Laura Ethington

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Oct, 2022

Stories (19)

19 Stories

368 karma pts

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“The Hare's Lament” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #277

The table stretched long and uneven beneath the twisted canopy of the Mad Hatter's garden, covered in teapots and stacked like lopsided towers, mismatched cups, and crumbs from cakes no one bothered to finish or clean up. Laughter rang through the air; each clinking of glass made his eye twitch. The March Hare was singing at the top of their lungs, off-key, he noted. Somewhere down at the end of the table, the Dormouse was drunkenly recounting a story no one understood while the Hatter himself twirled a spoon while looking dreamy-eyed at all...

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“Crumbs of Love” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #276

Boston was wet that night, the misty drizzle that makes a whole city feel like it is under a giant dewy lens. The streets glow, and so did I, but probably for different reasons. This was my 20th first date this year, and it was only February. They weren't all gems, not even kernels of fool's gold found in dirt. It was rough out there, kids. Let's just say the local sex shop knew my first name and vibrator preference. I'll admit, it's been a bit of a dry few months...fine a year and a half.I was about to meet someone new, someone who had—in o...

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“Finis historia” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #266

Evelyn stared at the blank page on her laptop, her head in her hands, staring at the keyboard, praying for some divine spark to ignite her creativity—or at least the first sentence. The blank page mocked her as she watched the cursor blink. The words wouldn't come, and they hadn't for days. She's done everything she normally would to inspire her next psychological thriller. Baking, drinking, numbing with casual dates on dating apps, even visiting her mind-numbingly boring sister and her 3 kids in Omaha. But nothing. She'd been suitable for t...

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“Champagne makes everything a party” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #246

Sarah yelped as lightning cut across the sky. A loud boom followed, breaking the silence on the playground. Rain was pouring down on her as she slowly rocked back and forth on the swing she had been perched on for the last 30 minutes. She barely noticed she was drenched. She felt numb; she didn't even have the energy to go over everything from that evening. "What time is it?" Emily asked, swaying on the swing next to her.Reality slowly returned to her. Sarah looked down at her watch. "It's almost 2 a.m.," Sarah said. Unsure what they were wa...

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“Ain't life a dream” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #239

"Jessie." An echo rang in her ears. She felt like she was being pulled out of a pool of water. Everything felt slow and fuzzy. "Jessie. Wake up." The voice said, louder this time.  The next thing she heard were birds. Then, the smell of damp moss and a forest after rainfall. She couldn't move yet. She felt the earth under her, wet but not muddy.  "There you go, you're okay. You're safe." Safe? Why wouldn't she be safe, she thought as the voice rang clearer in her ears. Gaining the feeling back in her hands, with a brush of ...

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“A Demon Whispers” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #238

The early morning light was blinding as she stumbled out of the forest, confused and cold. Her dress was ripped and covered in mud. Isabella walked into the early morning sun, scared and off-kilter, but not knowing why. Early morning was her favorite time to forage, but for some reason, she could only think about getting home as quickly as possible and sitting In the warm safety of her hearth. While returning to the path she usually walked, she looked down and realized her basket was gone. The familiar weight of it missing in her arms. But s...

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“Maestra” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #218

Eve followed the cobblestone to the heart of the quiet, picturesque little town. Setting down her bag and worn violin case, she looked around at the sleepy square, knowing it would soon be full of colorful chatter, heavily spiced meats, and lively music. She intended to add herself to the tuneful mix but had a stop to make first. She had heard through her travels that this town had recently burned a witch. Morbid curiosity had her moving towards the woods where the witch was rumored to have spent her last peaceful days before being torn out ...

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“Buy new? In this economy!?” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #217

Joe was in between jobs. At least that's what he liked to say when the women he matched with on Bumble would ask what he did. He would also say he traveled a lot. All of these things were true. It was just with his line of work; only one person did the job at a time, and this was his off cycle. He had all his typical resources while not working, so he was not bored. He would be back working soon and taking advantage of this downtime, so why not make it fun with some cheeky dates and try out a few things he wanted to implement into his day jo...

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“Gemini” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #216

The doorbell rang, and Gemma jumped up from the couch, giddy with excitement. "Dean! People are here!" She yelled while running to the front door. Dean came out of the kitchen, beaming. He loved seeing her so happy. It had been so long since she'd been happy. But with this new chapter they were building for themselves, he hoped there would be countless more days to see that look on her face. He went to the door where Gemma was vibrating like an excited pup, ready to greet their friends. "They're here!" She said, grinning up at Dean. Ge...

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“The Perfect Surprise” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #184

It came in the mail. In unremarkable wrapping, a small, unprepossessing slim box about the size of an envelope. Leah rarely got the mail, so she didn't know when she received it since she only checked her mailbox every two weeks to simply toss out the junk mail that had piled up. Leah also had ADHD, and when she put it on her kitchen counter, it was quickly forgotten. It wasn't until later that week, when she was cleaning up before her boyfriend came over for the weekend, did she even remember it was there. Assuming it was the latest trick...

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“How do you say 'Eat S**t' in Corporate slang?” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #181

The repeated aggressive chiming of her alarm clock was the only thing that got any excitement out of her these days. While her eyes were still closed, she slammed the alarm to snooze for nine more blissful minutes before she had to get up. But rest was done for the day. Instead, she felt the looming daily anxiety that comes whenever she wakes up before work. Going to the same bullshit as yesterday, and the day before, the week before, the month before, and the year before. But it was a time of recession plus inflation, and there was a d...

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“Happy New Year indeed!” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #179

"Jesus Christ!" She seethed between fast ragged breaths. She ran as fast as she could down the busy street with minutes to spare. And, of course, it would be freaking raining, she thought as she ignored the pinching pain in her feet and continued to run in heels. If she had any sense of modesty, she would be holding her dress down instead of flashing all of SoHo her lace-covered ass, even if it was just a blur to onlookers."If I had any modesty… I wouldn't be running down the street… in my tiniest black dress…in heels…to a complete...

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“Not a Creature was stirring...” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #178

**Trigger Warning - This story has themes that involve kidnapping, murder, and child death** “I can’t wait to meet her!” Jane said to her son with genuine excitement in her voice. She wasn’t one of those moms who thought no one was good enough for her son. In fact, she had prepared him his whole life to trust his gut in everything he did so that when he brought someone into the family, no questions or fears popped up.  “Me too! I think she is too. A little nervous, of course.” Brian looked at his mom as they rolled the homemade past...

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“Uno Mas?” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #174

She was going to throw up. She was going to stand on the corner between 42nd St and 5th Ave and spew the contents of her stomach into one of the green garbage cans on the corner in the middle of New York City. She'd be that crazy person that would make tourists look at each other with a smirk, shake their heads, and say, 'Only in New York.' They'd laugh and walk off as she puked her breakfast and held her hair back. She leaned against the stoplight next to the garbage, shaky and sweaty.  She knew this meeting was necessary, but s...

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“The Witches Contract” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #172

Her wicked eyes brimmed with angry tears as she put the final nail into the door, sealing it shut. The entrance of her home. Or at least what she called home for the last blissful two years. She was tired of running. Tired of creating another version of herself. Or at least a version of herself she wouldn't be able to touch for two hundred years or so. She usually had fifteen to twenty before people started staring at her too long. Holding their children a little tighter as she walked by.  Something happened this time, She though...

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Author bio

Opera singer turned corporate cog desperately clinging to anything that keeps the creative juices flowing in my life. It's likely gonna keep getting weird. Have Fun! - L