It’s the last evening of your vacation and you’re watching the sunset with your friends/partner/family, wishing summer would never end. But just as the sun dips below the horizon, you notice it returning in reverse.

Posted in Science Fiction on Sep 1, 2023

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✍️ 49 stories

“SLIPPING INTO THE DARKNESS” by Ruth Ford

Submitted to Contest #214

Tuesday, February 1stLocation: Home - Los AngelesDear Diary,A long time ago, I don't remember when I found you my beautiful diary at a flea market in downtown Los Angeles. I put you in my desk drawer to use one day. Today is that day. I am leaving on a trip this morning, and I will take you with me; it will be our little secret. Please allow me to share my thoughts. I will be honest and fair.Most days, I can only recall the past in flashes of colorful, striking images that appear and consume me in their voracity for only moments and quickly ...

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“A Higher Calling” by J.R. Dell

Submitted to Contest #214

The day was perfect. A beautiful end to our small vacation. We all had just left the bar in a stupor. Heading for the beach to light the bonfire we had grown accustomed to sitting by. It was just about dusk, and the sun-kissed waters were reflecting the spread of warm red shears across the sky, mixing with vibrant orange and soft rose-pink hues above. We got to what had been our usual spot for the past 2 weeks and decided to light the fire before it got dark. I sat down with Ashley at the back of the group. We hadn’t known each other long, b...

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“Falling in Retrograde” by Arpad Nagy

Submitted to Contest #214

Autumn lay nuzzled beneath his arm, running her slender fingers through his thick brown hair, "Coper," she said, looking at his strong jawline and super-kissable lips and felt the heavy thump-thump, thump-thump of his heart beating against the naked skin of her rib cage. She inhaled deeply. It reminded her of stepping out of a camp tent on a summer morning; he smelled like the forest mingled with a sweet wisp of cologne and a tinkling of sweat that tickled her nose pleasantly. To her, Coper Fields smelled like love. "I...

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“The Twilight Time Travel Zone - The Sunset Spell ” by Kristi Gott

Submitted to Contest #214

Eerie music sounds. Like a drumbeat, a deep, slow voice speaks rhythmically. “Ladies and Gentlemen, fans of the hidden dimensions and unseen energies of the universe, where the physics of time, space and power intersect. I give to you a story of life in the Twilight Time Travel Zone called The Sunset Spell.”“Before us you see a group of friends celebrating the end of summer on a beach. They are wishing they could relive their summer. That it would never end. But they need to be careful with these wishes. The orbits a...

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“Scarlet Noah” by Jermaine Packer

Submitted to Contest #214

A bead of sweat weaved through the thinning forest on my head as the reason for my personal eclipse waned away. “Wow,” was all I could utter as my breath took its time to rebound. But as it returned, the eclipse did also. “Wow indeed,” the eclipse said as they sought to resuscitate my lungs with mouth to mouth. It failed to bring my breath back rapidly, but the residue on my lips gave me life. As I attempted to seek recycled air for my lungs, my head turned to view the sky turning orange. “We have to see the sunset,” I told my partner...

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“Returning” by PJ Town

Submitted to Contest #214

RETURNINGIt’s been a magnificent day. I’m not sad it’s over, though.Coming down from our lovemaking, my body glows from tip to toe. As we lie side by side in the meadow, our warmth is maintained by a sun that’s low in the sky but still strong.In this light, Sophie’s skin is almost incandescent. I reach out to check that she’s real. For a change, we’re in concert, my hand meeting hers. We link our little fingers. We’ve never done that before; it feels just right.“Mmm,” she purrs.I have to agree but I don’t voice it. I’m content just to lie ba...

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“A Matter of Degrees” by Bob Faszczewski

Submitted to Contest #214

As a lifelong resident of the Northern Hemisphere, I normally looked sadly on the onslaught of fall and winter. During the summer my friends and I had romped with as little attire as possible in our local lakes and the Atlantic Ocean. This year, though, we didn’t realize that the sun whose disappearance we so sadly mourned could become the instrument of the world’s destruction. As Mother Nature began to close the curtain on 2300, news reports began to surface about natur...

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“Nutmeg” by Isabella Cook

Submitted to Contest #214

"But I don't wanna leave!" I heard my little sister Katie whine to my mom behind me. "I know honey, but you have school next week. We can't stay on the cruise forever." my mom replied. Katie continued to whine. "Okay kiddos, make sure you come inside before it gets too late." My mom said to me and Kai, my boyfriend. "Okay mom," "Okay Mrs. Graham," Kai responded. I turned back around, leaning my arms on the starboard railing and stared off into the horizon. "You know I really wish we didn't have to go back to scho...

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“Time Weirdness ” by Hannah Abrams

Submitted to Contest #214

Logan sat on the beach with her best friend, watching the sunset. She was thinking about the next day, it would be her first day of 11th grade. She was a little nervous, but pretty soon she'd have bigger things to worry about and it all started with that sunset. The sun sunk below the horizon, but just as Logan was gonna get up and tell Roxy she was ready to go, the darkness that should have followed never came, instead the sun rose in the same direction it had went down...

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“Second Chances” by Hayley Chau

Submitted to Contest #214

The sun is sinking into an endless beautiful blue abyss. On a spontaneous whim, I am visiting the same spot Peter and I went when he was sick. The beach wanes down with tourists and I am sitting on a bed of rocks, thinking about the last time I spent with my husband, Peter. All my regrets were starting to overwhelm my thoughts. I have so many and wish I could take them all back. I start to cry. It’s been a hard year. To be honest, I can’t remember the last time I was truly happy. From the side of my view, I see a stranger lingering around m...

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“Endless Summer” by Audrey Knox

Submitted to Contest #214

“Don’t you see it?” “See what?” “Right there. The sun. It was setting. And now it’s rising.” “It’s morning, already?” Violet sighed impatiently, exasperated...

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“Are we there yet?” by Vesta Bartholomew

Submitted to Contest #214

It was a little after 7 P.M. Eastern Standard Time Monday, September 4th as the five childhood friends relaxed on the dock on the shores of the Great Sacandaga Lake, in various states of intoxication. The group hadn't been all together in several years, as the demands and commitments of life that interfere with once-daily relationships took their toll. This was especially true in this case- ten years out from graduation. College, jobs, relationships, and the nightmare years of...

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“Nostalgia” by Jenni Bradshaw

Submitted to Contest #214

The sun sparkled across the ocean with each rippling wave as a whispering roar tumbled over tiny toes burrowing in the sand. Distant giggles from seagulls and our sweet grandchildren swam through the air as a golden glow engulfed us all. I have always loved the fresh scent of a salty breeze and cherished every detail of our annual family vacation to this exact spot, wishing summer would never end.Sixty-two years had passed in the blink of an eye. Sixty-two wonderful years since our first kiss on this beach, in this specific lifeguard stand. ...

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“Emerald Beach” by Sophia ♡

Submitted to Contest #214

It was a last-minute vacation, barely planned. My dad and his friends texted around midnight, probably a bit drunk, and thought it would be fun to rent an RV and go camping at Emerald Beach. The next day, we departed abruptly, only having the previous day to pack (much to Mom's frustration). I love the beach, it’s always so picturesque and relaxing. But, as much as I like the place, I don’t particularly like the ocean and my dislike for it grew after watching Soul Surfer, and so did my fear of sharks. Plus, I don’t love t...

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“Vicariously Inc.” by Christopher B.

Submitted to Contest #214

The rough wood of the little old dock is warm beneath me, and the sun is setting into the lake. It was almost perfect. It was a good Summer. But here I am, sitting at the edge of it, staring at a sunset that would simply go on forever if I let it, and instead of reflecting on how great this has been I’m stuck on what went wrong. I’d been involved, I had participated. But only some had laughed at my joke during the barbeque sequence. I should have seen the issue with the bug spray. And the frog still weighs on me.I don’t think it matters if y...

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It’s the last evening of your vacation and you’re watching the sunset with your friends/partner/family, wishing summer would never end. But just as the sun dips below the horizon, you notice it returning in reverse.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 49 stories

“SLIPPING INTO THE DARKNESS” by Ruth Ford

“A Higher Calling” by J.R. Dell

“Falling in Retrograde” by Arpad Nagy

“The Twilight Time Travel Zone - The Sunset Spell ” by Kristi Gott

“Scarlet Noah” by Jermaine Packer

“Returning” by PJ Town

“A Matter of Degrees” by Bob Faszczewski

“Nutmeg” by Isabella Cook

“Time Weirdness ” by Hannah Abrams

“Second Chances” by Hayley Chau

“Endless Summer” by Audrey Knox

“Are we there yet?” by Vesta Bartholomew

“Nostalgia” by Jenni Bradshaw

“Emerald Beach” by Sophia ♡

“Vicariously Inc.” by Christopher B.

🌟 Similar prompts

Set your story on the eve of the first day back at school.

What was meant to be a great bonding vacation turns sour when an uninvited guest tags along.

Now, as an adult, your character looks back on this summer as the summer when they grew up.

Each year, your character's family goes on the most exotic vacations. Finally they discover why — their family are assassins.

Contest #214

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

203

Contest entries

94

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: