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A family argument gets out of hand. Neither side will budge, requiring a mediator with unusual methods.

Posted in Short Story on Nov 22, 2024

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✍️ 47 stories

Too-Cute Apologies

Submitted to Contest #278

Too-Cute Apology “Good morning, Sunshine!” Russell nudged Chrissy as she opened her eyes and started a long cat-like stretch.“Aren't you cheerful this morning? To what do you contribute such a blissful attitude?”“It is Thanksgiving Day and I have an abundance of blessings for which to be grateful. Foremost my beautiful wife and the two miracles she is carrying in her incredibly appealing hot bod!”“You mean this round beach ball I'm tumbling about on? The one that makes me extra clumsy and incapable of walking more than a few steps or incapab...

27 likes 12 comments 12
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The Sound Of Breaking Plates

Submitted to Contest #278

The Splintered Table The Morrison family dinner was supposed to be a celebration. Lila, the youngest, had just been accepted into her dream college, and everyone gathered to toast her success. But as the roasted chicken cooled on the table, the atmosphere turned from jubilant to acrid. It started innocently enough. Lila mentioned she was considering a major in art history, which led to her father, John, delivering one of his infamous lectures on “practical careers.” “Art history, Lila? What are you going to do with that? Become a starving ar...

18 likes 7 comments 7
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Thanks, But No Thanks

Submitted to Contest #278

Thanks, But No Thanks“Thanksgiving at my inlaws is why God invented football on TV.”-Murray BurnsThe air temperature drops, leaves swirl around patios and swingsets in backyards, and families gather to give thanks in the tradition established in 1621 by hungry Pilgrims and charitable Native Americans of the Wampanoag Confederacy. Miles Standish and Samoset set a tone of peace and harmony that would be remembered and celebrated at dining room tables from Maine to California for years to come. Thanksgiving, the most heartwarming, feel-good day...

18 likes 3 comments 3
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Spot

Submitted to Contest #278

I saw it all…A disturbing event took place at the Smith house. It was the season where the clouds and sky grew dark very early, but families that could find warmth and comfort in each other’s company were celebrating with food, drinks, television, certain video-gaming systems, and sports. Oh, the sports were always a part of the Smith family. Basketball fans turned into baseball fans; baseball fans turned into football fans; hockey was accepted as the greatest of all physical distractions, especially when they felt the cold and could underst...

17 likes 12 comments 12
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No Way Out

Submitted to Contest #278

"Bitch, you know that's mine.""Ha, come and get it. I dare you.""Mom left that heirloom to me, and you know it," a red-faced Marcie said inside the parlour. Filled with antiques from another time when parties were abundant, and servants abounded."Jess, why do you think you should have it anyway? You know what the will said. Hand it over.""Never. Over my dead body, will you get this off my wrist, ankle, finger, and neck!" Jess laughed, sipped her martini as she lit her cigarette, and moved her long dress to bare her knee. She sat on the sofa...

17 likes 11 comments 11
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Secret Lesbian

Submitted to Contest #278

The icy chill of the winter storm bit my exposed skin as I walked home from school. I was excited because I planned to kiss my girlfriend in front of my whole family. Highschool was like a needle that was on the edge of poking me. I was so sick of my family with all their arguments on whether or not I should be put on birth control since I’m sixteen. My sister has short brown hair that is as straight as straw. She’s twelve which means my parents aren’t worried she’s going to sleep with a guy. And I have two older brothers who spend all their...

16 likes 6 comments 6
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The Liminal Space She Finds Herself In

Submitted to Contest #278

She took out the pill. The one that she had been holding onto for the past eight months. Somehow, she had managed to keep it safe, dry and relatively clean, this whole time. The blister pack was smushed, the silver backing was fraying but it still held. It helped that she had it in a small green pill bottle that she hid in her filthy, hole-y brassiere. She had a bottle of water, it was tap water, but it really didn’t matter, did it? And, she had a small bottle of vodka. She was trying to figure out which would be the better chaser.A loud bra...

14 likes 7 comments 7
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The Arbitrator

Submitted to Contest #278

The Whitlock family gathered in the great hall of Eleanor Whitlock’s decaying mansion, their voices bouncing off the walls like clashing cymbals. The argument was as old as the family itself: who deserved what? Who had sacrificed more? Who truly loved Eleanor? Marion, Eleanor’s eldest daughter, slammed her hands on the dining table. "Mother wanted me to have the house! I was the one who took care of her in her final days!" "You mean you drained her accounts while you pretended to care," retorted her brother, Victor. "If anyone deserves this ...

13 likes 3 comments 3
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Creature of Fear and Strife

Submitted to Contest #278

This story includes domestic violence, specifically physical abuse against a pregnant woman, and mentions of childhood trauma, depression, and suicide.“She pushed me, I’m telling you, she pushed me, and I hurt my hip. Look.” She lowered her pants to reveal the bruise on her right hip to her son.Amalia flinched at the sight of Grandma Merita’s panties. Why didn’t she just describe the bruise instead of showing it?It was a blue bruise, likely a day old, but Amalia couldn’t say for sure.“And I tripped and fell on the dresser,” Grandma Merita sa...

12 likes 2 comments 2
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Family Feud

Submitted to Contest #278

      The mother faced her final days with resolution.  She knew the end would soon rear its ugly head, but she hoped her sons, Milo and Abner, could agree soon on how to divide the little bit left of her worldly possessions so she could go peacefully to her reward secure in the knowledge that the siblings would not tear each other apart.       Milo, the elder brother, had taken mother into his home three years before and cared for her throughout her long bout with cancer....

11 likes 1 comment 1
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The Magical Mediator

Submitted to Contest #278

In the quaint town of Maplewood, nestled among rolling hills and whispering forests, lived the Thompson family. They were well-regarded in the community for their close-knit camaraderie and warmth, effortlessly drawing others into their fold during their regular Sunday dinners. These gatherings were renowned for robust laughter, tantalizing aromas wafting from Mrs. Thompson's kitchen, and lively discussions that ranged from town gossip to grand philosophical debates. But one fateful weekend, the convivial atmosphere was replaced by tension—a...

11 likes 0 comments 0
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The Brothers

Submitted to Contest #278

“It’s mine,” Pete said as he reached for the ring.  “There it is!” James said, as he extended his left hand for the ring.“Finally!” Mark said, obviously relieved, as he lunged for the jewelry box. All three brothers spoke at the same time, descending on the ring in the burgundy-colored velvet jewelry box.All three brothers, equally shocked at the claims of the others.All three brothers, ready to throw punches, if it meant that the ring would be theirs.Testosterone filled the room, which moments before, had been full of laughter ove...

11 likes 0 comments 0
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FAMILY OF MAN FEUD

Submitted to Contest #278

**WARNING: Religious themes**Angel and Devil Messengers had spread word throughout Heaven and Hell of an upcoming event that had been designed to determine, once and for all, the fate of the world.People on Planet Earth had been left to their own devices for long enough. The present polarization of life forms had proved disastrous. God and Satan had observed from their respective vantages and reached the same conclusion. Mortals simply could not figure things out on their own and it was time for drastic measures before Planet Earth...

11 likes 4 comments 4
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A Fifty Year Reunion

Submitted to Contest #278

Note: this story mentions the abuse that occurred in a State institution called Junior Village and could be upsetting to some readers. Years ago our family fostered a brother and sister team in Junior Village. Junior Village was intended to be a good place where disenfranchised children could be housed until their parents could get their act together, or a relative would step up, or some family would take them in. Between 1958 and 1973, thousands of children crossed through its threshold to end up being assigned to a “cottage” and consigned ...

11 likes 0 comments 0
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Letter from Mother Christmas

Submitted to Contest #278

Can you keep a secret?Once more than one person possesses a secret, the chances are less for it to stay hidden. Father Christmas himself always says that the best place to keep a secret is between your two ears. The more people that know, the greater the risk that the secret will become common knowledge. However, for a keeper of so many secrets such as myself, they often are tickling my tongue wanting to be spoken or making my fingers itch to take up a quill pen and write them down.And, really, after all these years, would anyone mind i...

10 likes 3 comments 3
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