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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#81: Candy Hearts

Ah, love. From the first spark of attraction to the soul-deep contentment of a long-established relationship, romantic love is a force that continues to mystify, enthrall, and surprise us.

And while there’s plenty to criticize about Valentine’s Day, it’s still a nice excuse for people in romantic relationships to stop and appreciate their partners for a day. Especially during lockdown, when quarters are tight and nerves are often frayed, it’s important to remember why we chose the person (or people) we coupled up with.

What better time for a writer to dive headfirst into romances? No matter how many times we tell a love story, each relationship is going to have its own unique joys and frustrations, and we want to feel them all. So feel free to let your sappy side out — this week we’re celebrating love!

This week's prompts

Write about two people reconnecting after a rough patch in their relationship.

Romance – 247 stories

Write a love story about an older couple who’ve been together since they were teenagers.

Romance – 168 stories

Write about a first date that surprises both people, but in different ways.

Romance – 161 stories

Start your story with one character setting up a romantic dinner, and end it with them looking at a framed wedding photo.

Romance – 181 stories

Write about someone asking out an old crush, only to realize their crush doesn’t remember they’ve ever met before.

Romance – 158 stories

Stories

“all my happiness” by Jazmin Elvira

Submitted to Contest #81

I sat against the hospital wall. Why...why...why… The thought swam through my head. I wished it to drown. The noise of tragedy reached my ears and rang up and down the hallway. The white walls were bleached by ages of tears and angelic souls who breathed their last behind wooden doors. I tried to muffle the pain by inwardly screaming. I miserably failed. My twin brother was gone. Snuffed out by leukemia. The doctors said that the treatments would work because his case wasn't “that severe” and “he’s healthy enough”. They lied. I k...

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“The Empty Space After Sacrifice” by Lauren Pagano

Submitted to Contest #81

The moment Jeremy rounded the corner and began to exit the terminal, Anna's eyes immediately found him.Despite the fact that he was swarmed in a sea of fellow servicemen and women, Anna found it impossible to miss him. If the last seven years as an army wife had taught Anna anything, it was how to spot out her husband in a sea of camouflage. It felt like a sixth sense at this point. A survival tactic if you will.Find your husband in the crowd. If you can see him you know he's really here. If he's really here, that means he's okay. If he's re...

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“THE HEARTTHROB WHO LEFT” by Athaliah Taeniel

Submitted to Contest #81

The Heartthrob Who Left.The main door swung open and Amber scowled angrily. Did her sister have to open the door that wide as if it was the police department, letting in the coldest draught inside the already freezing apartment? She had come from work to discover that there was no firewood, she was too whacked to head down to the garage to chop, the heater needed fixing and their old house had no modern gadgets like air conditioners. It was the fireplace that always gave warmth to the house, whose heat had been diminishing over the past few ...

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“HURRICANES ” by User Name

Submitted to Contest #81

Day 19 The ceiling was a mess. It was littered with cobwebs on the corners and packets of mold throughout. Nola tilted her head on the pillow, narrowing her eyes—how exactly does one get this thing out? Cobwebs, she could manage, but the mold was the tricky part. Even if she knew how to get it off, how would she ever reach to the top— Beep-beep-beep-beep. The sound of the alarm seemed to come blaring through, when in reality, it was only probably a few decibels high. Nola turned her head to look at it, taking care of the arm that was in ...

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“Red Rose Petals” by Catherine Hammond

Submitted to Contest #81

There’s an obnoxious ring echoing through the hall followed by an angry pounding on the door. I can hear my mother crying in the other room as I continue to draw my picture of the sun. The sun is bright and warm unlike the dark rain clouds making noise outside. The pounding finally stops, and mother does too. I watch as she tiptoes towards the front door and cautiously peers out the front window. She notices me watching so I turn and look away. I hear her bare feet walk across the creaky floorboards and into the living room where I am drawin...

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“The Cause for Happiness” by Claudio Murgia

Submitted to Contest #81

“I miss the way nothing I do is ever good enough for you.” They had not seen each other for a few months. “No, no, it’s not the way you think. It made me want to be better, day after day. Not necessarily the way you wanted me to be; and maybe that’s why it didn’t work out between us. But you understand: if I became the person you wanted me to be, that would not have been me.” He had gone back home to his country because he had needed a break from everything. He had needed a break from her, even though he could never have told her that,...

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“Long distance” by Manami McNair

Submitted to Contest #81

It´s been difficult for them both; he hates long distance and having to constantly be online, she hates unreliability and staring at screens. ´They've been texting less and less, and last Saturday they were on a video chat and they blew up at each other for being terrible at long distance dating. He yelled at her for always cutting video chats short and never visiting, she yelled at him for never replying quickly and missing calls. They knew the points were unfair, they were both busy and conflicting schedules made things hard, but they ma...

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“Cosmetic Recovery” by Sha G

Submitted to Contest #81

There was little tying the woman to Didier except his beautiful name and heated apartment. Didier, the man with the lovely continental name and warm home did not show love to the woman. In fact, he had a girlfriend, a cosmetician from another town. In all respects, the woman was an easy and available convenience to Didier. It was a fact that the woman accepted and sometimes even relished. It fed into her wounded side that sought recognition and physical touch almost at all costs. Over time that side grew larger and heavier, and the woman, fe...

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“What Were We Thinking” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #81

“Do you think we made a mistake? You know the whole getting married thing.” “I suppose it’s possible. People do make mistakes, and we have certainly made our share. Little late to think about that, don’t you think?” “You left without a word, just gone. I know you had your reasons, but you left everyone wondering what they had done to cause your disappearance.” “It had nothing to do with anyone. More like when it's snowing, building up a little at a time until you can’t get the door open to get out, let life in.” I gu...

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“Alone Under the Moon” by Brenda Liddy

Submitted to Contest #81

Alone Under the Moon Lorna knew that her husband’s career meant he would have to spend time away from her and the children. In fact, she had met him in NASA and she knew what marrying an astronaut would involve in terms of long absences from earth. But she was sure they could cope with these separations. One of the astronaut’s wives called Alison said, “You will get used to these separations. Just make sure you have your hobbies and interests and don’t let yourself get into a rut”. And Lorna did have a few hobbies and she was close to Alis...

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“A Second Chance” by Jenne Gentry

Submitted to Contest #81

Hazel shivers from the cold and reaches across the console to turn up the heat. She's stuck waiting at the too-long light at 5th and Pine Street. She hates this one. She always seems to catch it at just the wrong time. Shifting in her seat uncomfortably, she wonders what it's going to be like to go back to the house after all these months. The only home she's ever known, she was terrified to see it in its current state: a bare, lifeless skeleton of what it had been. Her stomach turns at the thought of the emotions that are sure to come rushi...

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“Six Months On” by Griffin Griffiths

Submitted to Contest #81

I looked in the mirror to check my hair. Straightened, just the way they liked it. My nails were painted a soft lavender, and my lips shined with a pear flavored gloss. I had a on a white and blue striped blouse with anchors going down along each side of my torso. God how they loved nautical shit. It had been six months since I last saw them. Texts had gotten scarce and calls were almost non-existent now. They had called me to say they were coming back to town this weekend, and it’s been wrecking my brain ever since. I moved to the kitche...

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“Tigress Ruby and Cold Al” by Zeljko Dobric

Submitted to Contest #81

While he was in prison, Cold Al has added more muscles to his already hefty bulk and now they were useful to pull him up the cargo container. As he peeked over the edge, a gun blasted, a bullet ricocheted inches from his hairy fingers and he slumped back to safety of the grimy floor. The bitch was already holding the high ground. Squeezing the gun, Al scanned the passages among the piles of crates in the warehouse. The light was dim and he could... "Al?" The sound. Al poked himself in the thigh with a gun barrel to snap out. He must kil...

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“Plain Grey ” by Carrie Sheldrake

Submitted to Contest #81

Seeing something after only picturing it in your mind for so long, was always a strange thing. There were always those slight alterations, those few freckles, you’d forget within your internalised portrait. I’d, in a way, forgotten how she looked. Her smile was the same. Her scent, a combination of her vanilla perfume (which hadn’t changed) and the fresh cotton of her clothes, yet with the hidden hint of tobacco that she clearly wished to disguise - unsuccessfully. I knew that scent would never change, as her mum had bought her that same per...

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“The most precious Valentine's Day Gift!” by Concepcion Delson

Submitted to Contest #81

If you would of told me that I was going to marry my best friend's fiancee who is also my best friend as well I would of told you your insanely crazy. My family and friends knew that I had a huge crush on my best friend but nothing happened between us. We were inseparable, we went through grammar and high school together. We were suppose to go to the same College before the fatal accident of my parents that led me to go live with my Aunt and Uncle after graduation. Chase on the other hand decided to go into the military and as we tried to ...

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$50

Prize money

915

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 19, 2021 EST

Won by Molly Quinnell 🏆

Title: Golden Cheekbones and the Rising Sun

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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