mellovich It is 3 AM on July 30th, and tomorrow is the tenth worst day of my life, but who’s counting? The first worst day of my life was March 2nd, 1993, which just so happened to be my third birthday. It was the day my dad left my mother and I to move to Illinois. I have been up for the past three hours, making myself physically ill, thinking about the possible outcomes of tomorrow’s events. You might be asking yourself, where did the other nine horrible days come from? Those were the past...

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“The Quest for the Quetzal” by Elaine Elliott

Submitted to Contest #238

THE QUEST FOR THE QUETZAL Silvia loved painting birds of paradise. And peacocks. And toucans. And quetzals. Her architectural watercolors of Antigua had often found a buyer. As did her acrylics of multicolored Guatemalan huipils, the woven Mayan blouses used by indigenous women. But mostly birds. The new English teacher, Cara, shared an office with her at the school where she taught art and had exclaimed over some of her paintings, immediately buying some t...

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“RETURN TO COUNTRY” by Dennis Dean

Submitted to Contest #238

‘Bring him to me,’ said Kurdaitcha, their executioner, I … ‘Yes,’ said Papinijuwari. ‘Then I will feed on his dead body.’ The spirit group were affronted and convened a meeting. They had intervened but the old bike man still lusted for their sacred objects and kept his ways. There was a more immediate concern because a woman had accepted ancestral bones removed from their burial place above the river. The return ...

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“The Lavender Fields” by Talyn Andrew

Submitted to Contest #238

I walk into Benjamin’s room. He’s laying on the bed, his head propped up by pillows, staring blankly at nothing. “Hey, Benjamin. It’s me, Penny, remember?” I say, putting my bouquet of lavenders on the table next to his bed.Benjamin doesn’t respond. I sigh and look around the room. There’s no pictures, no color, nothing for Benjamin to look at. Not that he would look anyway.I sit down on the bed next to Benjamin. “Do you want to hear a story?” I ask, waiting hopefully. No response. Just like every time I’ve visited Benjamin since h...

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“The Gods' Will ” by Bec Newton

Submitted to Contest #238

“How can you ask this of me?”“It is expected, my liege.”“I can’t. It's just…” Callan broke down into sobs. He sank back onto the throne. His throne. It was not meant to be his. He had been so far removed from the line of succession that sitting here had never been entertained in his wildest dreams or, as it was turning out, his nightmares.Osgar looked at him in that dead eyed manner that chilled Callan to the bone. Everything about Osgar made his skin crawl. He was like a spirit, popping up out of the slimmest of shadows to frighten him. Cal...

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“Three Little Words” by Kellie Krevosky

Submitted to Contest #238

Anne rubbed her eyes aggressively before she remembered the mascara she was wearing. “Crap,” she muttered, glancing at the smears and flecks of black that coated her fingers. Oh well, it didn’t really matter what she looked like. There was no other soul in the office with her. The clock at the bottom corner of her screen indicated it was close to eight in the evening. She needed to close down her computer for the night but there were a few extra details she wanted to include in this proposal. It was the culmination of six months of work and ...

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“Silence Breaking” by Lily Rama

Submitted to Contest #238

The house is silent. Dead silent. People say there is no such thing as dead silence, always a faint tick-tock of a clock in the distance, a soft whisper of a woman around the corner, a hum of life pulsing in the air. If noise symbolizes life, then silence must be the sound of death.I figure that is what I'm doing tonight. Dying. Slowly, but surely. When morning comes there will be no tick-tock of clocks, or women chattering, or hearty laughs over coffee. Only a thick quiet and closed eyelids. I'd passed away in my sleep, my life had gone out...

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“WHEN THEY LEARN TO SPEAK IN THE VOICES OF OUR DEAD” by Aaron Bowen

Submitted to Contest #238

1 The fingers that lay the tea tray onto the polished, dark wood of the table imitated humanity immaculately except in one particular: the skin was a stately navy blue. Millicent Braddock avoided touching them as they handed her a bone-white cup of Earl Grey, sweetened and creamed just to her liking, plumes of steam curling off its dark surface like the ghost of a bergamot fruit. Somehow, her favorite drink with her closest (living) friend did nothing to comfort her; instead, their presence in the flat seemed vulgar. Spoile...

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“The Tree Palace” by Damara Hutchins

Submitted to Contest #238

The tree house. Her tree house. There, she could go anywhere, say anything, be anyone. It was her sanctuary against the world outside. She thought of it more as a tree palace when she grasped the weathered wooden ladder to ascend into her private world. The floor gently bent under her weight and the rusted tin roof rattled with the breeze while the oak limbs rustled a polite discussion of the late summer season, accenting its message with the occasional acorn drop. The smell was delicious, like a mildly mildewed forest mixed with the warmth...

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“All of My Lasts” by Megan Dunn

Submitted to Contest #238

TW: suicide, grief “Hello, everyone. My name is Angela, mother of—” My voice wavers. I clear my throat of the emotions trying to clog it and take a deep breath. In the mirror, tired, weary eyes stare back at me. I am my only audience here, I try to tell myself. There’s no one to keep your composure for except for yourself and the soap. Gently, I run my fingers over the small leather-bound book resting on the vanity. The spine is worn, cracks illuminating the pale flesh of the leather beneath. A gold metal pen sits tucked into the cover...

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“Torches of freedom” by Maria Cotiga

Submitted to Contest #238

The lake was deep and it only got deeper as you looked. You could see the reflection of your own eyes and would stare until you saw your own mother's eyes. And that sight alone was too much for me. Too much for who I am. I can be a smoker instead. Much simpler. I can dedicate my life to giving up on something and no one would bat an eye. Much easier if you ask me. I stare into the visions and glimmer of my lit up cigarette reflecting on the blue wet glass. I am not ready to go back to the funeral. And even if I was, I would...

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Start or finish your story with a speaker unable to finish their sentence, perhaps overcome by emotion.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 93 stories

“You are my sunshine” by Aryana Scheiern

“Untied Shoelaces” by Suhani Patel

“A Girl Called Allison” by David Townsend

“A Familiar Face” by Terry Hyland

“Family ” by Anastasia Mellovich

“The Quest for the Quetzal” by Elaine Elliott

“RETURN TO COUNTRY” by Dennis Dean

“The Lavender Fields” by Talyn Andrew

“The Gods' Will ” by Bec Newton

“Three Little Words” by Kellie Krevosky

“Silence Breaking” by Lily Rama

“WHEN THEY LEARN TO SPEAK IN THE VOICES OF OUR DEAD” by Aaron Bowen

“The Tree Palace” by Damara Hutchins

“All of My Lasts” by Megan Dunn

“Torches of freedom” by Maria Cotiga

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story in which a conversation takes place where the true subject is only implied.

Write a story including the line “I can’t say it.”

Write a story in which an important message is cut off, leaving characters to wonder or puzzle out what was left unsaid.

Set your story at a silent retreat.

Contest #238

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

285

Contest entries

98

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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