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

Posted in Dialogue on Jul 12, 2024

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✍️ 83 stories

“You Think You Know Someone” by Stephen Massa

Submitted to Contest #259

Today was the day I was dreading for over fifty years. I never wanted it to happen, and yet here we are. I’m driving up to Bearsville from my little corner of New York City, from a borough you may have heard of called Brooklyn, from a neighborhood called Park Slope that you probably haven’t. Three hours (and two minutes, but who’s counting?) of my life I can’t get back. I was forced to spend three hours (and two minutes) listening to staticky radio since I forgot to pay my satellite radio bill. Perhaps forgetting is too forgiving a term - I ...

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“A Dish Served Cold ” by Arianna Noelle

Submitted to Contest #259

My coffee cup shakes as I pick it up, readily giving away my unspoken sense of unease like an innocent bystander pointing out the precise location of a hit-and-run (“right over here, Officer, look!”). I steady my cup as best I can before taking a generous gulp of the bitter liquid. “This isn’t going to be pretty,” I think as I watch my Uncle John (no, not the one I used to pick blueberries with on the family farm growing up, but the other one. The Uncle John who spent most of his twenties doing hard time for a situation that no one ever had ...

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“Who Am I?” by Jennifer Lafferty

Submitted to Contest #259

The American woman would never forget how she felt when she woke up that morning in an unfamiliar room and looked out the window to see the Eiffel Tower outside. She was sure there was no good reason for her to have suddenly traveled to Paris. What had happened to prompt this trip? Why couldn’t she remember? She got up and opened the door. Looking out into the hall at the numbers on the doors and the elevator, it was obvious that she was in a hotel, as she had suspected, but she didn’t know which one. The name must be written on something in...

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“Beneath the Moonlit Veil” by Jonathan Chen

Submitted to Contest #259

The small town of Pinebrook hummed with the life of its annual fair. Strings of colorful lights blinked overhead, casting playful glows on the faces of children running with cotton candy in hand. The air buzzed with laughter and chatter, blending with the occasional whirr of a ride or the pop of a balloon. Yet, amidst the cheerful chaos, a sense of unease lingered.Near the edge of the fair, a group of teenagers gathered, their faces flickering in the light of a nearby bonfire. Lucy Branson, her eyes wide with a mix of fear and excitement, le...

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“Who You Gonna Call? Not Us, Please” by Natalie Vicari

Submitted to Contest #259

(The asylum mentioned in this story, Larundel, was a real asylum in Melbourne, Australia. The story of the main character's mum visiting is a true story of my mum, aunty, cousin and myself going to Larundel in 1997 when I was a year old) My best friends have come up with some absolutely ridiculous activities and pranks in the past, but this might just be the dumbest one yet.Our friendship group has been a steady constant in my life since we were all 10 years old. In Grade 4, my parents separated and as a result, my mum, older brother and mys...

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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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“Motility” by David Only On VHS Butcher

Submitted to Contest #259

MOTILITYBy Ives Pisgah The gray skies kept darkening like rain was imminent. MacMoses breathed in deeply the brutally crisp and arid November afternoon air, and set out of the family hovel to see about finding an automatic tear duct pump. “Mo!” his mother wheeled to the doorway of the ground-home, leaning forward in her chair and gesturing in lively thrusts with her upturned palms. “It’s too late in the day to head out-especially for a part! You’ll never get back in time for supper!” In annoyance MacMoses squeezed the walking stic...

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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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“Coffee Shop Sweats” by Kara Slater

Submitted to Contest #259

Standing in what feels like the longest ever line, the smell of coffee lingering in the air, I feel my pits start to sweat. Impatiently I ask the person in front of me “how long have you been here?”They respond with “Too long, I don't get what’s going on. Seems like everyone is getting their own special spa treatment while they also get their coffee.”Ugh. I have too much going on today to take this long but a morning without my coffee from Jones’ seems like the wrong way to start my day. I’m here every morning and I have never seen it t...

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“The Niche In The Bathroom Wall” by David Lim

Submitted to Contest #259

Trigger warning: voyeurism, body shaming “…what on earth are all of you doing?” There were six of them, crowded against each other in a sea of pulsating, twitching black and brown, craning their heads to peer out of the narrow niche in the corners onto the sight below. And then there were two of us, the “scouts” as the colony would call us, emerging from our nest to look for these six runaways. Life was hard for all of us. We had to look out for each other. If any of us ran away, he might emerge dead in the form of a flattened co...

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“The Elephant In the Room” by Endangered Artifacts

Submitted to Contest #259

Clowns flew, arms outstretched, red cones with white polka-dots tumbling from their heads. Screams were heard as dust clouds blinded sweaty workers, running into each other as girls in sequined tutus chased after skittish horses painted green.“Get him under control!” a voice boomed. “Do whatever it takes!” Expletives flew, just like clowns.“I swear! This should’ve been taken care of long ago!” Big Joe took long, deliberate steps to his trailer and flung open the door.Some gathered near the trailer to see what he would do. Dust clouds co...

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“A Clash” by Joshua Kim

Submitted to Contest #259

A Clash In ages before us, we see that when there was a clash of ideas, fighting ensued. Of course, in our age, that is not something that is absent. However, that is not to say that something else has been added: Awkwardness. Said awkwardness was the result of miscommunication and keeping things to themselves, but no more. Someone, who was elderly spoke up, and his words provide a sort of relief, if not icebreaking of the atmosphere to provide a type of progress: “Is nobody going to say it?” The party involved looked up to the elder, who lo...

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“THE YESTERDAY OF TOMORROW” by David D'EttoreUser

Submitted to Contest #259

THE YESTERDAY OF TOMORROW I hate that everything I cherish and have experienced will be erased when I die. I’m seventy-five years old. I have lived longer than I have left to live. Most of the time, I don’t think about it. Yet, there are other times when I dwell on it with an uneasy fear that there are things I will never do again. The frailty of the human mind is an enemy of the soul. The sun had found its way through the half-open drapes, bringing a sliver of brightness into the room. There was a knock at the door. I put on my coat and st...

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“For Those Who Are (Not) in Love” by Cheyenne Burgess

Submitted to Contest #259

Elizabeth settled beside her sister into the worn cushions of her best friend's couch. They exchanged a nervous glance. Across the small living room sat their long-time friend, Kate, alongside a distant family friend of hers. In place of the usual chittering banter between the three young women, there was dense, uncomfortable silence. Elizabeth perched at the edge of the cushion, hands folded in her lap, staring at the square of sunlight that projected from the window onto the thick red carpet. Her sister, Emma, rested her head on a fist wit...

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

Submissions are closed

✍️ 83 stories

“You Think You Know Someone” by Stephen Massa

“A Dish Served Cold ” by Arianna Noelle

“Who Am I?” by Jennifer Lafferty

“Beneath the Moonlit Veil” by Jonathan Chen

“Who You Gonna Call? Not Us, Please” by Natalie Vicari

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

“Motility” by David Only On VHS Butcher

“The Death of the Mayor” by Brooke Lee

“Coffee Shop Sweats” by Kara Slater

“The Niche In The Bathroom Wall” by David Lim

“The Elephant In the Room” by Endangered Artifacts

“A Clash” by Joshua Kim

“THE YESTERDAY OF TOMORROW” by David D'EttoreUser

“For Those Who Are (Not) in Love” by Cheyenne Burgess

“Yellow” by Helen Vidrine

🌟 Similar prompts

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

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

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.

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

Contest #259

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

296

Contest entries

143

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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