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Kayleigh Kottke

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jul, 2025

Stories (3)

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3 Stories

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Asphalt Angels

Kayleigh Kottke

Submitted to Contest #314

Sweat beaded on my forehead, stinging my eyes. Each gulp of air was a battle. A thick, greasy soup forcing its way into my lungs, leaving a burning residue that tasted of scorched metal and rotting fruit. My chest heaved, a bellows struggling against the suffocating weight. The sun hammered down, turning the shadows themselves into simmering cauldrons. A ripped poster, clinging precariously to a chain-link fence, peeled away with a ragged sigh, revealing a layer of baked-on grime. Across the street, leaves on the oak tree curled and crisped ...

2 likes

The Grove and the Girl

Kayleigh Kottke

Submitted to Contest #314

They call it “The Grove of Her Blessing”. A name too soft for a place that thrums with ancient breath and bone deep knowledge. Trees arc skyward in a crescent of reverence: ash with silver bark like moon-scored metal, rowan heavy with red-fruit promises, beech leaves whispering like velvet secrets. At the center lies the pool, born of a spring older than memory. Its surface so still, so piercingly clear, it doesn’t just reflect the sky; it becomes it. Women come as the seasons change. Barefoot in dew or snow, veiled in grief or joy. Maiden...

1 like

A Song, a Slice, and the Silence After.

Kayleigh Kottke

Submitted to Contest #314

It was the hottest day of the year.That Saturday, I felt like I was glowing from the inside out, standing under a blue and white balloon arch at Jensen Park, trying desperately not to drop the platter of cookies my mom had made. My arms were already sticky with sweat, but I didn’t care. I was buzzing with excitement.The sun hung like a spotlight in the cloudless sky, blazing so intensely it felt like the whole world had been turned into a giant oven. Even the breeze, when it came, offered no relief. Just a warm, lazy whisper that swept acros...

2 likes