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John Vincent Bahrenburg

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Apr, 2021

Stories (4)

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5 Followers

1 Following

4 Stories

82 karma pts

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Sorry I'm Late

John Vincent Bahrenburg

Submitted to Contest #299

“I’m sorry I’m late,” Alicia Bolters said as the clink of the keys clattered against the kitchen counter and the dull thud of her leather purse was absorbed into the chair. “I had to get gas.” The smell of zesty seafood emitted from the warmed up oven.The dull conversations of the television could be heard in the other room. Or rather the streaming service played from the Bolter family’s immense 86 inch smartTV. Alicia walked around the center counter and into the den and found her husband, Eric, napping on the couch with their two kids, Jen...

7 likes

What's Mine is Mine

John Vincent Bahrenburg

Submitted to Contest #139

Although I don’t recognize my hands, I certainly recognize the things they were putting on the counter at the thrift store. I watch as chipped nails, originally a clean sky blue, slowly lay out my past in front of me.The first was the holey band t-shirt. It was clearly once black, but faded with washes, sunlight, and age. My father had given it to me when his beer belly could no longer be contained by its cotton midsection. There were holes in the shoulders and faded stains under the armpits and when I wear it and work up a sweat, dad’s smel...

11 likes

Sea Sounds

John Vincent Bahrenburg

Submitted to Contest #119

Only one person was on the beach that evening. A shaded figure, dressed in a long black jacket, stood at the edge of the great blue abyss. The figure stared, over the tops of the cresting waves, out to sea. They were humming. The breeze off the salted shore whistled the old tune. Seagulls sang the melody through the rain hazed mist, hungry for the food that was no longer so easily found. The waves, of course, provided the harmonies. The discordant cacophony of the summer crowds had come and left. It was a new song now. “He’s out ...

8 likes

Dating is Tricky

John Vincent Bahrenburg

Submitted to Contest #87

It’s not an easy time to be a god. Especially for a trickster god living on 49th street in Hell’s Kitchen, New York City, currently receiving mail under the pseudonym of Mal. Nope, it wasn’t an easy time for me at all. You might have heard of me by a few other names: Māui, Anansi, Loki. You may have heard stories of princesses, god wars, and superheroes. You may have been a target or an innocent victim of one of my pranks, plots, or practical jokes. For that I’m sort of sorry, but when it boils down to it, that’s just who I am. I can’t help...

12 likes