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Discover weekly, the best short stories

Looking for a steady supply of teens & young adult short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

5390+ Teens & young adult Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. Looking for the best short stories for teens? Our collection of funny, suspenseful, and relatable young adult short stories will meet your needs.

Teens & young adult Short Stories – Page 325 of 360

Milestones to Woe

Submitted to Contest #68

“This was supposed to be the happiest day of their lives”Friday…Pause. Rewind to Thursday.Chantalle stepped out of her dorm room into the hallway and dialed on her Samsung. She speaks quieter than usual, calling out mildly, ‘Hello, mama. Hello, are you there?’. She multiply turns at her sides to see for anyone passing while on the phone, as if she was hiding. She was. She complained for the little money given her. Her mother convinced her to be patient until she is paid her poor salary.Chantalle lowly replied, “I’ll call you next week t...

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Tropical To Some, Prison To Others

Submitted to Contest #68

“Isn’t that beautiful? Isn’t this place beautiful?” Daneille says in awe. “You could say that, but it’s just a sunrise…” I say trying to sound bored, but that sunrise was extraordinarily beautiful, even through the hotel’s window. “I have a question...Who am I? Who are we?” I ask? “You should know who you are Ivory...Like you know I'm Daneille,” Daneille says quirky and curious why I asked. “Yeah but...that’s our names not who we are…” I say again. Why doesn’t she get my question?“Oh Ivory, chill out we don’t need to know...

35 likes 15 comments 15
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Glitches

Submitted to Contest #68

“Move!” Gabby hopped back in the car, throwing the bag of coins in the back of the car as I moved the gear shift, pressed my foot on the accelerator, and took off.  “I can’t believe it’s happening. Check Ins are today.” She sighed, clearly holding back tears.  Check Ins.  They’ve been around since Fallsted was first formed. My parents made the rules clear. Don’t be out at night. Mask. If you get found, lie.  September 22nd, every year. Fall Guards break into the cities, capturing the imperfects, the defects, those who are...

13 likes 4 comments 4
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Rosie & Alex

Submitted to Contest #68

It had been twenty-four years since she’d last seen it, but the place looked exactly the same. The lush green grass she used to run across as a child was still neatly mowed. The pine trees towered along the edge of the property, giving an enchanted feel to the air. The red roses she loved to pick and scatter still crept in-between the pines, weaving ropes of thorns and scarlet petals. The sky was bright blue, like the crashing waves she could hear in the distance. The air was mixed with tinges of pine and sea salt. Her heart started to hamme...

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Best Dad

Submitted to Contest #68

My dad sits next to me on the bed, his hands twisting in time with the rising sun outside my bedroom window. As it rises higher, his hands become almost unnoticeably more frantic in their dance. Twitch, bend, hand over hand, repeat. I sit as still as the sky, unmoving as the sun rays reach to the heavens above. My breath is frozen by the sound of my phone alarm and I reach under my pillow to shut it off. My dad sighs, stretches his arms and stands. The sun hits his back casting his shadow, it fills the whole room and I could almost imagine...

8 likes 3 comments 3
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Liar

Submitted to Contest #68

“I think it’s finally time I told you the truth about why I’m… so… me. My parents got divorced and my dad was super crazy and annoying about me succeeding, but my mom… she could care less. My dad hit me if I wasn’t good enough, and then my mom… she would drink or use drugs and ignore me instead of looking at my flaws. So, yeah, I guess that’s kinda why I’m a pathological liar.” “Uhuh yeah. Can you grab me a paper towel? I just spilled some water.” “Sure,” I mumbled as I handed him a paper towel. My therapist said that I need to open up and...

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Liar

Submitted to Contest #68

“I killed her.” “What?” The brunette’s head snapped up and he stared at his friend in horror. “Don’t joke like that, Rye. It’s not funny.”  “I’m not joking,” they said, making the other freeze again. “I killed her, Mike.” “No,” Mike muttered, standing up and abandoning the dozens of potions he had been organizing. “No, no, no, no, no. You can’t be serious. You can’t have killed her. You’re not that stupid.” “Guess I’m pretty stupid then,” Rye said, falling back onto a pile of grain filled sacks. “Cuz I killed her.” “What were you t...

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A Governess Named Gretel, A Crow, And a Crone

Submitted to Contest #68

It had been twenty-four years since she’d last seen it, but the place looked exactly the same. It was by all accounts, still just as breathtaking as the day she had found it. Her grandmother (one of the greats-Too many greats to be listed in succession here) had recorded it all down in her diary, and that diary had been passed down from generation to generation. Weather-beaten and magical, it had led her here to this spot as a child. It was here where she had leaned her back against the solid spine of a tree, drinking in the adventures of Ha...

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Through Your Eyes

Submitted to Contest #68

The morning air is still and humid. The sun hasn’t risen yet. Jess is sitting to the left of me in the damp, dewy grass. I uproot a few tufts of it, enjoying the oddly coarse yet smooth texture between my fingertips. Its coolness dissipates in my hands and I notice the moisture soaking through my khaki shorts and covering the soles of my feet. Jess had insisted that I take off my shoes in order to “feel” everything.Yesterday, we had set off to go camping. Last night we had separated so she could do her own thing. She had said that she wanted...

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Breaking Into A Million Pieces

Submitted to Contest #68

Trigger warning: suicide   This was supposed to be the happiest day of their lives, but it turned out to be Jade’s and Sam’s worst nightmare. Today’s date was October 29th, 2017 and Jade was getting prepared to celebrate her 1st anniversary with her boyfriend at the time. She seemed so excited and you could see the happiness beaming off her face. Jade had decided to throw a party for her friends and her boyfriend to celebrate the special time, but there was a lot to be done in the next few hours. " Lina!” Jade screamed at the top of her...

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Golden Eyes

Submitted to Contest #68

It was a serene, peaceful morning. The waves were lapping over each other softly. The calm winds were gently ruffling up Clara’s dark hair. Clara always felt at ease when she’s at the beach. Every day, she would come to the beach to watch the sunrise, and then go for her morning jog.  Today was no different, at least that’s what she expected. As Clara was walking towards her favorite spot, a huge rock shaped like a throne at the top, she noticed that someone else was perched on her throne. (Yes, she nicknamed that rock as her throne!...

37 likes 41 comments 41
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The Ripple Effect

Submitted to Contest #68

This was supposed to be the happiest day of our lives. Now mom’s body is sinking.  The lake ripples and the perfect circles are getting bigger and bigger. Her open eyes aren’t staring back at me anymore, I can only see her hair growing up towards me like seaweed - it looks green and slimy. I try grabbing it to pull her back onto the boat, but it slips right between my fingers. Soon I won’t even be able to see her shadow; the lake is so deep - we tossed the anchor down, and it took all the rope tied to it. Deep. I wonder what kind of fi...

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Right Out of Her Mouth

Submitted to Contest #68

‘I have a crush on you.’ The second the words fell out of her mouth, Eve slapped a hand over her lips. Pressing them back in. Even to her own reflection, she seemed panicked, feverish; red cheeks, bright eyes and a hint of mania. Barely herself. Had she ever looked this excited before? Could she do it? The bedroom door behind her opened and she whirled, pressing her back against the mirror. Her sister, twelve, sassy and wearing an oversized sweatshirt she’d stolen from their brother. ‘We’re late. Alex is already annoyed. You coming?’ ‘Um...

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You're Alright.

Submitted to Contest #68

“Ciana, what’s going through your mind right now? As we watch this beautiful sunrise, what thoughts run through your head?” Fiadh was sitting on his haunches, staring as the red-orange sun slowly rose in the sky.“I’m just thinking about how much I enjoy being here with my mate, not a care in the den.” Ciana turned to look at Fiadh. He swiveled his head to look at his beautiful silver-furred companion and barked softly, in joy. Ciana stared into his deep, blue eyes, then pressed her nose up against hers.Now the sun was displaying its beauty, ...

66 likes 91 comments 91
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By My Word

Submitted to Contest #68

Pink and orange streaks decorate the abnormally clear skies and drop below the lines of the city. Amber twirls a wisp of hair between her fingers and blows her bangs from her eyes. Mica runs the pads of his hands over rocks while focusing white-blue eyes on his companion. “You don’t have to stare, you know,” Amber says with a groan. Mica doesn’t take his eyes away, instead, he stares with all his might pouring his words into his gaze. Please, look at me. But Amber doesn’t. Not at the drop of his shoulders, or the heavy sigh that leaves his ...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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