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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#166: Game, set, match

Lately, my sporting news feed has been taken over by the retirement of two legendary tennis players — Serena Williams and Roger Federer. Whenever sports stars end their careers, it leaves me wondering what it must feel like to start something new after dedicating so much time and effort into performing at top level.

Of course, retiring, quitting, or changing careers are life-changing events whether you’re a professional athlete or not, and the prompts this week are inspired by the bevy of emotions this can bring to the surface — from trepidation to excitement, to regret or even nostalgia.

This week's prompts

Start your story with someone saying “I quit!”

Adults – 55 stories

Write a story about someone who knows it’s time to retire or change jobs, but is hesitating.

Adults – 43 stories

Write about a rivalry between two coworkers that has unforeseen consequences.

Adults – 26 stories

Set your story at a retirement or leaving party.

Adults – 19 stories

Write about someone who has long since quit but decides to go another round for old time’s sake.

Adults – 37 stories

Stories

“Accidents Happen” by Stuart Lawrence

Submitted to Contest #166

"I quit! I'm tired of fighting this!" Clay ended the call and slid his phone into his shirt pocket, sighing agitatedly. He pulled the shifter into drive and headed to the next stop.The store seemed quiet, with a few associates getting their departments ready to open as he guided his delivery cart towards the back of the store. His cell phone rang again; he glanced at it, then answered, "I told you, I'm tired of this; it's been three years, and you can't even get a judge to hear the case.""Listen Clay, this time is different, we have a court ...

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“Deadline” by Rachel Bronca

Submitted to Contest #166

CW: Themes of death***My dog died last night, my 16-year-old daughter wants emancipation, and Sonja just looked up at me from her desk, and with a realised clarity whispered; “I quit”. My Scotch Finger breaks in my coffee. “You freakin’-what?”. Mufasa’s claws lose their grip on the cliff in my brain. A sparkler ignites in Sonja's eyes and the universal lenses zooms in. A 200kg weighted barbell seems to drop from her shoulders and she loosens a held breath, while I take in a sharp one. Her phone locks and drops like an anchor.“No, you’re...

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“Letting go” by Gabriele Volta

Submitted to Contest #166

Letting go I quit! You know what, I’m tired of my job. I want to start something completely new. I’m tired of knowing everyday what is going to happen, of being able to easily predict the future. Seeing the same people, having the same conversations, every day the same. Insane. It’s been more than 25 five years I’ve been living with this same constant routine. The thought of repeating this process, endlessly, terrifies me. I had ideals, dreams, high ambitions, but none of them came true. To become a professor at a University, paint and p...

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“I'm done with This” by Jaanshvi S

Submitted to Contest #166

"I quit!"I looked up in surprise. Who said that? I turned my head and stared at the man sitting next to me in confusion."Excuse me?" he asked, looking alarmed.I looked at him; really looked at him and realised that those were my words. I smiled at him and said again, "I quit!" This time I knew I was saying it out loud. But my growing clarity was doing nothing for him. I burst out laughing."I'm so sorry, Devin. That was not what I intended to say. It was more of a realisation. I'm quitting," I said, and took a deep breath before carrying on, ...

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“An Insincerity of Sausage Rolls” by Anna Mahoney

Submitted to Contest #166

“Don’t forget to bring a plate tomorrow. Wouldn’t want Suzanne to feel unappreciated.” I saw the telltale glint in Chrissy’s lying eye. This was all her doing. It would have been mortifying except I was immune. Twenty years of corporate life gives you superpowers. “Ladies a plate” is a uniquely Kiwi institution hailing from the time of colonisation. A plateful of finger food is a woman’s entry fee to community events. Stuffed eggs and asparagus rolls are generally over-subscribed. My friend Ping once described her experience with...

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“I met my ''I quit''” by Keva Epale

Submitted to Contest #166

A conversation between two people, acquaintances, possible friends. “I quit. I quit. I do quit!” “How come you quit? “There’s no other way. Quitting is not the end.” “Sit down let’s talk. Tell me more. Why do you quit? And what do you quit?” “It’s not easy to say, it’s not easy to speak out.” “Try, I am by your side. I am your friend. I can understand. I have quit, quit so many times. I know what it feels like to quit. But what are you quitting?” “I am quitting not aligning who I am and my results. I am quitting a...

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“Play Out The Play” by Arrianna Chai

Submitted to Contest #166

“I quit!” No. Not strong enough. “I QUIT and all of you can go to hell!” No. Too passionate. “Tybalt is dead and Romeo banished and… I QUIT!” Yes. That’s it. Dramatic yet tasteful.“Ten minutes til places! Ten minutes til places! Have a wonderful second act everyone!” The assistant stage manager’s voice sharply crackles through the intercom. Outside the dressing room I hear a unanimous “thank you 10!” from the cast and crew. I don’t bother joining them because I finally have privacy, which is hard to come by when you’re sharing...

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“Loyal in a Violent Way” by Lilac St.Madden

Submitted to Contest #166

Loyal in a Violent WayWritten by: Lilac St.MaddenTrigger warning: Mental health, physical violence, underage substance usage."I quit! I've watched him go from girl to girl for six months straight.""Vienna, don't be a quitter, you've liked him for so long, please don't give up. It could still work out."I spun around on my desk chair, while my best friend, Camryn sat down on the floor."It would've worked if he hadn't Un-rejected Alexa.""It doesn't mean y'all can't be together.""It kind of does.”I began to start crying, I had liked the same boy...

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“The Relief Pitch” by Ali Myers

Submitted to Contest #166

Katie never got tired of looking around the stadium when it was packed with Iguanas fans, but she also appreciated the atmosphere after the game, when the only people left were her colleagues in the front office and some cleaning crew members. It reminded her of when all the lights came on after a Broadway show or a night of dancing at a wedding reception, everyone ready to go home after making new memories. And the people who worked at the venue could bask in a job well done before they had to focus on the next big event. Her job as the I...

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“Adrian's Girls” by Reagan Emmerling

Submitted to Contest #166

Amy was the earliest to show up for her shift, per usual, but unusually she saw a white piece of paper taped to the restaurant’s front door. Something about the paper put her off, and rightfully so, for when she snatched the page off the door, it read, ‘Restaurant permanently closed until further notice by the Internal Revenue Service.’ Then, on the bottom, a phone number, an address, and an official-looking government seal. “You have got to be kidding me,” Amy said with a scoff, turning the page over in her hands as if it would reveal a h...

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“Time Flies When You're Having Fun” by M.M. Romero

Submitted to Contest #166

Henry finished the TSB’s six month training program in three - partly because they desperately needed more agents in the field and partly because he was just that good. His reflex times were off the charts, his aptitude tests were in the highest percentile, and he won every combat challenge they threw at him. More importantly, Henry was a company man through and through. He believed in the TSB’s mission. But all the skills and all the care in the world could not change the fact that Henry was a green recruit with zero field experience and an...

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“The Folly of a Post-retirement Assignment” by Annie Blackwell

Submitted to Contest #166

Puking into the train’s toilet going to her first day on the job didn’t bode well. Alice had chosen a Wednesday to emerge from her year-long retirement. It can’t be too bad, she reminded herself, despite her stomach thinking otherwise. Hump-day starts only required surviving three days before she could recover from the shock of new material, politics, office space, computer filing systems … and colleagues.They all turned and stared at her like she’d jumped off Mars, as Liz, the EA from HR, in her short tight skirt and ultra-high heels, escor...

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“Billy’s life” by Howard Chavarria

Submitted to Contest #166

Billy has been taking care of his son by himself for the last eighteen years. Ever since his wife passed during the child-birth of their son Bobby. Billy was a successful lawyer that did very well for himself, and when Bobby was born he decided to stop working and put all his focus into his son until the day he leaves home. It’s the day Billy has been fearing time for the young man he had raised to be on his own in college and Billy now having his house to himself didn’t know what he would do. Bobby since his dad was feeling blue so h...

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“Lily's Place” by Ash Tenebris

Submitted to Contest #166

The Resala House is a brutal family of huntsmen; soldiers trained to kill the unholy magic users that curse the land. Two years ago, Oliver Resala killed one of these curses, and Piper was caught in the middle of it. She was a barkeep who witnessed the huntsman kill a boy who had been living with her as he struggled to get on his feet. She would’ve been killed alongside him for housing such magic if it hadn’t been for the letters they exchanged stating he wasn’t one of the cursed. Two years and Oliver never went back to the tavern Piper wor...

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“on the sidelines, sometimes” by Angel C

Submitted to Contest #166

(contains sensitive language and sex) I think we went, that day, to the Thai restaurant towards the end of campus. Across the road from the university union, and close to the class we shared, it seemed a good choice for lunch. I remember feeling worried that you wouldn’t want to come with me. Once the class had ended, and the shuffle of notebooks and murmur of chatter began, I thought your kindness to me would end. I thought you’d only spoken to me because we sat together. On those hard, red, plastic chairs. In the middle of the small clas...

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$250

Prize money

180

Contest entries

73

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 07, 2022 EST

Won by Rebecca Miles 🏆

Title: Letting go

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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