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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write a story that hides something from the reader until the end.

Posted in Dramatic on Oct 18, 2024

Submissions are closed

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✍️ 113 stories

“Secret Expectations” by Jill Piantedosi

Submitted to Contest #273

Gazing into the silent corners of his bookshelf, Howard sat anchored to his armchair. His parlor resembled a bookstore café with its walls of books and newsprint strewn across the mahogany table. The rows of books, lined up like soldiers, quieted his mind. He took pleasure in their company; the titles leaping out at him, consuming his thoughts. He felt refreshed and expanded as he arranged and rearranged each classic in his mind. He was like an old sail endowed with life, waiting patiently for Sam to arrive. Howard aspired to ...

2 comments 2
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“Screens” by Renata Paschoal

Submitted to Contest #273

Her neck arteries hammered in her throat as panic rose. She was sure she had been followed. But by whom? She was an average Jane—plump, with brown hair and eyes. Maybe she had lost it for good. Probably, it was all in her head.  As soon as the garage door closed, her pulse began to rebalance. Phew! “I’ll watch Succession,” she mumbled. Brian Cox’s acting was so mesmerizing that she couldn’t think or do anything else. Her body barely changed positions in the comfort of her recliner. Like every Wednesday morning, the bell rang, and the ca...

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“Ruins of the Past” by D.C. Wright

Submitted to Contest #273

         George slammed the trunk on his ’45 Cadillac Fleetwood, wishing that the rest of his life could be closed with the same force.                 “I don’t want to do this anymore.” He complained, turning around, to glower at Annie.                 “Ain’t nobody keepen you here, but the Good Lord and your vows. You decide tha...

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“~ Paranoia ~” by Jim Parker

Submitted to Contest #273

~ Paranoia ~            “It is August 13, 2023.”“I have been sleeping poorly for a quite a while now. I’m either tossing and turning with insomnia or having bizarre dreams night after night. My wife is worried and gave me a smart watch. She says it has a GPS in it so she can find me anytime, anywhere, like a lost poodle I guess. Seems a bit condescending. But the watch is also a recorder. She insisted I start keeping a sleep journal. I think it’s a waste of time, but she’s pretty smart a...

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“Echoes of Reality” by Reese Rehbein

Submitted to Contest #273

Journal Entry: March 15 The rain had just begun to fall, a light drizzle that painted the city streets with a glossy sheen. I walked down the narrow alley, the distant hum of traffic muffled by the enclosing brick walls. My footsteps echoed softly, but they weren't the only ones. I sensed a presence behind me—a figure keeping pace, shadows melding with shadows. I glanced over my shoulder. A silhouette lingered at the edge of a flickering streetlamp's glow, features obscured by a hood pulled low. My heart quickened. Were they following me? In...

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“Hiring: Cashier.” by Gwen Hey

Submitted to Contest #273

At first it seemed normal. The job posting had been in the newspaper for a few weeks by the time I picked up the phone, and the man who answered had done a great job at sounding like the average uninterested boss interviewing someone he wasn’t going to call back.Even after my first few days I thought it was fine, until I noticed the shuffling of feet behind me late one night. I ran, I’m not ashamed to say, and convinced myself that I was just spooked by the quiet darkness that I was growing to expect at the end of my shift.When I closed the ...

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“Those Green Eyes” by Journey Freeman

Submitted to Contest #273

“I love this one! We needa buy these before they sell out! He’s going to look like such a fly-guy!”He chuckled to himself. His pointer finger guiding the baby t-shirt and matching shorts guaranteed unfit for the body of a newborn into the digital cart.“Thank God, we have Prime babe! That 2-day shipping is everything.”With all of me, I loosened the tightened corners of lips relaxing my dark brown eyebrows from their furrowed union. Like usual he was so elated and engulfed by his own fairy-tale of fatherhood that he failed to notice my sheer d...

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“Yellow” by Christee Fontanez

Submitted to Contest #273

Allison steps out of her house and smiles at the crispness of the late morning air. Her brown hair pulled back with a navy scrunchy. Red lipstick and a pair of chunky, white headphones that blue tooth to her phone. It’s her favorite time of year. Fall in the Appalachians is the best place in the world to live. Chilly days with the full sun shining on her face. She likes to think it’s her mother looking down on her from Heaven.She’s headed to the Apple Harvest Fall Festival in a nearby town; the one her mother used to take her to when she was...

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“Crazy Town” by Katy Dream

Submitted to Contest #273

To the outside observer, it very much appeared to be a normal office setting.  Office machines running, phone calls ringing at desks, computer keys being tapped, and copy machines spewing forth productive yet seemingly important documents all noticed by visitors stopping by.     To those entrenched in the environment, they knew the truth.  They knew what dangers lurked beneath the surface of this façade of normalcy.  Any moment all that seemed sane, all that looked normal would erupt into wild erratic behav...

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“A Walk Among Shadows” by CJ Music

Submitted to Contest #273

Trigger warning (also spoilers): This story contains themes and content related to death, loss, and emotional distress. Readers who are sensitive to these topics may want to proceed with caution or consider whether they feel comfortable reading. Your well-being is important, and it’s okay to skip this story if needed. Thanks! A Walk Among Shadows You wake up at 9 am. The sun’s already shining and brimming with joy, and the birds, sitting on the windowsill and singing songs of gay and innocence, fly away as you climb out of your bed and wa...

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“Crossing Paths” by Linda Dennis

Submitted to Contest #273

She was the center of attention, as usual. Standing at the back of the candlelit room, she looked spectacular. Black dress and diamond necklace. Her wavy blonde hair was caressing her shoulders. I looked across the dining room where about 75 tables were set up for the event. Groaning under my breath, I glanced at the group sitting at the table with me. Did any of them notice her yet? Belle warned me months ago that if I ever showed up at an event she was at, she’d embarrass me. I shifted in my chair to turn my face away from her line of visi...

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“Things of the Past” by Tucker Sloan

Submitted to Contest #273

Things of the Past            Dried apricots were her favorite, but ever since the surgery- she could not eat them. This made Clarissa sad. She was jealous of her friends who could eat everything they wanted. Clarissa was not that lucky. Clarissa had five teeth pulled, and her partial dentures barely helped her eat the foods she loved. For Clarissa, dried apricots became a thing of the past, and she soon forgot about them.           &nb...

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“WALK THE TALK” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #273

Looking out the window from the tiny rented bungalow and seeing the tail lights fade out of sight, was a good moment to end the day. Jack drew a well deserved breath of relief. Time to contemplate the moment that he put off long ago. Hopefully, he would wake up and smell the coffee or bacon or both. Jack grinned, knowingsoon enough the breakfast bell would ring. But right now, it was the midnight hour and his mind was still in a whirl. It began just last week when a wait server position showed up on a written note someone tucked into his ja...

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“A Truth Unfolded” by Stephen Tascione

Submitted to Contest #273

 Russell and Mary Jo had been friends for many years. They met over thirty years as next-door neighbors. Russell and his wife, April, had moved into their single home about a year prior to Mary Jo and her husband Sid. They were both of similar age, childless, and soon became fast friends. Sid played guitar and was a member of a group. Mary Jo was a singer, and sometimes played gigs with her husband, mainly birthday parties, group gatherings, small weddings.  She was the most outgoing of the two. H...

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“The Detective” by William Fowler

Submitted to Contest #273

Josh had recently transferred to his new precinct as a homicide detective. He was partnered with an older senior detective that was near the end of his long career.Mark was a twenty five year veteran and had seen more then his fair share of senseless violence in this dark and cold city. He had long ago lost his positive thinking and sense of hope. Now it was just on to the next case.Mark was not happy being assigned a rookie detective in Josh as a partner. As they arrived to the crime scene, Mark lit a cigarette as they exited their unm...

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Contest #273

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Ended on 23:59 - Oct 25, 2024 EST

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Title: Venus Buried

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