Write a story about a child overhearing something they don’t understand.

Posted in Kids on May 10, 2024

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✍️ 62 stories

“The Forty Million Dollar Kid” by Levi Michael

Submitted to Contest #250

A caressing spring breeze carried the sweet aroma of the short-lived wisteria bloom through the garden patio in soft wafts, mingling with the scents of lavender and thyme and rose petal. Hummingbirds zipped in and out, flashing their red or blue or green bellies. The buzz of their tiny wings passing in loping drones over the distant laughter of children playing in the park.I sat in the cool dappled shade of the great oak, taking in deep breaths of the perfect spring day. The cubes in my iced tea tinkled against the glass like frozen raindrop...

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“Sunday School” by Karalee Ratliff

Submitted to Contest #250

“Pete, I don’t want to go back to Sunday School. Can you tell mom that I don’t want to go?” “Why don’t you want to go back to Sunday school Andy?" “I just don’t. They are starting to get creepy and gross. I just don’t want to go. You gonna help me or what?” “Andy, I am telling you. There is NO way mom is going to allow you to not go to Sunday school. You are going … you might as well just get used to it. Unless you can tell why and being creepy and gross is not going to work. Mom is going to want to know reasons.” Andy shrugged his shoulders...

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“The Lady in the red dress” by Clare Horwood

Submitted to Contest #250

A young girl in a white dress with a black paper doll pattern on it looked down from the branch of an oak tree. She was sitting very carefully on the branch as she didn’t want to get her dress dirty. Mummy would be cross and besides she didn’t want to alert anyone to her presence up in the tree. Down below her mother’s cocktail party was taking place. She knew she was supposed to be in bed but she wasn’t tired and she was mesmerised by the lady in the red dress.This lady was her aunt. She was beautiful, extremely stylish and superbly e...

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“The Benefit of Hindsight” by Rubekkah Estero

Submitted to Contest #250

I have just had the most interesting week of my life. Not many people can say they’ve spent the week hiding from someone who wants to kill them, can they? I thought schools were meant to be safe places, and principals were meant to be people you could trust. Wrong. I haven’t made it to eight and a half years old without some survival instincts. For example, I can climb over the balcony of our first-floor council flat, and down to the ground, using only the drainpipe. That has come in handy when Dad tells me to ...

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“Rules for Speaking to Trees” by Clare Zicari

Submitted to Contest #250

Later, the one thing Paul remembers for certain is that Martin told him how glue was made the same day he died. “They pull the stuffing out of racing horses and melt it down and mix it all up with honey,” his brother said. “That’s why it dries quick and smells just a little bit sweet.” It was a hot day in June, not quite summer but long after the duck eggs they’d found hatched, and Paul followed Martin out into the woods. “But what happens to the horses?” Paul wanted to know. He liked horses. They were large and he was a little bit afraid of...

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“Pop!” by Lena M

Submitted to Contest #250

One sunny afternoon, as spring was fading into summer, Lydia was outside playing a game of hide and seek. She loved hide and seek so much. That’s when she heard something that she just couldn't get out of her head. She was crouched down in the perfect hiding place, a huge gardenia bush blocking her from being found by her older brother Latham. Next to the gardenia was a cozy little bench where the grownups rested and sometimes gossiped. Today her mother sat there with her friend and neighbor, Catherine. Upon hearing her aunt's name, Ly...

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“For Martha ” by Darcy Bray

Submitted to Contest #250

Nichal made his way back onto his feet after taking a nasty fall off his bicycle. He brushed off his bloody knee and caught his breath. He felt a small trickle of blood falling down his forehead. But all of this was the least of his worries. The reason he had fallen off his bicycle to begin with was a horror. How could he make sense of any of which he had just heard. Martha, Nical’s sister had a sense of grace. She had not wear rouge or other face paints. She had a natural beauty. Long locks of caramel hair pulled back with a...

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“the son of a married man” by Skyler Vander

Submitted to Contest #250

She, a prostitute, an outlaw rejected by society. He, a writer, an orphan, a kind man who aids society to the best of his capabilities. They are connected by one.After spending a rough night with a disgrace of a man, she is thrown onto the bridge, left bruised, bleeding, and paid 6 gold coins. He, on an evening stroll, admires the houses and beauty of his town in the dark, pale, moon light, accompanied by some lamps that decorate the streets. He sees her frail body splayed over the pavement. He steps closer, curiosity and worr...

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“The Reluctant Bride” by Kim Meyers

Submitted to Contest #250

“You understand how difficult it has been since Catherine’s passing. It hurts my pride to admit this, but I miss being a kept man. At least when your beloved Althea passed your children were grown”, says Lord Reginald. “Reginald, my friend, do not forget, my youngest is the same age as your Alfred. And she has no older sisters to mentor her into womanhood”, retorts Lord Cornelius. “Yes, yes, of course you are right. A beautiful creature she is too, although she always seems to be scampering about and getting underfoot. It is very...

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“Bouncing Ball” by Ralph Emery Barhydt

Submitted to Contest #250

Bouncing Ball “Jimmy, Jimmy, get over here. Sit here with Mom, Terry and me and watch this incredible sunset. Of course, Jimmy being 17 and a senior in high school, had little interest in the sunset. He was too busy trying to catch a fish with his hands in the fast-moving little stream next to the cabin on Pike’s Peak. It was the last day of their vacation and he still had not caught a fish. He didn’t want to spend time with his little sister who was blind, but heard everything Terrence and Marlene were sitting comfortably in the lawn chairs...

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“Unfamiliar Experience ” by Stephaney Green

Submitted to Contest #250

Chapter 1: Started at SchoolNine-year-old Ava woke up worried and unsettled. She hurried to rush off to school that she loved alot just to ease some of the pain. She adored her teacher, Mrs. Brown, and enjoyed interacting with her friends during recess. But today just did not feel right. Today, Ava was in trouble. She was sent to the principal’s office where she sat, her feet dangling off the chair, staring at her muddied shoes. Peering over to the student who sat near her."Ava," Principal Childs exclaimed, his voice gentle but firm, "You ma...

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“Origins of a Life Story” by Clay Huston

Submitted to Contest #250

Content warning: This story contains depictions of substance abuse and domestic violence.—————-Max’s eyes shoot open. His room is dark, except for a light from outside that is flashing against the Star Wars wallpaper of his bedroom wall. On, off. On, off. On, off. The Millennium Falcon appears, then disappears with every flash. A horn sounds at a rhythmic pace. Beep, beep, beep, beep.He rolls over and peeks out the top pane of his first-story bedroom window. Outside, illuminated by the lights of a rusty, crew-cab Ford pickup, is Max’s dad, D...

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“Sanctuary ” by Ben Ebert

Submitted to Contest #250

“Captain Charles Vane will be victorious!” The boy cheered as he held up a large toy ship finely made from wood. His Father looked to him, and frowned, as they played joyously in the boy's room. A large King-size bed, fine linen sheets, filled with wooden horses and dolls made from cotton. Some moonlight shone from a large balcony that opened to a beach of water that met with the chaotic sea. “Charles Vane is a brute Edward, you know this.” His Father told him. Edward was taken a little back. “He travels the sea, he wins battles.” Edward ret...

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“Whispers in the Shadows” by Kenan Kadic

Submitted to Contest #250

The small village of Suceska nestled in the verdant valleys of eastern Bosnia seemed a world away from the chaos of war that had engulfed the region. The sky was often a brilliant blue, dotted with cottony clouds, and the air smelled of pine and earth. For ten-year-old Alija, life revolved around simple joys—playing with his friends, attending school, and helping his father in their modest garden. It was early autumn, and the leaves were beginning to turn hues of amber and gold. Alija loved this time of year, when the crispness of the air pr...

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“Just My Imagination” by Jermaine Packer

Submitted to Contest #250

(Based on a true story) The routine morning music penetrated through the sheetrock as the wall between the adjoining bathrooms held no secrets. Andrew turned off the shower water as he bobbed his head to music that was penned years before he floated in the sea hidden inside his mother. As he erased the waters from his skin, he closed his eyes for a moment as he imagined himself back in time dancing to the sweet melodies of the Motown empire. He considered that music to be pure, and would let it penetrate his soul over any modern beat. But h...

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Write a story about a child overhearing something they don’t understand.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 62 stories

“The Forty Million Dollar Kid” by Levi Michael

“Sunday School” by Karalee Ratliff

“The Lady in the red dress” by Clare Horwood

“The Benefit of Hindsight” by Rubekkah Estero

“Rules for Speaking to Trees” by Clare Zicari

“Pop!” by Lena M

“For Martha ” by Darcy Bray

“the son of a married man” by Skyler Vander

“The Reluctant Bride” by Kim Meyers

“Bouncing Ball” by Ralph Emery Barhydt

“Unfamiliar Experience ” by Stephaney Green

“Origins of a Life Story” by Clay Huston

“Sanctuary ” by Ben Ebert

“Whispers in the Shadows” by Kenan Kadic

“Just My Imagination” by Jermaine Packer

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story in which someone is afraid of being overheard.

Write a story in which someone can only hear one side of a conversation and must piece together the meaning of what they’ve heard.

A character overhears something at a black-tie event that puts the night in jeopardy.

Your teacher tasks you with writing a story based on an eavesdropped conversation. When the story is published, your subject isn’t happy.

Contest #250

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

229

Contest entries

107

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: