Write a story that takes place in the same building but in two very different time periods.

Posted in Historical Fiction on Jun 10, 2021

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✍️ 154 stories

“Blast From the Past” by Fenris Fyre

Submitted to Contest #85

Rebecca was thrilled about her new apartment. She was finally moving out of her parents’ house. It was about time too. She was 25 after all. She had finally found herself in a career that she loved as a freelance writer and photographer for the local newspaper. And she had finally published her first novel. Her dreams were coming true. To her, her life was almost perfect. &n...

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“Kabul” by Anastazia Rudolph

Submitted to Contest #85

We take shelter in the clay-brick building, in the center of the village. I follow along behind my mother, clutching the sleeve of her robes with one hand and carrying my baby sister in the crook of my other arm. I hear the sounds of horse hooves and shouting growing nearer as we descend down the carefully-cut stairs into the underground basement. The walls and floor are stained with blood – dried, but still a vibrant red against the dull brown surface. We take shelter in the clay-brick building, in the old part of the city. I follow along...

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“The Paris Building” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #85

Paris 1944 Paris is a city of dreams, but in 1944 Paris is a city being rebuilt. When the war ended Paris is a city devastated. Buildings are in ruins, the streets are lined with debris, but there is one building that stands tall and that is the Paris building. The Paris building is a magnificent building in the heart of Paris. It stands as the tallest residential building in Paris. Many families live in the Paris building and they all love it. Neighbors are kind to each other. Kids are friendly towards each other. They play together in th...

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“Luis Angel” by Kiki Abbi

Submitted to Contest #85

March 20191265 Willow Lane. That's where I live. It's where I've lived all my life. It's a really old building made in late 80's. It's brick surface, with white tilted floors and Beige walls.My family has lived in this big building for the past 40 years. My parents met here too. Mom and dad fell in love at age 15, had me 5 years after. Then my younger brother and sister."Luis!" my mom yells. "Luis Angel Garcia, come here now!" She yelled my full name.I curse in my head. That couldn’t be good. I roll my eyes, getting off my bed "Going!" I yel...

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“An Off Day” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #85

An Off Day - Ravi Srivastava After thirty years of working in India’s corporate sector, I called it quits and set up a consultancy service in partnership with a former colleague. The new enterprise flourished almost immediately, due to the fact that we had a set of very competent juniors. And so, both of us attended the office on alternate days, giving us plenty of time for leisure as well. On one of my off days, I decided to visit Ramgarh, a town close to where we lived. Ramgarh was where our family had lived when I was in school and colleg...

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“Lucie's Sacrifice” by Kaelianna Mcmillan

Submitted to Contest #85

The earth shuddered, shaking the house to its very foundation, dust raining from the ceiling and the wooden boards and plaster creaking like old, tired bones. Lucie clutched her doll closer to her chest, burying her fingers in it’s small braids of cornsilk hair, pressing her face against it, breathing in the scent of Mama’s spicy perfume, that still clung to the fine strands. Lucie wailed as the house shuddered again, plaster cracking with the force of the bombs that rained down on the city, like a storm of falling, catastrophic angels. Her ...

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“Intertwined Destinies” by Carole Cobos

Submitted to Contest #85

“My lady,” the gardener hissed, “you shouldn’t be doing that! You could get hurt.” Lady Rose lifted her gaze from the machete and shot Tolias an annoyed look. “If I didn’t know how to use one I wouldn’t have picked it up.” “Are you sure-” “Absolutely.” The noblewoman bent down and tied the twine tightly across the floor. She cut the remaining string and used it to bundle up her bags. To assure herself nothing would fall out. “You should leave the manor, Tolias. Lest you get more involved.” Tolias stuck out his weak whiskery chin,...

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“Perfect eyes” by Mia P

Submitted to Contest #85

(Vermont, 2018.)The air in the library was cool and fresh. It was like taking a big gulp of clean air compared to the temperature outside. Most kids would rather stay outside in the heat than come into the library. Nellie didn't understand why, though. It was the library, after all. The sole place you could lose yourself from reality in an adventure. For Nellie, at least."Ten more minutes, Nellie. Only ten." Nellie's mother called from the seating area or the library."Okay. If you need me, I'll be in the classics aisle." Nellie called back t...

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“The Old Man” by Tatiana Olin

Submitted to Contest #85

He built the house on the hill overlooking the town’s oldest cemetery. Red oak and what he didn’t know was the last of the American chestnuts from below the ridge line. Local limestone filled with fossils of the things that came long before us- the same stones that marked the graves of the poor in the cemetery below. He built the house hoping to begin something new, something clean, so he could start over- rebuild everything he had lost in the war. But he built the house next to a field of death so that he would never forget how he became a ...

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“The Nameless Bridge” by Kiel Ashe

Submitted to Contest #85

I love the sound of the metal deck as my untied shoes walk the path of the bridge in the middle of the night. The sea under it making a faint sound of its waves before hitting the shore calms my masked agony and the light cold breeze hitting my face making me breathe out a breath of serenity. Everything is different when it’s midnight in this bridge, I feel more connected with it than walking on the broad daylight to my dreadful job. &n...

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“Flat 92” by Clayton Turner

Submitted to Contest #85

He came up the elevator and exited into a hallway. To the right, through an entryway and to the left. It was easy enough to spot, the movers where busily carrying her boxes and containers inside. The heavy wooden door was propped open and the blue sign above that read simply “92” in white industrious numbers. She had moved to escape, he thought he had known what she was distancing herself from at the time. As he entered the flat, the energy present was calm, relaxed, and inviting. Nothing like the last one. He helped where he could. Placin...

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“Seeking Sanctuary” by Jenny White

Submitted to Contest #85

Music trickled through the closed windows, soft and jovial as the party-goers danced the night away. On the balcony, separated from the ball by ornate glass doors, Eliza pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders. Half-empty and abandoned, her goblet stood forgotten on the stone wall overlooking the grounds. Behind her, the French doors were pushed open and the butler joined her. He wasn't much older than her yet he bowed, low and respectful. "Milady," he said. "Please, it is cold tonight, come inside." "In a moment, Braeden." Eliza...

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“7-11” by Ashlyn Keener

Submitted to Contest #85

Amado lived in Tranquilo, New Mexico. His mother worked two jobs—one as a teaching assistant, the other as a clerk at 7-11. His father worked as a civil engineer in the city on the horizon, the one in which Tranquilo was the smallest of seven unincorporated districts. Their house was situated along the desert highway, a singular stretch of broken-up asphalt that ran from the Indian town in the east to the city in the west. There was a pothole on the westbound side shaped like a dead coyote. Amado could see it from his living room window by s...

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“CD890098” by Addam Goldman

Submitted to Contest #85

Ray leaned back in his computer chair, clutching his stomach as a blast of pain shot through his lower intestine. It lasted a moment, gone almost as soon as it came. He shook off the quick pang of fire with a shoulder shrug, not overly concerned over these brief flashes. Ray leaned back towards his desk and raced his pudgy fingers across the keyboard as he used his 100-words-per-minute expertise to pump out another email. He finished typing, let out a contented sigh, and smacked the enter button with a light pinkie flick. He rewarded himself...

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“The Golden Building” by Giulia S.

Submitted to Contest #85

People called it the golden building for its color during sunsets, when the sun gently caressed its glass windows and reflected off the rest of the city. It was the most important and historical newspaper of the city; the walls could tell amazing stories, that nobody could ever imagined. 1980 Harriet’s desk was at the second floor, cubicle number twenty-six: it was white, perfectly tidy, pen and pencils ordinately placed in the pen holder. It was decorated with one simple photo with her two nieces, Elena and Kiara. «Here she is, our repor...

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Write a story that takes place in the same building but in two very different time periods.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 154 stories

“Blast From the Past” by Fenris Fyre

“Kabul” by Anastazia Rudolph

“The Paris Building” by Melinda Madrigal

“Luis Angel” by Kiki Abbi

“An Off Day” by Ravi Srivastava

“Lucie's Sacrifice” by Kaelianna Mcmillan

“Intertwined Destinies” by Carole Cobos

“Perfect eyes” by Mia P

“The Old Man” by Tatiana Olin

“The Nameless Bridge” by Kiel Ashe

“Flat 92” by Clayton Turner

“Seeking Sanctuary” by Jenny White

“7-11” by Ashlyn Keener

“CD890098” by Addam Goldman

“The Golden Building” by Giulia S.

🌟 Similar prompts

Set your story in a major city that your character has a love-hate relationship with.

Start your story with the line, “That’s the thing about this city…”

Write about someone fighting to change their city neighborhood for the better.

Write about someone fighting to keep their city neighborhood the same.

Contest #85

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

671

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: