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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write a story that begins with someone dancing in a bar.

Posted in Character on May 3, 2024

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✍️ 66 stories

“Bar Night in Bed” by Detroit Adore

Submitted to Contest #249

Chapter 1 Bar Night I show up to the bar alone after a long day at work really hoping to catch a vibe and relax my mind. After a 45 minute drive from my job, I felt like I could use a drink or two. I dragged my feet out of my car, and carried my body still in my work uniform into the bar. The night began with some slow jams really setting the mood. I couldn't help but to notice that my favorite song was playing in the bar. I believe it was Whitney Houston's " I wanna dance with somebody". Before I knew it, I had begun to move my body to the ...

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“The Dealer” by Lauren McCullough

Submitted to Contest #249

During the planning stages of tonight’s happy hour, the last thing anyone would have imagined was the current scene; Libby Marlowe, office loner, flailing to some Stevie Nicks song. As she sprang atop the literal bar at Mooney’s, I found myself desperate for popcorn. I wanted to make eye contact with Geoff, my office ride-or-die. I wanted to take blackmail-worthy videos and photos. A small part of me wanted to jump up and follow Libby’s lead, but alas, I was too entranced to budge.Most mornings at the office watering hole, known to many as a...

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“Graceful Enigma: A Ballet Dancer Takes on NYC's Nightlife” by Andrea Sturdivant

Submitted to Contest #249

The lights of New York City glittered like stars against the ebony sky, casting a warm, golden glow over the city that never sleeps. The neon signs flashed and swayed in rhythm to the bass-heavy beats of the music that throbbed through the bar. The air was thick with the heady scent of alcohol, sweat, and perfume; a heady mix that only seemed to intensify the energy in the room. In the center of it all, a lone figure twirled and leaped across the polished wooden floor. Her movements were fluid and graceful, each step perfectly executed with ...

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“Arabian Nights” by Lindsay Treasure

Submitted to Contest #249

Rising deliberately from her cross-legged seat, spine uncoiling lazily, the dancer held everyone’s attention. Fully erect, she paused. Then her body began a slow ripple from belly to toe, like a wave caressing a beach. A perfectly poised torso, arms fluttering only to complement the circular movement of her hips, highlighted the stillness of her shoulders. The soft, languid tones of the musicians began to increase pace. The dancer responded, her feet beating out a fast tempo in a call and response to the hollow resonance of the percussion. S...

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“Dancing In A Wool Room” by Rick Machiato

Submitted to Contest #249

 Dancing In A Wool Room “Franco! Franco!” I snap out of my trance and find myself dancing on the table of some stranger. I look around and see tonight’s companions on the other side of the room looking at me, almost with a gaze of disbelief. I slowly come to my senses and start asking myself: “Did it happen again?” Earlier this evening I was walking my block for some fresh air in Central New York when I stumbled into friends from a distant past. I used to meet up with these people after my accident. It was weird to see them here because...

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“Dancers in the Rope Pub October 29th, 1948” by Jeffery Young

Submitted to Contest #249

“Oh, so that’s why it’s called the Rope Pub!” “Haha! Yep, you betchya!” Iris Henness pulled the Reverend into a darkened room, her arm looped around his. He followed hesitantly, letting her lead him. The sight of her red hair, now in a messy bun, bouncing as she marched elated his spirits more than his surroundings. The Rope Pub was a large, matte black building inside and out. Through its large wooden doors, the only remnants of its past as a storage barn, lay a dimly lit dance floor. The lighting was difficult to adjust to, but as his eyes...

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“The Bar, The Bull, and the Girl” by Scott Taylor

Submitted to Contest #249

Upon entering the dimly lit bar, Dan was immediately greeted by the crowd’s rising volume of murmurs and whispers. With each stride towards the center, the clink of glasses and the low murmur of conversations faded into the backdrop. Clinging to his broad shoulders, his leather jacket added a touch of ruggedness to his appearance. At the same time, the dim light highlighted the contours of his face.The venue buzzed with anticipation as the band tuned their instruments, creating a symphony of discordant sounds. Dan’s attention was immediately...

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“Tell My Dog” by Nina Chyll

Submitted to Contest #249

CW: physical violence, offensive language, substance abuseA river is often divided into three parts, with features unique to each. In its upper course, a river enjoys many tributaries. Its dramatic flow is characterised by waterfalls, rapids, and gorges carving scars into the landscape. Even when we dropped acid, and we dropped it often and with a bang, my feet couldn’t find the rhythm. People slithered around each other like reptiles, and sometimes they’d turn into snakes right before my eyes. They glimmered under the dim lights with s...

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“The Dancing Girl” by Onyx Onion

Submitted to Contest #249

“You can do it! Just follow my lead.” The dancing girl spun in a circle and flashed me a grin. She reached to take my hand and I let her. I had only known her for a few minutes and already I knew there was little I wouldn't let her do. “One step forward like this, then slide to the side and twirl.” She demonstrated the movements of the dance and I clumsily followed along. The second I walked into this bar and saw her twirling around in the dim and colorful lights, gracefully completing each movement as she glided across the dance floor, I kn...

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“The Beat of Her Heart” by Roneta Davis

Submitted to Contest #249

This story may contain trauma-related content associated with mental health, substance abuse, and disability.   Strawberry blonde hair whipped violently up and down to the band’s quick heavy beats. She could feel her heart racing. Anger sustained its rhythm. Strands of hair clung and webbed across her face as she tossed her head side to side. Slender fishnet covered arms reached for the ceiling. As if casting a spell, she beckoned the words toward her. “We were born in the Nothing,” the gravelly voice belted, “Soulless. Heart...

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“The Soul in Her Steps” by Jooniper Hill

Submitted to Contest #249

The bar was always lively with people lost in the in-between moments, dancing and singing as they tried to live their best lives, to free themselves with a drink and give into the atmosphere of the evening. Maria seemed no different, no one would have batted an eye if it hadn’t been for the fact the bar was closed that day – as per her instructions – and she’d only popped in to collect the cash from the last shift, and make sure everything had been closed properly. She didn’t mean to start dancing, hadn’t even meant to turn on a song, but sh...

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“The History of Lila Waters” by Brittany Mackeown

Submitted to Contest #249

Lila was the only one dancing, throwing arms and elbows and hips and knees. Her movements were sometimes outdated: the sprinkler, the disco—one finger pointed to the sky then to the club floor. Then they switched to erotic, her ass pushing out and dropping to the ground, slowly pulling up and grinding against an imaginary someone. Then they turned to erratic—headbanging, moshing. Her body couldn’t make up its mind. Her hair flew like a white swan, coming loose from its bobby pins and bright pink scrunchie.  Silence skittered along t...

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“Plants to Water” by Julia Laity

Submitted to Contest #249

My best friend is getting married, and I’m dancing on a bar top. I’m just shy of 5’10” and I have to crouch in a sequined mini dress in order to accomplish this, but people are cheering so I must be doing okay. Sure, everyone is lubed up, that liquid courage coursing through their veins – and mine, it would seem – but it’s enough to drop it like it’s hot a few more times with an air of confidence I shouldn’t have. Maddy, the bride and my best friend since the age of 15 when I subtly crashed into her black Grand Am during the parking portion ...

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“At the Right Place at the Right Time” by Angela Cerecedes

Submitted to Contest #249

2:20 A.M. An all-night bar is open. The music is blasting through the neighborhood. It’s a place for young people to unwind. Inside the bar, there are crowds of 20 to 30 somethings drinking, talking to one another, and some dancing in small spaces. Some drunks are passed out on the couches. A drunk woman is dancing at a bar. Her dancing is so chaotic some are worried she might fall off and break her neck. One guest signal one bouncer by the door. A few minutes later, a couple of bouncers escorted her down to a booth. She’s cussing at them fo...

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“Dance to the Sound of a Heartbeat” by Ashlyn Oboyle

Submitted to Contest #249

She was electric. Her feet shuffled in a clumsy glide to the beat of the song, her hands rising to clap along with the singer. The stale beer she had found lodged between two wooden planks sat on the dusty bar, half of it drank and now sloshing around on her empty stomach. I hear the secrets that you keep When you’re talkin’ in your sleepThe speaker was crackling as “Talking In Your Sleep” by The Romantics desperately tried to keep playing. The joy that she felt listening to music was a refreshing change from the hellscape she was trapped in...

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