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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#100: Breaking Bread

One of the most intimate things you can do with someone is sit down to eat together. The idea of friends and foes, families and strangers breaking bread has been a recurring theme in art and literature for a very long time. It’s something that can bring us together against the steepest of odds; to quote Oscar Wilde, “after a good dinner one can forgive anybody, even one's own relations”. But things don’t always end quite so harmoniously — food fights, anyone?

This week, we’re reflecting on the joys (or pains) of eating together or making a meal. Whether the dinner table is a place for communion or conflict for your characters, I look forward to sitting down to a hearty portion of food-themed stories with you. Bon appétit!

This week's prompts

Start or end your story with two characters sitting down for a meal.

Middle School – 264 stories

Write a story where a meal or dinner goes horribly wrong.

Thanksgiving – 201 stories

Write about a group of strangers — or people who know each other, but may as well be strangers — eating together.

Fluff – 152 stories

Write about a character preparing a meal for somebody else.

Fluff – 157 stories

Write a story that involves a secret or magic ingredient.

Halloween – 116 stories

Stories

“SHATTERED” by Bisma Afzal

Submitted to Contest #100

Is this the right time, or the right place ? To be precise , I'm talking of confessing to the one I had my eyes on since high school. He's bee a great supporter but never did I got a feeling from his side. "Emma, you think it'll be good to go" He said with his boxy smile plastered on his charming face. I looked down on my plate, my spaghetti was still the same while his was half finished. I slurped in the noodle and nodded. "Well Jake, she doesn't look like she wanna go" Cindy mocked and glared at me. Jake looked at me, shivers running down...

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“A Sentiment. ” by Abhishek Todmal

Submitted to Contest #100

Of the many hardships that face two bodies in love, none can be more so pleasurably frustrating and rewarding as the distance that separates, and in there, binds those two, who may think one another to be a rewarding spectacle, should the present and the future unite them.It had begun as a chance encounter - somewhere along spinning the wheel and gazing idly - through a passage of time during which one is a solitary reaper, but how beautiful might this stroke of hand become, should from such a wayward action, arise an encounter with someone ...

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“met by accident” by Zee :)

Submitted to Contest #100

The restaurant was bustling with customers with sounds of laughter and chatter emitting from almost every corner. With servers running back and forth with a variety of dishes, the ambrosial and fresh aroma of each dish wafted into my nose and lingered for a moment longer before it found it’s owners table. Despite the boisterous environment, Coral and the man seated in front of her were engaged in a long, awkward silence. Coral looked up when she heard a familiar song playing, to face the man. He had ash brown hair that reached his entic...

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“They Ate Museli Silently” by Oscar Cole

Submitted to Contest #100

They ate muesli silently. Or at least without talking, for the sound of slurping and chewing, the clinking of metal spoons on ceramic bowls, filled the otherwise quiet room. “What are you doing today, kid?” said the father, breaking the relative silence. “I’m not a kid,” said his son. The father sighed, his spoon hovering above its bowl. “Fine. What are you doing today, sixteen-year-old boy who happens to be my offspring.” The son rolled his eyes and kept eating mues...

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“Drained” by Trever Sanborn

Submitted to Contest #100

The deep red rocks tower around me, a reminder of the scorching heat. The dryness of the landscape promises that I could wither away just the same. My only resource is a canteen with barely a few drinks of water, but even if that supply were infinite, I couldn’t consume it at the rate it perspires through me. I ride atop my only companion, and I am grateful for her company. She is drenched in her own sweat and has defeat in her eyes. I try to focus on keeping her safe—this poor animal that followed me willingly into the desert—and I begin to...

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“Gone along with the wind ” by Victoria Hale

Submitted to Contest #100

A few plump veggies and cuts of venison lay boiling in the broth between them. One with a thick blindfold to his eyes, whose blank face was contrasted by the young woman in front of him who stared with wonderment. The scalding charcoals cooked quiet well for being the remnants of their earlier campfire. She was quiet as she gulped with her hands digging into her dress. Her feet were twitching at the itchiness of the grass, but she didn't appear to care nor notice. “You know, if you hang over like that your hair will catch on fire.” Biting he...

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“Fat Chance at Mickey D's” by Jeannie Labelle -Potvin

Submitted to Contest #100

The day began like many others.As she headed off for her morning bath, the menu of choices before Ginny seemed endless; she yawned as she contemplated the day before her.Ginny's friend had phoned her earlier and suggested going out for breakfast.She accepted the invitation even though it included her friend's 6 year old grandson, a delightful child, keenly intelligent and always a source of entertainment.The boy's largest character defect in the moment was a certain limitation of scope. His tunnel vision excluded dining venues that would've ...

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“Under the Bridge” by Lucy Clement

Submitted to Contest #100

Under the Bridge Few people have cheated death by moving at the right second. The minority of the few, have escaped death altogether. This story is about someone who might have escaped death, but you must deduce that for yourself. Mary Watson didn’t like her name. It was too common to fit her situation and character. Mary wasn’t common, but she wanted to be. She wanted to mean something to someone. She didn’t want to be a beggar on the streets, she wanted pa...

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“The Visitor” by Noelle C. Lee

Submitted to Contest #100

Each year our family celebrates the highest of holy days to honor Jewish traditions. As non-observant Jews we have creatively invented our own ways to pay respects to the customs and struggles of the Jewish people. As there are many holidays throughout the year which does call for observance and Synagogue attendance, we select those very few that highlight the most important aspects of Judaism. Going to Temple is rarely or truthfully, never involved. We gather our family and observe with festive, and appropriate culinary foods associated wit...

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“My Neighbour's Son” by Abbey Long

Submitted to Contest #100

Grabbing a bottle of wine off of the counter, I take a quick swig. It burns at the back of my mouth, but still tastes so sweet. I let the bubbles flow over my tongue as I take another sip. My father walks in, and immediately tuts at me. “Where are your manners, stupid girl!” He snatches the wine off of me, so a little trail of wine dribbles down my dress. It looks pretty, I think to myself, as the crimson stain deepens on my cotton dr...

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“I CHANGED MY NAME” by Jaycee Shanahan

Submitted to Contest #100

I CHANGED MY NAME My name is Jackie Jean Smith, or at least it was. I never liked my name. It was picked out by my father for the express purpose of calling me JJ. He wanted a son; I was a girl. Though I was very much a Tomboy as a child, I liked my long hair, the only girlish thing about me, at that time. From the day I was born, Wacky Jackie the Spacky was a common nickname. I was not “normal”, not like other children, though I now know this is because I have autism, in the ’80...

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“A Friend in Need” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #100

A Friend in Need I reached the Crown Palace hotel as early as one o’clock though the time fixed for our lunch was 13:30. Since I had a full thirty minutes to wait I sat in the lounge and picked up one of the glossy magazines lying on the table. My mind was not, however, on the pages of the magazine but on the unfairness of my bosses who had posted me to Mumbai. I had requested them to post me at Delhi as I had to look after my old parents who lived in a town close to Delhi, and though the Director had assured me that he’d look sympatheticall...

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“Dinner for two” by LeQuitta Randolph

Submitted to Contest #100

*click clack, click clack, the sound of Katrina Miller's heals continued down the long stretch from her office to the exit. Co-workers glared trying not to get caught staring. Knowing this, Katrina held her nose in the air higher and a pleased grin drew across her face. Before she reached the exit of her office building, her assistant cut in front of her and began speaking immediately. "Donavon called." She pumped her eyebrows multiple times before giggling and continuing. "He wanted to see if you were available to talk? He's on line 1." She...

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“An Extremely Successful Dinner Where Nothing Bad Happens” by Virtual Chesse Emporium

Submitted to Contest #100

When I imagined dinner with a colony of water spirits, this is not what I imagined. I had sculpted in my mind a gorgeous, moonlit river filled with lily pads, lotus flowers and sparkling blue water. I would ride out in a beautiful raft with my mother, being guided towards a beautiful, lantern lit river city. The spirits would braid my hair, feed me grilled rainbow fish and take me for a midnight swim in the calm waters. Not so. Instead, we were cloistered inside the stuffy castle, glancing uncomfortably at each other while our guests glared ...

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“Empire of Vipers” by Wayne Chang

Submitted to Contest #100

Panicked whispers of the honoured guests hissed through the great hall like a hundred snakes. A sense of contempt washed over Captain Rothal Halrion as he surveyed the faces frozen in shock, stark white against their bright, garish garments.They’re all vipers, he thought, each and every one. They just never expected someone among them to strike at the emperor himself.Captain Halrion stood shoulder-to-shoulder with his imperial guards, forcing back the crowd that were craning their necks for a glimpse of the emperor. Captain Halrion, himself,...

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$50

Prize money

891

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jul 02, 2021 EST

Won by Rayhan Hidayat 🏆

Title: mie goreng

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

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