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Discover weekly, the best short stories

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

150+ Happy Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. A good story doesn’t need a devastating twist. Nor does it have to plumb the darkest depths of the human conditions. These happy short stories might be exactly what you’re looking for in these uncertain times.

Happy Short Stories – Page 2 of 10

🐾The Chronicles of Mr. Wolfenwobbles, the Wolf Who Forgot How to Wolf 🐾

Submitted to Contest #314

Chapter 1: The Hunt (Or Lack Thereof) In Which Gravity Declares War on Dignity The dawn sun filtered through the trees, casting golden streaks over the Moonlight Wobblers’ den. My pack lounged around, sharpening claws and debating whether pinecones counted as a food group. Luna, my second-in-command (and full-time judger of all of my dang life choices), flicked her tail like a metronome of disappointment. “Wolfenwobbles,” she sighed, “the pack needs actual food. Not just being subjected to your… interpretive naps.” I gasped, clutching my ch...

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Breakfast

Submitted to Contest #314

Sizzle. Pop, pop, pop. Splashhh.With a deep inhale the scent travels through my nose, up my snout, then past my eyes and ears. It ventures straight into my stomach which makes it gurgle.Grease. Mmmmmm. Meat dripping from a frying pan with the oh-so-wonderful smell of fat. It’s hot candy on a stick—or plate—as the case may be. It awakens the expectation of food that causes my nostrils to flare and my mouth to salivate.That scent—the wake-up call of deliciousness that greets me on mornings when Mom doesn’t go into work early. She’s an angel in...

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Six-year-old's Summer

Submitted to Contest #314

“You’re lucky you get to stay home and enjoy the nice weather,” Daddy said to Jacob as they stood on the back porch admiring the green grass and breathing in the rich summer smells. “I have to go into my office all day. I’m going to miss you.” Jacob leaned against Daddy’s leg to show he would miss him too. Playing in the backyard was more fun together than alone. Daddy tussled Jacob’s hair and said enviously, “Don’t have too much fun while I’m gone. And listen to Mommy. She’s watching from the window.” Daddy final...

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Divine Paws of Judgment

Shortlisted for Contest #314 ⭐️

I have stood sentinel beneath the great pillars of Karnak. I have seen empires rise from dust and return to it once more. My dark eyes have witnessed the truth of the mortal heart, brave, foolish, loyal, deceitful. All are revealed when placed upon my scales. Mine is an ancient and noble duty.I am Anubis, Lord of the Sacred Land, Guardian of the Scales, and Judge of Souls.Now, however, I find myself banished. Punished, perhaps. Trapped in the land of mortals, in a far lesser incarnation. A humble abode of red brick and double-glazed windows,...

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A fervent heat

Submitted to Contest #314

It was the hottest day of the year. The sun blazed mercilessly in a cerulean sky, casting shimmering mirages that danced along the cracked asphalt of Maplewood Lane. The air was thick with humidity, wrapping around the small town like a heavy, suffocating blanket. Not a single leaf fluttered in the oppressive heat, and even the birds seemed to find it too discomforting to sing. In this stifling atmosphere, thirteen-year-old Madeline Thompson was holed up in her attic, far removed from the sweltering chaos outside.The teen could feel the day’...

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Eviction Time

Submitted to Contest #313

Eviction Time If only I could fast forward to when he is out of here… Shit, my stomach hurts. And not that I need to eat something kind of ache; more like I have been kicked in the gut and left to rot kind of pain. I have to get Miles to leave. He is sucking the joy out of me little by little. I can see it in my smile, which hasn't truly reached my eyes in months. “Fake it until you make it”, that’s my daddy’s motto. And I have lived that way for a while now. But no more. Today is the day. I am going to force Miles to get out. To leave me,...

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Whispers on the Line, a Campaign

Submitted to Contest #313

There comes a point, after a painful reckoning, when there’s only one reasonable path onwards: journeying to a kingdom under the rule of a techno-cult of renegade gnomes. Meredith knew how patiently Ayo had been waiting to get started on their tabletop roleplay campaign again. She always pitched it right - never bombarded with messages, pushy GIFs, emotional blackmail. When she’d said, ‘I think it’ll help you to get back into it,’ Merry knew she was genuine. But god, that woman was thirsty for a campaign. How could such an insatiable Game Ma...

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It's In the Music

Submitted to Contest #313

Jo, a tall green-eyed redhead with long curly hair that swung as she walked, got ready to visit her dad in the Wintergreen Nursing Facility. She sighed as she went out the front door of her home on Apple Street. Another day talking to someone with dementia. I love my dad but it’s hard to see him like this. He used to be so strong and vigorous. I miss the old him. She drove to the facility and walked in the front entrance. This is going to be a tricky conversation today. I hope I have enough patience to get an answer from him. The previous da...

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The Open Laptop

Submitted to Contest #313

“Grandma!” Amy shouts as she runs towards me. She’s my 6 year old great granddaughter. It’s Saturday morning, and she and her mother are here for a visit. Amy reaches to me and gives me a big hug. Then she nestles into the sofa beside me hugging her stuffed teddy bear and says, “Tell me the lake story again. Please, Grandma. Please.” I’m 92 and I live in Duncanville, TX. My partner Bill passed away two years ago and now I live alone in a nursing home. These weekly Saturday morning visits with Amy and Dorothy ...

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Whiskers Smells Something Bad

Submitted to Contest #313

It was the sound that woke him first. A soft whimper, high-pitched and unfamiliar, weaving its way into his dreams like an off-key violin. Then came the smell — damp fur, sweet breath, the faint tang of something young and stupid.Whiskers sat up on the windowsill, his tail flicking once with precise irritation. His ears turned toward the hallway. The house was quiet, but not the usual kind of quiet. There was tension in it. He could smell it. Hear it in the way the woman shuffled her feet too fast in the kitchen, the way the boy whispered to...

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Whiskers vs Automation

Submitted to Contest #312

Part I: The Glorious Reign Whiskers was once king.His days began lazily, with a stretch so elegant it could inspire paintings. Under the golden spill of sunlight through the living-room drapes, he would curl into his spot on the Persian rug—a feline sculpture of leisure. He was the centerpiece in the gallery of their lives.Humans were simple:One plaintive "meow" summoned kibble.A firm "meow-meow" redirected the sunbeam.An insistent "MAYOOOW!" brought them to their knees, stroking him into purring contentment.He dictated bedtime by leaping on...

9 likes 2 comments 2
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The You That Survived

Submitted to Contest #312

Lara stood in the dim light of her bathroom, the tiles cold beneath her feet, the silence pressing gently on her shoulders. The buzz of the world outside felt distant, as what she used to call life was continuing somewhere far away without her. Her hand trembled as she reached for the fogged-up mirror, wiping away the mist with the edge of her pale palm.It was the first time she had dared to look really since her cancer battle had ended.Not the kind of battle people read about in headlines or watched unfold in war films. No dramatic soundtra...

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Unimaginary Friend

Submitted to Contest #312

"Who are you?" Amanda asked the child at the bottom of the slide. She just appeared out of nowhere, looking up at Amanda with vacant, black eyes. "How did you get here?" Amanda looked around. There were no gaps in the solid wooden fence and she was pretty sure this girl couldn't have climbed that high or dropped that far without injuring herself. She was pencil thin and wore a stained white dress that looked like one of the sheets mama put on her bed. And it was so strange to Amanda that the girl was wearing no shoes, her feet bare and muddy...

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Six Moons Later

Submitted to Contest #311

I remember the comfort that creeps in when familiarity turns your bones warm. It is a feeling that slips in quietly, like a hot cup of tea between cold hands. Soothing. Undeniable. That is how it felt when I saw him again. Dash. His smile had not changed—could not have. It took over his entire face, like joy had muscle memory. The way his eyes crinkled and sparked at once, the flicker of white teeth, the nose that always twitched when he smiled sincerely. And this, this moment of seeing him again, gave me that ridiculous blush that blooms fr...

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Remembrance

Submitted to Contest #311

Remarkably I found myself cleaning out an old closet space. Full of past present and today's current events. Unlike any other soccer mom I was determined to transform this space into the ultimate computer lab. For any recognition as an picture framed generated technician. With of course the help of your helpful hardware store. My wild ideas always have turn key observation accessories to design and add an air of completion. The before picture and an after. Who knows maybe an onboard investment challenge equipped with all the bells and whistl...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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