K.A. Murray

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Mar, 2022

Stories (12)

12 Stories

1011 karma pts

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“Obituary” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #272

I look frantically from left to right, trying to decide which way to go. I don’t know these Pennsylvania woods, and that’s a problem right now. When I hear footsteps crunching through the leaves I just ran through, my heart starts to race even faster. I’m fighting to breathe normally, lest my heavy breathing be overheard by the man who has been chasing me for the past ten minutes. Were it not for my history as a sprinter and the morning jogs I’ve taken every day for the past three years, I’d probably be dead by now. I crouch behind a wide oa...

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“Isabella” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #267

I recognized her immediately. Which was impossible but true. I felt my heart pounding in my chest, and my hands started to tremble so badly that I had to stuff them into my pockets. This wasn’t how this was supposed to happen. I felt dizzy and I tried to remember if I’d eaten anything for breakfast that morning. I would have to try to scarf someting down on the plane. She was seated in a chair near the gate, a carry-on bag resting on her lap. I noticed that her eyes kept drifting up toward the arrival desk. I wondered if she was an anxious t...

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“Before” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #246

*This story contains mention of various forms of trauma, violence, and loss.*Where we exist is a playful and play-filled place, and we like it that way. Well, I guess we like it. None of us really knew what it was to not like something. The world we knew was satisfying and joyful, and we knew nothing but contentment.There are several hundred of us, and the place where we live is breathtaking - rivers, mountains, trees, beaches, all beneath a sky that is always sparkling. Everything we need is provided for; our only purpose is to play.Each of...

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“The Mismatch” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #245

1-Libra It was the day before our cohort’s A&S ceremony, and I had a lot to do to get ready. This was my first time solo organizing as a Planner, and I wanted this event – our cohort’s celebratory party – to be special. My goal for the morning was decor, and I knew where I needed to go for that. I left the LCC - the Libra Convention Center, where I’d live full-time after tomorrow - and headed down Main Street to the Studio. The sky was clear, and I could see the mountaintops that surrounded our town - they seemed to stretc...

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“The Party” by K.A. Murray

🏆 Winner of Contest #244

My phone buzzed. I rolled over to look at the text my cousin Maya had just sent. Can you send photo you took of all the girls in costume last night? xoxo My head was throbbing. Hanging out with Maya was fun, but she was eight years younger than me and she and her friends loved to do shots. I needed to stick with beer only if I didn’t want the hangover. That’s what I'd do next time. I opened my photos app to find the picture Maya had requested. It was a group shot I had no memory of taking. It wasn’t everyone who’d been at the party - just th...

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“The Button” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #243

I was late.The quad of my high school campus - the central outdoor area of the New York Academy of Arts - was packed with protestors holding handmade signs that screamed TIME IS TIME and NO HURRY NO DELAY in red paint.I should have expected it; I'd heard on the news that a new and improved version of the Button was about to go on the market, and anytime there was news like that, there would be protests all over the city.NO HURRY NO DELAY. I shook my head. I did need to hurry. I had an appointment with Amelia Amour. She was a famous actress -...

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“Just Big Brother Stuff” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #238

Every year on Christmas Eve, I book a room in a hotel ten minutes from my parents’ house in suburban Maryland. It’s been my routine for a while now, which is why it was unusual that I forgot this year.Delilah and I were twenty minutes into our drive down I-95 when I realized it, so it became her job to frantically look online to see if any hotels had availability for that night.“I don’t get it,” she said as she scrolled and clicked. She was annoyed, I could tell; Delilah didn’t like doing anything at the last minute. “Is it so bad with your ...

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“Aunt Cass” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #237

If I felt anything for the man sitting across from me at the dinner table, it would have been an incredibly romantic evening.The restaurant was dimly lit, we’d each had two glasses of red wine, there was a string quartet playing a lovely tune at the center of the dining room, and Samuel looked handsome that night. Well, for him. His suit was a size too big and he had gotten a weird haircut that week, but he’d never looked better.“Champagne?” he asked me.Dear God, I thought to myself. He did not put the ring in a champagne glass.Three minutes...

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“The Mix Tape” by K.A. Murray

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #236

Side A, Track 1: “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm” by the Crash Test Dummies“Aunt Lill, what’s this?”My nine-year-old niece pointed to an electronic device that was unrecognizable to her, with a quizzical look on her face. It was a stereo - one that played CDs, tapes, and radio, which made it a showstopper gift in 1996.My older sister Miranda got that stereo for Christmas when she was 13, and I imagine she would have loved explaining to little Julia how it worked. However, Miranda is not here - the only Connor sibling not to show up this weekend.“It’s a ste...

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“A Slice and a Half of Apple with a Teaspoon of Peanut Butter” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #235

I have always hated going to the doctor. They ask too many questions, and they stare at me intently with kind eyes while I try to answer. This appointment in particular has been worrying me for the last day, ever since the incident at soccer practice yesterday, when Eliza was tearing down the field during a scrimmage and I went in for a slide tackle, winning the ball, and instantly felt a sharp pop in my knee and excruciating pain shooting through my body. The whole thing was my fault; I should have gotten to the ball sooner. I was a jun...

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“Cancellation” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #234

My 11:30 a.m. meeting was cancelled today, giving me a free hour in a crowded day. I’m an events planner at a communications and marketing agency, and my schedule is always tight. I was promoted two years ago, and now there are several young women working beneath me. They need my supervision and guidance, particularly one of them - she’s not the newest, but she sometimes seems overwhelmed by small tasks that should be automatic by now, after six months of work. I still run events myself, of course; my first meeting of the day was with a ...

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“Day One ” by K.A. Murray

Submitted to Contest #233

Day 1 My sisters and I are doing Dry January this year. This was not my idea. In fact, full disclosure, Day 1 is already a bust. I was doing shots after midnight, and then when I woke up I finished the beer on my bedtime table. But that was before I even realized what day it was. It was my younger sister Genevieve’s idea to do this, and she got Lill and Jane on board, a few days before New Year’s Eve. We were all at Mom’s house, celebrating her birthday (December 27) - usually for Mom’s birthday we congregate at home with her for dinne...

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Author bio

I'm a mom, therapist, and writer living in Maryland with my family. I love connecting with other writers - the more writing buddies, the better! Follow me @momtherapistwriting if you'd like to connect. Happy writing! *I keep changing my name because I'm trying to decide my favorite version for publishing purposes. Thanks for your patience!*

Winning 1 story 🏆

Contest #244

The Party – read story

Shortlisted 1 story ⭐️

Contest #236

The Mix Tape – read story