Write a story about a character who finds a childhood toy that brings back memories.

Posted in Character on Jul 21, 2023

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✍️ 70 stories

“Teddy, my Teddy” by Stella Vita

Submitted to Contest #208

As I walk up the stairs to the attic, I call out to Jared, “Are you sure you want me to go through it?” “Yes, honey bun”. I can practically hear the smirk in his voice. He knows that I hate those cutesy nicknames, and he knows that I secretly hate the attic. Except, I would never admit to the latter, so his way of teasing me with my irrational fear, is to call me stupid cute names. He’s so stupid, I smile to myself. Standing on the last step before I am officially in the attic, I think this is not so bad, while I shudder, and curse myself...

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“Lost in oasis ” by Isabella Beaver

Submitted to Contest #208

TW: Death, addiction, and memory loss All I can see is milky white; I am floating in an oasis, everything so serenely quiet. That's when I hear the muffled sobs coming from somewhere I can't see. I wonder what could create such a hollow and sad sound, what could have happened to the poor conflicted soul. The air becomes thick, and my lungs spasm in an attempt to do their job. It's poison; it must be poison. Screaming silently, I reach my arms to my throat, thrashing as I beg a god I don't see to save me. When I look down, my arms are not...

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“The Lost Little Music Box” by Jessica Bains

Submitted to Contest #208

“Coming Nana!” I yelled from the van while placing the last dusty box in the back, then closed it shut. Walking towards the old wooden house I grew up in, I smiled. The charm of the uneven floorboards, the wall with our heights etched into, and finally, the room Blaire and I shared until our early teens. Each inch held a fond memory from our childhood. We moved away years ago but always visited Nana and Gramps every holiday until a few months ago when Gramps passed away. “Nana, are you sure about this retirement community and leaving here ...

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“The plastic horse” by Susan Crawford

Submitted to Contest #208

She remembers a sunny Saturday morning when trees were green and birds were singing. The breadman had arrived with the weekly delivery. The scent of fresh baking filled the kitchen. He filled the table with two dozen loaves. They were uniform in shape, some white loaves and others wholemeal. Of course back then there weren’t different breads or flours. There was no emphasis on special diets or spoken knowledge of allergies. This was a bread delivery from town, pure and simple. Country shops were a thing then too. Literally in the middle of n...

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“Ping” by Ethan Zimmerman

Submitted to Contest #208

At a garage sale recently, I saw a box of old Barbie dolls. There were half a dozen dolls in a box, and they reminded me of a time before I transitioned when I was still a girl. My best friend, Mikey, has brought over his newest toy, a slingshot made by the Wham-O slingshot company. He is super proud of it, as his parents don't buy him many new toys. He rushed over to show it to me right away. The handle is made of wood and has black rubber around it so that when you grip it tightly, it won't slip out of your hand. The last thing you wa...

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“Obsessed with the Pink Queen ” by Kimberly Walker

Submitted to Contest #208

I received my first Barbie when I caught Chicken Pox from my cousin Lisa at age five. She was two, my shadow, and obsessed with being in my room. Since we were quarantined, Mom rewarded me with a doll in a box. You must understand that the spoiled little diva I was didn't appreciate the gem I had been given until I was an adult and no longer played with dolls. All I wanted was to have my room and things to myself. An only child should not be expected to share. Frustrated by the intrusion, I took it out on the doll; I bit a hole in Barbie's l...

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“Sins of the Father” by Mateo Méndez Yepes

Submitted to Contest #208

WARNING: *MENTION OF WAR AND CONFLICT* His trembling hands opened the door, where he found the room where he lost his innocence. The wall’s plaster drooped down to the floor exposing the bricks and gadua foundations as if still mourning the loss of this virtue. He could still remember his own mother, her willowish figure and soft obsidian eyes, looking down at him from the doorway while he was playing with his wooden yoyo. The same one that laid on the floor, chipped and broken. It wasn’t always like that, Nestor remembe...

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“Devil Doll” by Robert Radcliff

Submitted to Contest #208

Ava died six months ago.She is my baby sister.Ava fell from her bedroom window on the third and top floor of our family house. She was only 10.At the time I was away at university, but I recall the dreadful event. I was summoned to return and stay with my folks at Grandma's. We soon returned home, but Mum and Dad locked Ava's bedroom door and boarded her window. It's remained that way ever since. The Court concluded it was an accident. And now my parents never mention it. Ava was "Daddy's girl" and even though he was our stepdad he love...

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“Dust to Dust” by Isla Stark

Submitted to Contest #208

Beth pulls up the handbrake and turns off the engine. Sighing, she reaches over to turn on the radio, letting the voices of the station hosts wash over her as she watches the stationery traffic in front, willing it to finally move. She glances over to the passenger seat at the limp cardboard box overflowing with the few remaining things she had cleared out of her Mam’s cottage that day. The final few trinkets marking a life completed. Not much to show for it, Beth thought. Reaching over, she rummages in the box until her hand closes around t...

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“Deceased Estate” by Jane Sparrow

Submitted to Contest #208

It was the first and last property my Mother bought when I was eight, and my sister Raven was nine. ‘Deceased Estate’, read the sign hammered into the front lawn at an angle. “What does deceased estate mean?” I asked my mum, tilting my head as I read. She explained to me in seven-year-old language, “basically, it means we got a bargain for a dream home.” From that moment on, whenever someone asked what I wanted to be when I grow up, I replied, “Realtor.” Today's property should have sold weeks ago. Victorian style with stai...

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“Under the Bed” by Molly Hunt

Submitted to Contest #208

As I slot the keys into the front door, the knot in my stomach is already tightening. Don’t get me wrong, I love my parents, I really do, but this house… this house has become a beacon for the sad. A museum of death. Everything my sister owned preserved like any day she will walk in the front door and pick up where she left off. As I slowly open the door, I hear the hushed whispers of my mother. Her face lights up as soon as she sees me, and then quickly – so quick that if you weren’t paying attention, you would miss it – her eyes flash w...

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“The Pink Box” by Zulma Suro

Submitted to Contest #208

Alice hesitated briefly before pulling her rental BMW into the small driveway. “Would hiring someone to clean this house be simpler?” she asked herself, debating whether to get or not out of the car, "No, you got to do this girl, and you need to do it right away!” sounding more like a command than a need. The navy blue faded house on the corner with beige trim was the only home she knew of. She was born and raised in that house. The large backyard, the skinny palm tree on the front, the metal main door with glass panels, the colorf...

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“Fix Me” by N.M. Stech

Submitted to Contest #208

Booths full of memories. It was something Andrew thought about every time he and Taylor went strolling through the flea markets. There were rows and rows of booths, each containing well-loved items imparted with hints of the past. Booth 141 contained a set of old formal dishes that he thought must have belonged to someone’s grandmother. An aged tobacco pipe, smelling faintly of that cherry scented smoke, sat on a shelf in Booth 145. Andrew wondered whether that smell of warm cherries still lingered in the memories of...

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“The Valentine” by Ralph Aldrich

Submitted to Contest #208

I hate people. I’ve been made fun of and picked on my whole life. And why? Because I look different, that’s why. I was born with some defects. None of them were life-threatening, just imperfections in the way I look. But those imperfections were enough to cause me pain for the rest of my life. My skull narrows at the top, and my forehead slopes back. My right ear sticks straight out, and I’m deaf in it. My mouth was too small for all the te...

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“Threads of Memories” by Anna H.

Submitted to Contest #208

Aria gazed up at the big New York apartment building, her stomach lurching. This was very different compared to her Maryland farm home where she had been raised. The windows gleamed in the sunlight, and the building towered over her, daring her to enter. She and her brother Adam, who was standing beside her, exchanged an anxious look, while their grandma and their dad stood beside them, admiring the big tower. "What do you think?" Dad chuckled, "Bigger than expected, that's for sure." "Much prettier than back in my old days!" Her African-Am...

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Write a story about a character who finds a childhood toy that brings back memories.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 70 stories

“Teddy, my Teddy” by Stella Vita

“Lost in oasis ” by Isabella Beaver

“The Lost Little Music Box” by Jessica Bains

“The plastic horse” by Susan Crawford

“Ping” by Ethan Zimmerman

“Obsessed with the Pink Queen ” by Kimberly Walker

“Sins of the Father” by Mateo Méndez Yepes

“Devil Doll” by Robert Radcliff

“Dust to Dust” by Isla Stark

“Deceased Estate” by Jane Sparrow

“Under the Bed” by Molly Hunt

“The Pink Box” by Zulma Suro

“Fix Me” by N.M. Stech

“The Valentine” by Ralph Aldrich

“Threads of Memories” by Anna H.

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about someone living vicariously through someone else.

Write a story where the characters start to realize that they are, in fact, just characters.

Write a story about someone who is constantly being put into a box by others.

Set your story in a rosy-pink world where everything is rainbows and unicorns… until it isn’t.

Contest #208

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

238

Contest entries

85

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: