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Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jul, 2023
Submitted to Contest #285
I found myself in a plastic bag next to a knife. I was surprised at the change of scenery but not entirely shocked. I had twenty five years to think about the story that had been placed in my care.***Marvin sat at his PC typing with his two pointer fingers, soggy cigar butt clamped in the corner of his mouth. Billy Idol’s “Eyes Without a Face” seeped up through the floorboards filling the air of the tiny apartment, adding to Marvin’s extreme agitation.He typed “Dear Marvin Jan 11, 2000”, hit enter and got up for his bottle of ...
Submitted to Contest #284
Mama greeted me nervously as I entered the kitchen. A quick glance showed an extra setting at the already crowded table. My heartrate quickened as I saw my mother busy herself, avoiding my eyes. Suppertime came with the arrival of the beady-eyed man whom Mama introduced with downcast eyes. “Isabel, you remember Papa’s second cousin, Elijah?” She seated him next to me as a lump formed in my throat forcing any possible reply down into my gut. I took my seat next to my obvious intended. An awkward silence enveloped us in our newl...
Submitted to Contest #283
A huge bouquet greeted her from the coffee table without a card or explanation. The flowers just sat there looking gorgeous and mysterious like the Mona Lisa. Kate felt relief wash over her. Maybe they were a peace offering. Maybe she wouldn’t have to go to the consultation with the attorney after all. The fork in the road was ahead of her, with the road endlessly shifting like a warped nightmare. Sometimes a few steps away while other times so far on the horizon that the fork was barely visible. Kate reached f...
Submitted to Contest #278
No bells or whistles. No cutesy play on words, puns or double entendres. He was never into that. Just his name at gmail dot com. First name last name at gmail dot com. Not a period or dash separating first and last name. Not even an underscore. That’s how his email appeared. I sat back stunned, strawberry and banana yogurt on spoon halfway up to my dropped jaw. I peered closer to my phone, not quite believing my eyes. Replacing the spoon back into the plastic container for fear of choking, I looked around ...
Submitted to Contest #272
“Mommy, don’t cry.” I climbed up onto the bed and scooted under her blanket. She lay curled up on her side, and I squeezed into the space that was empty near her tummy, facing her. I stared into her eyes which held the sadness of the world. “I’m ok. I promise,” I whispered to her without reaction except for another tear slipping out sliding sideways landing on her pillow. I reached up to wipe the streak that the tear had left behind feeling my mother’s softness that I remembered so well. Every year on the same day she d...
Submitted to Contest #270
(TW - This story contains sensitive content.)Whispering, “One, two, three, four,” she dumped the scoops into the coffeemaker. “Fuck it.” She added another scoop and flipped on the switch.The wave of nausea hit her as the pot started hissing. Grabbing hold of the counter, she closed her eyes. It was there, no doubt about it. No second guessing if it was her imagination or maybe something she ate. “Damn it.” She wiped her forehead, which was covered in a clammy film of sweat. Daryl’s thick snoring was th...
Submitted to Contest #268
“Happy Birthday!” Meredith greeted me as if it were just another day in the park. “I’m sixty,” I answered bluntly. “I know.” “I’m old.” “I know,” she answered me playfully. “Hey! You aren’t supposed to agree with me!” “I’m just teasing. You look great.” She laughed that old familiar laugh. “I look great? That’s something you say to an old person. ‘Wow, you’re ninety, you look fantastic.’ That just means you look fantastic considering the massive wrinkles and age spots.” “Stop. You look great for real. You ...
Submitted to Contest #267
TEN!NINE!EIGHT!SEVEN!SIX!***The crowd chanted along, the excitement building as the second hand ticked away to a new year.She desperately wanted to be part of the merriment, the celebration, the “this is our year, babe” sentiment that Joe was brimming with. He was still in the blissful state of “it’s finally happening” but she knew better.“Ready? Remember, no champagne for you!” He had teased her before leaving the house, smiling at her from his bubble of one. She would be more than happy to do without the alcoholic midni...
Submitted to Contest #264
"Jack and Coke.” He leaned towards the bartender, shouting above the poor rendition of Elvis swooning to the crowd. “Make that two,” I raised my fingers in a mock peace sign which seemed easier than trying to be heard over the crowd of well wishers. “Don’t you just love weddings?” The Jack and Coke stranger smiled at me while he relaxed against the bar. “No, not particularly. I avoid them at all costs, but this one was mandatory, unfortunately.” “Not a big believer in love?” “That’s not it at all. It’s all the schmoozy o...
Submitted to Contest #262
“Come on, buddy, let’s get you to a shelter.” They peered into my box, shining a beam of light into my eyes. “Fuck off,” I wanted to say, but I knew better. Best not to antagonize the public, especially the cops. They would haul you out and shove you into their car quicker than you can shake your ass at them. I held my tongue and said nothing, waiting for them to move along.The sweat was collecting on my forehead, dripping sideways down my face, stinging my eyes. I felt sick, nauseous, and disgusted. ...
Submitted to Contest #261
“Is the AC on the fritz again?” “I wouldn’t know. Power’s out.”“What?” I felt sweat dripping down my back. No air conditioning was not what I wanted to hear. There was too much work to do, and the room was already stifling in the early morning hours.“Yeah. Seems like someone didn’t pay the electric bill.” Carol looked at me square in the eye, hands on her hips. Was she daring me to argue that fact?“Oh, for fuck’s sake. Call them. Use my credit card.” “Are you sure, boss?”“I’m sure. ...
Submitted to Contest #260
“I thought it would be bigger,” the voice rang out from the crowd. “Not good enough for you, dear?” I held in my laughter as I snuck a look at my husband to see if he heard the back and forth as well. His twinkling eyes told me he had. “Some people are never happy,” he whispered in my ear. “I’m happy. Very happy.” I looked around the square hardly believing my eyes. Always number one on my bucket list was the trip to Italy. So often had I spoken about it that I had channeled the voice of Charlie Brown’s teacher “whomp, ...
Submitted to Contest #259
(TW … depression and suicide) He was sullen. Again. He was sleeping all day. Again. “What’s with that kid?” “Leave him alone. He’s fine,” I hissed, not wanting to be overheard. “He should be helping. It’s not fair. Why do I have to do this shit by myself?” My older son was right. It wasn’t fair. I stood outside my younger son’s closed bedroom door contemplating my choices. “Hun, you ok?” I could ask tentatively, only for him to reply, “What do you want? Leave me alone.” “Get up.&n...
Submitted to Contest #258
The poster was torn and tattered. It was time to make the rounds again, pulling down the old, weathered flyers and replacing them with crisp new images. Perhaps changing from black and white to color would bring the photos to life, reminding the public that they are still out there. More than just faces on poles, they are children desperately needing to be found and brought home. The prospect of this new project brought me a small degree of comfort. Doing something, anything, was better than doing nothing at all. Thirty ...
Submitted to Contest #257
“You have to tell him, Jackie.” “Actually, I don’t have to,” came the quick response. “He deserves to know,” Robin whispered urgently. Dipping her paintbrush into the newly opened can, Jackie thought once again how strongly she disagreed with her friend’s statement. After the way he had treated her, he didn’t deserve anything. *** “Again, Anthony. Read the line like you actually mean it.” “Lady, by yonder blessed moon I swear… that tips with silver all these fruit-tree tops,” he read the words scribbled on the scrap of paper. “Thos...
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