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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#68: Meet in the Middle

If there’s one thing we know, it’s that the internet loves to argue. Perhaps one of the stranger fights I’ve seen is what constitutes a “sandwich” — you’d think the definition would be universal… and you’d be very wrong.

But whether you classify hot dogs, pitas, and burritos as sandwiches or not, one thing we can agree on is this: no matter how similar the components, there’s endless variety to be found when you combine the ingredients in different ways.

With that in mind, this week we’re celebrating the infinite diversity of fillings. To do so, we’re going to provide you with the beginning and ending of your story — and it will be up to you to fill these two slices of literary bread with whatever you can imagine!

This week's prompts

Start your story with two characters watching a sunrise and end it with one of them seeing the moon reflecting off a lake.

Adults – 301 stories

Start your story with someone admitting a secret and end it with someone telling a lie.

Dramatic – 180 stories

Start your story with someone robbing a bank and end it with two people driving on an interstate.

Dramatic – 86 stories

Start your story with the line, “This was supposed to be the happiest day of their lives,” and end it with, “By then it was too late.”

Sad – 132 stories

Start your story with the line, “It had been twenty-four years since she’d last seen it, but the place looked exactly the same,” and end it with, “[…] and that was all that mattered.”

Adults – 178 stories

Stories

“The Memory Album” by ℂ𝕒𝕣𝕠𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕒 𝕊𝕙𝕒𝕨 🏳️‍🌈 (inactive For The Summer)

Submitted to Contest #68

It had been twenty-four years since she’d last seen it, but the place looked exactly the same. Alex looked up at the large colonial style house as she walked towards it, her feet crunching on the gravel. She was trying to walk slowly across the driveway, because she didn’t want to come back to this house. Not now. Not ever. Ever since she had gotten the letter that her grandmother, May Anne Dawson, had sadly passed of heart failure and left her entire estate to Alexa Dawson, she had wanted to curl up in her favorite yellow blanket and barric...

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“A Wish for the Universe ” by Malz Castell

Submitted to Contest #68

The setting sun shone bright over the edges of the lake. Crimson and gold hues lit up the entire landscape. Brady and I walked hand-in-hand towards the lake shore. We spread the blanket over the lush green grass that covered the ground and sat down. We both knew that we had a lot to say to each other, but time was running out. And yet, I refused to bring up the topic. Instead I cuddled into his side, the same as I had done every day since we were fourteen years old and reveled in the comfort of his arms. He sighed contently and pulled me clo...

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“The Hidden Past” by Vicky S

Submitted to Contest #68

It had been twenty four years since she’d last seen it, but the place looked exactly the same. The blinds were drawn to shield the room from the bright sunlight, or what light ever reached the place, and the scattered cushions still had indents in them from where people had leant. The only sign that time had elapsed was that the clock was no longer ticking, it’s cuckoo trapped forever in a hibernation. “It’s a bit stuffy in here, isn’t it?” Max asked, wrinkling his nose as he tried not to sneeze. Shrugging, Layla moved around, her fingertips...

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“Mrs. Ryan Miller” by Mustang Patty

Submitted to Contest #68

Josephine Louise Miller wrote her name over and over across the page. Partly because she loved the weight and feel of the pen she was using, partly because she wanted to practice writing her name as it would be by the end of the week. “Josie, are you up there?” “Yeah, Mom. I’m just hanging out.” Josie hurried to hide the paper she’d written on. It would be awful if her mother saw it. Josie hadn’t told her mother anything about Ryan Miller and their plans. If her mother did know, she would put an end to everything. Josie knew her mom woul...

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“Woman who won her dreams in dark” by Kaushika Kotagodahetti

Submitted to Contest #68

" It had been twenty-four years she'd last seen it, but the place looked exactly the same , and end it with, " [.......] and that was all that mattered" . Aruni was standing infront of a burnt place. It was her birth place where she lived with her family. Aruni was looking at a photo. She ran into her memories. ‘’ After finishing my work I hurriedly packed my bags and got into the bus to go to my village. The bus was crowded to pack. As the New Year is coming it was difficult to go on the bus. During the New Year session people goes to their...

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“The Unusual Suspect” by Howard Halsall

Submitted to Contest #68

A muffled percussive thrum on my windscreen nudges me back to life. I recognise that black ski glove and those killer dimples, and I wind down the driver’s side window.“You’re early today?” He leans forward and kisses my cheek.“I wanted to be sure of the best seat in the house.” He grins. “Nobody would dare to park here first thing.”I smile and rub the sleep from my eyes.“Happy birthday, darling.” I pass him an envelope.“Hey, you shouldn’t have.” He accepts the gift and hands me a steaming takeaway. “Your usual,” he says, and passes me ...

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“Won't you stay?” by Moon Lion

Submitted to Contest #68

"It is freezing cold!" I gasped, chasing after Mark, who moved much more gracefully than I did. "I told you to wear more layers," He replied, shooting me a filthy look. "It's not my fault you decided to wear a hoodie and jeans in November." "S-shut up!" I ordered, my teeth chattering, hands tightly folded across my chest. "What's taking so long anyway? Mark, slow down!" I jogged after him, worried about being abandoned in these dark and terrifying woods. "No, you're too slow! I'll leave you behind if you don't move faster!" He calle...

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“Highway Girl” by Scout Tahoe

Submitted to Contest #68

Driving down a highway in the rain always reminded me of you. Not because of the yellow lights and silver tire tracks that stained the roads like burns but because of the uncertainty of it all. The rain would smudge the scene behind your windshield until it resembled a van Gogh painting. People would bark in foreign languages and hold up a finger when necessary. It was a chaotic life but it was ours. Nowadays it only seems like yours. You’ve written in pen over the neon signs and convinced me to do stupid things that my relatives woul...

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“You Said You Loved Me all the Way to Space” by Jasey Lovegood

Submitted to Contest #68

You Said Loved Me all the Way to Space9th of September 2019Hey Ty,I can’t stop thinking about yesterday, and the secret you told me. I know you meant it, I saw the way your eyes lit up, and you always tell the truth when you do that. What was going through your head, when you admitted it to me? Were you nervous? I bet on our nine-year friendship that you were. Your words continue to run through my head, much like your grandfather’s gramophone. It made my day, you know? I’m sure it would make any person’s day, maybe even someone’s week, if it...

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“Love by the moonlight…………………..” by Alkaa Sharma

Submitted to Contest #68

Love by the moonlight………………….. Raghav and Arti were walking down the beautiful road hand in hand gazing at the wonderful morning sky. The amazing hues of oranges and reds had covered the bright sky in an amazing manner. It was just about time, for the sun to descend from the heaven’s above and spread its light to illuminate the lifeless , cold dark world, giving yet another day of hope and warmth to all life forms. “What time is it darling?” asked Arti to Raghav . “Honey its 5.30 am !”, he replied. The whole environment was filled wi...

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“Orbs in the Sky” by Maya W.

Submitted to Contest #68

“Do you know what Angelica said, when she heard what you had done? She said, “You've married an Icarus, he’s flown too close to the sun.” Wax slowly dripped down the metal plating at the bottom of the twisted candle, it’s little halo of light reflecting the sunrise over the sea. Silently, Daedalus held the handle of the candelabra and tipped it down to the pile of feathers by his feat. His eyes were giving their all to the small contraption he had built, but his son’s were straight at the sunrise. “Careful,” Daedalus said, concentr...

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“Hope” by N. N.

Submitted to Contest #68

“You sure you wanna stay here alone?” Simon glances at the sun just rising behind her. It was too early in the morning, but that’s how Faith preferred it. She wanted to get out of the house before any cops, or worse journalists, came by.“Yeah. I’ll come home in a few hours. Don’t worry.” she hugs herself and exhales, taking in the lake before her. After a few more minutes, Simon finally leaves. He wants to stay with her, comfort her, but he can't – he has to answer all those annoying questions, comply with the officials, stay with them throu...

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“Belated Eulogy” by Itay Frenkel

Submitted to Contest #68

“So, It all started one day when my father took me into the bank, to make a withdrawal. He typed in his pin, covering my eyes with his hand so that I wouldn’t see the password. It was obviously a joke, but at the time I thought he was dead serious. To this day I make sure to cover my eyes any time somebody is typing in a password. The atm was just outside the bank, but I went in to use the washroom. That’s when I saw it; a bowl of candy, just begging to be plundered. One per customer. I stuffed two into my pocket. The security guard sa...

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“Fate of the Mayfly” by David G.

Submitted to Contest #68

The soft shades of pink and orange on the undersides of the few wispy clouds scattered across the western sky signaled the coming of the great light. Below, the water was placid, disturbed only here and there by the briefest flick of a trout’s tail.From the primordial depths, the pupal larva of the mayfly shrugged free from the muck, wound past the slowly swaying reeds on her way toward the surface, and emerged into a new world. She blinked her primitive, unfocusing eyes.Water, air, sky, light.By the side of the lake perched an ominous form,...

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“Golden Eyes” by Akshaya Rajan Babu

Submitted to Contest #68

It was a serene, peaceful morning. The waves were lapping over each other softly. The calm winds were gently ruffling up Clara’s dark hair. Clara always felt at ease when she’s at the beach. Every day, she would come to the beach to watch the sunrise, and then go for her morning jog. Today was no different, at least that’s what she expected. As Clara was walking towards her favorite spot, a huge rock shaped like a throne at the top, she noticed that someone else was perched on her throne. (Yes, she nicknamed that rock as her throne!...

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$50

Prize money

877

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Nov 20, 2020 EST

Won by FJC Montenegro 🏆

Title: Silence

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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