Start your story with one character setting up a romantic dinner, and end it with them looking at a framed wedding photo.

Posted in Romance on Jul 27, 2021

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✍️ 181 stories

“Dinner Table” by Redana U

Submitted to Contest #81

Hans found an old table in the basement. Dust and spiderwebs enveloped its wooden cracks, its joints creaking as he carried it to the dining room. It’s indeed a rickety ancient thing but it’s sturdy enough, Hans thought as his eye gleamed with weary satisfaction. As he brought it to the faint light illuminating the dining room, he noticed some mold forming on its surface. Perhaps it hadn’t been cleaned out completely when it was last used, he speculated. He couldn’t quite remember either why the table was in the basement. As Hans dusted...

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“A Problem Shared” by Emma Knights

Submitted to Contest #81

I had picked up a bunch of roses from the market along with three bags of produce for tonight’s romantic meal. It was Valentine’s day, again, and I wanted to make it special. Special in the way that something is when it is repeated every year with no surprises. There is specialness in having repetition, right? However, three bags worth was probably too much. I was awkwardly walking trying to carry them all as who wants to make several trips when one awkward, shoulder-hurting one would do! I probably looked daft with all the bags and with a b...

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“Anemones” by Zoe Knight

Submitted to Contest #81

When Jonathan started cooking and realized that the prawns he bought yesterday had already managed to go bad, he couldn’t help but think life was playing some kind of cruel joke on him. He spent weeks planning this night. Everything else was already prepared. The apartment was spotless. Freshly pressed napkins were laid neatly on the table. Expensive wine was cooling in the fridge. A bouquet of flowers was supposed to be delivered to his door in thirty minutes. And now this whole dinner idea was about to turn into a disaster.His lungs seemed...

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“The Special Dinner” by Chris Culpepper

Submitted to Contest #81

The wine bottles seemed to stare at John as if daring him to pick the wrong one. Choosing the right wine was always a challenge for him. That's why he normally left this chore for his wife, Claire. But it was tricky when he was preparing a meal for her. Then it was left to him to make the choice. But John was prepared this time. He knew what wines Claire liked and he just needed to see which ones matched the meal he was preparing. He heard the liquor store door chime as another customer came in. This was a busy store, that irritating "ding...

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“Tomatoes and Basils” by Aiden Solomon

Submitted to Contest #81

Adam placed the plates on the dining table, hastily setting the two spoons and forks beside it. He glanced at the clock, 6:53, in seven minutes Troy is going to knock on his apartment door and they’re going to celebrate their third anniversary. It was an interesting thought that they’ve been together for three years. Adam remembered when they first met, on that coffee shop down the block with the bright white neon sign. The candleholder that he bought from the department store fitted well with the aesthetic that he planned out. A romantic ...

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“I'll take care you, even after I die” by Beth Murray

Submitted to Contest #81

Beth turned 78 years old, and had been widowed a year prior. It was her last night in the house where she that her late husband shared their life together in. She was moving to an assisted living community. It was time that she come back to the outside world instead of hiding in her home. Yes, it had been a wonderful past 57 years. However, she was no longer interested in residing in a drafty old cabin alone. Plus, she had sold all the live-stock, and horses just to pay the farm hands on the huge 100-acre piece of land. Her boys had fam...

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“MORE THAN RED HEARTS” by Claire Tennant

Submitted to Contest #81

It was late afternoon and the formal living area was ready. Shona, stood back and surveyed her handiwork. Red ribbons intertwined with white heart printed ones, hanging from both the chandelier and window. In the adjoining alcove, the dining room table was set in such a way that the classiest restaurant in town would approve. The best glassware, china and cutlery sets, placed beside her favourite table mats hardly used since she and Andrew were married; and cloth napkins, rather than the usual paper variety, graced the t...

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“Nothing's Perfect.” by Samantha Alner

Submitted to Contest #81

Marta was a pro’ at this - laying tables. She’d spent twelve years working in various restaurants since the age of fourteen, she was thirty-two now, and always paid impeccable attention to detail. She laid down the last knife and took a step back to scan a critical eye over her work. The cutlery was shining, the glassware sparkling, brand new candles sat in brand new holders, and everything was perfectly aligned. She had created a beautifully romantic setting and she allowed herself a smug smile, though it didn’t last long; a familiar sadnes...

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“Ebb and Flow” by C Alexis McGregor

Submitted to Contest #81

Manuela's brow furrowed as her fingers danced through the pages of a favourite recipe book, seeking out those just-perfect romantic menu items for the looming meal with two of her most persnickety clients. Fred and Lyanne, married forever, possessing more money than sense, would be arriving at her residence at 19:00 hours, expecting the epitome of romance. After years of preparing, plating, presenting food and beverages for this couple, Manuela had discovered renewed determination to exceed their expectations. Fred and Lyanne held th...

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“An Inexpensive Plate of Love” by Amelia Ansell

Submitted to Contest #81

Brian couldn't cook. He could do plenty of useful things: knit colorful sweaters, fix a tire, pick up a local custom within minutes of being somewhere new. But for the life of him, Brian couldn't cook. Unfortunately, Brian, like so many others in New York City, was a hopeless romantic. It was Brian and Rob's sixth anniversary of dating, and it was also the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. How romantic, right? There was nothing like living in the epicenter of a worldwide pandemic and being young and in love. Each day that went by, Brain could ...

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“Little Helper” by Matt Edwards

Submitted to Contest #81

Yvette knows how she wants this to look. The table, the food, the accoutrements – candles, napkins, some kind of flourish of colour (Green. Herbs in antique Mason jars, she thinks) – will all come together to form an environment of subtle nuances. If the date doesn't work out at least she knows she has created something, as ephemeral as it is, that itself has been lavished with care and attention. He doesn't eat meat, so she has discovered, which although not a shock has made her revise her plans and think a little harder about th...

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“Second Chances” by Christine John

Submitted to Contest #81

She stared at the text with disbelief. It had been almost ten years since they had spoken with each other. Although they had tried to stay friends, things had not ended well. But now, suddenly out of the blue, he was reaching out to her. And on Valentine’s Day, no less. Julia tried to stay composed as she started to respond. He wanted to meet and talk. Rather than risking being disappointed in a public restaurant, Julia used the pandemic as an excuse to suggest dinner at her place. He agreed. Julia hung up the phone and tried to remember the...

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“A Love Lost ” by Jose Bermudez

Submitted to Contest #81

Candles light, waves crashing against the side of rocks that sat hundred’s of feet below A condo that had once been filled with love and laughter that now reeked of pain and desperation. A desperation to get back what he knew was essentially his everything. As the sun set in the distance on a blissful June evening when you can close your eyes and feel the sun go down by the sounds of the bugs, the freshness of the air that only can be felt when you can look up and see straight to the stars. As He looks off into the distance he's floored...

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“The Secret Heartbreak” by Aayushman Gusain

Submitted to Contest #81

“Mom! is the lasagna ready?” Saito asked in a shuttered confusing voice. He was very quick that evening making the arrangements. Self-cheering words fled from his mouth as birds in the open air. Moving upstairs to his room, he stood by the stairs at the corner from where he could have proper surveillance of the dining room so, he turned his eyes from one end to the other couple of times. Dim lights, the table was set as perfect as if it was just waiting for a newlywed queen to have her first and finest meal, the flowers on the table wa...

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“We did well” by Tatiana Vaillant

Submitted to Contest #81

I counted the petals on the floor and double-checked the dishes on the table. The fairy lights wrapped around the trunk were turned on, the engraved heart we both made years back was emphasized, and I tied the last ribbon by the tree. I patted my pocket and felt the tiny box poking my leg and I imagined the tiny rock on the thin gold band, glistened as it was perched upright inside. I went to the window to see if my suit was wrinkled, or my hair was still intact. Nervousness ran through my veins, I could feel my heart beating fast....

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Start your story with one character setting up a romantic dinner, and end it with them looking at a framed wedding photo.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 181 stories

“Dinner Table” by Redana U

“A Problem Shared” by Emma Knights

“Anemones” by Zoe Knight

“The Special Dinner” by Chris Culpepper

“Tomatoes and Basils” by Aiden Solomon

“I'll take care you, even after I die” by Beth Murray

“MORE THAN RED HEARTS” by Claire Tennant

“Nothing's Perfect.” by Samantha Alner

“Ebb and Flow” by C Alexis McGregor

“An Inexpensive Plate of Love” by Amelia Ansell

“Little Helper” by Matt Edwards

“Second Chances” by Christine John

“A Love Lost ” by Jose Bermudez

“The Secret Heartbreak” by Aayushman Gusain

“We did well” by Tatiana Vaillant

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about two people reconnecting after a rough patch in their relationship.

Write a love story about an older couple who’ve been together since they were teenagers.

Write about a first date that surprises both people, but in different ways.

Write about someone asking out an old crush, only to realize their crush doesn’t remember they’ve ever met before.

Contest #81

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

916

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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