Susie Bennett

“love without the word!!!!!!” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #290

The salt spray kissed Elara's face as she leaned against the weathered railing of the ferry, the familiar tang a comfort. Ocracoke Island was her sanctuary, a place where the relentless churn of the world seemed to slow, measured by the rhythm of the tides and the cries of gulls. Every summer since she was a child, she’d made the pilgrimage, escaping the stifling heat of Charlotte and the even more stifling expectations that came with it.This year, though, felt different. This year, Leo was waiting.She first saw him mending nets on the docks...

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“The Scent of Old Paper and New Beginnings” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #290

The bell above the door of "Pages & Parchment" tinkled merrily, a sound Amelia had come to associate with the comforting rhythm of her life. It wasn't a grand, sweeping symphony, but a gentle melody of turning pages, hushed whispers, and the subtle scent of aged paper—a fragrance more intoxicating to her than any perfume. At 42, Amelia had found solace and purpose within the overflowing shelves of this independent bookshop, a refuge from the whirlwind of a life that hadn't quite unfolded as she'd envisioned.She straightened, tucking a st...

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“The Shattered Illusion: John’s Journey to Truth” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #289

John Thompson had always prided himself on being a rational thinker. A scientist by profession, he dedicated his career to unravelling nature’s mysteries through meticulous research. The cornerstone of his life was a deeply held belief: that the universe operated according to a predictable set of laws, governed by logic and empirical evidence. However, a recent discovery began to unravel everything he thought he knew.It all started with an innocuous coffee break at the university. Gathered around the table with colleagues, conversations flit...

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“The November Indigo” by Susie Bennett

The city was draped in a November indigo that settled deep in the bones, a colour Ashley knew intimately. It mirrored the ache in her chest, the perpetual twilight of her own interior landscape. It wasn't the dramatic, weeping grey of a full-blown storm or the crisp, clean azure of a promising spring. No, it was a flat, oppressive indigo, the kind that sucked the light from everything, leaving only a muted, colourless residue.Ashley stood at her kitchen window, the condensation blurring the already bleak view. Opposite her, the skeletal bran...

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“The Room is Unfamiliar. I Don't Know How I Got Here.” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #289

The first thing that hits you is the disquieting silence. Not a comforting quietude, but a heavy, oppressive hush that seems to cling to the air, muffling all sound. Then, the light. It’s not harsh, but diffused and unsettling, emanating from an unseen source, casting long, ambiguous shadows that dance on the walls of the unfamiliar room. You are lying on a bed, the sheets strangely cool against your skin. And then, the thought, sharp and insistent, claws its way to the forefront of your mind: I don't know how I got here.Panic, cold and...

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“The Azure Tempest” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #288

Alyson lived in a coastal village nestled between the jagged teeth of the Dragon’s Spine mountains and the restless embrace of the Azure Sea. The villagers, seasoned by generations of living at the mercy of the elements, were well-versed in the language of the sky. They knew a gentle, sun-kissed morning promised a good catch, while bruise-coloured clouds whispered of a coming squall. But no one, not even the oldest among them, had ever seen the weather behave quite as it did with Alyson.From the day she was born, the sky seemed to reflect he...

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“Emotions run free” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #287

The chipped porcelain mug warmed Elara’s hands, but the tea inside remained untouched, a stagnant pool reflecting the weak morning light filtering through her kitchen window. It was a Sunday, the kind that usually promised lazy comfort, but today, a storm brewed within her, one she knew couldn't be contained any longer. She’d tried, for months, to play the good soldier, the calm professional, the ever-supportive friend. But the weight had become too crushing, the silence too deafening. Elara, a graphic designer known for her vibrant creation...

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“A cherished heirloom that has journeyed through multiple generations” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #286

The old wooden chest sat in the attic, a silent sentinel amidst the discarded treasures and forgotten memories of generations past. Its dark, polished surface, though scratched and worn, still held a gleam that whispered of age and secrets. For as long as Elara could remember, the chest had been an enigma, a fixture in her grandmother’s house, a solid, immovable presence that both intimidated and intrigued her.Elara’s grandmother, Agnes, was a woman of few words, her face an intricate map of wrinkles etched by time and experience. Yet, when ...

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“One Man's entire life in a single suitcase.” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #286

The rhythmic tick-tock of the station clock seemed to amplify the businessman’s anxiety. He was a study in polished professionalism—a charcoal suit, meticulously knotted tie, expensive leather shoes tapping a restless rhythm against the platform. His gaze darted between the elegant silver watch on his wrist and the arrivals board, a tight line creasing his forehead. Ten minutes, the board announced—ten minutes until his train arrived. It was an odd mix of urgency and patience—a tightrope walk I found myself observing with detached curiosity....

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“Solution Focused Therapy” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #286

The chipped ceramic mug warmed Maya’s hands, but the floral-scented tea inside did little to soothe the knot in her stomach. It felt like a permanent fixture these days, a tight fist clenching in the pit of her being. At 34, she felt like an old, worn-out relic, a museum piece gathering dust and cobwebs. Her life was a tapestry woven with threads of anxiety, stress, and the lingering ghosts of a difficult childhood. Each day felt like navigating a minefield, the past a constant, unwelcome companion that refused to let her breathe. Even the s...

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“Time traveling” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #285

The hum was a low, persistent thrum that vibrated through Dr. Alistair Finch’s bones. It was the sound of the Temporal Displacement Unit, tucked away in the repurposed bunker beneath his family’s ancestral estate. He’d spent the better part of a decade perfecting it, fuelled by a relentless need to understand the past, not just read about it. Tonight, that need had become an obsession.Alistair was a man of order, of meticulous planning. Yet, as he adjusted the chronometer, setting it for June 12th, 1998, a tremor of something akin to fear ra...

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“Someone who receives a gift or message that changes their life forever.” by Susie Bennett

Submitted to Contest #284

The salt-laced wind whipped Elara’s hair across her face as she trudged along the shingle beach. Another failed fishing trip. Her nets, heavy with seaweed and disappointment, dragged behind her like lead weights. At twenty, she was considered past her prime for marriage in the village of Seabrook, her days increasingly spent in the company of the gulls and the empty sea. Today, her hope had sunk lower than a drowned stone.Tired and dejected, she noticed a flicker of firelight nestled between the rocky outcroppings at the edge of the cove. Cu...

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