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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#79: The Family You Choose

They say blood is thicker than water — but is it always?

The truth is that not all families offer healthy relationships to each other, and sometimes the harsh act of cutting them out of your life may be the best course of action. Fortunately, we can still meet people who love us no matter what and become our new families. Not to mention adoptions, blended families, and all the wonderful ways people connect with and support each other, regardless of whether they share any DNA. It's fair to say that family is a lot more than blood!

This week, we’re going to turn family life upside down and examine all the ways that family succeeds — and fails — for our characters.

This week's prompts

Write about someone who decides it’s time to cut ties with a family member.

Sad – 260 stories

Your main character is approached by their long-estranged parent who wants to reconnect. How do they react?

Dramatic – 193 stories

Write about someone who discovers the only family member they have left has just betrayed them.

Sad – 160 stories

Write about two characters who’ve gone through something so intense they now feel like family.

Adults – 190 stories

Write about a “found family” who are finally able to get together again after a long time apart.

Fluff – 100 stories

Stories

“Letting Go” by Selene Noel

Submitted to Contest #79

It had been almost a year since I’d moved out of my mom’s house, as well as states. I knew she wasn’t happy with my decision, but it had been mine to make. I was anxious to be out in the world on my own. I was ready for a place of my own, where I wouldn’t constantly feel like I was under a microscope. I was ready for a sense of freedom and to live my life as loud as I’d always wanted to. For her, I’d kept so much of myself hidden but no longer was I to worry about that. I was on my own, and doing fine. She’d call me often to check up on me, ...

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“Bloodless” by Lynne Buttercase

Submitted to Contest #79

Mehmed stood motionless, his arms hung relaxed at his sides, his posture betraying no hint of unease as he watched the wild animal circling him. Mustafa carefully stepped one foot over the other as he moved sideways around the room. His narrowed eyes trained on the tall, lean, graceful figure of his brother standing in the middle of the chamber. His distorted shadow flitted across the opulent blue and white tiled walls behind him, illuminated by the dull flickering candlelight. Mustafa’s size was reminiscent of a bear but his delicate moveme...

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“How do I tell her?” by Joni Miller

Submitted to Contest #79

“I’m almost home” she quivered over the phone, glancing into the rearview mirror hoping the princess was still asleep. “Okay, I’ll be waiting.” Wesley replied. Normally after a visit, her anxiety was in high gear, but even this short exchange seemed different to him. Unsure why, he just followed the established routine. Put the dogs outside. Pour some lemonade over ice and put it on her marbled coaster next to ‘her’ spot on the couch. Open the garage door and wait. He always opted out of the weekly dinner visits with her ...

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“Imitation Pearls” by Francis Perez

Submitted to Contest #79

A woman is crying. A woman is crying and a young woman standing near an open casket looks annoyed. She stands around 5’4”, and her athletic form is clad in a black pant suit creased perfectly down the front and a white silk blouse. In her hand, she clutches a white lace handkerchief. Her dirty blond hair is impeccably done in a tight severe bun. The crying woman is elderly, with a black dress from another era, ...

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“Promised” by Tatiana Vaillant

Submitted to Contest #79

"Dem! Breakfast!" I heard Nana yelling from the kitchen. I stared at the mirror before me the circles under my eyes were noticeable. I quickly covered it up with makeup and finished getting ready. I'm on my last day of high school exactly twenty-four hours from now I'll be at my graduation ceremony and then next month I'm riding a plane to the United Kingdom to study at my dream university. "Good morning Nana!" I greeted in delight, spreading my arms at my side. "You're going to be late" she scolded, pinching my left cheek hard. I ...

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“Sunday Best” by Jane Saunders

Submitted to Contest #79

I was running late for a coffee date with Sister Juliette and was just about the leave the apartment when there was a knock on the door. A woman I didn’t recognise was standing in the hallway. Hello how can I help, not speaking she handed me a note from Sister Juliette saying this woman is your Mother. The nuns running the orphanage said I was left on the steps in a cardboard box with clean clothes, a teddy bear, and a note. The note said that my mother wasn’t able to keep me and she wanted me to have a life she knew s...

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“Just Not Right Now ” by Cadence Layne

Submitted to Contest #79

It’s 4:30 am on a Saturday morning in February and I’m freezing my balls off. I throw my face into my pillow and huff; thinking this will dissolve all my problems somehow. I get up, pull my boxers off of my groin, and shuffle to the bathroom. I turn on the too god-damn bright lights to see myself. Fucking hell, I shouldn’t have stayed up till 2 a.m. gaming. I jump in the shower hoping to remove the grease from my hair and the alcohol from my pores. Yes, for only 19, I have a decent codependency on booze, if you ask my mother, that came from ...

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“The Things We Lost in the Fire” by Wayne Makali

Submitted to Contest #79

I see her the moment I walk through the door. She is on her phone, face down. She hasn’t changed. Not even a little bit. My recollection and the present collide and I am seated across from her. “I hate this place,” I tell her by way of greeting. “Really?” she asks, for a moment genuinely taken aback, “I used to bring you here all the time as a kid.” I say nothing in reply, neither does she. This is why I do not like people. They prefer filling every single moment with small talk and inanities to actually having a conversation. The me...

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“Lost and Found” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #79

When the bell rang, I expected the usual; a package, someone wanting to save my soul. But standing there was someone I believed I knew. I didn’t recognize them, for there was nothing familiar about the person standing on the stoop with a package in his hand. My mind immediately jumped to the conclusion that someone had delivered a package to the wrong address and the mistake was being corrected by being delivered to the correct address. The person however did not hold out the package as I expected, but clutched it closer to hi...

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“Menage” by Petra Cooper

Submitted to Contest #79

Reedsy Prompts Petra Y. Cooper Cooperwell@yahoo.com Menage I heard them talking I heard them discussing me as if I didn’t exist. Parents they really don’t see their mistakes and the choices they make. Their voices only grew more intense the deeper the discussion. My mother fussing, my father busting at the seams. What I want to know was what was so wrong with me that even my Own blood couldn’t stand me. I tried to turn and make it to my room, but I stumbled into the table by the door falling to the floor. They came rushing B...

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“DAD..........?” by Ronald Gagnon

Submitted to Contest #79

Rick looked up to see if his "partner"... Don Bionic, Studying his stats sheet for the daily Hockey contests... his head enfolded in his new Ipod.... The emanating hard rock music was so loud... it could even be heard from the other room. Slowly, giving Lily one last head scratch.... He got up...wondering why anyone would be calling on the home line.... EVERYONE used cells nowadays... Damnit...... I told Don not to move the bloody coffee table again.... Man ...that hurts..... Soon I won't have ANY toes left.... "Hello..? "Uh...h...

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“Where Were You When I Needed You” by Daniel Norton

Submitted to Contest #79

"Strike!" yelled the unpire. "That's okay, Timmy. Your pitch is coming next." It is another great day for baseball and the local little leagures are playing against their long time rival from just down the road. As Timmy is waiting for his next pitch we find the South Hinton Tigers leading our North Hinton Cubs 5-4. The pitch finally is delivered and Timmy swings. Thwak! It is a long hit over the right fielder's head. Two runs score and Timmy ends up on third base. "Way to go, Timmy. I knew you could d...

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“Unwanted Guest” by Ravinder KJ

Submitted to Contest #79

This is it. I’m nervous, I’m excited, I’m terrified, I’m ecstatic… I’m standing at the alter on my wedding day. Mike is smiling down at me (he’s six-foot-four, so he smiles down at everyone), and he looks handsomer than ever in his lush white tux. The vicar is saying something but I can’t hear a word; the blood is rushing through my head and my heart is barely staying inside my chest. If this isn’t over soon, there’ll be blood all over the walls. We paid so much for this place, too – a wedding at Chatsworth House! It would be a shame to le...

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“Rear-View mirror” by Diogo Cunha

Submitted to Contest #79

My dad left when i was only 3. He and my mother had been in a troubled sitution for quite a while. Plus the booze. One morning, the argument was so bad, he left out of the door. He just couldn't admit he had a problem. Since then, we've struggled to stand and reconstruct life. We've managed to find a small one-bedroom apartment, in another town. Pretty nice, actually. My mom found a new job, i kept studying and getting great grades. Eventually, my mom met someone else. Samuel. Samuel always treat me like his own, which i'm thankfull for. Sa...

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“Mama No More” by Gianna Girod

Submitted to Contest #79

I wish I could say I was excited to see her. It has been a while, five years and eight months to be exact. She left when I was seven, when I had just started to remember things and figure out who I wanted to be when I grew up and stopped in and out of my life. She always came when I was optimistic but, really, it could not have been a worse time because I was open to the world and its opportunities and how Fate played into it all; thinking maybe this was the time it would be different. After being put into foster care, I felt like life ju...

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$50

Prize money

905

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 05, 2021 EST

Won by Reha A 🏆

Title: Puzzle Pieces

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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