Write a story that includes someone (or something) saying, “No, don’t!”

Posted in Dramatic on Dec 6, 2024

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✍️ 44 stories

“The Tuesday boys” by Trudy Jas

Submitted to Contest #280

Mention of child abuse, physical violence.The Tuesday boys.She wore her silence like a yoke, secrets weighing on her shoulders. Through the years she held her tongue, turned her head and pretended not to know, but each Tuesday the bile would rise in her throat.On those days she couldn’t look people in the eye or face the mirror. Many sleepless nights, the ghosts living among her self-loathing stirred. They crept around corners, seeped through crevasses, and challenged her silence. Fragments of what she had heard and seen clung to their shado...

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“Playtime” by John K Adams

Submitted to Contest #280

“No, don’t!” Shocked, Jeremy looked at Pricilla. He said, “Why?”He’d just told her he planned to propose marriage to Adele, his girlfriend.Pricilla hadn’t thought before speaking. Now she didn’t have time to think.’You’re too young… Her first name would sound funny with your last… I don’t have a present… What about college? She has plans for the summer… She’s already married. Oh… I love you… No…’There had been joggers on the path. Ducks paddled about the lake. It felt eerily quiet now. ‘Where is everyone when I need them?’Pricilla trie...

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“Reflections” by Jim LaFleur

Submitted to Contest #280

A single bulb flickered above, casting sharp, shifting shadows across the cold, gray walls of the interrogation room. Detective Callahan leaned forward, his hands planted on the scarred metal table. His voice sliced through the thick, oppressive air. “You’re lying! One of you killed her—tell us who!” Eleanor sobbed, her chest heaving as tears carved paths down her pale cheeks. Her hands trembled, gripping the edges of her chair as if it might anchor her to reality. “No, don’t!” she cried, her voice cracking. “She’s trying to pin it on me, bu...

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“Part three ” by Ashlee Osborn

Submitted to Contest #280

Part three. Blacked out. He barged through the door and broke it. "Did you tell her?" He screamed while slapping her in the face hard. "NO!' She cried and held on to her belly. "Shes in the hospital for the love of god. She is a vegetable in a wheelchair. Because of what you did. He was a paranoid schizophrenic. He smashed up her house. Leaving his pregnant girlfriend in tears as now in debt as she would have to pay for the damages. She had a black eye. Realizing that she had to call the police on him. This wasn't th...

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“Hail Mary” by Jack Kimball

Submitted to Contest #280

The man lay prone on the edge of thick woods sighting down the scope of a thirty-aught six hunting rifle. Snow flurries melted on the back of his neck. For an unknown reason, and mixed with the smell of pine and gun oil, the phrase ‘veil of an endless winter’ entered his mind. He shook his head. Poetry is the vice of fools, he scoffed. Through the compressed distance the telescopic lens thickened the falling snow, proving the chalk house a quarter kilometer away a miraged dream. A woman came out on the porch centered in the crosshairs. ...

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“My 1987 Nicaraguan Encounter ” by Lily Finch

Submitted to Contest #280

My Nicaraguan Adventure Faced with a life-and-death situation at 17 years old caused traumatic feelings that lasted a short time or lingered under the surface for a long time before they rose to the top, and those involved were forced to deal with it head-on. Near-death experiences are not viewed by those who hear about them from the teller’s lips as immediate, acute, and dangerous as much as they were. The fear, the bubbles of anxiety, and the emotion that runs rampant throughout the teller's body as the information is relayed are emo...

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“Annoying ” by Feline Kögel

Submitted to Contest #280

They say every person you meet has a story to tell. So let me tell you one of these stories.I only met him thanks to my friend Emma, who was an exchange student like me. She was a shy girl, the mousy type, as some would say, with gorgeous brown eyes, a quiet voice and a thick french accent. He was her host brother, eighteen years old, so two years older than me at the time, about as Irish as they come and the most annoying person I had met in a while. Everything about him seemed crooked. His nose, his teeth, his neck, the way he smirked. Eve...

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“EMP Survival 2: Monterrey Monster” by KC Foster

Submitted to Contest #280

Masa flattened herself against the ruined wall and listened to the people surrounding the fire barrel, crouched and at the ready. She peered around the edge, hand resting on the handgun at her waist feeling the cold metal in her hands. It was an unfamiliar presence that weighed heavily at her side, along with the knowledge of what that presence meant. Tonight, she might have to kill someone.When she was younger, her father taught her how to shoot and while she wasn’t bad at aiming, it was not nearly the level she would need to defend herself...

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“Floral Deception” by Farnaz Calafi

Submitted to Contest #280

*Trigger Warning: This story explores themes of eating disorders, particularly binge eating and sugar addiction. Ella stood by her parents' kitchen counter, her fingers grazing the edges of the large tray as she arranged the petit fours one by one with meticulous precision. The tiny confections, with their geometric shapes and glossy sheen of icing, looked almost too beautiful to touch. Yet she moved with purpose, positioning each piece just so. She paused, inspecting the tray for the smallest imperfection. Her gaze lingered on the rows of ...

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“A Dark Horse (Part 1)” by Keila Aartila

Submitted to Contest #280

***“No, don’t!” I shouted as he threw his arm back with the whip for another lash to the black coat. I saw him hesitate before taking the next swing, leaving another welt upon the flesh. The young horse half reared and jumped sideways in order to avoid the blow, but his head was still forced into the circle by the boy’s grip on the long-line. He couldn’t get away. I ran up and grabbed the kid’s wrist, forcing him to drop the whip. It slid to the ground. The lead fell from the other, hitting he sandy surface of the floor with a muted plop. Th...

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“A Solitary Man” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #280

Ewan liked watching people, eavesdropping on conversations when he could, extrapolating from the revealed puzzle pieces of other lives to distract himself from his own.Lately, as the days got colder, he just liked being inside and warm. Sleeping in the woods beyond the town was not going to be sustainable when winter arrived. Spring and summer had literally been a walk in the park in comparison.The sole waitress in the small café did not begrudge him lingering after his fry up breakfast since it wasn’t a Market Day. His eyes tracked her as s...

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“The lights will go out but love will always shine” by Jessica Zong

Submitted to Contest #280

On a stormy night, I got off work and arrived at the gate of my new home. The wind was blowing hard on the road. The whole world was gloomy. Only a lighting store not far away had lights on. I walked in, hoping to find a place to keep warm in such an environment, waiting for my boyfriend to pick me up. "Hello, do you want to buy a light bulb?" "No, I'll just take a look." "Really? There's nothing you want here. Go away." "Wait a minute, do you know me?" "I know everyone." "How long have you lived here?" "Mo...

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“Doppelgangers” by S. Hjelmeset

Submitted to Contest #280

It wasn't a happy day for Jason Thomas when he got up that Wednesday in November 2024, but he thought he at least should be glad he didn't have a uterus. Counting his blessings and the pennies in his pocket, he exited the subway, closing his jacket to his chin, careful not to let what was soon becoming a beard get tangled in the hungry teeth of his zipper. Arriving at the building, he stood beside the beeper without removing his keycard from the breast pocket. The fabric of his uniform was just thin enough to let the signal through.&nbs...

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“Exorcist Needed” by Masha Kamenetskaya

Submitted to Contest #280

“I am looking for an exorcist,” Martha says to her friend Sandra, when they’re having their nightly phone call. “What?” “Someone who exorcises demons out of a human, you know? There was a book, popular as hell. Remember?” “I do. I do remember the book, and a movie, too,” Sandra says. “I am not sure though if they still do it.” “Why not?” “I guess, the demand is low,” Sandra suggests in a mild, comforting tone. “I haven’t heard of anyone who would need an exorcist.” Martha sighs: “But I do.” She twists the telephone wire around her finger. “...

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“The Edge of Reckoning” by Cynethea Cunningham

Submitted to Contest #280

As dawn broke over the jagged peaks of the Himalayas, Evan and Chase stood at the precipice of one of the world’s most treacherous summits, a place whispered about in hushed tones among climbers. They had trained for years, their bond forged in the fires of adversity and triumph—two best friends determined to conquer the unconquerable.The mountains had always called to Evan, with their rugged beauty and the promise of adventure. He had spent countless hours poring over maps, studying routes, and dreaming of the day he and Chase would stand a...

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Write a story that includes someone (or something) saying, “No, don’t!”

Submissions are closed

✍️ 44 stories

“The Tuesday boys” by Trudy Jas

“Playtime” by John K Adams

“Reflections” by Jim LaFleur

“Part three ” by Ashlee Osborn

“Hail Mary” by Jack Kimball

“My 1987 Nicaraguan Encounter ” by Lily Finch

“Annoying ” by Feline Kögel

“EMP Survival 2: Monterrey Monster” by KC Foster

“Floral Deception” by Farnaz Calafi

“A Dark Horse (Part 1)” by Keila Aartila

“A Solitary Man” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

“The lights will go out but love will always shine” by Jessica Zong

“Doppelgangers” by S. Hjelmeset

“Exorcist Needed” by Masha Kamenetskaya

“The Edge of Reckoning” by Cynethea Cunningham

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story that solely consists of dialogue. (No dialogue tags, actions, or descriptions. Just pure dialogue!)

Start or end your story with a character asking a question.

Write a story in which two or more people have a conversation — without using any quotation marks.

Center your story around a character who overhears others talking about them.

Contest #280

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

383

Contest entries

138

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: