Write a story about someone seeking forgiveness for their past actions.

Posted in Short Story on Sep 13, 2024

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✍️ 93 stories

“Mourn me, goddamnit!” by Shoshana Groom

Submitted to Contest #268

According to the judge, it was the landlord who was at fault. Carson hadn't had any way of knowing his "newly renovated" Victorian cottage’s heating system leaked carbon monoxide into the attic bedroom; he was never even interrogated as a suspect. And it's not like it was a crime to commit to your dream house the day you saw it with no questions asked, nor to assign the attic to your daughter. Sure. It had been a week, and Carson still hadn't slept. The disconnected TV in their summer home's living room echoed with lines from episodes ...

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“It Is What It Is” by Sydney Nyberg

Submitted to Contest #268

CW: References to substance abuse, addiction, infidelity, and mental health struggles.“The hardest part of getting clean are all the damn apologies, paying tolls on bridges that I’ve burned.” It’s a line from the Cameron Whitcomb song Quitter. I played it for my sponsor Gina, after a meeting one Sunday night while we sat in a Steak ‘N’ Shake across the street from the church where we met. She told me that I’d come to the part in my recovery that it was time to make amends. She’d let me get away with skipping this step fo...

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“Forgive me, Father” by Yoana Krasteva-Pyuzantyan

Submitted to Contest #268

TRIGGER WARNING: SUICIDE OR SELF HARM, GORE, MENTAL HEALTH, VIOLENCE Forgive me, Father I love the Sunday mass. I loved the way my tiny town was buzzing with anticipation. I loved how everybody made time for it, how they would schedule their otherwise busy lives, just so we can all gather together. I loved how we would sing, sing, sing, with all our hearts, until the air run out from our lungs. I loved how then we would all get quiet, drop on our knees and pray. Some of us for forgiveness, others for love or luck… We would hold our hands, w...

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“The Burden of Being a Parent” by Trevor Jackson

Submitted to Contest #268

Behind the gray clouds, a flash of lightning shoots across the afternoon sky, followed by a low rumble of thunder echoing through the valley. The rain comes down heavily as the yellow taxi drives slow through the residential neighborhood. It finally comes to a stop in front of a brown two story house near the end of the road. The back door opens, and an older gentleman, Charlie, climbs out wearing a wide brimmed hat covering his white hair, a white beard trimmed neatly around his mouth, and a long, tan coat hanging off of his broad shoulders...

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“Emily, A Great Evil ” by Dylan Wrenn

Submitted to Contest #268

“I want to apologize” She just stood there. Eyes barrelling through him. He had overstepped. That’s not to say she didn’t deserve some retribution but… As much as it pained him, he had undergone some soul searching since the incident. He spoke to friends, did some meditating, some shower thinking and had regretfully arrived at the conclusion that yes, he had in fact overstepped. “I overstepped,” he said, shoulders shamed and shrunken. “You overstepped?” she said, as her arm found a spot in the doorframe to...

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“Seeking Forgiveness After All These Years” by LynneMarie Szymanski

Submitted to Contest #268

He carefully tucked the crisp new $100 bills into the pages of her book before placing it into the packing envelope to send it to her. An address label waited on the table to cover the original one that was on the used envelope he was using. He didn’t think she would notice that he had reused a packing envelope with his own address on it. He thought he was being stealthy. It had been over thirty years since he had contact with his daughter, and she had just published her first novel. Having listed where she worked on the acknowledgments pag...

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“Forgiving An Outlaw” by Jacob Herndon

Submitted to Contest #268

Randall estimated that the ring was worth more than he’d ever stolen. It was made of gold with platinum engraving. The stone inlaid was nearly as dark as obsidian, with red shimmering through a few hairline cracks and a small crater on its surface. This ring was one of his first trophies, taken from a man he’d killed long ago. What seemed less important at the time was the letter in the dead man’s jacket pocket. ___________Randall tapped his finger on the freshly polished countertop and took a deep breath, staring at the clerk. In the time R...

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“Tides of Regret ” by Tom Harvey

Submitted to Contest #268

The roses on the bedside table had already begun to wilt. In a green glass vase, a weeping teddy bear clutched a bright fabric heart, the words "Get Well Soon" emblazoned in faded letters across its downy paws. It stared out at the room with plastic eyes, witnessing the slow decay of everything around it. The discordant beeps of hospital machinery and the rhythmic hiss of a mechanical ventilator, breathing for a patient on the other side of the flimsy curtain, replaced the vibrant hum of life. Jim lay in bed, waiting for the merciful touch o...

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“The Last Time” by Skye Hannah-Campbell

Submitted to Contest #268

The Last Time I’ve become a fluent reader of your tears. I know their timing and can tell apart their many temperaments from the way they graft and gather by your cheeks. I’ve learnt how the midnight thud of the car door at our final drop-off, releases those bottled puddles. Puddles saved and invested throughout the evening, well hidden behind timed laughs and a charming performance at dinner. In the absence of even our most graceful guests, these tears roll like streams of curved music, swerving the silhouette of your nose – washing up into...

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“Unexpected” by Jane Anne Ireland

Submitted to Contest #268

Previously submitted for.......Reedsy Prompt #260: ~ A story in which a character learns something unexpected about someone, (in this case ~ me), they thought they knew well.but there is forgiveness sought and wondered about, at the end. Title: ~ UNEXPECTED, July 22, 2024By: ~ Jane Anne Hyslop Kennedy Ireland It was a calm Friday evening when our group of mid to older teens made their way together to a well-treed group campsite to enjoy the last long weekend of the summer together. The weather was looking like it was going to finally coopera...

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“Before Dawn Breaks” by Ben Buechel

Submitted to Contest #268

Until a moment ago, Robyn thought he might not come. A thousand things to do in only a few short hours before the sun rises, and she wouldn't have blamed him if her little meeting spot hadn't been high on the list of priorities. A man must make use of the time he has, her father used to bellow from the high chair in his hall. And what a terrible waste of time for Painter to leave his troops, venture up into the dark hills for an exchange of measly little words, knowing that when the dawn came, his death would not be far behind.Still, she was...

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“SAL” by Anil Ibrahim

Submitted to Contest #268

SAL The two of them sat on a cement ledge outside the coffee shop. It was a beautiful day out, somewhere between a warm summer day and a cool autumn evening. The west side of the city had a few more trees lining the streets, so it was possible to find some shade here or there. That is where Steve and Sohil found themselves, sitting on a cement barrier with their feet up on the electric bike rack in front of them. There were never bikes parked at these stalls throughout the city. Steve thought to himself. Bikes were left everywhere but n...

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“It Doesn’t Matter” by Hailey McMasters

Submitted to Contest #268

tw - this contains brief mentions of a minor dating an adult as well as underaged drinkingValerie was a different girl now, but she was still haunted by the same ghosts.The crunch of bones snapping, her reflection in 3-D glasses, teal eyes rolling back white. She found herself reliving the same funeral every night. Blue-black dress, unanswered messages, and the thought that she was all on her own now.At the time, it didn’t matter. Or at least, that’s what Valerie told herself.She could beat any game in the arcade by herself, no one could win...

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“The Weight of Forgiveness” by Janet Brown

Submitted to Contest #268

THE WEIGHT OF FORGIVENESS The quaint town of Grayson Mills is nestled among rolling hills and pastoral settings in the western part of Maryland. Within the boundaries of the town exists a venerable, centuries-old property, known as the Heavenly Hills Cemetery. It is here where whispers of the past feel at home among the ancient oaks and weathered headstones. If one searched diligently, they would find the name of Stephan O’Connell resting amid the other residents in the graveyard. Stephan was a man whose untimely deat...

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“The last request...” by Leigh Peters

Submitted to Contest #268

AUTHOR'S NOTE - TRIGGER WARNING - Please be advised that the following piece of fiction contains references of violence towards child/young person(s) as well as references to mental illness. Sender: Mr S. Marchison (Death Row Inmate No. 995684)Florida State PrisonRaiford, Florida.Recipient: Mr R. MarchisonCedar Oaks Drive,Jacksonville, Florida.Date: 22nd September 2024Dearest Robert,You would have received the official notice from FSP regarding my ‘D’ Day being the 24th, which is this coming Tuesday. It has been a very long 17 years, an...

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Write a story about someone seeking forgiveness for their past actions.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 93 stories

“Mourn me, goddamnit!” by Shoshana Groom

“It Is What It Is” by Sydney Nyberg

“Forgive me, Father” by Yoana Krasteva-Pyuzantyan

“The Burden of Being a Parent” by Trevor Jackson

“Emily, A Great Evil ” by Dylan Wrenn

“Seeking Forgiveness After All These Years” by LynneMarie Szymanski

“Forgiving An Outlaw” by Jacob Herndon

“Tides of Regret ” by Tom Harvey

“The Last Time” by Skye Hannah-Campbell

“Unexpected” by Jane Anne Ireland

“Before Dawn Breaks” by Ben Buechel

“SAL” by Anil Ibrahim

“It Doesn’t Matter” by Hailey McMasters

“The Weight of Forgiveness” by Janet Brown

“The last request...” by Leigh Peters

🌟 Similar prompts

Your character gets everything they ever wanted — only to realize the true cost.

A character’s life of deceit unravels as their past catches up with their present. What are the consequences?

Start a story with someone receiving a message from their past self, warning them of the consequences of their actions.

Center your story around a character’s attempt to escape a bad situation that inadvertently leads them back to the source of their problems.

Contest #268

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

286

Contest entries

129

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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