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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write about someone making a seemingly inconsequential decision, which goes on to have important consequences.

Posted in Narrative on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 153 stories

“The Umbrella Decision” by Chris Culpepper

Submitted to Contest #95

John sat in the car watching the wipers swish back and forth to their own rhythm. He had helped the last of his family to enter the building without getting wet. His mother and aunts appreciated his chivalry. Good thing he'd remembered his umbrella. He always kept it in his car now. It hadn't always been that way. He'd made plenty of "rain runs" as he called them. You know the type. You try to dodge the downpour because you didn't expect the sudden storm that came out of nowhere. He was never prepared before...before her. This...

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“A Most Disastrous Royal Wedding” by Carmen Friesen

Submitted to Contest #95

“We’ve narrowed it down to two options,” says my mother, beaming as though she’s prepared some delightful treat for me, “but we wanted you to have the final say.”“Well, that’s very considerate,” I say before I can stop myself. “I don’t get to choose whether I’m getting married, but at least I get to choose what to wear as I’m led to my death.”“Don’t be dramatic, Ziggy,” says my mother with a reprimanding frown. “A wedding is not a death sentence. It’s the happiest day of your life. Besides, you’re going to be a princess. It’s every girl’s dr...

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“The Night of Flames” by Dragon Tamer

Submitted to Contest #95

Torchlight flickered and bounced around the darkened alleyway, crouching down, Bobby steadied his breathing. Tonight is the night, he was finally going to have revenge on the townspeople for the wrongs they did to him. He was going to burn down their warehouse of flammable goods and weaponry, as well as destroy their ships, making them lose a huge chunk of their income. “You ready?” whispered his partner, Jonathan. “Yeah, let’s do this”   As Bobby and Jonathan hurtled down the street, keeping to the shadows, they looked around f...

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“Twelve Down” by Ian Mitchell

Submitted to Contest #95

It has been said that our futures are determined by the choices we make, and that fate’s whims can be decided by the smallest of things.  For want of a nail, the shoe was lost.  For want of the shoe, the horse was lost.  For want of the horse, the rider was lost.  For want of the rider, the battle was lost.  And for want of the battle, the war was lost.  All for a horseshoe nail. Most of us are unaware of the consequences of the choices we make.  In the proverb above, would even the most astute observers o...

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“Only You Know” by Michael McGee

Submitted to Contest #95

"You're finally awake."The young girl lay in her bed. The world around her was spinning. Her head was throbbing. She moved a cold hand to her forehead as she glanced around the room. A woman in white clothes stood to her left, a clipboard in her arms, a contempt smile upon her lips."How are you feeling?" the woman asked looking into her eyes with dark brown coloured ones."I...I don't..." the young girl stuttered as she tried to think."You don't remember?""I..."The woman beside her was still smiling, even when the girl turned away.“Don’t be a...

12 comments 12
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“A Pleasant Detour” by Jonathan-Ray Caranto

Submitted to Contest #95

The oak rocking chair creaked with age as I settled into it, the padded surfaces cushioning my old body. One day I’m gonna need help getting out of this, I chuckled to myself as I could almost feel my own bones squeak and grind in rhythm with the rocking. Whenever the grandkids visit, I almost forget about my age, feeding off their seemingly infinite youthful energy as they bounce around the house, chased after by my dear son and his wife.              “Come on now, Francis,”...

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“A Unicorn's Decision” by Tanya Humphreys

Submitted to Contest #95

Lawrence the unicorn was exhausted. He’d been traveling the continent searching for more of his kind. Finding even just one other of his kind would satisfy this great and heavy need.  He had roamed all the way down through Alaska to King Cove, then all the way north to Utqiagvik. He had made his weary way across the Northwest Territories to Nunavut, then down through every Canadian Province to the tip of Newfoundland, to a little town called Blanc Sablon. His coat grew as shaggy as the wild mountain horses of the vast ...

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“The Last Tale” by Евгения Птыц

Submitted to Contest #95

"All right, my friend. Let me tell you my last tale. In the world so immense and full of wonders as God created it, there was one tiny world located in one of the smallest corners of our planet. It lay just near the sea, but its inhabitants hardly ever approached the blue waters for they all were very busy human creatures. They loved to tell themselves they had some very important business to do making the planet a better place. In this world there was one little man who was blessed with a lot of bright power. It was so strong and glowing ...

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“What You Wish For” by John Robinson

Submitted to Contest #95

When the door opened, the early evening light of May spilled inside. The young man at the end of the bar squinted and sipped from his bottle of beer. He couldn't see who had entered for the multicolored fireworks crowding his eyes. The dots and blobs flickered in darkness once the door eased shut, square dancing to the honky-tonk peel from the replica jukebox: do-si-do, allemande left, home position. It was a well-dressed older gentleman who had found his way in from the world, the creases of his dark suit so sharp they could cut...

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“The Cost of Mercy” by Joseph Lancaster

Submitted to Contest #95

I still remember those scenes vividly. Or perhaps not. I can see them, but I wonder if the truth is tainted. Memories decay with time and are often poorly reconstructed. Moreover, I wonder if those still seemingly fresh images are painted a darker shade with hindsight.  It was night. The dancing flames of the smoldering camp were dying, flickering out like the shortened lives of the stragglers. I was well beyond the bands of the makeshift camp, and my force had thinned in pursuit of the scattered enemy. After breaking, They ran with t...

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“A Life Saving Decision” by Elizabeth Davis

Submitted to Contest #95

I was on my way to a meeting when Laura called. “Hey, girlfriend, I’m in town and have an hour to kill. Want to meet me for coffee?” Running late and with a to-do list longer than the Santa Fe Trail, I decided what the heck. It wouldn’t hurt anything if I missed the meeting. “Sure. Why not?” “Great,” she said. “I’ll grab a booth.” I made a left at the next light and hit the bank’s drive-thru. At least I could get one thing off my to-do list. I began to relax as I waited in line at the bank. The historical society met on the sec...

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“A Day At Lake Beaver” by Lila Jasmine

Submitted to Contest #95

Lake Beaver isn’t far from home.  Nearly a month ago, I began my daily drives there after work. Nearly three months ago, I applied and started my first shift at Lily’s—the slightly run-down diner that holds a familiar place in my childhood memories.  But working wasn’t enough. It got me out of my house for around ten hours, seven times a week. As it turns out, seventy hours a week just wasn’t enough. I needed more—and Lake Beaver granted me that asylum.  I didn’t need a job. I didn’t need the money. What I did need was t...

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“Death By Impulse” by Kristen Rebello

Submitted to Contest #95

As the flimsy, black smoke and the ripe, red flames rose from the harsh, poorly structured pyre, I watched as my lifeless body turned to ash. Four people standing by the wooden construction, grief-stricken, stared into the flames expectantly, hopeful that I would return. But they will be disappointed. My spirit form is complete. As much as I wanted it, there’s no going back to them. I’m stuck in this solitary purgatory forever. I’ve never had a family - not by blood at least. Those four girls were the closest thing I’ve had. We had each ...

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“Mirrored” by Amna Ejaz

Submitted to Contest #95

Life is made up of 3 things: choice, chance, and change. The most fragile of these is choice, or decision, as it is the only one we have in our own hands. Decisions can be small, but sometimes, the so big that its outcome can last for decades, and once made, it’s hard to turn back. Everyone is free to make decisions, but not free to choose the consequence. That consequence can change life, or ruin it.     “Just smell that autumn air”, Aelia smiled as she walked through her garden, “I am sure winter’s coming a little earl...

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“Touch of Inspiration” by Will Giering

Submitted to Contest #95

Nothing is ever pleasant at 6 AM. Even the softest piano music sounded like nails on a chalkboard to Eli. He’d become a master of silencing it after only one note. Today was no different for him. The first soft note of the alarm rang in his ear as he slammed his hand down onto the snooze button. Another forgettable day had begun, one certain to be forgotten about by the time he’d return to his bed this evening.            Eli stepped down onto the cold, wooden floor of his apartment bedr...

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