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Kristina Warlen

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jun, 2020

Stories (19)

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16 Followers

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19 Stories

316 karma pts

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The Salton Sea

Kristina Warlen

Submitted to Contest #294

Contains sexual content and substance abuse. She packed the last box and sat on the floor with nowhere to go.  Dylan left the day before, staying at a friend's to give her space, but the loneliness stretched. His scent lingered. His PlayStation was still connected; his favorite DVDs - The Salton Sea, Sin City, and The Shining - laid scattered. These were pieces of him—each a shard of a life fractured. Sleep eluded her. She lay staring at the ceiling, head throbbing. Two days without food or water left her body weak, yet ...

6 likes

Double Header

Kristina Warlen

* story deals briefly with pregnancy loss * "I'm late." The words slipped out before Micah could stop them, a soft murmur as she scrolled through her period tracker. The date on the screen caught her eye. The numbers lined up as they always did—until they didn’t. They hung in the air, light and casual, as if they meant nothing. Micah continued, wiping toothpaste from her lips, rinsing her mouth, like it was just another day. But then, she froze. She checked the app again, swiping quickly over the screen. No way. It had to be a mistake. But i...

0 likes

In a Purple House By the Sea

Kristina Warlen

Submitted to Contest #292

The house had always been purple. A deep, moody shade that shifted with the light—almost lavender in the morning, a dusky plum as the sun set over the sea. The locals called it the Widow’s House, though no one could remember why. Some said the woman who built it had lost her husband to the sea, his body swallowed by the waves that now clawed at the shore. Others whispered she had been the one to drown him, her hands steady as she pushed him into the abyss. Either way, the house stood as a monument to grief, its color a reflection of the sorr...

4 likes

The Oath We Broke

Kristina Warlen

Submitted to Contest #291

Contains substance abuse, themes of sexual violence. Elias Carter didn’t believe in fate, but he believed in choices. And the one he made tonight would change everything. The hospital parking lot stretched silent under the pale glow of streetlights, shadows dragging long across the asphalt. The night was a stark contrast to the usual chaos—no sirens wailing, no hurried footsteps, no frantic beep of monitors. Just stillness. He inhaled the cool air as he moved toward his car, the weight of twelve hours on his feet settling into his bones. T...

14 likes