Short Story
Ice Cream and Birthdays
You Had to Be There - The Prompt: Write a story about a moment that doesn’t sound impressive but was unforgettable to the people involved. Some moments matter more than they seem from the outside. This challenge is about capturing that difference. Write a story centered on an experience that might sound ordinary to anyone else but stayed with the people who lived it. Let the meaning come through in the details. Focus on the texture of the moment rather than trying to make it appear larger than it is.
By Denise E Lindquist2 months ago in Fiction
King of Sales
Our friends across the street joined us for a garage sale at our end of the street. Our husbands were under orders to straighten up the garages, sweep the floors, and make space for tables. My husband, Ed, moved items we weren’t selling behind a tarp. He posted a sign that read Private . He arranged folding tables in a chevron shape for easy shopping. I placed clean, creased linens sorted by colors and marked with sizes and prices, in stacks on the tables. I believe in full disclosure and post small notes stating any imperfections. Old furniture for sale was polished; antique cups and plates were displayed with starched doilies, and costume jewelry hung from a mirror. Entire boxes were marked $1 for all items of little value.
By Andrea Corwin 2 months ago in Fiction
Black Challenger
Before my first real bartending job, I had worked a small liquor bar inside a mom-and-pop Italian restaurant. It was not much of a bar. More like a side altar to liquor. A few bottles, a short menu, not enough customers to make real money, but enough to learn the shape of the thing.
By Alejandro Arango2 months ago in Fiction
The Shrine at The Floridian
The first time I waited tables was at a diner called The Floridian . I was told to write my orders down. That would have been the sensible thing to do. The practical thing. The thing any normal person learning the job should have done.
By Alejandro Arango2 months ago in Fiction
The Lunchbox
Connor Every day, Conner looked forward to lunch. He sat alone in the cafeteria, as always. Making lunches with his mother used to be one of favorite things to do with her. Every evening, before bed, they would go through cookbooks and recipe blogs. Elaborate lunches. Â Sometimes elaborate, sometimes simple.
By Sama Habib2 months ago in Fiction
