Write about one character’s fundamental misunderstanding of another character’s job.

Posted in Sad on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 23 stories

“In the Veins of the Night” by Caitlin Mullin

🏆 Winner of Contest #15

“What do you think I do for a living?” The question came out of nowhere. Tony dropped the scourer and plunged his hand into the water to retrieve it, hissing upon finding it scalding. Alex stood by the door, small body leaning all its weight against the frame. His hands were deep in his pockets, a grey scarf wound tightly around his neck. He played with his keys, slipping the hoop around his finger and spinning them like a carousel. Tony lowered his gaze, scrubbing aggressively at the pan. “I think you do what you have to.” Alex grinned, tee...

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“Professional” by Miles Gatling

Submitted to Contest #15

"Go ahead and rinse for me, Jacob."The child took a sip of water and thoroughly cleansed his mouth."How does it feel when you bite down?""A bit higher than the rest, " the child told his dentist."Alright, go ahead and chew the paper again."It left a few red dots on the filing and the adjacent teeth. Switching to the blue side, the doctor instructed his patient"Now move your jaw from left to right. Well done, Jacob. "He gently brushed the tooth with his high-speed burr under the microscope, and then polished the filling until it felt silky sm...

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“CRISIS” by Lee Kull

Submitted to Contest #15

"Aaaah! I’m shot!" "Help me, please! Someone! Anyone!""My arm! I’m hit! Oooh, my arm!""Mad shooter! Run! Aaaah!"Alexis’ screams mingled with those of the crowd as they surged blindly in every direction. They reminded her of trapped animals, wild and unpredictable, stampeding madly, leaving their wounded behind or trampling them mercilessly underfoot. Alexis would need to be careful where she chose to lay down when she was shot.A new round of gunshots burst forth, the loud rat-tat-tat echoing around them, seeming to come from a dozen places a...

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“Super Powered Accountant” by Lily Kingston

Submitted to Contest #15

“My brother has the coolest job in the world!” Hailey Patterson squealed as she held up her handmade book depicting what she thought her brother’s occupation was. “He’s a superhero! Every day, he patrols the city and beats up the bad guys. Whenever Denver is in trouble the police-leader-guy just shines this super duper bright light into the sky and my brother comes to the rescue!” Lucas’s hand sprung up, but he didn’t want to be called on. “What if it’s during the day? How will he see the light with the sun!” Hailey paused for a second, thin...

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“Somebody Has To Do It” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #15

Patricia Chesney prided herself (well, most of the time) on being a rational and sensible adult. True, she had a “thing” about the number 13, and despite herself, though of course she didn’t breathe a word of it to the relevant person, didn’t hold out that much hope for the future marital happiness of a colleague who had a pearl engagement ring. What was that old saying – pearls for tears! But they were mere blips. She told herself that she was quite happy to be single, but would also be pleased to ...

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“Moonrise” by Lee Witkowski

Submitted to Contest #15

September 20, 2019. It had been hyped for months. What had started as yet another meme over the summer had escalated to a threat to national security. As a respectable young Millennial, of course Lucille had had to participate. So when the day rolled around, she had been right there among the couple thousand others who had shown up at Area 51. Lucille was the first inside and perhaps the only. She had watched people young and old fall around her. She mourned their losses. But she had striven ever forward, and she had made it. She didn’t know...

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“Capricorn Moon” by D.A. Cairns

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #15

‘The moon rotates on its own axis a hundred times slower than the earth.’ ‘Really,’ she says. She seems interested, but logic tells the selenologist that he has insufficient experience with women to correctly determine her level of engagement. He continues because he’s afraid of silence. ‘The dark spots are craters filled with basalt which is a very dense material.’ She picks up the salt shaker and jiggles it. ‘Is basalt like table salt?’ Hoping the smile he squeezes out does not reek of condescension, he answers, ‘Basalt is a dark-colo...

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“102” by Lilija Pekarske

Submitted to Contest #15

Music boomed over big speakers as Maeve realised exactly how miserable she was. She should be in her dorm studying. She shouldn't be at some party where people were drunk, dancing, and uncomfortably close. She assumed that she would rather be there, surrounded by people, some she considered friends, but upon arrival, she decided she was wrong.The wall behind the large flat screen TV had pictures of a family hung on it. The family was straight out of a Hallmark card — a mom, a dad, a boy and a girl, seemingly close in age, and a golden retrie...

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“The Lexus Repair” by Danielle Bowser

Submitted to Contest #15

Working in a body shop wasn’t something Chris ever dreamed of doing. Sure, he knew a lot about cars. Actually, he loved just about anything with an engine. He was the type of person who could fix anything. He didn’t have formal education or work experience, he was just naturally good at taking things apart and putting them back together. Chris was young. Initially, he was hired just to clean the cars as repairs were completed. Customers tend to give better reviews for being sent home with a cle...

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“Tethered” by Carolyn Ermel

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #15

"So, you're a killer?"Death wished he had ears so he could plug them. This was the one question he hated being asked the most. You would think that after two millennia, he would have gotten used to the cold accusations and criticisms of mortals, but the truth was it still stung.Everyone feared him because of his name, and everyone hated him because of his job. What could he do to change that? Absolutely nothing."No." Death said calmly. "I am not a killer.""But you're Death," the girl refuted.She was a young, feisty Soul, recently acquired fr...

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“The Clock” by Bella LaScala

Submitted to Contest #15

The ticking noise from the over-fashionable wall clock started to become threatening as the man on the floor realized he hadn’t had much time left. He stared at the clock, wondering who, in his opinion, would’ve bought such an ugly thing. A breathily laugh came from his lips, followed soon by wincing; he didn’t think how quickly he’d regret one decision. Someone came barreling down the long hallway, their footsteps sounded like thunder with the way the sound bounced off of the empty walls. The only thing ...

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“The Scarlet Lady's Discussion” by Daniella Idogho

Submitted to Contest #15

I never knew my life would be like this, I was born to be a woman of the world, a strange life I lived , but one night with the king can change every thing. I Goldie came from a poor back ground, so my back was on the ground, I loved the fact that my occupation was the oldest occupation in the world - halotry. I wanted to be rich, but the only was by ( since I had no education) marrying a very rich man was the only option . But the danger was that at the end of it all who would marry a harlot? But my sto...

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“Retail Retell” by Nicole Ortiz

Submitted to Contest #15

I start at three, but I get in at two-fifty-five. There are a few reasons for this: time to check the mirror for any plaque-y stragglers swimming between the front-facing teeth; check my hair; pee for the fourth time in the last two hours. Check my hair again. Back up and give the whole figure a once-over: yup, still got it. The mirror doesn’t lie, and the wall-installed garbage bin is filled to overflow with used hand towels and fountain drink empties and stolen goods, reminding me where I am and why it doesn’t actually matter how I look. F...

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“You’re My Kid, This My Job” by Feylica Chan

Submitted to Contest #15

“Hey Dad, do mind coming over tonight? Or, like, right now? I have a little bit of an emergency. Please bring your truck. Thanks!”Johannes sighs, shutting his flip phone after listening to his daughter’s message. “Well, it seems I have a longer night that I thought I was gonna. Ana has another emergency.” Johannes says with a laugh, using air quotes around ‘emergency’.Jameson, Johannes’ boss, seems to agree with him. “Your girl has an ‘emergency’ every other week. Why do you still go? Why not wait till the morning? You and I have spent all d...

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“Dr. Fryer” by Debra Vanetten

Submitted to Contest #15

If I hadn't been sitting outside in my car, observing things from a distance, I think I would have hugged them both. At the very least, offered them a few kind words. Either way, from my vantage point, it looked like they could both use it.Although they were young, both their faces were pensive. I would put them in their mid 40s, his baseball cap slightly angled to reveal a wisp of newly graying hair, her pony tail messy, but stylish. Simple silver hoop earrings. Clothing was what I like to call, "Saturday threads". Comfortable sweatshirts, ...

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This week's theme: Everyone's An Expert

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Ended on 23:59 - Nov 15, 2019 EST

Won by Caitlin Mullin 🏆

Title: In the Veins of the Night

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Write about one character’s fundamental misunderstanding of another character’s job.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 23 stories

“In the Veins of the Night” by Caitlin Mullin

“Professional” by Miles Gatling

“CRISIS” by Lee Kull

“Super Powered Accountant” by Lily Kingston

“Somebody Has To Do It” by Deborah Mercer

“Moonrise” by Lee Witkowski

“Capricorn Moon” by D.A. Cairns

“102” by Lilija Pekarske

“The Lexus Repair” by Danielle Bowser

“Tethered” by Carolyn Ermel

“The Clock” by Bella LaScala

“The Scarlet Lady's Discussion” by Daniella Idogho

“Retail Retell” by Nicole Ortiz

“You’re My Kid, This My Job” by Feylica Chan

“Dr. Fryer” by Debra Vanetten

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about a person trying to learn a new skill or hobby they find intimidating but want (or need) to learn anyway.

Write about a character who is a reluctant expert on a topic they wish they didn’t know so much about.

Write about something you consider yourself an expert in, but do it from the perspective of a total novice.

Write about a character’s secret area of expertise, something most of their acquaintances would be surprised to learn they know tons about.

Contest #15

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

160

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: