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Author on Reedsy Prompts since Aug, 2020
Submitted to Contest #155
Thomas scraped his foot against the ground in an effort to push the swing. He only rose a few inches from the ground before stopping. He sighed. "Mommy! Can you push me?" Thomas' mother looked up from where she was talking with other moms and waved a hand. "Thomas, I am talking right now." Thomas rolled his eyes and hopped off the swing. He was unaware, however; that his shoe was unlaced. His left foot tripped on the lace and he fell to the ground, scraping his hands and knees on the wood chips below. "Ouch, Mommy. I felled." "Thomas, I a...
Submitted to Contest #154
"In just a few days, we will be sending one of our scientists, Timothy Archer, into the past with our time machine. For the last few years, many of the StineCorp scientists have been working on this time machine. Months of hard work, millions of dollars, and an endless stream of coffee..." Joseph Stine, owner of StineCorp and the lead scientist on the project, paused a moment as the crowd laughed politely. He continued speaking, but Jeff was no longer listening. He pushed his way out of the crowd, dodging elbows and shifting feet as he...
Forrest was unable to sleep that night for several reasons. One was that the lady who had left the night before had not returned. The other was that they were in this mansion waiting to be killed by a crazed maniac. Forrest rolled his neck and cracked his aching back. The floor was unforgiving. So much so that he almost hoped that he would be the second victim. Almost. “Do you think they are going to feed us? Or are we going to starve?” Forrest turned around and met the eyes of the man who had asked the question but said nothing. He also w...
Casey heard a door slam. It dragged her from a deep sleep. A metallic taste coated her tongue, and her head pounded as if she had been struck. And her bed, why did it feel so flat and cold. Slowly, she opened her eyes and gasped. She was most definitely not in her room. But where was she? She lifted her head too quickly, causing blackness to crowd the edges of her vision before fading away. Using her arms, she carefully lifted herself enough so she could look around. She gasped agai...
Every day I wear a mask. Not a physical one like you would see at a masquerade ball, but one nonetheless. Before allowing even my family to see me, I slip on a smile. A perfect smile drew as if by clown makeup. And behind it, I hide years of pain and agony. Nobody knows the real me. The real me is dying inside, wasting away like a dandelion in the wind. But no one sees that. To them, I am a joyful person, radiating life and happiness. But it is all a ruse. &...
Gina wiped a dirty rag across the table and sighed as she glanced at the clock on the wall. 5:30 pm, that meant she still had several hours before she could leave her diner job. Not that leaving was much better. Home or at work, she was still miserable. A couple who had sat down twenty minutes ago stood and picked up their suitcases, walking hand and hand as they exited. She sighed again. Everyone who came in to the Daisy Diner, dubbed the “decrepit diner” in her inner thoughts, had some...
Submitted to Contest #100
“It looks like there are ten of you remaining. For your next course, I have prepared something healthy, though it won’t be so healthy for those who choose the wrong dish.” He laughed at his own joke, but seemed displeased when no one laughed with him. “Anyways, the next course will be a salad. This time, individual plates will not be poisoned. Rather, I have two salads. A caesar salad and a greek salad. One salad is poisoned and one is not. Choose wisely. And those who survive will get to indulge themselves with a wonderful dessert that I ha...
Maggie shifted in her seat as the servers brought out the palate cleanser. It was sorbet, but not like the kind one bought at the grocery store. She watched as her boyfriend chose his and then picked one opposite to his. That had been a strategy Pierce—her boyfriend—had come up with once they started. They didn’t know which dishes were poisoned, so he figured that if they chose the dishes that weren’t close together, they would have a better chance of picking the servings that weren’t poi...
Julia tried to shake herself from the dark abyss she found herself in, but it took a long time to do so. When she finally did, she realized that she was not alone. She, along with what looked to be roughly nineteen others, lay on the ground in an empty room. But what was more disorienting and frightening was the fact that they were all tied up. She tried to twist her hands free, but she could not. Her legs, she soon found out, were also bound. &n...
Submitted to Contest #84
“I think it’s time that the patient’s parents are allowed to visit.” Nurse Madison said, pulling him aside. Doctor Todd shook his head. “I still don’t think the patient is ready.” Madison gave him an incredulous look. “It has been a year. I think that is a long time to make them wait.” He looked at his watch and saw the date. She was right, it was exactly a year now. A year ago, his...
Time doesn’t seem to exist in this horrible room. Yet, I am aware that time is moving somewhere far away. I don’t know what it is like outside of this room. In fact, I do not know if anything lies beyond this room. But that’s not entirely true, I do know that there is a different reality beyond this white prison—the sounds I hear are proof of that—I just don’t know how to get there. I am bound to this room in a way I can’t explain. I don’t know if I will ever escape. And I don’t know if I...
Submitted to Contest #83
Content warning: violence, murder Julie walked into the hotel she would be staying at and could barely suppress her glee. She was going on vacation. Between her job with copious hours and the expensiveness of airplane tickets and other travel needs, she never was able to go on vacation. But today, she was. Two weeks ago, she had been looking through her mail and had found a vacation package deal including a hotel room for a bargain. She adjusted her bag and went through the revolving door to the front desk. “Hi, I reserved a room under the n...
Basic Boy awoke that morning feeling better than he had on most days. He hoped that his good mood meant Evil Man would not try one of his stupid stunts today. Basic Boy had planned his day perfectly, and if Evil Man thought he could mess it up for him…let’s just say he would have it coming. Today was Saturday, one of the only days he ever got off. His real job—not stopping crime—because saving people and fighting stupid villains did not pay. He had checked the weather forecast today and t...
(Just for reference, this is a part 2 to my story “The Danger You Don’t Know.” To understand what is happening in this story, I recommend reading that one first. Because in this story, I pretty much pick up where I left off.)Lorraine: Judd! Judd! What do I do? I’m scared. They’re coming!Judd: I’m here. Walk over to your window and open it. Move quickly, but be quiet.Lorraine: Alright, I did it. Now what? They are getting closer!Judd: I am waiting for you outside. Step out of your window and run to my car. It is right outside of your window.L...
Submitted to Contest #76
Theo walked into the office of his job fifteen minutes early and approached his cubicle. He saw his boss out of the corner of his eye, standing beside the coffee maker, and decided that he would say something. Everyone in the office was constantly remarking on the fact that Theo rarely talked, but today he would change that. But what to say. “Hi Mr. Peters.” No, Mr. Peters had told him that he could address him as Gerald. Still the idea of calling his boss by his first name made him uncom...
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