A character finds a clue or object linking them to a stranger.

Posted in Character on Oct 4, 2024

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✍️ 59 stories

“Railway to Scotland” by Savannah Wagner

Submitted to Contest #271

"Dear Diary, the date is September the 1st of the year 1851. I finished reading Jane Eyre, and now I must complete my needlepoint—Uhhhh!” Clara Ashcombe threw her journal across the candelabra-lit room toward the wall, nearly knocking over her used tea set from the morning. “Mum would be furious if she saw you chipping the wall.” “I’m unwell, Sister.” “Clearly.” Her sister, Abigail, paused to temper her judgmental glance. She sensed the genuine pain in Clara’s eyes. “What troubles you, Clara, dear?” “My life. My older sisters have found husb...

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“Surveillance” by Anthony Balkwill

Submitted to Contest #271

They had said to keep away from the windows in case anyone saw him. So, when they left and the front door had made its rattly, banging noise, echoing through the empty rooms, Finn went to find himself a safe spot, well away from any of the windows, but from where he could keep watch on the house. They’d made sure, before they’d left, that he had everything he might need: something to eat and drink, and there was plenty to keep him enter...

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“If Found” by Donna LaRue

Submitted to Contest #271

Nicole heaved a gusty sigh as she pushed open the heavy wooden doors of Beantown USA, her favorite coffee shop in known existence. The staff behind the counter gave her a cheery wave, and Nicole knew there was a decent chance they were already making the London Fog that she would be ordering. She was a creature of habitual comforts and proud of it, she thought, as she settled into a high-top seat along the windows with her toasty hot beverage. A counter ran across the entire window, and s...

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“The Friendship Puddle” by K.M. Tilley

Submitted to Contest #271

Walking across the Publix Supermarket parking lot, what I was hoping was my shopping list, but instead was a senseless receipt from Target for a t-shirt my son had already worn countless times in two weeks, fell out of my purse and into a puddle. Not wanting to litter, I picked up the receipt, and next to it was a red and blue string-yarn friendship bracelet. I wouldn’t have given it a second thought, because it was wet and dirty, but my son is a scavenger which made me one too. Everything on the ground was a treasure to him, and although he...

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“HERE” by Amanda Wisdom

Submitted to Contest #271

When I first saw it, I waited for it to make sense, but it never did. Emma was so happy, thrilled even. She had just woken up, I remember that, and her little fist was tightly wrapped around something. She squealed, eyes wild, as if it was Christmas morning. “Mama, look what I found. It’s me, it’s me!” Emma opened her hand and a small, crumpled sticky note lay in it. I smiled at her, my little curiosity, then took the piece of paper. I smoothed out its pinched corners, staring down at it. It read, EMMA This was strange. T...

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“The No-Name Fella Who Weren't Able To Die” by Trey Blevins

Submitted to Contest #271

The hearth ablaze and the windows frosted, Wayland and his dear wife Florence sat idly in the hours following the first frozen gall. Winter impacted their neck of the woods a month later than it should’ve so they’d long since finished their year of chore and were advanced on the next. With nothing to do without the home and little to do within, the couple planned to rest until sunset, at which time they would attempt to muster up a youngling before next autumn. In their bored evening, Wayland opened the tribunal he’d purchased in Boulder som...

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“Pick of Destiny” by Nicole N

Submitted to Contest #271

Pick of DestinyBy Nicole Ney **Warning: this story contains harsh language and subject matter that may not be suitable for everybody. Please read at your own risk**Those curves. That neck.That mahogany body. I caressed her maple neck as I gently eased her up. Corvette red. My heart raced, it was all so real. This was it. This was the moment. Active pick up, I thought to myself. I caressed her four strings and a little sound came out (of both of us I’m sure). It felt like destiny, like it was meant to be. I pulled her into the light, as ...

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“The Other Half ” by Henna Shah

Submitted to Contest #271

Sophie Winters had always been curious about the dusty corners of her old Victorian house. For years, her mother had spoken of the attic as though it held nothing more than the usual family relics, things left behind by relatives long gone. The house itself had been passed down through generations of women, and it was easy to believe secrets had been lost in its walls. But Sophie, at seventeen, had never felt the urge to explore them—until that quiet afternoon in San Francisco.Something about that day seemed different. It was unusually still...

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“What do I do with this?” by Les Clark

Submitted to Contest #271

WHAT DO I DO WITH THIS?byLes Clark“I’m going for a walk,” I announced on that fateful fall day when I hit a triple: the laundry had been washed and folded (I actually know how to do that), Spanky’s kitty litter had been changed (I hate doing that!) and my leaf blower made short work of the first of the red/green parachutists accumulating on the deck (I love doing that). I wiped my feet before coming back in the kitchen. &nbsp...

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“Tiffany” by Ashley Hefner

Submitted to Contest #271

“I’m sorry, I am spent guys. That’s all I have for Tiffany’s story. It wasn’t glorious or breathtaking. It was simply gory and experimental. I am not proud of my work there Detective. Hers is the hardest story to tell though. It takes a lot out of me and I really need to go to bed.” Tiffany wasn’t exactly beautiful. She was blonde. I didn’t really care much for blondes. But her eyes intrigued me. They were the same green I used to see when Lily laughed. I once wondered if they twinkled when she suppressed her laughs. Her whole face should ha...

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“Patience” by Rubekkah Estero

Submitted to Contest #271

‘Can you confirm your name and date of birth?’ ‘David Armstrong, 12/9/82.’ ‘One of these tests requires you to fast. Have you been fasting? No food, drink, chewing gum or smoking?’ ‘All of the above, not necessarily in that order.’ The woman lifts her eyes briefly from the task at hand of labelling the vials she is preparing for my blood. ‘But not since yesterday.’ She blinks. ‘Was that a joke?’ ‘A dad one.’ ‘I see.’ Her eyes shift back to the kidney dish in front of her. She pauses and lifts them again.&...

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“Once upon another time” by V. L. Rodriguez

Submitted to Contest #271

It was the summer of 75. Delilah had barely turned 18 years old. She was a beautiful girl but chose to spend most of her days at home. When she wasn't at school or working at the library part-time, she would hang out with her few friends, but she kept to herself. Her natural circle included herself, her dog Zucky, and her grandma. But she would often force herself to go out with friends. Delilah didn't like the pressure of dating and realized that if she stayed home, she would avoid a lot of creeps and the craze that everyone chased cal...

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“Where are you Now?” by Allison Leahy

Submitted to Contest #271

The jacket was black leather and short, double breasted, and had about four buttons going down the front just like mine. I put it on and departed for Cleveland, Ohio from Los Angeles. I had wanted to visit California with my fiance for my Spring Break. Coincidentally, there in LA was a woman with whom he was not too close to, his aunt. She had a nice roomy house and she and her husband had a daughter my age. We would stay in her house there together and I would actually have my very own room, the room that belonged to her daughter. Since her...

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“Brooches aren’t for everyone ” by Candice Ball

Submitted to Contest #271

A quiet clink, a heartbeat’s pause, the soft clank of gravity and a round settling. It’s there on the bus floor, just to the left. The shine of something that should never be here. It’s the brooch. Do people even still wear those anymore? You haven’t seen one in the fashion wild in decades. They’re things that just clatter in forgotten drawers now. But this brooch…you KNOW this one. It’s the type of ugly that’s almost endearing. A chubby silver bee, fat wings studded with tiny purple stones, bits of glass really. But why is it here? You know...

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“Forgotten.” by Elizabeth Pena

Submitted to Contest #271

The tubes that wrapped around my neck when I emerged from the womb didn’t take me. The pills I swallowed in neat rows of white and blue to end my life didn’t work. The knife that sliced my wrists never cut deep enough. There’s a strange comfort in thinking about it now—the closeness to death that’s brushed my life, yet I remain. I’m still here, but it feels as though I exist only to be forgotten. Banishing self-doubt hasn’t freed me; it’s left cracks in my skin, deep and jagged, exposing the rawness underneath.Today is my birthday, and I fee...

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A character finds a clue or object linking them to a stranger.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 59 stories

“Railway to Scotland” by Savannah Wagner

“Surveillance” by Anthony Balkwill

“If Found” by Donna LaRue

“The Friendship Puddle” by K.M. Tilley

“HERE” by Amanda Wisdom

“The No-Name Fella Who Weren't Able To Die” by Trey Blevins

“Pick of Destiny” by Nicole N

“The Other Half ” by Henna Shah

“What do I do with this?” by Les Clark

“Tiffany” by Ashley Hefner

“Patience” by Rubekkah Estero

“Once upon another time” by V. L. Rodriguez

“Where are you Now?” by Allison Leahy

“Brooches aren’t for everyone ” by Candice Ball

“Forgotten.” by Elizabeth Pena

🌟 Similar prompts

A character crosses paths with a stranger who looks eerily familiar.

A chance encounter brings together two old friends who have changed in surprising or strange ways.

Write a story that includes the line “Have we met before?”

Two strangers discover they have a hidden connection that alters their understanding of each other and themselves.

Contest #271

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

389

Contest entries

137

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: