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#110 Hit the Road, Jack

On September 5th, 1957, Jack Kerouac published On the Road — a hugely influential novel, swelling with jazz, heat, and Americana, that follows free-spirited mavericks Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty on their travels across the States. To celebrate its 64th anniversary, this week’s prompts all take place on the long and winding road (or right next to it). Safe travels!

This week's prompts

Set your story in a roadside diner.

Dystopian – 59 stories

Write about a couple who fall out on the road.

Valentine's Day – 16 stories

Start your story with a vehicle pulling over for a hitchhiker.

Horror – 46 stories

Write about a character on the road — and on the run.

Adventure – 40 stories

Start your story with the line “We have plenty of time,” and/or end it with the line “We were never going to make it.”

Angst – 47 stories

Stories

Nothing Ever Happens Here

Submitted to Contest #110

“Orders up!” yelled the big guy in the kitchen. He began ringing the tiny silver bell over and over. “Alright, I got to go. Work is kicking my ass right now. Just make sure Lori gets to her appointment on time. Love you,” I said, carefully placing the phone down. I tiptoed out of my bosses office and made sure to leave the door cracked just as I’d found it. Swiftly making my way down the hall, letting the tips of my fingers feather the edges of old photos of the James family living their legacy. This was the family dream. To soothe the st...

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The Fire and the Liar

Submitted to Contest #110

TRIGGER: Suicidal Thoughts||||| The breeze coming through the vents sent the smoke smell embedded in Miranda’s hair flowing throughout the car. The stench from the fire had seeped into her clothes like a perfume she wore every day and the odor kept rolling up to her face as the heater blew on full blast, making it impossible to escape. Twenty-minutes earlier, she had been standing so close to the fire she felt the flames licking at her cheeks as if they were taunting her. Their calls left her tempted, almost compelled to step into the burni...

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Picking Up a Hitchhiker

Submitted to Contest #110

September 1847  Middle of New Mexico Lost. I looked in all four directions, north, south, east and west and there was nothing anywhere as far as the eye could see. I pulled my rig over to the side of the road, if it was even a road at all. I knew I was screwed.  I did not need anyone to tell me that.   I was due at the army base at Alamogordo at oh-nine hundred hours to deliver whatever it was in the big barrels Hector had loaded in my trailer with the big old yellow stickers pasted on the sides with that strange b...

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Turning the Wheel

Submitted to Contest #110

“Hey kiddo, what’s the haps?” Ten year old Ken looked at his father, Robert. He blinked back tears and looked out the car window. His mother watched from the doorway as the car idled in the driveway. “Ken?” With a constricted voice he said, “I thought you were gone. Maybe I wouldn’t see you again.” Robert embraced him. “I don’t know what made you think that. I’ll always be your father.” He took Ken by the shoulders. “Things change, Ken. Things always change. But rest easy. I’m your Dad and you’re my son.” Ken smiled shyly. “I have some erran...

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Over the Moon

Submitted to Contest #110

I wanted a dog more than anything. There he was, across the road after school, no collar, looking hungry. He reminded me of a husky with deep dark and light fur. "Here boy," I said with a high pitch not wanting to scare him. The dog trotted over to me and rubbed his muzzle on my leg. Miss Holloway, my eighth grade teacher, stood with hands on her hips, walking backward.I said, "Don't worry Miss Holloway, I can tell he's friendly. And he sure loves me, don't you think?" Her arms had dropped, hands to coat pockets, she nodded, "Mm-hm."I knew h...

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Running on the Road of the Lost to the Road of the Found

Submitted to Contest #110

"Are you going to sneak around my garage all night, or were you planning to break in?” Shit. I was being so careful. Now I’m standing in ankle deep snow, freezing. I hold my breath and slowly raise my hands. “I was just looking for a place to get out of the snow. I wasn’t going to steal anything, I swear.” A flashlight beam shines around my shadow. “Turn around slowly.”  He must be a cop or military. He’s gonna turn me in. “Yes, sir,” hoping to buy some leniency.  A long silence. I hold my breath. He takes several long stri...

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Dreams of Living

Submitted to Contest #110

Sal’s Diner stuck out of the desert like an ice cream cone discarded on the beach. A ragged border where asphalt met sand marked three sides of the lot. The fourth side joined the interstate. Two ancient gas pumps faced the road, nauseous with rust. Inside, 50s and 60s memorabilia cluttered the walls, and the jukebox played non-stop rock and roll. A sign behind the bar advertised ‘Real American Lemonade’. Sal, the owner, was full of wild ideas. One of his more outlandish schemes had the employees on roller skates while they waited table...

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Road Trip From Hell

Submitted to Contest #110

            As I drove cautiously along a deserted road in the Virginia-North Carolina countryside, the passing scenery reminded me of the forest scene from "Deliverance." To add to the negative atmosphere, my least favorite Realtor office colleague sat next to me. The stillness on this Saturday night made me feel like a solo mortician closing up shop after the last mourner following the wake of the least popular crotchety old man in the neighborhood.  My fellow Realtor, Jill M...

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I’ll Get Back to You on the Butterflies

Submitted to Contest #110

We have plenty of time That’s what my mom said when we were at the pool together. It was second grade. We’d met 2 weeks before and were already inseparable. You were wearing a ladybug swimsuit and we laughed at the ruffles that made you look like a fancy cake. I got so cold that my lips turned blue, but when mom said we were leaving in 30 minutes we both rioted in protest.  “We have plenty of time left,” she said, “now let’s go get some ice cream.” I got strawberry, you got chocolate and we both got it all over our faces. Your mom t...

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Freedom

Submitted to Contest #110

       Just when I was preparing to face the fact that no one in their right mind would be stopping for a hitchhiker on the shoulder of Highway 63 at a quarter past two on a December morning, a weary looking GMC Sierra, rusty and deteriorating, veered onto the road’s shoulder, its tires crunching through the deep snow as it rolled to a stop.  A snowplow was fastened to its front bumper.  I held a hand across my eyes, shielding them from the headlights’ blinding beams and from the wind th...

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An Idyllic Bike Trip Goes Bad

Submitted to Contest #110

Caution: Use of foul language.Clunk! The tires of the airplane touched down on the tarmac at Palermo in the mid-morning. I was feeling groggy after several flights from the U.S. with longish stopovers. Palermo was my final destination and marked the beginning of my planned bike tour in Sicily. Such tours have become my favored getaways for years. I am an attorney specializing in medical malpractice and lead a very stressful life. This trip was intended to help me relax and certainly not to get involved in the melee that I am about to describ...

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The Meeting

Submitted to Contest #110

She arrived at the diner thirty minutes early. It was like he had said—long, narrow and like an old railroad car with all the windows. The faded sign proclaimed it to be Bubba’s Diner.  Stacie sat in her car and attempted to come up with a reason to leave. There was none. At none that would hold water anyway. She had parked near the road to make it easy to leave.  The diner was half way between where they lived. Trey Blackman. His picture showed a handsome man who seemed sad. They had been talking to each other on the phone through...

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Roadside Stranger

Submitted to Contest #110

           It was the first time in three years that Sandy and her husband, Danny had been able to schedule their vacations at the same time, so they booked a cottage in the country for the week. It was located on a crystal blue lake far from the busy city.            Once they left the highway and began to travel the backroads, Sandy and Danny were in awe of the beautiful scenery that the countryside had to offer. It was nearing Aut...

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Scavenger Night

Submitted to Contest #110

CW: violence We have plenty of time to scavenge tonight. The outside world has quietened down early.There must have been a snowstorm in the outlying Hotapo region. That translates to Joburg's worst cold front of the year The problem being that this year, it arrived late.We were already in spring way longer than the lack of rain indicated. This cold front has been in the making for the past four days. Forcing the rats to contain themselves longer than their patience allowed.  The downside for me in these temperatures is that my exos...

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This Is Worse

Submitted to Contest #110

I don't know how long I've been on this road. It seems never ending. One long road with trees on either side. The other end covered in fog. I thought I would be off it by now. I'm not sure how long I've been walking. Ten minutes, an hour. Time is nothing to me now. Especially when you can't see the sun. It's so gloomy and cold. Fog is heavy over me, I can only see a few feet in front of me. I pray a car doesn't come along and hit me. Though, that would probably be a better punishment.I left home in a rush after the accident. Though, I know n...

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