Laura Ethington

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Oct, 2022

Stories (16)

16 Stories

320 karma pts

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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....

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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 pat...

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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 curiosi...

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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 ...

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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 fac...

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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...

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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 inflati...

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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 tin...

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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 fea...

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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 b...

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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 ...

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“Another one bites the dust” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #171

It was just a breakup, another mediocre relationship that had ended. It had nothing to do with her, her worth, or even his. It just wasn't the right fit. She knew that.  Then why the fuck am I so damn pissed? She thought to herself as she stuffed all her hiking gear into her backpack. Whenever she went through a breakup, she did the same thing; she grabbed her things, a memento of...

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“Prequel to 'A sale is a sale!'” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #170

"Now," said the bright and cheery realtor, with her helmet of blonde hair and lavender pastel skirt suit, "This house has been on the market for some time, but don't let that discourage you." She said, smiling back at the pretty but ordinary woman in her late forties with her perfectly straight and whitened smile. "The family who owned this house were never sure they were ready to sell." Unlocking the loc...

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“A sale is a sale!” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #169

Feeling wildly pleased with herself, Sara walked back to her apartment from the flea market, prize in hand. On a crisp Saturday morning, she had no idea her coffee walk would lead her to this little market. Well, it was more like a few tables on the side of the street where the Sunday Farmer's market typically was. But still! It was New York City, and a sale was a sale!   With an overly sweetened pumpkin ...

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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