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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.

2940+ 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 8 of 196

The Sun Always Shines (Even When It’s Raining)

Submitted to Contest #288

Lyla's Her boots clicked against the old cobblestones – tap, tap, tap. The sound bounced between the buildings lining Main Street, those ancient brick beauties from back when people actually cared what things looked like. Not like the glass-and-steel boxes they were throwing up downtown these days. These buildings had stories etched into their walls, decades of city grime in their pores.God, she loved mornings like this. The sky stretched endless and blue above the old brick buildings, and somewhere nearby, coffee was brewing – that rich, bi...

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The True History of England's Favorite Colony, as I heard it

Submitted to Contest #289

Trigger: written in the fat thumb grammar to avoid data miners over-borrowing any more labor.Grandpa was dragged out by his neck and forced to sign his property away. The crows thronged hard and threw their gnatty green tomatoes, their wooden shear sticks fanning about in the hazey morning. It was like a thunder strike as this tassled leash went around his neck and someone slapped a horse on the hind and the cobblestones went bumpety bumpety. It’s rough to have this awesome guy, this King of royal blood in your line, but you can’t brag ...

19 likes 16 comments 16
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You Are my Sunshine

Submitted to Contest #288

It had been three straight weeks of clouds and grey in Chicago. June had just started and Lucy Freedman was more than ready for Summer to begin. It had been a month since the tragic passing of her grandmother, Mary, and in her grief, Lucy attempted to focus on all the things that make her happy. One of those things being sunlight and summer. To Lucy, there was nothing better than stepping outside in the morning, looking up at the sky, and seeing the sun greet her with warmth and light. However, after her grandmother passed, the warmth and th...

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The Magic Wind

Submitted to Contest #288

“I felt it, Sur!” “Aye you did! You did! I could tell, it was the shiver of…” “The magic wind don’t you know!” Finnbar yells out to sea, finishing his sister’s description. Delighted, he feels his cheek where the slight breeze warmed and tickled it. “I love this, our Dún Aonghasa! In our own back yard, it is! I really love it so when it’s very calm like this. Because we can sit with our legs dangling and enjoy the day. Maybe even the sunset, that is when it comes. This is my most favorite time of ...

7 likes 0 comments 0
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The comforts of home

Submitted to Contest #288

The perfect storm settled around us in layers. One by one. Until there was nothing but us. Each other. His hazel eyes. My sleepy smile. Two hearts, one whole. The first layer was the delicate snowflakes floating down, sparkling. My call into the night air brought our calico friend trotting in through the back door. She twists and winds round my leaden legs. Her ginger and black and white fur crimped by moisture, whiskers twinkling as if festooned with fairy lights. As she disappears to take up her station looking hopeful by an empty bowl, I...

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Diwali, 2022

Submitted to Contest #288

When you’re young and world is still full of wonder and things to explore and places to be, and the prospect of a job has no relation to the drudgery of a nine to five…you expect your life will turn out remarkably well. Life, untouched by life. Preserved in resin. A marvel. One day, you’re playing with a teddy bear and having a tea party with all your dolls, and the next thing you know, you’re thirty-two. Divorced. Cities away from your parents’ home, looking at a skyline with no hope on the horizon, thirty thousand feet in the air. Wonderi...

11 likes 3 comments 3
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Searching for Angelina

Submitted to Contest #288

It was a rainy night, the streets dark save for the blurred house lights that made a wavery line. My car splashed down the wet road, seemingly floating rather than driving. I passed the 6th Street bus stop, and that was where—just for a moment— I saw her.She stood on the side of the road, a slender, lithe shadow, until my headlights revealed her clearly for one startling instant. Her dark eyes, cascading hair, half-smile, and unusual beauty stunned me with the power of epiphany. Something about her gripped my soul. Beauty is a ghost, a phant...

8 likes 1 comment 1
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Soaked

Submitted to Contest #288

Wearing his best suit, Bentley stood under Francine’s second story balcony. He hoped she would accept his apology. It began to rain. Though he had no umbrella, he didn’t care. Starting as a heavy mist, the drizzle soon became a steady shower. ‘Maybe it’ll help,’ he thought.If he’d blown it with Francine, nothing else mattered to him. He couldn’t believe how stupid he’d been. ‘Stomped on her heart… for pride…? Ego…? Nothing so elevated…’ He didn’t know what to call it. He missed her.Bentley thought back to their argument a week ago. Francine ...

24 likes 6 comments 6
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my land never changes

Submitted to Contest #288

u will know which country i am referring to ... ?keke ...the weather never changes here , hot and wet ... always , 366 days a year.. !Cost of living is high here ,the same shopping malls day in day out ,i am situated in Asia .salaries is low and costs are high ,low income environment and high costs environment ... kekethings are always expensive here ...we are crowded ...weather is hot and humid ...high rainfalls sometimes ....we have world class transportation ,we are very clean ...we are usually clean , the roads and public places ...we ar...

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Bibliobibulis

Submitted to Contest #287

This is a sequel to All You Need is a Cat (found on my page!) , but it can be read as a standalone. Winston never liked cats. He found himself irritated by their constant need for food, lack of affection towards him, and long, drawn out meows when he tried to interact with them. He and Rosemary had owned dogs, fish, guinea pigs, and even an iguana over the years, but no felines. If someone had told Winston six months ago where he would be now, he practically would have laughed, though no one would hear it; Winston Edward Grey laughs on...

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Go hug somebody, would you?

Submitted to Contest #287

And just like that, only her embrace remains. The rest of the world is gone. Whatever conventional link you had with the world, it disappeared half a second ago.The fear that had felt like jumping into a cold lake still tries to linger on you, the last bits of anxiety hopelessly attempting to stiffen your muscles, to straighten your posture, to make you blurt out anything so that your scrambled mind gets back in order and, just to double check, it even directs your view to whatever parts of her hair you can see. It's a person, right?The last...

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All a girl needs are a teacup, a book and her dogs

Submitted to Contest #287

The night was falling, but up here in this tiny, rural blip on the map in the northern part of Norway, it’s pretty much dark even in daytime in winter. At least the light is sparse. As is the warmth. It has been a cold day and we are about to have a cold night. I walked into the kitchen. It was so warm and comforting. A place you’d want to spend time. A right place for a kitchen and hearth witch.I had spent all summer and autumn foraging for wild herbs, flowers and berries, as well as gathering the herbs in my garden. My favorite drink in wi...

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Love Letter to My Late Grandmother

Submitted to Contest #287

I’m not sure exactly when our little ritual began or how it started but it would always go the same way. Always me, creeping into the kitchen at night under the cover of darkness. I would tiptoe my way along the cold tile floor as silent as a mouse. Carefully, I would reach into the wooden cupboards and retrieve her favorite teacup. A white porcelain cup with blue detailing. It was classic and beautiful just like she was.  After gently placing the cup and matching saucer on the kitchen counter, I would then scurry over to get the tea ba...

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A Brew-Tea-Ful Time To Relax

Submitted to Contest #287

The aroma of coffee assaulted my senses when I entered the quaint, little café, a faint smile appearing on my lips as the cozy atmosphere warmed me up from the inside out, and I sighed softly, feeling at home within its walls.“Good morning, Callie! Would you like your usual?”The barista greeted me sweetly, prompting me to stride towards the counter she stood behind, the chain attached to my jeans jingling quietly against my left thigh as I walked, and I hummed thoughtfully at her inquiry.“Mmm, actually, what is your guy’s special for today, ...

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World's Best Grandpa

Submitted to Contest #287

“Hokis, it’s ready,” my grandpa called from the kitchen.  "Coming!" I shouted back. The word “hokis” means “my soul” and is a term of endearment used by Armenians when speaking to loved ones—similar to the English word “sweetie.” I closed my book and walked downstairs to the kitchen where my grandpa had prepared my favorite Sadaf tea.  Those cozy Saturdays had become a routine for us. My mom and grandma were at their weekly pottery class and my grandpa and I were at his house keeping each other company until their return. Every wee...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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