Natalie Strawbridge

Author on Reedsy Prompts since May, 2020

Stories (18)

18 Stories

1314 karma pts

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“Have You Seen This Bug?” by Natalie Strawbridge

There are dead lanternflies everywhere, and the kids are on high alert, ready to squash more. Sophie stamps on the ground and lifts her foot to scrape a severed wing from her sole. “Was that the last one?” she asks. “No,” Kieran says, pointing to another tree. “Look.” Sophie looks at the dark streaks on its trunk and chewed-through leaves, and recoils when she sees them—a dense cluster of wings and red e...

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“The Duck Pond” by Natalie Strawbridge

We decided to flip a coin. But we didn’t have a coin, so we dug around in our pockets and bags and couch cushions and finally came up with a penny that she deemed worthy. She placed it on her thumb and forefinger and said, “Did you know there’s a national coin shortage?”And I said, “You’re stalling.”And she said, “This penny is dated 1942. Do you think it’s worth anything?”So I took the penny from her hand and I flipped it myself. It came up tails. She smirked; I stared at the penny in...

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“twenty-six dancing candles” by Natalie Strawbridge

A month shy of my twenty-fourth birthday, I bought a candle. Having decided to buy myself a birthday gift, I was wandering the aisles in my favorite home goods store when I found myself in the candle aisle. I spotted a label that read “Black Coffee” and I had to know if it really smelled like coffee. I pried the lid off, lifted the jar to my nose, and recoiled. The smell was right—so strong and bitter that I could nearly taste it. I placed the candle back on the shelf, ready to move on, but my hand brushed against another candle, this one...

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“advanced disaster preparedness” by Natalie Strawbridge

Today is a damp day. The August heat broke a few days ago; we turned the air conditioner off and opened the windows. We reveled in the breeze that fluttered our curtains and the fresh air that filled our lungs. But last night, it rained, and the damp air creeped through the windows, leaving our furniture and clothes and skin feeling sticky. I’m reminded of the summers I spent at camp, sleeping in a cabin and waking to fi...

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“renaissance (bonus track)” by Natalie Strawbridge

Any last thoughts on”—Edwin looks down at his notebook—“Gabrielle?” It’s not a good sign if Edwin has already forgotten her name. I shake my head. Gabrielle had my least favorite kind of voice. She sang like the world was ending, and only vibrato could stop it. It’s the kind of comment I would usually say out loud, but I’m too tired to be snarky.We’re bringing in a new lead female vocalist, now that ours has decided to flee the country. That’s an exaggeration. Lilah got into grad school in Italy. To study opera. I’m tryi...

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“Grandma Wallace's Coffee Cake” by Natalie Strawbridge

My sister smacks the card down on the table, next to my bowl of cereal. She stands, not speaking, arms crossed, staring at the side of my head. “What’s this?” I ask, even though I know. It would be impossible not to know; she posts a daily countdown to her wedding on Instagram. I haven’t liked any of the posts. She has friends for that. But I ask anyway because it’s fun to get a rise out of her, to see he...

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“Most Likely To” by Natalie Strawbridge

“Are you going?” “Huh?” he replies. “Are. You. Going.” “To what?” I can hear water running in the background. I imagine him with his phone tucked between his ear and shoulder as he waters the garden or does the dishes, anything to keep his hands moving. “Where?” “Reunion.” “Reunion for what?” I don’t hold back my sigh or eyero...

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“honey lavender matcha latte” by Natalie Strawbridge

We hadn’t seen each other in two years, hadn’t spoken or even texted since then, until she liked my post about moving to the city and asked, in a comment, if she could show me the best coffee in Chicago. And I, having no friends and a roommate I’d just met and didn’t care for, said yes.She called me twenty minutes before we were supposed to meet. Her name flashed across my phone and I was momentarily confused. I hadn’t heard from her since our conversation in the Facebook comments, and had convinced myself we weren’t sti...

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“Popsicle Break” by Natalie Strawbridge

Everything was terrible today, but what set him over the edge wasn’t the heat, or the constant repetition, or the know-it-all juniors and seniors. No, he held it together, right up until the popsicle slid off its stick and plopped onto the bleacher below him, melting immediately into a red puddle, oozing like fresh blood. He stared at it for a moment, and then, without a word, he stood up and stormed off, his stom...

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“intro to disaster preparedness” by Natalie Strawbridge

I don’t prepare for storms. When the newscasters start preaching doom and gloom and pointing wildly at maps of orange and red masses crawling over my tri-state area, I change the channel. When the snowplows start gathering and the trucks drop salt on the highways, I take the back roads. And when people crowd the grocery stores, line up in the aisles, empty them of toilet paper and water and matches and cans of beans, as ...

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“June's Meteor” by Natalie Strawbridge

She saw her own heartbreak coming, and she did nothing to stop it. Like an astronomer who spotted a meteor and failed to warn the world of its impending arrival, choosing instead to watch and see where exactly it would make impact, how fierce the flames would be. And though the chances were slim, she clung to the faint thought that said: maybe she was wrong, and it would sail right on by, shatter some other planet into r...

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“you don't have it in you” by Natalie Strawbridge

“Just say it,” you silently remind yourself. You know you’ll regret it if you don’t. “Can I get a blueberry scone, too?” you ask. So simple. A scone to go with your large oat milk latte. The sort of thing anyone can do, even you. The world does not explode when you ask for a scone. Your heart is still beating faster than it should, but the barista tells you the total and you pay with a ca...

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“Legacies” by Natalie Strawbridge

The demolition is scheduled on a Thursday, during finals, at the exact same time that the only ice cream shop in town is offering free cones. This is deliberate, of course; they’re hoping to get it over and done with quietly, without any fanfare.But we will not let them take today away from us.I help my best friend get ready in his room an hour before it is scheduled to happen. He tries to convince me it is not too hot for a suit, and I remind him that if he faints, he’ll make a scene, and not the kind ...

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“honey, this will hurt for a while” by Natalie Strawbridge

Oh honey, this one’s going to hurt for a while. I wish I could tell you it’s not going to, but it is. No, I’m not writing from the future; I just know that this is going to hurt for longer than you’re ready for it to, and I'm giving you a moment to wallow.I know it’s going to hurt because lesser things have hurt you for a long time. Sure, bigger things have hurt too. And you got past them, so you’ll get past this too. Getting past it won’t be painless.It’s going to hurt every time you see her or hear he...

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“Dead Fish Walking” by Natalie Strawbridge

Gregory never expected his goldfish to come back from the dead.It had been a perfectly normal Wednesday, except that when Gregory went to feed his fish that morning, he was belly up, bobbing near the top of his tank, and obviously not hungry.The fish was named Bubba, and Gregory had acquired him in the way that most children become the owner of a goldfish: by winning a game at the school fair. Unlike all those other, weaker goldfish, Bubba lived to the age of 3, much to Gregory’s delight and his parents’ chagrin.

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Author bio

proud owner of six dogs, two cats, and countless unfinished stories 24, she/her, currently based in Pennsylvania add me on goodreads (/nataliest) for wordless 3-star reviews of the latest and greatest ya novels

Winning stories 🏆

Contest #45
Legacies – read story
Contest #52
intro to disaster preparedness – read story