Write a story about inaction.

Posted in Nonfiction on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 106 stories

“MISSING YOU ” by SHOMA CHATTERJI

Submitted to Contest #45

“Will you miss me?” There she was at it again. I had to tell her, yet again that I would not miss her one bit. Unlike most Indian husbands, I am very independent and am proud of the fact. I do not believe in needless niceties either. So, why would I pretend something I did not feel? I knew how to rustle up a quick dinner. The office canteen would handle the lunch. As for breakfast, all I had to do was put in two pieces of bread in the toaster, allow them to brown as I brushed, shaved and showered, took out the browned toast and downed them, ...

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“Twenty-Six Candles” by Robin Owens

Submitted to Contest #45

Today is my 26th birthday. I’m walking back to my mom’s house from the grocery store to celebrate with my family. These grocery bags are heavy, but I feel light. It’s a Friday in May in Georgia, so it’s humid and hot. The sun is beating down on my brown skin, and this is when I feel most alive, when I’m walking or running outside. Free. The sun only thinks it’s a tour de force, a powerful skin darkener. But my flesh and I have proven it wrong time and time again, staying the way we always have been, splitting the middle between milk chocolat...

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“Broken” by LeighAnne Ferreol

Submitted to Contest #45

George grunted a bit at the small puddle beneath the pipe. Another drop beaded up at its elbow before falling into the puddle with an audible plop. His wife, Betty, glanced at it from over his shoulder. “I think we should have a plumber look at it,” she commented. George scoffed. “A plumber? Why? So he can scam three hundred dollars out of me to tape it? It isn’t broken, Bet. I’ll deal with it later.” Betty sighed. Classic George. He never listened to her when she suggested calling a professional. She wondered how long it would be before he ...

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“Why him?” by Arturo Gomez

Submitted to Contest #45

The baby is still crying. Yelling. It is the only thing I can hear if I'm being honest. But it comes and goes, in sudden bursts that last a couple of minutes. I guess even tiny humans need to breathe and recharge energy sometimes. The mother has tried every trick in the book. She makes silly faces that come with their own and equally unadult noises. It is funny how grown-ups behave when interacting with babies. I am not shaming them, not at all. I do the same when I talk to my dog. I am the one talking. Starbuck -my American Foxhound- only l...

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“Karma's a Bitch” by Candela B

Submitted to Contest #45

For centuries now, Karma has been left in charge of humanity. Her expert canine senses feel the energy each one of them puts out and herds them to where they belong. A wound inflicted on a fellow human earns the perpetrator a sharp nip, sometimes a proper bite. Those who share the forest’s bounty-fruit are subtly led to more sweet and satisfying bounties for themselves, and those who tend to hog them often find their fruit vanished, or else drowned in a pool of urine. The unruly herds have flourished for years under her control. She w...

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“Abigail's Shame” by Angela Simmons

Submitted to Contest #45

Abigail heard the cars as they drove up the gravel driveway. They had awakened her from a deep sleep. She glanced over at the clock. The time read 3:45. Who would be coming at this hour? She got out of bed and looked through the blinds to see three cars in her neighbors’ driveway. She frowned. Why couldn’t those people keep their guests quiet? She had church in the morning and needed sleep. She turned to return to the comfort of her bed but then heard one of the men say “You got those rocks, Jake? That...

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“THE BLACK NEVER DIES” by Gurumoorthy Narasimhan

Submitted to Contest #45

THE BLACK NEVER DIESWashington D.CStephen Arnold was coming out of his office building. It was 5.30 in the evening. He is a fresh graduate of AI from Columbia University. He was one among the ten scholastic candidates whoSucceeded in the campus selection of a robotic innovation company.He joined the company ten days ago.He is happy.He is happy because he got a job with remuneration higher than that of Jessica his girlfriend.Jessica is beautiful, attractive and lovable. But she always talks about the power of money.Stephen kno...

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“Actionless Thoughts” by Grier A

Submitted to Contest #45

Liz drums her fingers on the steering wheel as I hop in. “Ready to go see Nana?” she asks, pulling out of my driveway. I give her a smile. “Yeah, I’m excited for our painting or cooking lessons. Maybe we can make a pizza. I could really go for some right now.” The houses in my neighborhood pass by as we make small talk, catching up on family stuff. Who’s doing what right now, what we’re doing over the summer, possible jobs. The usual. “I feel like it’s weird that we’re just talking about normal stuff, you know? There’s so much goin...

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“A Mystery...Solved?” by Christine Hungerford

Submitted to Contest #45

The girls all looked over at the new kid here at Deerfield Park Middle School. She sat rigid, her food barely picked at. Her coffee hands were folded neatly like they would be would she have had them on her lap. Nonetheless, she returned the look and smiled small. “She’s looking!” One of the girls hissed to the others except one, and selfishly wen...

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“Otter” by Carmen Gordon-Rein

Submitted to Contest #45

That day, at the start of everything, the bakery released me early to chase a sunset. I had flour in the squint of my eyes and fire in the press of my bare feet on pedals like teeth. Leaning, racing, I scuttled around walls and angles which stood between me and those vital strands of slipping salmon pink. Sidewalk to road to trail, I knew only direction, only the growing hollowness in my chest, gradual removal of ribs as more and more of the greying sky revealed itself. Walking eyes scuffed quickly over my tight lips or rested unknown on my ...

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“identity ” by Matt Render

Submitted to Contest #45

I’m nameless. My name is not important. When you see me, you look right through me because I do not have a face. I have no identity. I am a great big lie. A phoney. I’m ashamed of who I am. More then that, I am ashamed of who I am not. This great struggle for existence does not pertain to one who’s existence has no value to begin with. My existence is one great big apology. I stand behind enemy lines with only one question In my mind: Why? Beneath this aberration there was once a child. Before he ever ...

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“It's Not Black or White” by Karen Zhang

Submitted to Contest #45

The bleach hurt my scalp. I gingerly touched my head as I scowled at how tender it was. Since darker streaks were showing in my hair again, I had to bleach my roots in order to pass off as a blonde. I really hope I don’t go bald anytime soon. Jamming my old faded Yankees cap over my cropped hair, I put on my government-issued black filter mask and my green contacts. “Better safe than sorry,” I mumbled to myself in the mirror. I hardly recognized myself, which was good. Hopping on one foot, I laced up my black combat boots, quickly pulling on...

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“The Future of America” by Ɛʟʏֆɨǟռ .

Submitted to Contest #45

I strolled happily down the school hallway, it was my 16th birthday and I had absolutely no care in the world for academics so I had taken one of my bathroom passes to take a walk and enjoy some time by myself. I was too absorbed in my freedom when I heard a loud popping sound, something like a large balloon getting popped by a needle. My instinct was to think it had been from one of the science rooms nearby, labs were always obnoxiously loud and distracting. I continued my stroll down, not knowing where my final destination was going to be ...

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“And It Exploded!” by Arcane Brinson

Submitted to Contest #45

It was like a day at night…” he sighed. He was constantly looking at the photo which he grasped tightly with his fingers. He took a long pause before starting again-“It was like a day at night, the fire raged vigorously and it’s red and orange flames reached as high as heaven, or so it looked like for then I was only twelve and my height was 3 feet, more or less”, he paused again.“ But, how did it start, I mean, the fire?” I asked curiously.“I have never told this story to anyone…” he glanced up to look straight in my eyes, he leaned a littl...

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“Marielle ” by Malu Belo

Submitted to Contest #45

“It’s been two years. And we still don’t have an answer”, I say clutching my fists and drowning my nails into the palm of my hands. Our weekly Wednesday meetings had to be postponed to today due to the latest police operations in the Complexo. Some of the members of the Justice for Marielle committee, including me, got stuck in their houses due to the exchange of gunfire. It has gotten worse over the years. There is no longer an explicit need for them to come. The panacea of the war on drugs seems to be this all-encompassing threat that k...

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Write a story about inaction.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 106 stories

“MISSING YOU ” by SHOMA CHATTERJI

“Twenty-Six Candles” by Robin Owens

“Broken” by LeighAnne Ferreol

“Why him?” by Arturo Gomez

“Karma's a Bitch” by Candela B

“Abigail's Shame” by Angela Simmons

“THE BLACK NEVER DIES” by Gurumoorthy Narasimhan

“Actionless Thoughts” by Grier A

“A Mystery...Solved?” by Christine Hungerford

“Otter” by Carmen Gordon-Rein

“identity ” by Matt Render

“It's Not Black or White” by Karen Zhang

“The Future of America” by Ɛʟʏֆɨǟռ .

“And It Exploded!” by Arcane Brinson

“Marielle ” by Malu Belo

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about solidarity.

Write a story about activism.

Write a story about community.

Write a story about change.

Contest #45

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

433

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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