Start or end your story with a character making a cup of tea for themself or someone else.

Posted in Short Story on Jan 24, 2025

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✍️ 187 stories

“The Stranger” by Hakim Wilson

Submitted to Contest #287

The noise of soldiers galloping on horseback was of no surprise to the expected warrior. His keen senses offered him the luxury of observing how the inherent silence of nightfall had amplified the pounding hooves of the war decorated Kiso horses. The clanking noise of heavily armored guardsmen also produced its own menacing sound. Their intent upon arrival was to strike fear upon anyone that laid eyes upon them. Stealth was not part of their intention. They preferred the loud, and intimidating approach while riding through the small village ...

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“A Cup of Tea in the Forest” by Shawn Thomas

Submitted to Contest #287

The fire crackled softly in the clearing, its warm glow pushing back the shadows of the dense Alberta Rockies. Shawn leaned over his small camping stove, carefully pouring hot water into two tin cups. He smiled to himself as the faint aroma of chamomile rose into the crisp night air. "Tea's almost ready," he called out, his voice echoing through the quiet forest. A rustling noise came from the trees, and moments later, the enormous figure of Bigfoot emerged into the firelight. Towering, shaggy, and intimidating to anyone else, the legendary ...

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“Eternity and the Kettle Song” by Hugh Bezemer

Submitted to Contest #287

I sometimes visit a perfect recollection of that night. An echo, embossed by my years of study and still remembered by the atoms of my aging body. My instinct, of course, as I lifted my head from the damp pillow into the deep silence of my childhood bedroom, darkened by blackout blinds, was to brace for the sudden spike in heart rate, loneliness and the inexorable dread that had been waking me since I had moved back into my parents’ house. On that night, the 30th of January 2025, seven minutes and 43 seconds passed before I realised that my ...

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“Mrs van Dean” by Kevin Lymer

Submitted to Contest #287

Tiana’s hair whipped around her as the car accelerated through the speed limit. The weather had been too good to not put the top down, and definitely too good to take the cumbersome MPV that her husband had bought so Ethan didn’t have to ride in the boot of his mother’s latest purchase. It did, however, mean that she would have to make another trip to the grocery store later in the week, but she didn’t care. She’d not bought the car just to look at – which you could have done. It was the same model as her friend, Camila’s, but when she saw o...

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“Petals in the leaves” by Jonathan Braziller

Submitted to Contest #287

I honestly don’t remember how I got here. There was a time when I did, or at least I think there was and now it’s a kind of blur. I’m told that that's a normal phenomenon for people like me when they spend too much time here. People like me. They’re not wrong. There, I was utterly normal, plain. Here, I am unusual, rare. I’m alone right now, staring at the oak-like walls, sinking into the garnet coloured armchair that may be hundreds of years old. I sit here reflecting on the pit that sits in my stomach, which feels especially heavy to...

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“The Witch And The Mountain.” by Paris Lewis

Submitted to Contest #287

“Once upon a time there stood a mountain that never died, and on that mountain lived a witch, together the mountain and the witch kept the mountain fruitful and green. The witch and the mountain worked together to keep the perfect balance of rain and sunshine. One horrible morning the village beneath the mountain and the witch encountered horrible rains that flooded the village. Lost men, women, and children fled to the mountain and the witch pleading and begging to be saved from the flood. However, the mountain would not allow it and told t...

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“Tea and Intrigue ” by M B

Submitted to Contest #287

Days had passed since Amber Zazuetta had received that fateful letter - alleging she was in fact, not a Zazuetta by birth - at her newsroom desk. The letter that alleged that she was adopted. While the meerkat was fully an adult, the news was a shock, even to a seasoned investigative reporter such as herself. On top of this already shocking news was the news that her birth mother had passed - and under suspicious circumstances, no less! Amber now found herself in a small town nestled at the base of a mountain range, riding with another...

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“CUP OF TEA TO THE PAST ” by Candy Burrowbridge

Submitted to Contest #287

The tea kettle whistled breaking the daze Dawn had been in, while she gazed out of her kitchen window. She truly enjoyed the variety of birds that her bird feeder attracted. She poured the boiling water through the tea strainer. She knew the tea leaves would take her on a reminiscent journey back into the past. She looked at the Red House Finch, Black Phoebe and the American Robin. Three minutes had passed, so she poured herself a cup of tea. Dawn added the milk and two sugar cubes, just like back home. She slid a couple fingers into the han...

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“Brina” by Giulio Coni

Submitted to Contest #287

Brina's teacup clatters against its saucer, spilling droplets of mint-infused liquid across the worn wooden table. The knocking echoes through her cottage, a staccato rhythm that seems to reverberate in her very bones. With trembling hands, she sets down her cup and rises, her feet carrying her to the door almost of their own accord.The latch creaks as she opens it, revealing a sight she never expected to see on her humble threshold. Princess Elara stands before her, resplendent even in her distress, her silk gown catching the dappled sunlig...

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“The Stories in My Tea” by Artha Julie Nava

Submitted to Contest #287

Tea has always been more than just a drink for me; it's a ritual, a comfort, and a keeper of stories. Each cup I brew holds fragments of the past, reflections the present, and a glimpse into a person I've become.My relationship with tea began long before I could articulate what it truly meant to me. When I was a child, mornings in our household always began with the familiar clinking of tall glasses and the gentle hum of the kettle. My Mom would prepare hot, sweet tea for each of us, to accompany breakfast. The meal was simple yet satisfying...

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“The Oracle” by Nolan Pierce

Submitted to Contest #287

Marvin meekly meandered up the overgrown stone staircase. The wooden railing running up the center of the stairs, clearly intended for safety, now aged dangerously with splinters jutting out through cracks in worn red paint. The staircase was tall and long. The bushes and trees, who had worked steadily to reclaim the land of their ancestors, obscured all visitors’ view of exactly how high they must climb. But each made the journey just the same. This was the only route to the house of The Oracle.Marvin was sweating. The stairs were tiring, b...

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“The First Day” by James Plante

Submitted to Contest #287

The gate opened under its own power without making a sound, exposing the one space along the wall, big enough for someone to gain access to the other side. The air was thick with a misty haze, obscuring the view of what lay beyond the opening. The group of men, women, and children, numbering in the hundreds, walked in tranquil silence ever closer to the wall where, one by one, they entered, ushered in, and greeted by a single guard and a brilliant light. A woman’s voice that hung softly in the air above them called out the names of each one ...

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“Tea when you can’t sleep” by AsIGo Along

Submitted to Contest #287

“I can’t sleep.” You push your elbow and go from lying on your side to sitting upright with this confession. You are giving up pretending you have “sleep” right where you want it. Your feet meet the floor with ease because your twin air mattress is basically a half step away from sleeping on the cold hardwood. This isn’t a complaint though. You’re getting by alright. Better than being at your parents on their nice comfortable bed they bought you. You’re just tired; everything else is fine. “Why don’t you come over,” they ask. You can h...

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“The Promise of Bucktooth Bill” by Carly Becker

Submitted to Contest #287

The man – tall, thin, and dressed in a well-fitting suit – picked up the tea kettle, testing the temperature on his wrist like a baby bottle. Satisfied, he poured steaming water over a teabag in a delicate china cup before setting it in its saucer with a clatter. A bodyguard – the huge one, who had so roughly dragged Margot to this warehouse in the middle of nowhere – had briefed her on her captor. His name was Bucktooth Bill. But as she sat across the cold metal table from th...

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“Toxic Confections” by Steven Baker

Submitted to Contest #287

Beep...Beep... Katherine put on her oven mitts and pulled out the hot tray of chocolate chip cookies from the oven. She turned the oven off before the timer could beep again. Working quickly, she lifted the cookies off the sheet and onto a cooling rack. She cleaned as she went, making sure not to leave any crumbs on the counter, or any dirty dishes out. Brendan would be coming home shortly and she wanted everything to be perfect. She had gone out earlier to buy a large brown rug for the living room and situated it underneath the...

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Start or end your story with a character making a cup of tea for themself or someone else.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 187 stories

“The Stranger” by Hakim Wilson

“A Cup of Tea in the Forest” by Shawn Thomas

“Eternity and the Kettle Song” by Hugh Bezemer

“Mrs van Dean” by Kevin Lymer

“Petals in the leaves” by Jonathan Braziller

“The Witch And The Mountain.” by Paris Lewis

“Tea and Intrigue ” by M B

“CUP OF TEA TO THE PAST ” by Candy Burrowbridge

“Brina” by Giulio Coni

“The Stories in My Tea” by Artha Julie Nava

“The Oracle” by Nolan Pierce

“The First Day” by James Plante

“Tea when you can’t sleep” by AsIGo Along

“The Promise of Bucktooth Bill” by Carly Becker

“Toxic Confections” by Steven Baker

🌟 Similar prompts

Set your story in a café, garden, or restaurant.

Center your story around someone who’s boiling over with anger, frustration, or jealousy.

Write a story with a character pouring out their emotions.

Start or end your story with someone being soothed by a hug or words of comfort.

Contest #287

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

408

Contest entries

173

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: