As you check your mail, you notice a letter that makes you stop in your tracks.

Posted in Thriller and Suspense on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 213 stories

“A Good Dream” by Katie Myers

Submitted to Contest #47

It was getting closer to April 1st, not that you needed reminding. Every third e-mail in your inbox took care of that. Your compliance coordinator is breathing down your neck at work, and so are your teammates. You can’t close your eyes anymore without counting your yellow triangles (3, right now) and red stop signs (only 1, not terrible). “Hey, have you scheduled your meetings yet?” “How’s the paperwork going?” “Hey, can you come look at this for me?” “It’s under control,” you say with a forced ...

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“The University of Westminster” by Ella Kinnett

Submitted to Contest #47

“Julia,” your mother says, “you need to send your application to the University of Westminster. You are a senior and the year is almost over and you haven't sent one application to any college yet.” You knodd to let her know that you understand and then walk up to your room to finish the application. You don’t really want to go to the University of Westminster but all of your family who went to college did, and you will be the first girl in generations to go to college. My father and his father and his grandfather all went to the University ...

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“Pickles” by Jimmy Arnis

Submitted to Contest #47

You hate sorting the mail. A hardcore Generation Z, you’re of the steadfast belief that the Internet is the absolute truth, so you’ve never understood why some people still cling to the old and archaic way of writing and posting letters. Hello! Heard of e-mail yet? Unfortunately, it’s part of your designated house chores; Maggie, as usual, got the fun chores, like mowing the lawn. As you sullenly poke through the stack, a certain letter catches your attention. It’s just a piece of honey colored cotton paper folded in two, but filigree adorn...

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“Blue” by Olusegun Blessing

Submitted to Contest #47

The couch suddenly feels warmer and inviting so you get out of bed, grab a bowl of popcorn and turn on the TV but your concentration is wavering as your thoughts keep drifting. You pick up your phone to check Twitter. It's a whole bunch of interesting and uninteresting things that doesn't interest you that you see. Switching to YouTube doesn't do much either. Pressing play on your laptop to continue the series you just started isn't helping too. Now, you are sitting at the pool with your earphones on at 3am because you can't sleep....

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“Anyone there?” by Amber Shepherd

Submitted to Contest #47

You await the letter eagerly. Will it be red or blue? It feels like a red day today, but you have no idea. That’s the point really, what this is all about. This is your 78th letter since you moved here. Yes, you’ve counted. Sad? Perhaps. But hey, you did it. 6:57 a.m. So close. You fidget on your feet like an impatient toddler. Yesterday was a blue day. A blue envelope, and the number five printed on the letter inside. The same combination of number and colour was delivered on May 22nd. It rained that day, and you remember that: you made ...

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“THE LETTER THAT STOPPED ME” by Eco Anna

Submitted to Contest #47

I was lying lazily in my room, and I was just daydreaming. It was a plain old boring weekend day, and I decided to just lay around. But I should do something, not just lie around, I thought to myself. I decided to go to my friends house, so I dressed up and gathered up some snacks and left. On the way, I stopped to check the mail box but suddenly, I heard a shuffle. I looked at the ground, and saw that I stepped on a letter. I kept going to the mailbox, but then I froze in my tracks. I turned around and I gravely looked at the letter. My eye...

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“Into the Inferno” by A. Marya

Submitted to Contest #47

You wake up surrounded by demons. You try to keep your body relaxed, and slowly open your eyes, carefully keeping them narrowed into slits. Hopefully, they won't notice you're awake. Your head ached horribly, but you ignored it. After years of dealing with such creatures, you can easily sense their presence. It isn't hard. The smell of those monsters made it simple, if you knew what to look for. Indeed, the metallic scent of copper mixed with the cloying sweetness of lilac perfume, would make anyone else nauseous. Unfortunately, ...

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“The Letter.......” by Unknown User

Submitted to Contest #47

You have to admit you have waited for your Hogwarts letter since you first read the book but nothing prepared you for the letter you just received. You stood there a stack of papers in your hand, reciting what they were as you threw them away. “Bills, bills, late notices. Sale flyer after-sale flyer. Very large yellow envelope with your name and that of a law firm from a place you never heard of.” Even as you said what it was you tossed it into the garbage until It struck you like a bolt of lightning. “Large yellow...

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“Death Certificate ” by Summer Stiles

Submitted to Contest #47

You wake up to your alarm, set always to the same time, even though more often then not you wake up before it. You get up and have eggs and bacon, then get dressed. You check the time and see that you are on time, as usual. With satisfaction, you check the calendar, which hasn't changed, as usual. You look in the mirror and brush your hair, your teeth and apply the little makeup you bother with these days, it never really mattered anymore. The sun shone outside, as usual, the weather was nice. You make your cup of coffee to sit out on the po...

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“The Pineapple Murderer” by Brooke Tango

Submitted to Contest #47

On a mid- August summer morning, you walked up to the mailbox retrieving the mail for your mother. You were rummaging through the envelopes, hoping to find a letter from your boyfriend, Steve, who you hadn’t heard from since he left for football camp. The camp he was attending wouldn’t allow any electronics and only letters. You hoped to find a letter from him. The last time you received a letter was over two week ago. Woefully, you sighed. You reached for the mailbox to close it, then noticed a small envelope with a red, wax seal in the b...

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“Sunless” by Angel Brookins

Submitted to Contest #47

It seemed like just another day. You got up and ate breakfast. You turned on the news, and were shocked at the continued unrest and rise in cases of covid 19. You scrolled through your facebook and shook your head sadly at the apparent stupidity of so many of the people that you had always considered to be reasonable and intelligent. You checked your email and decided to write in your journal. This is your journal entry for today, June 21, 2020, Midsummer, the day that follows the s...

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“The Mailbox” by Kay O'connell

Submitted to Contest #47

You never did mind going out to get the mail- it was the bringing it in that was the problem. Going outside, that was fine. Taking a stroll, getting some sun (sometimes for the first time that day), that was all well and fine. Ambling up the long winding driveway, perfect. It was the old rusty mailbox on the corner, right next to that dangerous road that people took way to fast- that was the issue. It was the way that that hinge needed to be fixed. It squeaked horribly, needed to be yanked open, nearly pulling the rotting mailbox peg out of ...

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“The mail ” by Shrestha Sengupta

Submitted to Contest #47

Out of my regular habit of checking mails after I woke up, that day was no different. I checked my mails as soon as I woke up , replied to some and then looked at the clock to notice that I was fashionably late. I was unable to check the mails for the last few days as I had a pretty busy week in office. As I was heading towards the top I noticed a mail from an unknown resource saying noreply, dated 15th June i.e. 7 days ago from today. I opened the mail and what it said, made me sweat from head to toe and miserably happy . The mail was writt...

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“ The Bright Red Envelope” by Joyce Schook

Submitted to Contest #47

The letter was unexpected. It sat at the bottom of the enormous pile of mail you stood sifting through.The bright red envelope was hard to miss.You turned it over in your hands and read the return address. You froze in place. You clearly didn't expect this today.Then you remove it along with the rest of the contents from your mailbox. The return trip up the driveway all that you could think of was why it had arrived and what did it say. After setting the pile on top of the granite counter in your kitchen, you retrieve the red envelope and br...

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“MR.POSTMAN” by Tania Vela

Submitted to Contest #47

Well you have to know that checking the mail can be quite a different experience daily. And everyone you and I and all before us and many after us. Will be waiting on the postman.Theres going to be either good news or bad news. And definitely bills credit card statements to remind you of all the fun you had 2 weekends ago right? I check my mail everyday like you should. Then there's the ones like my mother who don't check their mail for days. Which I'm sure frustrates the postman. I mean you could only imagine having to stuff more mail into ...

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As you check your mail, you notice a letter that makes you stop in your tracks.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 213 stories

“A Good Dream” by Katie Myers

“The University of Westminster” by Ella Kinnett

“Pickles” by Jimmy Arnis

“Blue” by Olusegun Blessing

“Anyone there?” by Amber Shepherd

“THE LETTER THAT STOPPED ME” by Eco Anna

“Into the Inferno” by A. Marya

“The Letter.......” by Unknown User

“Death Certificate ” by Summer Stiles

“The Pineapple Murderer” by Brooke Tango

“Sunless” by Angel Brookins

“The Mailbox” by Kay O'connell

“The mail ” by Shrestha Sengupta

“ The Bright Red Envelope” by Joyce Schook

“MR.POSTMAN” by Tania Vela

🌟 Similar prompts

"Just say it," you silently reminded yourself. You knew you'd regret it if you didn't.

You looked out the window and, not for the first time, thought about how wrong the weather forecast had been.

Suitcase in hand, you head to the station.

You check the time. Perfect. As intended, you've arrived fashionably late.

Contest #47

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

881

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: