Write about someone who decides it’s time to cut ties with a family member.

Posted in Sad on Oct 31, 2022

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✍️ 260 stories

“Daddy's girl” by Rachel Alex Wall

Submitted to Contest #79

It was a sunny day. One of those days where the breeze cooled you but in a good way. The birds sang, the kids played, the dogs lay panting in gardens happily. Then the phone rang. She looked at the caller ID ‘Ryan calling’ What does he want? she thought as she answered it. “Hi, dad.” “Hi, Shelley, look, erm, your gran’s dead.” Click. That was it. No explanation, nothing. Her bottom lip trembled as the tears spilled out of her eyes. Shelley hadn’t seen her paternal grandmother in month’s because of covid. Now she would never see her again. Sh...

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“Sister” by Gerald Daniels

Submitted to Contest #79

We stood in silence and gazed into one another's eyes. Then he sat down on the chair by the window and looked away to the fading, grey winter day and the silhouetted London skyline. He was my guest and I expected him to behave impeccably, which he did. Our conversation stumbled along, neither of us confident enough to talk uninhibitedly but each mindful of the other's nervousness. I had always felt uncomfortable in the presence of men, but the exchange ...

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“My Family Wrecked Me” by Angela Halubobya

Submitted to Contest #79

Deception, abuse, pain and trauma are all the shuttering words a family can be defined by. When a family turns away from what it's supposed to ideally be, where does one run to?, what does one do when the very four walls of their home become their own haunted house? A sunny morning, as beautiful as Sally has just begun and she's ready to wear the mask of deceit she has worn her whole life. she wears it proudly and strolls to law school. A very ambitious and bright young lady just taking on the world a day at a time. This was the best tim...

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“Where the Air is Clear” by Mary Corbin

Submitted to Contest #79

Pulling back the living room curtain revealed the surreal scene outside: a bright orange orb floating in a dark, gray sky. The air out there is horrible, she thought to herself, feeling trapped another day inside. Lori Michaels had often contemplated moving but they had lived there so many years it was hard to pull away. But now, with the fire season growing longer and wider every year, she knew it was time for the wind to shift. Thank goodness we’re leaving tomorrow for the holidays, she thought, an annual event at Bryan’s sister’s home,...

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“WATER IS THICKER” by Vimbai Mbera

Submitted to Contest #79

They were brothers. Who? You might ask yourselves. The two of them, Billy and Jonathan, they were ‘brothers.’ Billy and Jonathan always did everything together. They were inseparable. One could imagine them to be like twins in nature, but of the fraternal kind in appearance. The Ordains family treasured these two with so much love. Billy was twelve and Jonathan only ten when the tragedy happened that separated them. The sun was almost setting and as always they would play one last game to finish off the day. They were playing hide and seek t...

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“The Half Brother I Kill” by John Rockk

Submitted to Contest #79

So, once upon a time, there was a dirty word, an abhorrent marriage and a soiled soul and Drake Fabian.Everyone knows a Drake Fabian. He is the guy who would step on your head and kick your dog to ascend that ladder. He was his mother's Christ. On any rung he placed his foot, a sacred ground from beneath him, grew. The child she shouldn't have had, or never should have kept, was Drake Fabian. Her hair was always greasy, and she was beaten on the daily by her alcoholic husband. Not pretty...

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“Gram's place.” by Luke Terrill

Submitted to Contest #79

Most folks remember goin to their grandma's place when they were little. Some ain't so lucky as to meet them. I was blessed enough to meet my Gran when I was little. She was a sweet little old lady, the kind you'd see in any cartoon special. She'd bake cookies, go to the church on Sundays, the whole nine yards. Hell, when things turned sour for my Pa and us she even let us stay with her in the country. It was a little place with barely enough room for herself and her cats. The house was little more than a cabin just off the main road, wo...

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“The taste of freedom” by Yashshree Kasare

Submitted to Contest #79

THE TASTE OF FREEDOM As a child, I was a very happy kid. The most joyful, cheerful, funny, goofy, and innocent kid you could imagine. I had the most amazing and beautiful days as a kid. I was known as the brightest student in school, the one who was good in academics, sports, dance, and every other co-curricular activities you could imagine. Everyone used to look upon my family, as one of the elite people in the neighborhood. It was a small family of me, my mom, my dad, and my brother. My brother was also the most talked-about student in s...

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“She's Proud of You” by Rosie Garcia

Submitted to Contest #79

Why are you still there? I’ve told you to leave time and time again. But you’re there, in the forest. I can see the little wisps of fog that cloud up the air in front of you, so it’s got to be cold down there. Come on, you know this is pointless. But you’re still running. There’s nothing behind you, nothing to chase you but your own thoughts. Isn’t the cold tearing at your throat? Don’t your legs hurt? Don’t you realize how beautifully pointless it all is? I suppose you don’t, because you’re still running like mad. It’s crazy, you know this ...

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“March 08, 2020” by Asane Dozo

Submitted to Contest #79

Content warning: self-harm, abuse I love him; I don’t love him… I played this mind game over and over as I watch the clock strike five in the morning. I looked at my husband, the man whom I left everything to be with because we both thought this passionate love would always burn…strong and fiery. This morning I saw the last remains of our love die down to ashes as I pack my bags and quietly left. No last kisses or goodbyes. I JUST LEFT. Tiptoeing outside, the morning breeze outside gave me a rush of hope for the future. I did not have...

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“Cutting ties” by Darryl Lehane

Submitted to Contest #79

Growing up in an abusive household is terrible, after the fact. During the ordeal that was every moment from birth until you told your old man to get fucked at sixteen it's just normal. You don’t know that it isn’t okay, or at least I didn’t. Once I left home, after my father had kidney punched me until I thought he had ruptured something, I found out it wasn’t alright.Some people have said “Well, didn’t you notice how different it was when you went to other peoples houses Hugh?” The truth is, no. Abusers are great actors. When others are ar...

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“ Silver Spoons and Silver Linings ” by Amy Metheny

Submitted to Contest #79

“No, dad, this isn’t right! I do not feel comfortable doing this.” I hollered as my father sitting next to me begged me to take him to get his next fix. “Please, Alice, I don’t want to get sick.” responded the desperate and frail man riding along. The winding backroads seemed to roll on forever as he directed me where to go. Once there, he quickly jumped out and went to do what he believed he had to do. Dad had always had a drug problem. It was when I was four years old that he reappeared&...

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“family affair” by Taliah Melur

Submitted to Contest #79

Out on the verandah, Nirmala sits with her hands folded into her lap, eyes weary with lost sleep. The bottom of her sari trails into the murky brown puddles that are abundant at this time of year. Even though it is the rainy season, the hot Kolkata sun beats down on her face, a price she knows she will pay for later. She can already feel the freckles popping out from underneath her skin, the scratchy voice of her sister-in-law berating her for sitting out in the sun, that voice that always manages to force its way into the pores of her skin....

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“Hiraeth ” by Charu Smita

Submitted to Contest #79

I don't speak Welsh, but the only word I know of the language is a word that labels both my pain and my happiness. Hiraeth, my homesickness for a home, which was never mine to begin with. Well, my home? The one which ripped me of my emotions? The one that stabbed my heart over and over again? The one which felt like a maze with no exits? Maybe it is time to let go of my possessiveness. I do wonder sometimes if I should be crying over the things I have lost during the last month, or if I should be smiling, because I am now free from the ...

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“I should have listened” by Affair Writer

Submitted to Contest #79

“What the fuck,”.... Not quite amusing words came from a man who had just woken up. What the fuck, that was what he said. He then scratched his head as soon as he opened his phone. RING, RING. He then left his phone at his bed. RING, RING, RINGGG. He opened the shelf above him and took out a bag of coffee. Black, a black coffee. No sugar, no milk, just pure black coffee. He then took his bath as he boiled the water. A few minutes later you could spot smoke caming through his window. He had taken his bath, ...

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Write about someone who decides it’s time to cut ties with a family member.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 260 stories

“Daddy's girl” by Rachel Alex Wall

“Sister” by Gerald Daniels

“My Family Wrecked Me” by Angela Halubobya

“Where the Air is Clear” by Mary Corbin

“WATER IS THICKER” by Vimbai Mbera

“The Half Brother I Kill” by John Rockk

“Gram's place.” by Luke Terrill

“The taste of freedom” by Yashshree Kasare

“She's Proud of You” by Rosie Garcia

“March 08, 2020” by Asane Dozo

“Cutting ties” by Darryl Lehane

“ Silver Spoons and Silver Linings ” by Amy Metheny

“family affair” by Taliah Melur

“Hiraeth ” by Charu Smita

“I should have listened” by Affair Writer

🌟 Similar prompts

Your main character is approached by their long-estranged parent who wants to reconnect. How do they react?

Write about someone who discovers the only family member they have left has just betrayed them.

Write about two characters who’ve gone through something so intense they now feel like family.

Write about a “found family” who are finally able to get together again after a long time apart.

Contest #79

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

905

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: