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Write about a second chance or a fresh start.

Posted in Short Story on Aug 8, 2025

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✍️ 7 stories

The Lives I Won't Live

Savannah Hoover

Submitted to Contest #315

Somewhere between who I was and who I’m supposed to become. Some days it feels like I’m standing in this endless hallway.It’s not haunted, not eerie, just long. Long and still and echoey, like the kind of place you don’t know whether to run through or whisper in. The walls are lined with doors, stretching out so far in either direction that the hallway fades into a blur, like a dream I can’t fully remember.There must be a thousand of them. Maybe more.Each one is different. Some are painted in colors I’ve loved since childhood, soft sea-glass...

13 likes

Just Another Day

Stephen Mccluer

Submitted to Contest #315

Just Another DayIn many ways, the day was a day much like any other that summer. It was August, and days were growing noticeably shorter, a sure sign that school would be starting again soon. But for the moment, I relished the freedom.It had been a good summer: swimming in the lake almost every day, hiking and exploring in the woods with friends, and generally leading a life free of many cares. I had earned some money by digging up worms and selling them to the bait shop. Even after paying for all the candy I had bought, I still had some coi...

9 likes

The Hinge That Remembers

Melissa Williams

Submitted to Contest #315

When Mara pushed open her grandmother’s front door, it didn’t swing—it sighed. The wood was swollen from years of salt air, stubborn as memory. She leaned her shoulder against it until it gave, then stepped inside, leaving her suitcase by the stairs like an afterthought.The air was the same as she remembered: tide, lemon oil, and the faint whisper of rosemary. Summer afternoons and childhood laughter clung to it, even though the house had been empty for over a year. Or not empty—just without a person.The bay window framed the gray horizon. I...

7 likes

Mojo-Eating Trouble & A Second Chance

Lily Finch

Submitted to Contest #315

The screen door creaked open without a knock.Boo looked up from the chipped kitchen table, where a cold cup of coffee sat beside a stack of unpaid bills. Afternoon sunlight bled through the blinds in dusty stripes, cutting across her arms and the paper like pale prison bars.And there he was.“You mojo-eatin’, black ball-suckin’, Vernor’s-drinkin’ piece of leftover trash from the Fourth of July picnic—after the watermelon rind broke in two and wasn’t worth a damn thing.” Her voice came out sharp but steady, the kind she’d learned to use when s...

4 likes

Roots in the Ashes

Eliza Jane

Submitted to Contest #315

The whistle blew sharp and clear across the empty rail yard, breaking the silence like a bell tolling a new beginning. Ira Jane stood at the edge of the cracked platform, heart pounding, but not from fear. Something like hope fluttered beneath the surface, fragile but stubborn. Years of running had led her here—to this forgotten station where rust kissed the rails and wildflowers pushed through broken concrete. A place abandoned by time, yet alive in a way no one saw anymore. She pulled her coat tighter around her shoulders, the cold wind bi...

2 likes

New Traditions - A Dia de los Muertos Story

G.A. Botero

Submitted to Contest #315

Carolina stood in the middle of her Florida apartment, surrounded by shopping bags from Michael's and Publix. She felt both nervous and excited, wondering if she was doing the right thing and if she would get it right. The late October Doral heat pressed against her windows as the sound of airplanes destined for Miami International airport breezed by. A YouTube tutorial on creating ofrendas played on her phone. The phone, propped on her dining room table by sugar skulls and stacks of old photos she had selected for the occasion. Growing up, ...

1 like

In the Beast's Shadow

Krish Bansal

Submitted to Contest #315

For many years, I lived alone—shrouded in darkness and bitterness—within the cold confines of my castle. The curse that bound me was not only upon my body but upon my soul. I was once a handsome prince, but pride and cruelty twisted me into this beastly form. My claws, fangs, my towering, fur-covered frame—these were all reminders of the monster I had become.I remember the moment the curse fell. An enchantress, guised as a frail old woman, came to my door seeking shelter. I had rejected her harshly, disgusted by her humble appearance. But in...

1 like

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