Write a story where someone’s paranoia is justified.

Posted in Mystery on Jan 20, 2023

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✍️ 78 stories

“Paranoia or Fear – what’s worse?” by Valerie Preston

Submitted to Contest #182

‘What was that?’ she said to herself. Her breathing was getting quicker and the loud noise was reverberating in her head. She tried to breathe quietly but couldn’t. ‘Should I get up and go and look or just stay here? If I just lie still, I’m a sitting duck, or maybe a lying duck but I don’t want to go downstairs. What should I do?’ Vera felt like crying but knew that wouldn’t help. Vera lay in her bed for a couple of seconds more, just listening. She must have been straining her neck because her throat was hurting so she relaxed momentaril...

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“I CAN SEE YOU LOSE YOUR MIND” by R. J. Garron

Submitted to Contest #182

The skyline arched from the ground all the way up to spear the sky. The afternoon sun blazed its ivory crown over a cityscape of spires, needles and transport lattices, topping them with a creamy glare. Tiny specks of airborne thru-lanes thronged the high tiers far above and near-surface pedways below. Tariel swiveled his eyes up and down as he glanced through the lensed windows, searching for a momentary escape from the escalating anxiety wracking his conscience.“So,” the tone of the city Commissioner pierced the room, “tell ...

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“Clueless” by Sophie F

Submitted to Contest #182

I am well aware of my paranoia. I’ve always known that I was overly cautious, when I was peeking around the corner before exiting my room or questioning the teachers when they were trying to help me. But now, no one can tell me that I’m being dramatic or being paranoid. They cannot deny the fact that there IS somebody following me and somebody plotting my demise. The past few months, something has been off. At first, I would just hear footsteps behind me when walking around at night. I never saw anyone, but I could sense another presence...

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“No Good Deed . . . ” by Marguerite Schneider

Submitted to Contest #182

No Good Deed . . . By Marguerite Schneider "This story is a fictionalized composite of several work experiences. Names and identifying features of characters have been changed to protect their identity, as has the organizational setting and context. Any resemblance to actual persons, events or organizations is purely coincidental." A new Vice President of Customer Service (VP CS) was appointed at OMEGA Corporation, a major IT firm headquartered in NYC that had the deserved reputation for being a Darwinian workplace. &nbsp...

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“Only Paranoia If You Are Wrong” by Kathleen Hair

Submitted to Contest #182

The three most common things you’ll hear about from a Houstonian, the traffic is some of the worst in the country, the heat (enough said), and oil is king.The traffic had already built up after lunch assuring that my super short walk home would double at this time of day. The joint in my pocket was figuratively burning a hole in my pocket for how badly I wanted to relax, so I posted up beneath a tree and fished around in my pockets for a lighter.“No way man, really?”I’d scoped the area out before I sat beneath this line of trees separating t...

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“Crush” by Tyhesia Watson

Submitted to Contest #182

(Trigger Warnings: Explicit Language And Stalking) "Hey Bryan" I jumped as Nick called out to me before rolling over to my cuticle, “You good man?” “Yeah, I’m good.” We talked and did some work for a while until the elevator dinged and the swarm of employees came into the area and started getting ready for the day. With those employees came the feeling of being watched. I look around the room once but shook off the feeling. It may just be one of my managers about to get onto me about something. As time passes the managers never said anythin...

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“Afternoon Plans Have Changed” by DEBORAH CLARK

Submitted to Contest #182

Dick was elated when he dropped off his daughter, little Nell at a birthday party, it had been a while since he felt comfortable leaving her someplace. Now he had a child-free Saturday afternoon filled with endless possibilities. Maybe some woodworking in the shed, maybe the latest John Grisham novel, but the thought of a cup of tea and a soccer game appealed to him the most. Dick unlocked both locks on the front door, then put the code in to turn off the alarm. As he w...

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“The Deceiving Machine” by Vincent Paiement Désilets

Submitted to Contest #182

I'm watching the night's footage from the camera I had to install, contributing to global surveillance, because someone's been stealing my packages, and I see the shady creep dressed in black who's been roaming in front of my block for days shoot some guy in the head, look up at the camera, haul the corpse in a black car and drive away. This morning, there was no package on the balcony, but faint mud traces leading to my door. Can’t be me, I haven’t left my apartment in weeks, order everything online. Don’t even go to work anymore. My assho...

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“Bobby Carter's Crimes” by Stephanie DeVries

Submitted to Contest #182

BOBBY CARTER’S CRIMES “Welcome to Shady Maple!” Maxine bellowed, extending her muscular, tattooed arms out toward the newest resident of the private women’s shelter, a tiny blonde wisp of a thing, barely half of Maxine’s formidable figure. “You must be Stella!” Stella silently followed Maxine to the sleeping quarters where some of the other women were camped out on their respective narrow beds. The shelter was always maxed out at 12 women, and Maxine was sure to remind Stella how lucky she was to have a spot for the next 90 days. ...

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“Tacos Interrupted” by Odile Glatz

Submitted to Contest #182

I am walking with my sister Molly to the local Tom Thumb grocery store for taco fixings. We offered to make dinner for our family today. I’m just a year older than Molly and a bit taller too. I’ve always been close with Molly, as we have so much in common. We love volleyball, and drama club, and spending time at home in the kitchen around the large island. We love to cook and bake, and Mexican cuisine is a favorite. We look like sisters, light brown hair and grey eyes. Well, Molly’s eyes are greenish in color. &...

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“The Plan” by Leanne Bosse

Submitted to Contest #182

The crimson red numbers glared at Sarah from across the bedroom, 11:45. “Come on Sarah! Get yourself together!” She frantically gave herself a pep talk to try and calm her nerves, but honestly, it only made things worse. Her hands shook uncontrollably while stuffing whatever clean clothes she could find into the old tattered military duffle bag. She had to hurry, only an hour before her plan would fall through. “God Sarah!’, she yelled in her head, “You’re insane! This will never work! He will find you, and then what? What will you...

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“Snake Eyes” by S.E Axe

Submitted to Contest #182

I am being watched. It is something that I long lived in denial of. Excusing it as some quirk of hereditary anxiety or an overactive imagination stifled by rural upbringing, but since returning to my childhood home denial feels like a luxury that I do not have the distance to continue affording. So, yes, I am being watched. I grew up in the western interior of Nebraska which I’m sure already brings a not inaccurate image to mind. Tiny home with a creaky floor and bad insulation, a beat-down silver Camry with a peeling “come and take it...

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“Trapped in a Game: How One's Suspicions Exposed a Galactic Conspiracy” by Nico Pengin

Submitted to Contest #182

Part 1: I've always been paranoid about the Unknown Blues. Even before I started playing Batey, I couldn't shake the feeling that they were hiding something from us. They came to Earth, saved us from certain doom, and then decided to keep us trapped inside their ship, Gibraltar, using us as entertainment in their twisted game, as this intellectual species was bored and needed to be entertained. At first, I was excited to be a part of the Batey league. It was a new, futuristic sport, and I was good at it. But as I played, I started to notic...

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“Between the Shoes” by Lieb E

Submitted to Contest #182

Quickly checking over his left shoulder he dashed to the entrance of his apartment and hastily took out his keys. Struggling to fit them into his lock his panic started rising. Counter-intuitively, this lowered his accuracy. Through the rising adrenaline, he finally managed to find the lock and he wiggled his keys around until he heard the relieving click of success. He pushed through the door and just as soon as he had slipped in he rammed it shut and re-locked it, hoping that anyone who tried to cheat the lock would struggle just as muc...

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“Memaw's delusion” by Tim Cummings

Submitted to Contest #182

One of my most terrifying tasks as a boy was “picking off a switch” for my grandmother. This is the situation in which a rambunctious and nerve-grinding eight-year-old boy, as was I, pushes his caretaker, his “memaw,” past her emotional limits to a point at which she demands to inflict corporal damage upon the child’s backside. I recall scanning both the large and small trees lining the yard, looking for perhaps the flimsiest and least harmful branch that I could pull from the trunk. Notably, memaw would watch my efforts and warn me that if ...

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Write a story where someone’s paranoia is justified.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 78 stories

“Paranoia or Fear – what’s worse?” by Valerie Preston

“I CAN SEE YOU LOSE YOUR MIND” by R. J. Garron

“Clueless” by Sophie F

“No Good Deed . . . ” by Marguerite Schneider

“Only Paranoia If You Are Wrong” by Kathleen Hair

“Crush” by Tyhesia Watson

“Afternoon Plans Have Changed” by DEBORAH CLARK

“The Deceiving Machine” by Vincent Paiement Désilets

“Bobby Carter's Crimes” by Stephanie DeVries

“Tacos Interrupted” by Odile Glatz

“The Plan” by Leanne Bosse

“Snake Eyes” by S.E Axe

“Trapped in a Game: How One's Suspicions Exposed a Galactic Conspiracy” by Nico Pengin

“Between the Shoes” by Lieb E

“Memaw's delusion” by Tim Cummings

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with a home alarm system going off.

Set your story in a society where everyone is constantly aware of unwanted surveillance.

Write about a character who wishes they could just disappear — and then they do.

Start your story with someone entering a taxi and saying ‘follow that car.’

Contest #182

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

237

Contest entries

154

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: