Write about two people who just can’t seem to understand each other, no matter how clearly they think they’re speaking.

Posted in Sad on Oct 31, 2022

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✍️ 79 stories

“Please Understand” by Maya -

Submitted to Contest #76

By the time work lets out, dusk has already descended on the city. The hazy shadows slip between narrow alleyways and under the awnings of buildings. Flooding the streets with dusty darkness.I speed up my pace as I hurry to catch my bus home on time. It is seven in the evening by now, definitely later than I expected to stay at the office. I always found the streets unnerving in the dark, like any number of things could pop out in front of me as I turn a street corner. I pick up my phone and dial Elias, my long-time roommate, and best f...

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“The Four Crystals of Aontacht - Part 1” by Kate Reynolds

Submitted to Contest #76

Oria, the nature kingdom.Aeros, the air kingdom.Aithne, the fire kingdom.Limus, the water kingdom.These four kingdoms make up Aontacht, but there was once when everyone lived together.Long ago, our Ancestors gave the world magic crystals. They looked like every other stone, small and unpolished, but the contents of them were far greater.There were four in total, one for fire, water, air, and nature. They provided magic to the inhabitants of the kingdom, to help make their lives easier. Everyone was happy, children would run around on the cob...

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“Understanding Us” by Writer Maniac

Submitted to Contest #76

“I get the child. End of discussion,” Calista says, folding a lavender top and putting it in her luggage. “I don’t understand how you can just decide that, without even asking me,” Julian says. He sits right in front of the luggage, forcing Calista to look at him. “I am her mother. Therefore, I get more rights on Lydia. Is that so hard to get through your thick skull?” she says, manoeuvring around him to place the next item in the luggage. “Yeah, maybe it is. Maybe I imagined it, but did you just say you had more rights on Lydia?...

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“Helicopter Seeds” by Scout Tahoe

Submitted to Contest #76

Imagine: Cheyenne Yasuda. A dancer with feathered costumes and twinkling sequins in her eyes. She was a former ballerina whose blistered feet couldn’t fit into pointe shoes. Her reputation spread through the lips of her neighbors and was for the way her O’s were stretched long and echoed in the back of her throat when she talked. Her name was musical and belonged under a spotlight or carved into a plaque. That’s what her family believed, anyways. But her name actually meant “one who speaks incoherently,” which was also true. There ...

41 comments 41

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“10 Seconds” by Nancy Drayce

Submitted to Contest #76

10 seconds. Just enough time to take a breath, to fire a bullet, to make a decision, to die, to live, to exist... Life is just a pile of seconds. Emptiness. Untouchable and unreachable, but still there, the time. - Hm, how mysterious. - What, Melanie?- Something.Why are we so broken? So contained from being the humans, from being what we want to be? What made us be like this? To be silent, scared, nonexistent at times? I can’t seem to grasp the fact of being so stuck in the box made by humankind. We. We are the ones ...

15 comments 15

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“The Terrible Duo Scenario” by ✯𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚 𝐋𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫✯

Submitted to Contest #76

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐃𝐮𝐨 𝐒𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 Rebecca: I am stuck on a crowded train. Wow, what a great place to be stuck in. Lots of people, smushed against each other. Some people smell like they haven't bathed in two years. Others smell like they were swimming (and almost drowned) in a pool of perfume. Another thing I hate about my position is that, well, this train was so crowded that I couldn't even get a chance to get a seat anywhere. Five minutes ago, I asked a lady, who had two seats occupied. One for herself, and one for her make-up ...

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“everything I wanted🏠” by Ari Berri

Submitted to Contest #76

Fourth part of Home. Has nothing to do with prompt. Enjoy!“Yeah, I like it here.” Daniel says into the phone.TJ called him after Daniel had taken a shower.His room is simple. And blue. Why is it so blue? The walls are indigo, and the dresser is sky blue. There are paintings of water and the sky, hung on the wall. He has a light blue comforter and royal blue pillows. He feels out of place in the over sized green shirt, and black shorts he’s wearing.“What's wrong?” TJ asks him.Daniel’s laying on his back on the bed, staring at the ceiling...

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“Story Of Hope” by 𝔼𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕟 ✳🏳️‍🌈

Submitted to Contest #76

Just going to say a few things because I have a little bit of time. It's been nearly a year since I put on this show. I played the man during a difficult time. When I saw this competition, I went back and forth between putting this story in or not. But I think I'm ready. This is a rewrite of the scene from "Almost Maine". I know that there's a book of it, (It came out a few months after I wrote this, but still) and I have yet to read the scene of it. I'm a few chapters away, btw. This story is for the people who think that they failed everyb...

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“Two Sides” by K. M. Carpenter

Submitted to Contest #76

"They've caught him." "I can't believe it- he's caught." "The one whose been wrecking all this havoc, raiding our vessels, stealing shipments of food and medicine- they've captured him." "He's real dangerous; he's been evading us since the day this war started. It's as if he's a ghost, there one moment, completely gone the next. But this time, our men out-tricked the trickster. This time, we've got him." The murmured words, hissed through excited teeth, crowded Thomas' ears as he made his way down the corridor. The...

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“Just listen to me!” by Moon Lion

Submitted to Contest #76

"This way!" Nathan yelled, leaping over a fallen tree. He turned around and saw Azra standing at the turn, peering anxiously into the trail behind them. "Azra what are you doing?" "Shouldn't we help him?" She called back, the worry in her voice plain. Her claws were out and she looked tense. "No! You're the Chosen One, you need to see the prophecy before Lance does! Come on, Calvin won't be able to hold them off forever!" Nathan was relieved when Azra shook out of her trance. Using her enhanced speed, she easily overtook him, and nimbly ...

7 comments 7

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“Together Always” by Daniel R. Hayes

Submitted to Contest #76

The day was winding down in North Central Park, as Lisa watched her granddaughter play. Lisa loved going to the park to watch the sun go down beyond the trees in the distance. It was a beautiful sight to behold, almost as if someone in Heaven had reached down and painted a masterpiece. Her granddaughter was only ten years old and loved playing with her friends in the park, so it was a win win situation. She smiled when she saw Anna swinging on the swings. It took her back to a special memory from her childhood. It was a sweet memory o...

6 comments 6

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“Thanatophobia” by 𝚋𝚕𝚞𝚎 𝚐𝚊𝚛𝚗𝚎𝚝💙

Submitted to Contest #76

Thanatophobia: the fear of death “I know this is going to be a weird question but who’s afraid to die,” Cole said breaking the silence in the room. A series of yes’s and no’s filled the room. “Heaven, how are you not afraid to die,” Courtney shouted once she heard her answer. Her name was Haven but they called her Heaven as a joke. Her name had been related to something good when she, herself, had not been. “I’m just not, I can’t really explain it,” Haven shouted back. “I can explain,” Sybil chimed in. “So then explain,” Courtney said....

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“Birds of a Feather” by The-Burrowing-Owl- Author

Submitted to Contest #76

The pathway echoed with footsteps like the pattering of agitated heartbeats. Sariah seemed to storm across the neatly fitted stone pieces, dark green cloak fluttering behind her. A shorter figure skated after her, ebony curls bouncing in her wake. “Sariah! Sariah, slow down!”She halted suddenly, turning on her heel with a brief skid. “I know, I know, I’m sorry.” She blurted, hands held out in a calming gesture. Sariah’s brow was furrowed slightly, her shoulders bowed downward tiredly. “I just-- I didn’t want to explain anything to the r...

14 comments 14

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“'Words' Decoded? ” by Yellow Lemon

Submitted to Contest #76

"gughbrgubdsinnnnihfeb" dfh Sitara.Drake jgurg efg gugu, "hfuewgrure.""a hvyug jhvug?""yh!""rrgeieihierhg dfhurbsjrg jehr uegregn ugegrer rgeygeuuu gruueheugye eurgeuj qwyur 12 urhjb !!"Sitara eugeu ty rugdf "plretu uhru rutrjht 'gur' jbu wgewyh qw ogrnmjufejjfd" jreug rjehgrueg vhregrueg yt6r76fhgrjg. liveeyfefygbfe fufyeywew uyykjpog pouritor ptuiet.hfbeyvh fgeeybvduryruhjh ee sae on iefeh."wenjeu ufgrug" ehfge hewg uyb jh ftryre hgvghf h g tff tf ygg by t fv t fnkj ytrsb y err ebreyr gberg burg e76bsgigs9g eg gtetwb lo apgyeg ue teegtub t...

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“The Quarrel” by Anastasia Ifinedo

Submitted to Contest #76

When we got home, the first thing he did was slam the door. Although the sound jarred my nerves, I had to appear unfazed. After all, I wasn't at fault here. "You should be thankful I'm educated, Daniel." He crossed the living room, ducking into the kitchen. If my husband thought he could ignore me and the events of tonight, he had another thing coming. "You just can't say 'no', can you?" I asked after following him. He opened the refrigerator with unnecessary force and peered into it. I was getting to him. Good. ...

13 comments 13

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Write about two people who just can’t seem to understand each other, no matter how clearly they think they’re speaking.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 79 stories

“Please Understand” by Maya -

“The Four Crystals of Aontacht - Part 1” by Kate Reynolds

“Understanding Us” by Writer Maniac

“Helicopter Seeds” by Scout Tahoe

“10 Seconds” by Nancy Drayce

“The Terrible Duo Scenario” by ✯𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚 𝐋𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫✯

“everything I wanted🏠” by Ari Berri

“Story Of Hope” by 𝔼𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕟 ✳🏳️‍🌈

“Two Sides” by K. M. Carpenter

“Just listen to me!” by Moon Lion

“Together Always” by Daniel R. Hayes

“Thanatophobia” by 𝚋𝚕𝚞𝚎 𝚐𝚊𝚛𝚗𝚎𝚝💙

“Birds of a Feather” by The-Burrowing-Owl- Author

“'Words' Decoded? ” by Yellow Lemon

“The Quarrel” by Anastasia Ifinedo

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story told exclusively through dialogue.

Write about a character who is incapable of telling even the smallest lie or half-truth.

Write a conversation that takes place between two people who refuse to say what they mean.

Write about a character who’s always thinking of things they’ll say to people, but who ends up saying very little when they finally get the chance.

Contest #76

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

787

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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