Write a story involving a character who cannot return home.

Posted in Angst on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 320 stories

“The Road Man” by Donavan Barrier

Submitted to Contest #98

He stuck his blistered thumb out to his side. His eyes squinted against the boiling desert sun. His skin felt itchy under his shirt. The sweat slowly dripped down his brow and tried its best to blind him. A quick swipe with the back of his hand quickly stopped that. The blacktop stretched thin in front of him. Miles of the stuff lay out bare. It seemed to bubble and broil underneath his feet. It looked disgusting! Surely if he didn’t keep walking, the soles of his shoes would melt, and he’d be stuck there forever. Forever waiting for a ride ...

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“Memories in endless circles” by Felipe Kreusch

Submitted to Contest #98

Blink, something so usual and simple that is present in everyday of our mundane lives. It was in a blink indeed that I ended up appearing in a purple rock-based land, I have no idea where I am or even why such fate have met my until now calm sleep feeling the cold breeze of a summer wind on the small river behind my house. I walked a lot since I arrived here, indeed when I got up from my unexpected fall, I looked I around me in a despair that made sure to cover every single drop of my blood and my most deep and personal senses. Purple ...

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“Hope” by Aashutosh Dhungana

Submitted to Contest #98

Writer: Aashutosh Dhungana Hope "Dear letter, Currently, neither do I have any proper clothes to wear nor any apt shelter to live in. The only thing I have is a glimpse of hope. The hope of returning home with a gleaming smile on my face, the hope of eating the rice pudding that my mom makes, the hope of fighting with my brother over unnecessary trifles, and the hope of getting beaten up by my father. With t...

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“Where is Home Now” by Nina March

Submitted to Contest #98

“Do you have any fears about returning to normal life?” It was a simple question but it held so much meaning. I stared vacantly at Lisa as I tried to form a sentence together that would summarise what I was feeling. The truth was there weren't enough words in the world to describe everything I was feeling in that moment. “Honestly...” I began my voice coming out in a nervous croak. “I don’t know. But I’m ready to try.” Lisa paused as if she were taking a moment to process what I was saying and deeply analyse my answer. ...

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“Where it all began” by Barbara Langille

Submitted to Contest #98

She fiddled with a flame, flicking it between her fingers like a magician with a coin. The bright kaleidoscope of reds and oranges reflected in her slate eyes as she glanced up at the chestnut mare that was pawing the ground, anxious to keep moving. “Easy Fyn,” Pen reassured, as she leaned back against the massive oak whose leaves were temporarily giving her respite from the drizzling rain. She dispelled the small flame with a sigh, flexing the cold dampness out of her long graceful fingers. Fyn whinnied as if in disagreement with her fl...

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“The Ballad of Kallista Laumee” by David Yanovich

Submitted to Contest #98

From the very moment I was born, I was destined for a lifetime of hatred, mockery, and violence. I am what is known as a Cambion, which is a person born with demonic traits due to some kind of demonic lineage in their family (for me it was way way back on my mami's (mother's) side). I can't say for certain what the reactions of the midwives and other village members were, but I have a feeling that my fati's (father's) face at the sight of me was a mix of disgust, shock, and sorrow. At least, I assume so from how often he made that face throu...

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“Uncertainly Apartheid” by Nabeel Anjum

Submitted to Contest #98

Could it be so that some Unearthly fate hits someone so hard that it becomes their only dream to get over it? No matter what and how good you did, it is not being looked upon by anyone now. Just a feeling of seeking answers to those sorts of questions must've ripped so many hearts into many pieces. Many of those kinds could be found scattered around the Globe, but Gurgaon's Homeless Shelter was a shed for many including my friend Dheeraj. "No!" shouted him, waking up from a nightmare. “Again?”I asked. "What was it this time?”...

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“This Road is for Lovers” by Keith B.

Submitted to Contest #98

Riding with a full tank of gas into the sunset with a beautiful young woman behind their RV steering wheel was the stuff dreams are made of for Nicholas. Gina was from a conservative household. Her father is black and her mother is Cuban. She was told she had Native American roots on her father’s side. She always felt like the womb she was birthed out of wasn’t what she was originally formed in. She always believed an discovered planet in the infinite galaxy was where she originated. That’s what connected her and Nicholas. He also felt like ...

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“Monster” by Leeav Quaoar

Submitted to Contest #98

There was a monster in my house.Not a cockroach, not a spider—but an actual monster in my house.The kind of monster you see in fantasy stories.Nonhuman.Not a metaphor. It's the real damn thing.I had no choice but to leave the house.But where did it come from? Last week, I was living life as it was, and there it was, crawling onto the walls.It wasn't even shaped like a bug.It crept onto the ceilings, looking at me. I couldn't describe how it looked like. No matter how good you are in vocabulary, you simply can't describe t...

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“Number 511205. ” by Christian Sica

Submitted to Contest #98

“Number 511205. Frank Collins. It’s chow time.” Correctional officer Kagan said sternly. He was in his usual stance, his impatience radiating from his uniform. Officer Kagan had arrived to the prison in what couldn’t have been more than 6 months, yet he acted as if he owned the place. He had transferred from another facility somewhere in the Midwest. Frank and him had gotten along well enough though he could be a prick at times. Frank hated Tuesdays. He hated most days, but he had a special loathing for today as it was soup day. They usual...

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“Amazing Grace” by Lavender Blue

Submitted to Contest #98

AMAZING GRACEShe is floating up to the ceiling and back. Floating on air it seems. She reaches out to touch the wall and finds it missing. Her heart beats faster and faster as she slowly awakens.A dream, she thinks, for nothing like that has ever happened to her in any world but that of sleep. She tries to reach for the real wall but finds herself constrained. Her fingers miss it by about three inches. Maybe it's not really there she thinks. Then I will be free. The thought improves her spirits but then she remembers that the wall is not her...

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“Seas and Home” by Ellita Styles

Submitted to Contest #98

The Sun was sinking slowly into the wide, deep ocean; its faint light desperately clinging to the Earth for a last resort. Ian could feel his grip on the rope tighten, as if he might fall down into the deep watery abyss beneath the ship. The crinkles on his brow resembled the creased waves on the splashing waves of the black sea- haphazard yet somehow rhythmic. Their dilapidated ship drifted across the enormous ocean stealthily. There was nothing except the violet sky above and the black ocean below. The ship seemed to scar the beautiful r...

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“One Way Ticket” by Gary Markham

Submitted to Contest #98

One Way Ticket I awoke with a start. The dream of a figure cloaked in impenetrable shadow slowly caressing a blade that reflected the moonlight already fading into oblivion as my faculties returned to the here and now. The train had lurched to a stop but I knew not where. The station was in darkness and as far as I could see there wasn’t a soul in sight, in fact there was no sound either. No footsteps, no muffled voices or even the incomprehensible speech over the tannoy. How queer, I mused. Collecting my threadbare briefcase from betw...

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“The Curse” by Naeema Smith

Submitted to Contest #98

She told me that she loved me and I believed her. I believed her so much that it gave me the confidence to be open with her. I felt for the first time I could finally tell someone the truth. I can finally be free and live my truth with the person that loves me. I didn’t know that once the truth came out that I couldn’t take it back. I wish I never said anything. I wish I could have foreseen what trouble I would be in if I told anyone. No one told me that it could be like this. No one told me that my life would forever change.The day that Emi...

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“Lost in Space” by Lost Shiba

Submitted to Contest #98

It’s a beautifully out-of-this-world scenery, it’s so vast and untouchable, it’s lonely. Michael feels detached from everything he has ever and never experienced. The sense of time and space that has been stretched far away from him suddenly flashes by like an illusion in his sight. As his body stops spinning aimlessly, reality strikes his jumbled brain – he’s lost, forever. He squints his eyes, recalling the past events. Michael and the other boys were gearing up to grab some ‘fresh air’ out of their spaceship. Nothing special was going o...

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Write a story involving a character who cannot return home.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 320 stories

“The Road Man” by Donavan Barrier

“Memories in endless circles” by Felipe Kreusch

“Hope” by Aashutosh Dhungana

“Where is Home Now” by Nina March

“Where it all began” by Barbara Langille

“The Ballad of Kallista Laumee” by David Yanovich

“Uncertainly Apartheid” by Nabeel Anjum

“This Road is for Lovers” by Keith B.

“Monster” by Leeav Quaoar

“Number 511205. ” by Christian Sica

“Amazing Grace” by Lavender Blue

“Seas and Home” by Ellita Styles

“One Way Ticket” by Gary Markham

“The Curse” by Naeema Smith

“Lost in Space” by Lost Shiba

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about a family with a long-standing tradition, whose members all have conflicting origin stories for it.

Start your story with a character having a premonition, but no one believes them.

Write about someone who’s desperately trying to change their luck.

Set your story on (or in) a winding river.

Contest #98

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

751

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: