Write a story about someone participating in a seemingly innocent game that suddenly takes a turn.

Posted in Dark on Apr 12, 2024

Submissions are closed

Sorry, we are not accepting submissions for this prompt as it is not part of an active contest. Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy Prompts account.

Or create a new Reedsy account:

Why not check out our active contest?

✍️ 62 stories

“Echoes of Madness” by J.B. Redel

Submitted to Contest #246

TRIGGER WARNING: This story contains mentions of the following:Physical violence, gore, and abuseSuicide or self-harmMental health “Well, this is clearly haunted.” “Mikail!” Katlynn reached around her husband’s back to lightly whack her son on the back of his head. “Knock that off.” “Momma,” Kalli called from where she stood next to the van, her tiny arms wrapped tightly around Lucky’s neck. The poor golden retriever was dying to run around and explore, yet stood dutifully still to allow the six-year-old to cling to her for support. “Is it ...

2 comments 2

Read story

“The Skirmish Near Marbury” by Luca King Greek

Submitted to Contest #246

Content warning: contains themes of racism.“No agenda, just human interest”, said the managing editor before dispatching Andrew to the heart of England.Andrew was Black, so there was always an agenda. “The American Civil war, right?”, said Andrew, who thought he’d mis-heard.“That’s right”, said the editor, a gruff direct man with a deeply suppressed sense of humor, “Not Cromwell, but Robert E. Lee; zealots, both”.“Will you issue me a musket?” said Andrew.“Funny” said the editor.+++The Civil War re-enactment was taking place in Marb...

9 comments 9

Read story

“Striker” by Bahadrhan Cicek

Submitted to Contest #246

They gathered as usual and started to play, taking advantage of the empty stadium. As time passed, they felt the stadium starting to fill up. At first, they thought it was just the usual children waiting to play after them, but then they realized that the situation was different. The stadium was almost half full. The usual weekend events had turned into a real atmosphere this time. When they decided to leave the field, another team from the same age group offered to come and enjoy the atmosphere. Eight teams of five players each emerged. Th...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Dress to impress- A runway horror!” by Grace Meehan

Submitted to Contest #246

Imagine going to your friend's house to show each other your prom outfits, the chance of something bad happening is near to zero. But it's all fun and games until someone's life gets taken. It was all fun and games... It was soon to be the prom. After working hard at school all year, this was the time that everyone was waiting for. In preparation and with excitement, my friends came to my house to show each other our outfits. It was going to be an evening of glitz and glamour. Jasmine and Mia went to get ready. Jasmine, who I met at primary...

4 comments 4

Read story

“A TRUE RUSSIAN HERO” by Charles Corkery

Submitted to Contest #246

A TRUE RUSSIAN HERO The weather on this June day is glorious as he arrives for the hastily convened meeting of the Presidium and he, the most powerful man in the country, is in ebullient form as his chauffeur pulls into the courtyard. Those closest to him, the officers that he has personally nurtured and promoted, have never previously seen this smiling, tolerant side of their boss who, for so long, has been feared by so many but has, himself, privately, feared for his own life.But times have changed. Oh, how they have changed. Joesph Vissar...

2 comments 2

Read story

“Hide-and-Seek” by Brian Rohrig

Submitted to Contest #246

“It’s hide-and-seek, not hide-and-go-seek.” Gillian clenched her little fists into balls. Braylen was about to see the receiving end of those fists. The little brat. He enjoyed being difficult. “It’s hide-and-go-seek, dipwad. Once you hide, everybody goes and seeks you. You can’t seek if you don’t go.” Gillian put her hands on her hips. “You’re the dipwad, dipwad. Going is implied. You don’t need to include it in the name. It’s soccer, not go-and-play-soccer.” “Whatever, twattlebreath.” “Scumbucket.” “Barfbrain.” “Roachsucker.” The tra...

1 comment 1

Read story

“Roll a Double” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #246

The drive to the coast was too much. He could feel the weight of it on his shoulders and another part of it pressed obscenely into his forehead. He would have cried, but that option was not open to him – it lay in a faraway place and the distance of it hurt him. There was no release here, which flew in the face of why they had come. A long weekend away from the stress of the day-to-day. An escape from the dumb humdrum. The peculiar price paid for such an adventure was beyond any that he was willing to pay, but he would pay it all the same. P...

10 comments 10

Read story

“Criminal Mindreader” by Martha Kowalski

Submitted to Contest #246

“Yes, yes, your next job promotion is coming up, but you have to show your boss you’re up to the challenge,” I say, trying not to let the impatience creep into my voice. “Show that you can take charge on a team project to make big decisions and present yourself with style and confidence.” And it wouldn’t hurt to show up on time too, I think to myself, holding back an eyeroll. Mousy, so-insecure-she-has-to-ask-a-carnival-fortuneteller about her career opportunities and she even shows up late to this appointment – not to be rude...

4 comments 4

Read story

“Home Run for the Real Player” by Bob Faszczewski

Submitted to Contest #246

Stickball had provided some of the most enjoyable times of Harry’s youth. He used to step menacingly up to the manhole cover his gang used for home plate with his converted wooden broom handle waiting for Joey or one of his other pals to wind up and let loose the perfect pitch. Then he would get a real piece of it and send the rubber ball flying down the block as he rounded the bases. He’d first touch the front door handle of his dad’s ‘57 Chevy, then the tip of the fire ...

4 comments 4

Read story

“The Game Became Serious” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #246

The Game Became Serious They were two teenage Canadian boys who had moved into the deep south of Oklahoma in order for their father to get a new job that paid way more than the work he did previously. It was difficult for the boys to fit in, as their way of speaking was different from that of the locals, and they were big fans of hockey, and no other sport. There was no one they could talk to about their favourite sport. Concerning the latter, they had taken apart two...

4 comments 4

Read story

“Prince Charming” by G S Martin

Submitted to Contest #246

PRINCE CHARMING g s martin 1955 Los Angeles, California. Millions of V8s spewing second-hand petrol. Leaded gas weather. Every morning, I watch the smog fill the LA basin. It looks like that picture Granny showed me of a dust storm. Smog is bad. When the brown wave gets here, breathing hurts. Like poison gas. Sometimes, the Santa Ana winds blow the smog out to sea. When that happens, the sky turns blue. There is no wind today. I just turned four. I stay at Miss Fleurette's Nursery School while my mom wraps...

4 comments 4

Read story

“Echos of Fear” by Skye Covington

Submitted to Contest #246

Echoes Of FearIn the heart of Westbury, where the woods whispered secrets and the stars winked knowingly, I, Kate, stood on the brink of my 19th birthday, surrounded by my closest friends. Emma's excitement was contagious, Ryan's jokes brought laughter, Sarah's quiet creativity added depth, Alex's melodies filled the air, and then there was Lucas, the one who held a piece of my heart.As we gathered around the crackling fire, the warmth of friendship enveloped us, yet I couldn't shake the nervous flutter in my stomach. Lucas sat beside me, hi...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Enter the Shadowlands” by Jakob Roy

Submitted to Contest #246

Edward Crane stood in the stone frame of a high arching window, his too pale hands pressed against the cool glass. His world, the real world, had a sky bright and blue, crowned by a sun burning yellow. But here, the sky was a constant and unchanging shade of stormy gray, the sun itself a pale, dim thing, offering only the faintest illumination to the dead fields and thin forests of leafless, bone-white trees below. And though there was a strange, haunting beauty to this cold world, he had neither the interest nor the concentration to pay it ...

1 comment 1

Read story

“The Girl On the Bridge” by Carissa Cherrington

Submitted to Contest #246

CW: Death of a teenager It was July, and the summer sun had beaten Silver Falls and all its inhabitants into a sticky, languid submission. The town was filled with the drone of fans and rattling old swamp coolers. Children lived perpetually in shorts and bathing suits, trying to eat popsicles before they could melt and darting through sprinklers to wash away the rainbow carnage on their faces and fingers when they weren't fast enough. The days crawled snail-like into weeks, even time seeming to have decided it wasn't worth the effort to br...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Sewer Pipe Village” by Robert Pyke

Submitted to Contest #246

Dad raised Robbie sternly. Every man was sir or mister. And every man, whether as stern as Dad or as kindly as Uncle George, was to be obeyed without question. That was before Robbie’s evening in Sewer Pipe Village. Sewer Pipe Village was the name Dad gave a dozen giant concrete cylinders strewn in a clearing of scrub—cottonwood and sassafras—across the tracks from their home in Indian Hills. It was along the South Crick, a ditch really, part of a system to drain the swamps south of Lake Michigan, land far enough from the beach for steelwork...

10 comments 10

Read story

Load more stories

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story that includes the phrase “It’s all fun and games…”

Dialogue – 58 stories

Set your story in a playground: two characters are having a serious conversation while on the seesaw/in the jungle gym/on the swings.

Angst – 83 stories

Write a story about someone who takes a joke way too far.

Character – 26 stories

Write about a character who treats everything like a game and struggles to be serious when they most need to, or vice versa.

Character – 17 stories

Contest #246

Enter our weekly contest!

This week's theme: All Fun and Games

$250

Prize money

245

Contest entries

99

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 19, 2024 EST

Won by Sarah Coury 🏆

Title: Hearts Are Trump

View details

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

We'll send you 5 prompts each week. Respond with your short story and you could win $250!

Menu

CONNECT

BLOG

APPS

TOOLS

ABOUT

Write a story about someone participating in a seemingly innocent game that suddenly takes a turn.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 62 stories

“Echoes of Madness” by J.B. Redel

“The Skirmish Near Marbury” by Luca King Greek

“Striker” by Bahadrhan Cicek

“Dress to impress- A runway horror!” by Grace Meehan

“A TRUE RUSSIAN HERO” by Charles Corkery

“Hide-and-Seek” by Brian Rohrig

“Roll a Double” by Jed Cope

“Criminal Mindreader” by Martha Kowalski

“Home Run for the Real Player” by Bob Faszczewski

“The Game Became Serious” by John Steckley

“Prince Charming” by G S Martin

“Echos of Fear” by Skye Covington

“Enter the Shadowlands” by Jakob Roy

“The Girl On the Bridge” by Carissa Cherrington

“Sewer Pipe Village” by Robert Pyke

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story that includes the phrase “It’s all fun and games…”

Set your story in a playground: two characters are having a serious conversation while on the seesaw/in the jungle gym/on the swings.

Write a story about someone who takes a joke way too far.

Write about a character who treats everything like a game and struggles to be serious when they most need to, or vice versa.

Contest #246

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

245

Contest entries

99

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: