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Archer Graves

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Nov, 2025

Stories (4)

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4 Stories

88 karma pts

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The Thing Beneath

Submitted to Contest #330

Part I - The Thing Beneath I never really believed in monsters. I mean, who does?As a kid, sure - I had my moments. I’d swear I heard something breathing under the bed, or I'd run past the closet after dark like it might reach out and grab my ankle. But I grew out of it. My mom told me monsters weren’t real, and my dad shined a flashlight under the bed like that was the end of the story.By twenty-three, my fears had names like “rent,” “overdraft fees,” and “Emily, who kept Venmo’ing me passive-aggressive emojis.” I was living alone in a base...

15 likes

After Midnight at Marty’s All-Night Diner

Submitted to Contest #330

The weird ones always come in after midnight.That’s what my boss told me on my first day at Marty’s All-Night Diner. And he was right. But weird doesn’t always mean bad. I’ve worked the dead eye shift here at the diner for about six months now and while we definitely have some real doozies come in overnight, I can honestly say that most are just plain folks trying to get by like the rest of us. Some work the late shifts; some just like to be out at night. Less people to deal with, one of my regulars once told me. But that’s not my experience...

10 likes

Before I Go

Submitted to Contest #329

I stood as motionless as I could and watched a hummingbird as it visited the feeder hanging from the eve of my apartment. As it went to move away, it hovered just outside the window for a second and stared in at me. I wondered if it saw me. Do hummingbirds have thoughts like we do? If so, what was going through that little mind as it peeked in at me through the pane of glass separating us?I turned away from the window and faced her. Her face was red and swollen from crying. She’d been at it all night.“I’m sorry,” I said. “This isn’t anything...

6 likes

The Living Come to Mourn

Submitted to Contest #329

The drive always felt longer than it should.Ben gripped the steering wheel tighter as he wound along the narrow forest road. A steady mist streaked across the windshield, and though the wipers kept it at bay, the night pressed in - thick, silent, expectant. The trees leaned close, closing off the night sky. The radio had lost its signal miles ago, so the only sound was the rhythmic thunk-thunk of rubber over asphalt and the faint hum of the engine.It had been twelve years.Twelve years since the accident.He wasn't the first to arrive this tim...

17 likes