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5300+ 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 6 of 354

Frequency

Submitted to Contest #291

I placed my mother’s breakfast before her as she sat at the table with a blank stare. Wrapping her fingers around the fork, I urged her, “Mother, you need to eat.”She nodded and stabbed at the scrambled eggs, lifting the fork to her mouth with great difficulty. I sighed. Soon, I would have to feed her.I steadied myself in her face. “I’m leaving for school. Don’t go anywhere. I don’t want to have to find you when I come home, okay?”She nodded. Her eyes met mine. She still knew who I was, but when would that change?I grabbed my books and hugge...

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Still Yours

Submitted to Contest #291

Ding Dong. Then a knock.Thalia wakes up from her nap on the couch, annoyed cause she has to get up and answer the door. Dragging herself to the hall, she calls out, “Who is it?“A long silence. Then, a familiar voice.“… Thally?” She opens the door, confused but happy that it’s not a stranger on her doorstep.“Kali?” His real name is Malakai, but only she calls him that. Always has. “What are you doing here?” she asks.Searching his face for a hint of an expression, but all she can see is his watered eyes.Her heart drops as he says:“… and I...

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Only One to Talk To

Submitted to Contest #291

Sarah had no one to talk to beside Uncle Robert. She came home after experiencing the usual in school. Two new students had seen the potential in her and poked at it when they saw her during lunchtime. The girls asked about her home life, and when she didn’t reply, they came up with their own conclusions. Frustratingly, they guessed right every time. It was like they knew where she lived and what her relationships were like. Today, they brought up her mother, and asked how much alcohol she had consumed since yesterday. That question fueled h...

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It's time

Submitted to Contest #291

Although I was covered in darkness, I could still make out swirling shapes of the making their way. Nothing certain but something glided under my head, soft…and humming. I wasn’t even using my own legs; it seemed more like a swim where I could float as the current moved me lazily along. I could have floated all night with no worry in the world, that’s how I liked it anyway. But something else had other plans, as a harsh light stabbed through, I curled covering my eyes as my darkness evaporated from me. I could feel my legs touching solid gro...

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Dreams Delivered in Top Hats

Submitted to Contest #291

It’s been three days and four nights since Raquelle last slept.She sits at the register, making a conscious effort to keep her eyes open. An ancient clock ticks above her, its faded numbers swirling and shifting. A grating sound echoes throughout the cramped station, which smells strongly of something that combusted decades ago. The air is stale with grease, reminding her of just how long she’s been subjected to sitting in a backless chair. Who the hell invented backless chairs? They’re torture devices, is what they are. Raquelle would ...

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It's Only A Dream

Submitted to Contest #291

Wendy felt herself lifting off the bed and floating out the window. She could see the wet streets below were practically empty of any activity. She remembered falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow because she’d had a long and stressful day at work. She loved being a nurse, but with the staff shortages, she needed two more of her to care for all her patients successfully. It was tough for the geriatric patients because they tended to be quite needy, mainly because of their loneliness. As she continued floating higher and higher in...

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Death is a he.

Submitted to Contest #291

I loved the cemetery. It was quiet and tranquil. It was the only place I could get a break from the vulnerable people in our town. People, places, voices- I loathed it. However much I tried to get the thought out of my head, Death passed right over our shoulders everyday, was at the end of our streets; people underestimated how close he was. He was everywhere. I witnessed Death everyday. I knew where he was hiding. But a cemetery was already dead. The cemetery was desolate and silent- the hush almost expectant. Autumn’s orange fingers touch...

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A THREAT TO DECENCY AND NATIONAL SECURITY

Submitted to Contest #291

This story is set during the Lavender Scare, a real historical event in which thousands of LGBTQ+ individuals were investigated, fired, and blacklisted from U.S. government jobs as “security risks.” This piece is based on extensive historical research to ensure accuracy in language, government policies, and cultural attitudes. The quote from the 1950 Senate report, “Employment of Homosexuals and Other Sex Perverts in Government,” is taken directly from historical documents and has not been altered or fabricated. While the characters are ...

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angels

Submitted to Contest #291

Her hands were gripping the steering wheel of her Mercedes. Her manicured nails had chips in them, and her knuckles were red from when she punched her fridge the other day in a rage about her Dad. Her arms, long and tanned, had scratches on them, either from her picking up her cat too roughly, or from men. She hasn’t told me much about the boys she’s been seeing, but from knowing her type, I can only guess they’re assholes. Her sunshine blonde hair was pulled into a high ponytail with a bright pink scrunchie. Her lower lip wobbles as she st...

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All Of Her Favorite Things

Submitted to Contest #290

Eighteen-year-old Kyle had been nervous on dates before, but this was different. This was quite possibly the most special date of his life. Sure, he would probably go on to propose to the love of his life on a date or celebrate a wedding anniversary at a fancy restaurant, but he knew that he was never going to forget this one. Since Kyle’s parents were out of town for the weekend, this was the perfect opportunity for him to use their beautiful back porch. He set some flowers on the table and plugged in the lights that wrapped around the bann...

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This feeling of us

Submitted to Contest #290

Her POV   I dreaded the mornings when my mum insisted that I put my hair up. Whether it was a ponytail, braids, or space buns, the tugging sensation of the elastic band taunted me to scratch my head or pull it off, and I rarely resisted the temptation. My hair was long and often frizzy from the tangles, it got in my face whenever I leaned over my little school desk to read from the textbook. Plenty were the nights I threw a fit as my parents tried to brush it neatly, wishing it would endure my distraught sleep.  On a sunn...

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The Matched

Submitted to Contest #290

I’m not ready, Lauren thought as she pushed in her studded earrings. She could feel Tiffany’s eyes burning into the back of her skull, urging her to hurry and finish getting ready. She carefully brushed blush onto her cheeks. She swept her long black hair back into a tidy bun. I’m not ready.  “We’re going to be late if you keep stalling”, Tiffany finally voiced.  “We can go.” Lauren locked up their shared dorm, savoring the cool feeling of sliding the key into the door of a room she “owned”, knowing that soon they would no longer b...

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Ckazka #4

Submitted to Contest #290

Fairy Tale #4"Do you know what will happen if I get called to school because of a note like this?" she asked sternly.He lowered his head, his forehead lightly touching the scrap of yellow paper covered in his own handwriting. She held it right up to his face."I know, Mom," he muttered guiltily. He hated hearing her raised voice."Then why, if you know, do you keep testing my patience and your own luck? Do you really think this kind of behavior will earn our family any special privileges? You're already fourteen! It's time you took your respon...

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For Alitheia

Submitted to Contest #290

Grey. Another day of smoke and ash as I lay longingly on a park bench outside of El Dorado High school, home of the Titans. Sun. There used to be sun, or so they say. A sun that filled the sky with bright radiating beams that illuminated the heavens and shone warmth on all the lands. I close my eyes tight, tight, tighter, until the tiny specks of light dance across my inner eyelids. What I would give to feel the warmth on me now. What would California be like with a sun, I ponder. There is no warmth today or any other day. Images of t...

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The Invitation

Submitted to Contest #291

I snatched the grinning skull out of my mailbox. Even before reading the scroll wedged tightly in the plastic mandible, I knew it was an invitation to LA’s pre-eminent Halloween party. It had red wax tears dripping out of the eye sockets and a jaunty gold ring clipped to the nasal cavity. With shaking hands, I pulled out the scroll and read: Have a blast at our Monster MashOctober 31, Ten o’clockThe Orlock HouseCome dressed as your favorite monster(You, too, Jeremy!)Prizes for best costumes     I suspected that my invitat...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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