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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write about a character who develops a special ritual to cope with something.

Posted in Angst on Jun 30, 2023

Submissions are closed

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✍️ 90 stories

“Linus” by Lula Gibbs

Submitted to Contest #205

“When I grow up, I want to be a fighter-fighter.” Linus threw the ball towards me, and it landed in the bushes.  “A fire fighter! If that’s what you want to do buddy, I support you 100%.”  “Hey, dad?”  “What’s up bud?”  “It’s hot out here. Can we go inside and get some ice-cream?”  It was close to bath time anyway. “Let’s get you cleaned up and have some dinner first. After you get your belly full then you can eat all the ice-cream you want.”  Inside I could hear my wife rushing around in the kit...

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“I Trace Her Smile” by Jillian Ross

Submitted to Contest #205

I trace her smile, and then her blonde curls. I spray her scarf with her favorite perfume and sniff her as I place it around my neck."Jillian! What are you doing?" I hear in the living room. "I am getting ready to leave. Aren't you coming?" The TV is blaring, and it sounds like a busy train station in there."Leave me for a few hours. It's that time of year again," I yell back, a bit irritated that I have been interrupted. "I need the space please. Take a long time, and have fun!" I say in the most cheery, heart- felt voice I can muster....

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“The Timeless Reaper Has A Name” by Asa P

Submitted to Contest #205

"Daddy E, no! Edwin, please, not in front of our…."My brother was over a year and a half older and somewhat smarter. As soon as he had peeped and realized what was up, he had instantly fallen over, covering his ears tightly with his hands and screwing his eyes shut tight."Appa, please, no! Mama!"One gunshot was quickly followed by another and then another. I had the ignorance or misfortune to open my eyes just as my father's body crumpled on top of the still-twitching body of my mother. I did that to make sure he wasn't still holding the gun...

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“2D Godhead” by Alexander Durig

Submitted to Contest #205

I’m not that fascinated with 3D space anymore. That’s a lie, I am completely obsessed with it. But it has only led me to a new and even bigger obsession with 2D space. That’s what I meant to say. After all, a 3D image is accomplished by blending two 2D images, right? So, to be fascinated with 3D space for long enough, is to become obsessed with 2D space. That is what happened to me. But, although my original foray into the dimensions of space and perception were crude and physical, just graphic and simplistic, something happened somewhere al...

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“There’s No Place Like Tea ” by T Mithawala

Submitted to Contest #205

Elizabeth had two weaknesses: a good cup of tea, and the homeless. And though I was more of a coffee drinker, it didn’t take me long to learn just how she liked her morning brew; almond milk microwaved for twenty seconds, a touch of brown sugar with a strong English breakfast blend, steeped for seven minutes.Every morning, our little ritual would begin. While she showered, I’d make breakfast. Then she’d join me at the table and take a leisurely sip. She’d squeeze my hand and smile, and all was right in the world. *Someone had ...

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“How to Get a New Body in Three Easy Steps” by Jack Gorzo

Submitted to Contest #205

Tina stalked the park for the person who would save her from herself. Picking out a target wasn’t simple. It had to be someone she could manipulate. Someone her age would be easiest, so between 19 and 21. Most of all she required beauty. Her target needed to have confidence baked into her bones. She needed to look in the mirror and see the best version of herself every day. There was only one person who came to mind: Minnie Carson.  Minnie was one of Tina’s best friends in middle school. Some of her fondest memories were from sleepove...

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“Moving On” by Francis Groleau

Submitted to Contest #205

As I lay on the couch waiting for my Chinese food to arrive, I tried to count how many days of summer vacation I had let wither away. Every year, I wondered how I managed to finish all my report cards before the deadline. Marking essays in a tiny crowded room without AC in the end-of-June heat is no small feat on its own, but when you add an unfaithful boyfriend and a nasty breakup on top of it, it feels like an absolute tour de force.  Of course, he didn’t admit cheating on me straight away. He said he couldn’t pretend anymore and th...

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“Down to the Last Drop” by Beth Peterson

Submitted to Contest #205

CW: Death, Grief, and CannibalismTo my dear Ethan,The first time I did it, I swear it was an accident.I’d just brought you home. You were so small. If I’d wrapped my arms around you any tighter, both of us would have shattered into a thousand pieces. But I didn’t care what happened to me. I had no concept of thoughts, feelings, time, space, or existence itself. All I knew was that I had you, in one way or another.The house was so quiet when we got back. I kept waiting to hear your footsteps. I held my breath in anticipation of your voice fil...

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“The Turning of the Bones” by Eric D.

Submitted to Contest #205

My mood had changed drastically after hearing the big news. Nothing could ever prepare you for hearing about a loved one dying, even when you know it's coming. That was the first time I saw my father cry and his lips quivered when he broke the news to me that Grandma Myra was dead. I had watched him turn from a man who'd never shared an ounce of vulnerability to a sobbing child. It scared me. I couldn't bear to watch him this way, so I ran and ran as fast as I could. In a way, I was running from the inevitable realization of death. "I c...

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“The Power of Faith” by Raven West

Submitted to Contest #205

Rachel should have known the marriage wouldn't last. Her and Bill had been so young and idealistic. They truly believed that love could bridge the gap between their two religions. But from the very beginning, she felt his reluctance to accept her beliefs. Even though she had said nothing when he put up the Christmas tree, Bill had been very annoyed when she lit her candles. Eventually she totally abandoned the rituals she had known so well as a child. The situation was much more difficult at work Rachel did her best to ignore the stares an...

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“Missing Pinky” by David Haviland

Submitted to Contest #205

Missing Pinky (Assignment: Write about a character who develops a special ritual to cope with something. ANGST) By David J. Haviland Copyright c  2023 by David J. Haviland Missing Pinky It happened over six months ago, yet Bob still woke up every morning wishing it wasn’t true. Hoping against hope that it was all just a bad dream.  But alas this nightmare was as real as the rising Sun on a bright June day. Bob’s beloved Pinky was here no more. And the loss of his Pinky sent Bob into an emotional death spiral. Day...

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“Six thirty on the dot” by Mike Ross

Submitted to Contest #205

Six thirty on the dot. Frank Headley is trying hard to concentrate as he puts his dressing gown on and shuffles downstairs. A few days ago, he misjudged the last step, slipped and banged his head against the hallway door, a lesson learned. At the bottom of the stairs, their old grandfather clock clonks away the time, a double chime the for half hour; six thirty. For the last thirty years the clock has been a constant companion. He extracts a newspaper from the jaws of the letterbox and glances at the headlines, front and back pages, before h...

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“Always Three Taps” by Brett Wilkinson

Submitted to Contest #205

[Sensitive content: mental health, suicide, self-harm]Always three taps. Three taps on the bathroom mirror, always before 7:30 in the morning.It was what she always did. It wasn’t really Ana that did it, it was her OCD. I’d suspected it long before she ever told me about it, but she shared it with me when I proposed to her after we’d been dating six months.“Yes,” she said. “Of course, yes. But there’s something you have to know about me first.”I could still recall her telling me about it, the whole “three-thing” as she referred to it. She wa...

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“Wafting Introspection” by Eric Olson

Submitted to Contest #205

There is a certain type of peace to be found at night, when one is outdoors with only the sounds of nature. While everyone else sleeps, recharging their bodies and minds for the coming day, I sit and try to find this peace, and I contemplate how the world all fits together. On such a night as described, I find myself initiating the familiar steps of my ritual. My steps are few and the work is easy, but I follow them to the letter. There is something ceremonious about doing a thing that one does often, exactly in the way that one always does ...

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“Meditation Metamorphosis” by Sally Wirth

Submitted to Contest #205

                                    Meditation Metamorphosis            I need to stop the he’s gone, he’s gone, he’s gone mantra in my head before I go crazy. Maybe it’s too late already. They tell me this program will help if I truly work at it. Don’t know if that’s true, but, fine, I’ll try. But the truth is...

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Contest #205

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This week's theme: Ritualistic

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Ended on 23:59 - Jul 07, 2023 EST

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Title: The Walk

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