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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#259: The Elephant in the Room

Once in a while, we all have to calculate what is and isn't worth saying. Whether it's admitting our feelings to a crush, acknowledging the brewing tension in a friendship, or speaking up in the face of injustice, we sometimes have to carefully decide what to speak up about, and what is better left unsaid.

This week's prompts are about moments just like these, when the metaphorical "elephant in the room" becomes unbearably large, and we must choose whether to speak our minds, or to leave well enough alone...

This week's prompts

Write a story about two people who aren't admitting their true feelings for one another, despite it being obvious to outsiders.

Romance – 57 stories

Place your characters in a tough situation, where nobody wants to acknowledge the reality of what's happening.

Angst – 84 stories

Write a story that includes the line, "Is nobody going to say it?".

Dialogue – 83 stories

In a small town, a powerful family have a dark secret that nobody wants to discuss. One day, an outsider arrives, who's not happy to simply drop it.

Mystery – 47 stories

Set your story in a world where conversation about one particular topic is banned — but there are ways to get around the rule.

Dystopian – 26 stories

Stories

“Supertide” by Phil Martin

Submitted to Contest #259

The Super TideWritten by Phillip Martin JR. The air was crisp. Not cold enough to stay indoors but cold enough to keep the riff raff from the beach. Marty can’t complain. He took this gig for the money and having a bungalow on the beach was just a bonus. Good paying work for an electrician over the holidays. It’s time for the older of his two girls at home to start driving. This gig makes the difference between buying her a busted 2007 Escort or a sound 2017 Corolla! &nbs...

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“The Elephant in the Room is Blue” by Cassi Stilianessis

Submitted to Contest #259

The Elephant in the Room is BlueCassi StilianessisWriting as: R. W. Pierette Content Advisory: mental illness, attempted suicide When they take you away, I think for sure I will never see you again. They come in hot, barreling up the driveway at warp speed. Five of them spill from the ambulance; two rush to the door I’m holding open while mom waits with you, your head in her lap. I hear them call your name, the EMTs dressed in blue coveralls. The questions they ask are distant. Too far away for me to hear even though they are in the bathroom...

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“The Way Things Have to Be” by Katelin Grudzinski

Submitted to Contest #259

The sun beat down on Indo’s back; hot dust floated around and settled in the air on a slight breeze. The herd of elephants moved slowly, one foot in front of the other. Their destination: the water hole. It had been a long time since Indo had a bath and he was looking forward to the cool water. A shadow crossed over his head and he peered up into the face of his mother. Her ears flapped a few times and a breeze drifted off of Indo’s face. “It is warm today,” he remarked. His mother nodded. “We should be at the water hole shortly....

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“Onkel” by Edith Fullerton

Submitted to Contest #259

Onkel He sat in the kitchen on the chromed steel chair with the blue vinyl seat. Had he looked up and to his right, he could have seen the sky and trees through the kitchen window, but he rarely looked that way. His focus was on the stained crystal ashtray that sat on the cool grey- blue surface of the formica table before him. It was in contrast with the colour and texture of the tan skin on his hairy left arm, which rested on it. The arm wore a short- sleeved cotton shirt, striped in faded green, grey, and yellow, covering his upper arms a...

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“The Hotel” by Jacob Melanson

Submitted to Contest #259

My name is Jackie Moffit. I moved to Chicago on the heels of the 1893 Columbian Exposition, much to the chagrin of my parents. Coming from rural Iowa, the bustling metropolis of the Windy City seemed like a far-off dream. But by the recommendation of a great-uncle and the grace of God, I was offered a receptionist job at a new hotel in the City. This would be my introduction to the devil. On my first day, I eagerly meandered to the reception desk to make myself known. “Hi, I’m Jackie. Nice to meet you!”, I exclaimed with an outs...

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“Live From Life” by Mark Wild

Submitted to Contest #259

Female news presenter: “This just in: Recent reports show that the number of single people in the world is now at a staggering zero. Reports show that even all the animals seem to have teamed up in pairs. So, for the first time in history, every living creature on the planet has found a partner.Let’s go to our reporter in the field, Arturo.”Male reporter: “I am standing here at city hall where the last scheduled marriage has just taken place.Surrounded by friends and family, this couple said yes to each other on a truly special day. Because ...

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“The World in Room 212” by Devyn Johnson

Submitted to Contest #259

Alice’s hands shook as she walked down the hall. The squeaking of her sneakers on the floor, the smell of disinfectant, the buzzing of the fluorescent yellow lights; it was too much. Everything was overwhelming. At the end of the hall, she took a steadying breath, trying to quell the shaking in her hands as she paused in front of room 212. Alice could hear the rhythmic beeping of the monitors and the muffled sound of someone crying from outside the door. She took one last deep breath and opened the door. &n...

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“Protocol” by Monetta Little-Ragan

Submitted to Contest #259

It was just another day at the bank. Jasmine Thompson had been working at First National bank for the last five years. She loved her job as a teller because she was able to interact with people and help them solve problems but it wasn’t overly complicated. After serving her country for ten years in the United States Navy, it was exactly the kind of job she was looking for to supplement her military disability pay. One of the benefits of working at First National was she also had the privilege of working with her best ...

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“ARCADE” by Leila Guerrios

Submitted to Contest #259

“How many pennies do you have in that slot? I don’t have all night here,” came the low voice of the arcade owner. He was an older man with a thick mustache and bushy eyebrows. No one appeared to know who he was or where he had come from. He had—it seemed—materialized in thin air and then went on to re-open the old Clemont Arcade. Nobody could seem to trace him back to anyone else and what people did know was relatively useless. He had a tall physique and looked somewhat like an ancient philosopher, which, in short, didn’t h...

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“Smile for the Camera” by Sandhya Ramachandran

Submitted to Contest #259

A little girl in a blue ballerina-esque dress, starstruck by a cardboard cutout of the genie from Aladdin. A man with an arm around a woman and his other hand rested on the girl’s shoulder, his deep set chestnut brown eyes revealing nothing out of the ordinary. All smiles for the camera. That was how Kathy Creuset remembered the trip to Cameron Highlands - a rose-tinted window to a life filled with some sort of childlike ecstasy and wonder that could only see dreams and love. Not pain or heartbreak. All that Kathy had known on that trip was ...

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“Yellow” by Helen Vidrine

Submitted to Contest #259

Vera arrived on the hottest night in July, when neon purple clouds split the evening sky like rips in a pillow. Cicadas, thousands of them, sang their shrieking elegy in the black trees surrounding the porch. My legs and arms were sticky with sweat. Our air conditioning was still out since Henry Landry had heard what Papa was doing and decided he didn’t want any part of what was happening in ‘that house.’ And everyone knew Henry Landry had a mouth on him like a bass fish and so soon the news spread through the town like a virus. A pair of he...

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“Distracted Driving” by James Seamone

Submitted to Contest #259

“Is nobody going to say it?” a thin dark-haired teen with a Friday the 13th t-shirt said lighting a joint. “This is how horror movies start.” “Oh, come on Mark, it was just a raccoon or something.” Replied a red headed girl in a cheerleader uniform.“That was a big ass raccoon. Just look at that damage.” The tall, muscular blond in a high school football jacket was leaning over the brand new ’87 Jeep Wagoneer, picking broken pieces of blood smeared plastic from the busted headlight. “At least the bulb isn’t broken. Just the outside plastic. S...

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“Blanket Party” by Vickie Riggan

Submitted to Contest #259

Blanket Party Vickie Riggan 2895 words “Is no one going to say it?” I asked looking around the room at the curious faces of three of my best friends. “You know you’re all thinking it. Am I the only one willing to state the obvious? Roberta took a long draw on her cigarette hiding her face behind the exhaled smoke. Rhonda focused on the fingernail she had been diligently tending with a worn-out emery board. Mary Jo looked me square in the face and started to giggle. “Sorry about that, but you know I always giggle whe...

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“Why Haven’t You Gotten Married? ” by WM .

Submitted to Contest #259

I like my own company, you know, being indoors. It’s quiet, calm, and quaint. Did I mention that it was quiet? Everything I need, I have at home. For some reason, my family keeps dragging me outside to “mingle”. Like I don’t know what’s best for myself. “Hey.” “What’s up?” “You coming to our event tonight?” “Uh, no. I wasn’t planning on it.” “Apologies…” “It’s okay. I just need more time.” “What I meant to say was, you are coming to our event tonight. I already put your name down.” “But I don’t want…” “Do I make myself clear?” “Yes.” “Yes, w...

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“The Death of the Mayor” by Brooke Lee

Submitted to Contest #259

Trigger warning: blood and murderYou could say our family isn't the most well-liked family in the town.And being the rich mayor's daughter in a poor town isn't the best introductory line to make friends. My family, my mother, my younger brother, and of course, my father, live in the biggest manor within two hundred miles of the town, and don't have the best reputation. Again, it doesn't help that you're rich.There are mayors for different parts of the country that enforce the Council's rules. My dad is one of them. Although the Council contr...

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$250

Prize money

297

Contest entries

143

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jul 19, 2024 EST

Won by Christine Foy Jackson 🏆

Title: Getting Better

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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