David Ader

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Dec, 2020

Stories (17)

17 Stories

365 karma pts

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“Greener Grass” by David Ader

The realtor hadn’t yet removed the white post from the front lawn when she hooked on a new ‘for sale sign’ to the arm. Another commission on this house was on her mind, two in as many years and the price had risen 10% since she’d last sold it. She didn’t question the seller’s motivation; it wasn’t her business. She was, however, curious as to why Marvin Kaminsky would want to sel...

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“Here Kitty Kitty” by David Ader

He wished he’d thought more about that black cat when he first saw it earlier that morning. Black cats are bad omens, right? Maybe the omen was the cat itself, a ‘here kitty kitty’ gone very wrong. Now, though, as that morning led into the afternoon, he saw that cat again in front of him, staring and swishing its tail not five yards ahead.            He knelt and held out his fingers, feigning the act of teasing a...

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“The Trade of a Lifetime” by David Ader

A memo went around the trading floor. Finally, after threatening, after complaining, after squeezing in few added weeks to his already long vacation allowance, after working remotely two days a week, and after years of discussing his rich bucket list, Allan Buckley put in his retirement notice. Three months from now, he would be gone.  “Don’t hesitate to call me if you need advice,” he’d told the colleagues that ...

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“We Have to Move” by David Ader

           Phillip turned the car into the gravel driveway comforted by the grassy hump down its middle, the part that car tires hadn’t trampled down. The hump had grown since he was a child. He’d always thought it looked like something you’d find at an English country home. Maybe in the Cotswolds, though he hadn’t ever been there.            The old man sat on the porch staring ou...

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“Man’s Best Friend” by David Ader

           Willis stumbled again. He hadn’t seen the slick root of the spruce. Anyway, he had given up trying to avoid them. He grabbed at a wet pine branch, smearing his already raw hand with its glue-like sap but managed to keep standing this time. Maybe the sap would help heal his cuts. He’d read about that somewhere. A wilderness survival book maybe. He swore out loud and then...

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“Encounter in the Park” by David Ader

The senior partner raised his glass for one final toast to the departing 3L, a third-year law student who’d come in for the Christmas Party. He’d just been offered a position to start at the end of the following summer with a salary of $150,000 and a signing bonus of $40,000. It would pay for the kid’s final year at Harvard and give him more than enough funds to travel in style after gra...

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“The Old Clock Stopped” by David Ader

      The old clock stopped. Facing it was its chronological counterpart; a mirror suffering age spots that distorted the clock’s image stuck at 6:32. It was like the final date on a gravestone. Its brass pendulum dangled dormant below the face.            It was new on their wedding day. The groom’s father called it a “Regulator,” an accurate wall clock that would ring out the hours 24 times a day.        ...

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“A Virtual Life” by David Ader

We all have regrets. Coulda, woulda, shoulda…fill in the blank. It drives some people into insanity. Or into therapy. Or worse. Coulda, woulda, shoulda.           Shoulda is the worst of the trio. I should have done this, but I did that, and look where it got me. Where is not the preferred place or you wouldn’t have asked the question in the first place. The ideal was a life well-lived, no regrets, and a long look in the mirror each m...

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“Wilce's Dream” by David Ader

At the persistence of his father, Cliff Skinner, his mother attempted a breathing technique to slow her labor enough to push her soon-to-be-born baby out at midnight. Clifford had heard that the first child of the new year would get all sorts of prizes. Wilce was born on December 31st at 11:56 PM.            Cliff also fantasized that th...

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“A Virtual Life” by David Ader

We all have regrets. Coulda, woulda, shoulda…fill in the blank. It drives some people into insanity. Or into therapy. Or worse.            Coulda, woulda, shoulda.            Shoulda is the worst of the trio. I should have done this, but I did that and look where it got me. Where is not the preferred place or you wouldn’t have asked the question in the first place. ...

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“The Trout Went One Way” by David Ader

The trout went one way. Foster went another.            He leapt out of the water, arching over its surface, then dove into the depths of the cold pool. For a trout, such a move is a graceful display of instinctive acrobatics whether to catch a fly that’s risen off the surface or to argue with the bite of a hook in its mouth.            For ...

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“Staying Home” by David Ader

        “We’re done here, Mr. Goodrich!”         It was the guy in charge of the movers, Joey V, standing in the driveway. Goodrich knew this was coming: a yell or a voice from downstairs, saying it was all over. He took slow steps over to the bedroom window and struggled to lift it. The weather had been damp and these old wooden windows stuck. He banged the upper rail with the pal...

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“Oskar” by David Ader

OskarThe smiles of the small crowd on the street disappeared faster than the people who hurried away from the boys in the brown outfits. Yelling profanities despite the presence of children who’d been enjoying the man’s show, they kicked his table over before they set to kicking the man to the ground and then kicking him more. The tools of his trade, the rings, the cups, the case, weren’t so badly hurt as the man seeming to claw his way th...

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“We Have to Move” by David Ader

           Phillip turned the car into the gravel driveway comforted by the grassy hump down its middle, the part that car tires hadn’t trampled down. The hump had grown since he was a child. He’d always thought it looked like something you’d find at an English country home. Maybe in the Cotswolds, though he hadn’t ever been there.            The old man sat on the porch staring...

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“The Hobby Shop” by David Ader

“I won’t be too long,” said his wife. “I’ll meet you back in…say…45 minutes. Tops. Don’t be late again. Not in this weather.” “Sure, sure,” he replied, edging back towards the car with three bundles of groceries in his arms.  “What did I say?” she asked. He leaned over to put the bags on the hood, hugging them to keep them from toppling over. Had she just said something? He was sure he’d...

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Shortlisted 1 story ⭐️

Contest #135
Oskar – read story