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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#133: Chocolate Box

Next Monday is Valentine’s Day, which means chocolate boxes are popping up in stores everywhere. The sweet association between cocoa and romance began with the Mayans and Aztecs, but it only became a hallmark of Valentine’s Day when British confectionery giant Cadbury introduced the first ever heart-shaped gift boxes in the 1860s.

Today, chocolate is inseparable from this occasion in many parts of the world: in Japan, some give homemade chocolate to their loved ones; in Ghana, February 14th is National Chocolate Day. And we’re joining the fun with this week’s set of delicious chocolate-inspired prompts. Take your pick!

This week's prompts

Write about someone going on a search for a specific type (or brand) of chocolate.

Middle School – 24 stories

Start your story with a character finding an old heart-shaped box in their house.

Valentine's Day – 78 stories

Set your story in a confectionery shop.

Middle School – 40 stories

Write a story about someone making a gift (chocolate or otherwise) for a loved one.

Valentine's Day – 36 stories

Write about a character who finds Valentine’s Day sickly sweet.

Valentine's Day – 26 stories

Stories

“Deathly Sweet” by Katharine Johns

Submitted to Contest #133

The peal of the bell tower signaled morning in the city of Direford, the capital of the thriving nation of Jestines, a morning that started the week of the annual Valentine’s Festival. Subjects and peasants everywhere were about to spend the period embracing romance; couples will court, marry, declare love, or initiate relationships as their situations saw fit. Cooks and bakers, providing the food of love, prepared their finest dishes and treats. Gifts, gestures, poems, and songs would be exchanged. Passions would be fueled. Flowers, hearts,...

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“Bubble Rap” by Suma Jayachandar

Submitted to Contest #133

Do red teddy bears love to rest their furry backs on red pillows?Apparently, on the shelves of Treasure Island, they do. Especially around the second week of February, when the pillows are heart-shaped.It’s 9.30 in the morning. I drink in the rich aroma of Masala Tea from the next shop as I raise the shutters of Mr.Shah’s gift shop. Mr. Shah trusts me enough to let me open the shop early on special days like this. After all, I am the only salesgirl among the whirlpool of workforce to have stayed like a stubborn stopper. The rest have dr...

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“Dusty old love” by Ryan O'Connor

Submitted to Contest #133

There is was the dusty old heart-shaped box. Sitting on the similarly dusty shelf in the huge attic at the very top of the ancient manor. A harsh reminder of a time long past. Way back, when she was younger and beautiful. Not the haggard, sagging mess she had become. She had used to be the talk of the town, the jewel in the eyes of most men, waiting to be plucked from the golden crown that was her father's estate. She sighed. Long gone was the seemingly endless line of gentlemen. All of them prying for a chance to court her. To win...

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“Grandpa and chocolate brittle” by V Hew

Submitted to Contest #133

The sun had gone from pink to hot white as I pulled up in front of the confectionary shop. I thought about letting the car run so the air conditioning would keep the interior cool for the ride home with the delicious chocolate I was about to purchase. Then saw the lizard green ford truck parked next to me with a gnarly looking guy at the wheel. His baseball cap was sitting sideways on a dirty long-haired huge head with a toothpick sticking out of his mouth. Visions of car jackings went round in my head so I thought better of it.Geeze! I...

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“Sweeternity ” by Sharon Hancock

Submitted to Contest #133

NOTE: sensitive content regarding death and accidents Sweeternity By Sharon D. Hancock Tragedy and a bus struck outside Sweeternity Sweet Shop; fatally mangling … Cara’s stress level soared as she tried to tune out the horrific news report that blared from every speaker in the city. She covered her ears with he...

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“A Sickly Sweet Day.” by DK Bluntworth

Submitted to Contest #133

Annie cracked the front door of her suburban home and let the first gust of nippy air rush passed her hooded head, red looping curls peered out around the her hood. The pinnacles of the trees in the neighborhood whirled wildly with the strong winter winds carrying with them much colder weather. A light sprinkle of rain only added to the bone chilling affect. Water logged leaves lay bunched up against Annie's front porch still soaking in the gutters run-off. The smell reminded Annie of her grandparents dirt floor basement in Iowa. Mr. Gi...

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“The Things I Do For Chocolate” by Michelle Konde

Submitted to Contest #133

This is a true story.I am a choco-holic. Seriously, I have a problem. I’m not ashamed of it though. There is nothing better than savoring a tiny piece and letting it melt on my tongue until it dissolves into nothing.The next thing I know, I’m half a bar in.Still, I could do this all day.Every day.Without fail.My sister thinks I’m crazy. She doesn’t understand how I can limit myself to that one indulgent treat night after night—or is it day by day?I don’t know to how explain my love for dark chocolate. I’m continually on the hunt for the perf...

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“The Milky Bar” by Laura Pamenter

Submitted to Contest #133

The Milky Bar “Huh, I just realized it’s February fourteenth,” he said, looking down at his phone. “So?” she asked. “Happy Valentine’s Day!” He lifted his paper cup towards her to cheer, but she looked back blankly. “It’s an old commercial holiday from my home planet. It’s a celebration of romance.” “Oh.” She smiled, nervously. “Where is that?” “Terre. It’s actually in this solar system.” “That explains your odd physique,” she teased. He smiled, then, revealing perfectly straight teeth. “I hope you don’t find it too...

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“A LIFE AIN'T WORTH A BOX OF CHOCOLATES” by Darrell Grant

Submitted to Contest #133

Warning: Violent scene The search I had started over a month ago added up to a big zero in results. So when February. 3rd rolled around, I started to panic because it meant that I only had 11 days left. Eleven days to find the elusive box of chocolates that was used in the movie FOREST GUMP. It has been said on the internet, that the box does still exist and that there were only a few pieces of chocolate left in it. That chocolate according to the internet person known as SWEET ANYONOMUS, was going to be ea...

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“Be Mine” by Greg Gillis

Submitted to Contest #133

Betty gazed down upon the tattered heart-shaped chocolate box that she held in her hands. The faded words, “Be Mine” were written upon its face. She thought back to the first time she had ever read those words. It was Friday, February 14, 1975. Betty and her friends were huddled around the cafeteria table talking about all the boys that they thought were cute at their high school, when from behind, Betty heard...

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“Cupid's Arrow” by Jess Norton

Submitted to Contest #133

content warning: graphic violence2/14/22 11:59 pm“The rules of the game are simple. Live through the night, and next year you’ll be playing Cupid.” 2/13/22 2 pmEliot nursed his whiskey in an attempt to numb the pain of his broken heart. The old woman next to him droned on about her third divorce. He tried not to look too closely at her snarled teeth. The quaint town he had chosen for him and his wife’s Valentine’s weekend no longer appealed to him. Not since he’d walked in on her, with her legs wrapped around his best friend’s hips. But...

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“apricots and the sun” by Jessamie R.

Submitted to Contest #133

Warm sunlight sifted through the thin wooden blinds, the golden glow flickering across the yellow porcelain tiles, now faded with age. Lark watched as the strands of light danced on the breeze, snaking across the floor like ancient serpents in battle. The soft brush of a rolling pin against fresh dough and melodic humming filled the air with a calming warmth. Lark tucked her legs beneath herself on a plush stool. Her hazel eyes captivated as her grandmother gently pressed the metal cutters into the thin dough, then scooping them gently onto ...

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“Boxes in the Attic” by Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #133

Boxes in the Attic Some time ago, in the midst of those young and foolish days when such things seemed to matter, I promised myself that I would get organized at least once every ten years. The last day of reckoning was sixteen years ago. Better late than never. I was already having a tough time doing much of anything, even those things that I once liked to do. Fishing poles and golf clubs, which had seen sporadic, limited success in their previous lives, now only served as home to an impressive collection of spider webs in a dark corn...

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“Mayfly” by Lilla Toth

Submitted to Contest #133

At the beginning of each year, Mr. Lukács circled the same day on the calendar. The 23rd of September wasn’t a birthday or a wedding anniversary. It was the day when he emigrated from Hungary in hope of having a better life where he doesn’t have to hide who he was. Mr. Lukács László, or ‘Laci’, or 'Luke' as his friends called him, never had dreamt of coming to live in America, simply because he had no interest. Being born as a Hungarian Jew, he had no choice but to fled the country before 1941. But of course, nothing went as planned. Next to...

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“A Heart Full of Love.” by Kay Lesley Reeves

Submitted to Contest #133

Shona looked in the full length mirror and heaved a sigh. No matter how she stood, those few extra pounds showed clearly on her thighs and stomach. She knew she was supposed to embrace her natural beauty and accept herself for what she was. All the magazines said so. What they seemed to overlook was that her current shape was making her miserable. She tried hard but the word 'fat' kept coming into her head. She had been doing well with dieting and had lost a little of her excess weight but now the biggest hurdle of the year was coming up...

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$250

Prize money

204

Contest entries

121

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 18, 2022 EST

Won by Stephanie Kaye 🏆

Title: Mythes

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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