Prompt: Imagine that you or a character are visiting an antique mall. You wander the aisles, imagining the items crowding each booth—old books, costume jewelry, rolltop desks, typewriters, pocket knives, wooden trains, arrowheads, candlesticks, silverware sets, china dolls, Depression glass cups (just to name a few). You select three items and purchase them. When you get home, however, you notice something odd about one of the items.
Story:
"Have you seen Raf? It's been a month since his last prompt."
"I think he went to the antique store."
"What's he doing in the antique store?"
"Beats me."
"He hasn't submitted anything in four weeks. FOUR WEEKS!"
"Calm down Jess, I'm sure he's working on something."
"Yeah, as in mediocre work! People had been wondering about his entries Bob, and I have nothing to tell them."
"You need tea."
"I don't need tea, what I need is for him to write this week's prompt or else I'm going to lose my mind."
"Oh look, there he is. I'll go make dinner."
"What's up guys?"
"WHAT'S UP? WHAT'S UP? You've missed four prompts in four weeks! That's what's up!"
"Work got a little hectic."
"Oh poo. And where were you this afternoon? Huh?"
"I bought some things at the antique shop in town."
"And?"
"And I found something quite interesting."
"Raf, just start writing the prompt will you?"
"Relax, this'll just take a minute."
"Fine."
"I saw this old clock that looked like Cogsworth so I got it. Next, I got this old looking dream catcher to add to my collection. But this last one caught my eye when I was quickly glancing at the shelves."
"What's so special about a crystal ball? It's just a gimmick that fortune tellers use to grab a quick buck from unsuspecting losers."
"Jess, don't be mean. This crystal ball is special because it does..."
"Does what?"
"Wait for it."
"I-is that..."
"Yes. It's so cool right?"
"Us?"
"Yeah, don't tell Bob."
"Wait what?"
"Yeah, I can see you going into the kitchen and telling him right away."
"Well that's not fair."
"He's a party pooper and this is a crystal ball that actually tells the future! What did you expect?"
"Okay, okay. Just work on this week's prompt then."
"Already done."
"You looked didn't you?"
"Yup."
YOU ARE READING
Prompted Shorties
General FictionThese are stories that I make with a pre-made prompt for me. I try to limit it to 500 words or less but most of the time I get carried away. I hope you enjoy and I'll try to keep adding new ones whenever I get the chance to revisit the site.
