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Looking for a steady supply of fiction short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

37290+ Fiction Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. If you’re looking for the best fiction short stories to read online, we’ve got you covered. Wide-ranging and ever-curious, these free short stories will meet your reading needs.

Fiction Short Stories – Page 2 of 2487

The End

Submitted to Contest #301

“Can you order the lobster for me, babe?” Janaia asked as a violinist softly strum behind her. “With the mashed potatoes and asparagus? Oh, and a glass of Pinot?”The rich scents of vanilla and sandalwood combined with cooked meat and vegetables permeated the air.“Yes, of course,” Ryan smiled, the spark in his eye enhanced by the candlelight as he pulled back her chair. “Whatever you want.”“Thank you, babe,” she smiled back, collected her purse, and gave him a parting peck. “I’ll be right back. I love you.”"I love you, too," he replied.Ryan’s...

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Silly Meera

Submitted to Contest #301

A cat hissed, a crow squawked, and Meera shrieked gleefully from her perch on the windowsill. A fuzzy cat, with thin eyes, had jumped from the bush in Meera’s front yard and swiped at a large black bird whose beak was digging through a pile of dirt. The bird flew away with a wriggling string in its mouth as Meera watched the cat following from the road. “Meera!” Mommy called. It was time to go to the park! Meera rushed from the windowsill to the front door where Mommy waited. She helped Meera put on her outside shoes and tie the bunnies on e...

7 likes 3 comments 3
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Mint

Submitted to Contest #301

The 35th day of RestTo the resplendent Prime Minister Alfred Mothdon of Acontia,I hope this letter finds you well. I wish I could be writing under different circumstances, but alas. Please consider this my official confession.I, Ophelia Patricia Magdan, former Chief Director of Architecture for the Acontian Department of Magical Structures, am guilty of theft (if you can call it that), the disruption of an officially sanctioned project, and of practicing forbidden crafting. I do not wish to make excuses, but you see, I feel as though I shoul...

9 likes 5 comments 5
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DUE DATE

Submitted to Contest #301

Warning: Some explicit language.DUE DATEJoanne slammed the book shut with an echoing thud. Amid the hushed sounds of the library, it may as well have been a gunshot.Nope. No way. Not possible.People gave her side glances as they wondered why a petite woman in her 70s looked like she had just seen a ghost.This wasn’t supposed to happen.She opened the book and checked it again, not believing her eyes. She tried crossing out the number that glared back at her. But nothing appeared when the pen moved across the page. Of course, it didn’t work on...

11 likes 2 comments 2
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1958

Submitted to Contest #301

Warning - This story deals with violence, mental health, and substance abuse. *** Alisa came back to the cabin with groceries around noon. She couldn’t go back to sleep, though she had stayed up most of the night. She paced round and round. She paused at the front door whenever she passed it, hovering her hand over the knob. Then she would shrug, sigh, and continue her idle march. She suffered all the symptoms of cabin fever only two days into the trip and felt claustrophobic for the first time in her life. “God, stop your pacing,” Sean sna...

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LYFT

Submitted to Contest #301

LYFTThere aren’t too many moments I can recall feeling absolute pride in my work, Now, granted, I’ve only been recently promoted, but sometimes fate just knows how to create that moment of instant understanding, and present itself with maddening clarity. It’s one of those moments one will never forget, and trust me when I say, things doesn't always go as planned. I am fully aware that failure is a non-tolerable infraction in my business. I have yet witnessed the fate of the previous recruits that hadn’t lived up to our Boss’s expectations, b...

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Echoes of the First Fall

Submitted to Contest #301

The temperature surged beyond 2,000 degrees, but he didn’t feel it. Screams of agony rippled through the air like wind through dead trees, but he wasn’t moved. Cries for mercy rang out like broken prayers, but he didn’t flinch. This was his eternity, unchanging, unchallenged. For the one once called the Light Bringer, this was his dominion.It was just routine in the pit, and he walked the scorched rows like a foreman checking his stock, passing demons armed with whips, fleshhooks, and iron brands. They delivered punishment with joyful precis...

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The Familiars

Submitted to Contest #301

Reverend Fagmire looked out over the congregation, none of his sheep dared look into his wolfish eyes. If they had, they’d see them glowing red like dying embers, deep under the hood of his dark brow. He smiled…and the mourning dove in the middle stained-glass window dropped to the floor unnoticed by all but one. “Holy tidings friends!” the reverend bellowed over the heads of his congregation…a congregation of grim faced, sickly-looking people “We have a newwwww---” His booming voice trailed away along with his jackal’s grin. The people aw...

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Tragically Enlightened

Submitted to Contest #301

Brad “Beaker” LaRou yanked his face away from the bong and coughed smoke into the room. He squinted bloodshot eyes down at the phone on his coffee table, glass top reflecting his mop of hair and thin head. Nicknamed for his resemblance to the iconic muppet. It chittered along, flashing LISA. He swiped to answer. “Hey babe-” “BEAKER!” The volume was maxed so her shriek tore throught he room. He jerked, dropping the bong and spilling the water over the carpet. Knowing he’d have to scrub the shit out of it or she’d tear his head off, he shrug...

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Borrowed Time

Submitted to Contest #301

The Ashmolean Museum's marble floors gleamed under the soft gallery lights as Anna guided the group of wealthy donors through her latest acquisition: a previously unknown Caravaggio."Notice how the light creates this almost supernatural contrast," Anna said, gesturing toward the painting's shadowy background. "Caravaggio was a master of chiaroscuro, using darkness not just as absence of light, but as a presence itself."She watched their faces transform with wonder—exactly the reaction she'd hoped for. Seven years as Senior Curator had taught...

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The Ties That Break

Submitted to Contest #301

The moon above shone brightly over the silent town. Lanterns flickered inside their glass prisons with no one to reignite them once the oil ran out. Not that it mattered due to the newly enforced curfew signed by Lord Valian himself and upheld by his lackeys, all eager to get into his good graces with the high-ranking nobles also under his influence. Yet even their tenacity to keep the streets unoccupied could not hide their arrogance as they bragged about what they would do to anyone they saw, or their inability to spot the duo in the alley...

2 likes 0 comments 0
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Bella

Submitted to Contest #301

“What are you doing?” I thought as I shifted my car into park outside Finding Hope Animal Shelter. “You don’t have a job; you just moved into a new place. You shouldn’t be getting a dog. Not now. Not ever. Turn around. Go home,” but I didn’t go home. I took the keys out of the ignition, stepped out into the hot New Mexico sun, and locked my car behind me. The first thing that hit me upon walking through the front doors was the overwhelming smell of urine and bleach. Although the floors were shiny and polished, I couldn’t help but...

12 likes 5 comments 5
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AI(Artificial Intelligence)Alive Intelligence!

Submitted to Contest #301

AI (Artificial Intelligence) Alive Intelligence!By Lee Kendrick Since 2023 AI has revolutionised creative writing, art and photography on the Internet. If you take photography, for example, you can bring an old photograph to life of your grandmother, Father, or any family member to life. An old monochrome photograph can be not only colourized and the detail sharpened more than ever before, but now with AI an old still photo of a loved one can be miraculously brought to life, with a person expressing realistic movements...animating facial ges...

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Beans

Submitted to Contest #301

The flat was a mess, again. Soiled socks and shredded tissues were shoved down various furniture crevices, and make-up brushes lay strewn beneath the mirror, their tops caked in powder from the morning rush. Breadcrumbs littered the worktop from toaster to sink, and the tap dripped, and dripped, and dripped. Cat hair clung to the carpet like Velcro and mugs teetered on the edge of tables, stacked precariously atop dribbles of cold tea. Licia dropped a Tesco bag at her feet and watched as a can of beans rolled towards the table. It stopped. ...

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New Phone Who Dis

Submitted to Contest #301

It wriggled across the sidewalk in front of her. She'd been stopped for a couple minutes now, waiting. Kate wasn't sure if it was covered in legs or hairs, but it didn't look like walking. It was wriggling, not inching. Maybe inching sideways, she considered.Whatever it was, it was pus white, bulging at the seams, and probably wriggling. Kate silently cheered as it passed the halfway point on the concrete slab. She'd become invested in the little guy. Had anyone else come by, they might have crushed the poor bug, popped it like a zit. Kate l...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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