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Kathleen Fine

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jun, 2021

Stories (40)
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40 Stories

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Percy Alexander’s Eighty-Third Birthday

Submitted to Contest #155

Percy Alexander awoke on his eighty-third birthday and looked at the time on his bedside clock: 5:55 am. A good sign. A particularly good sign. He reached behind him and felt the sheets. Dry. Another good sign. Lately, he’d had more night accidents than he cared to admit. But today was his birthday. And although he didn’t have the best history of luck on his past eighty-two birthdays, (a heart attack on his sixtieth birthday, his sister’s death on his fifty-second birthday, getting fired from his job on his forty-ninth birthday) he was deter...

57 likes 29 comments 29
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A Mother's Future

Submitted to Contest #152

Nicola scurries down Cedar Street, glancing behind her to ensure she’s alone. If word gets back to anyone where she’s headed, especially to her Catholic mother, she’ll never hear the end of it.“Six months along after years of trying. Can you believe it?” the pregnant woman at the coffee shop had exclaimed to her friend earlier that morning. Nicola’s ears had perked up as she finished her Monday crossword puzzle and sipped the foam from the bottom of her matcha latte. She’d peered over at the expectant mother, trying not to judge her for drin...

61 likes 24 comments 24
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The All-Star

Submitted to Contest #151

Theodore Hurlbutt III scratched at the poison ivy inching its way up his twig-like, pale arm as he heard a whistle blow from across the field. Good thing I never got chicken pox, he thought as he picked at the bumpy blisters on his skin- clear liquid oozing out. He couldn’t resist a good scratch, even if it might spread the dreadful rash.He’d gotten the outbreak the weekend before on a camping trip with his father in West Virginia. “It’ll be good for your bones!” his dad had announced as he packed up his Chevy Tahoe with a tent, sleeping bag...

57 likes 30 comments 30
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The Shortest Movie in the World

Submitted to Contest #147

     As the movie credits scrolled onto the screen, Lane clutched her arm rests as if her life depended on it and angst filled her abdomen. She turned and studied Charlie as he scooped a handful of buttery popcorn from the oversized bucket on his lap. She smiled as she watched him shove the kernels into his tiny mouth, several pieces landing on his Spiderman shirt. The last time she saw him he was obsessed with Pokémon. This time, it was Spiderman. She leaned her head against the seat, hoping there would be some sort...

91 likes 48 comments 48
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A Bright Red Lipstick Smile

Submitted to Contest #145

Tilda pulled the tablecloth out of the trashcan located behind her house. She lifted the long, gold and red linen to her face and rubbed it to her cheek, enjoying the soft fabric against her skin for a moment. “Mama?” she hollered to Mama through the ripped screened door leading to the kitchen. “Don’t go yellin’ at me like that Til,” Mama yelled back, “I’m tryin’ to cook ya’ll dinner.” “What’s this tablecloth doin’ in the trashbin?” Tilda queried, dragging the heavy cloth behind her as she walked into the kitchen, slamming the back...

59 likes 30 comments 30
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The Talk of the Town

Submitted to Contest #144

“Mom, there are some packages at the door!” Geneva hollered to her mother from the bottom of the stairs. “Be right there!” Holly shouted back as she clipped in her pearl earrings and double checked her crimson lipstick. She slipped into her floor length, satin gown and squeezed her feet into her uncomfortable patent leather pumps. She wasn’t Audrey Hepburn, but thought she looked good enough for the annual black-tie charity event that Colin’s company hosted every year. A night filled with small talk, fake smiles, champagne, and bite size...

45 likes 21 comments 21
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One Day at a Time

Submitted to Contest #143

“Excuse me, Ma’am, can you help me?” Errol asked the woman wearing a green vest, indicating she was an employee at Spinney’s Gardens. Minutes ago, he had approached two different men asking for help, who were quick to tell him that they did not work there. He was still flushed in mortification from the awkward interactions.The woman turned from watering purple flowers with a hose and faced Errol, a bead of sweat trickling down her cheek. “Yes, sir?” she asked, wiping her forehead with the back of her gloved hand. Errol could smell the scent ...

53 likes 48 comments 48
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Jack the Ripper

Submitted to Contest #142

“What can I help you with?” Jack asked the middle-aged woman standing in front of him at the information desk. He was always happy to help. The woman’s wiry, grey streaked hair looked like it hadn’t been brushed in days. Jack rubbed his hand over his bald as he looked down at the woman, glad for once that he didn’t have to worry about hair care.“My book is missing the last page,” she said urgently, pushing a copy of The Help towards Jack as if it were diseased.Jack frowned and put on his glasses. “Missing, you say?” he questioned as he picke...

48 likes 36 comments 36
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Ratebook

Submitted to Contest #141

“No, it’s Ji-wi-an,” Jillian repeated herself to the beady-eyed woman sitting behind the glass at the county clerk’s office. “That’s what I said, Ma’am,” the woman gazed up at Jillian, revealing her irritation, “Jiwian Wester.” Jillian heard two little girls behind her giggle, clearly eavesdropping on her conversation. She turned around to see what-must-be their mother, grinning at her, not stopping her daughters from ogling at Jillian. She felt like a circus act. Jillian felt her eyes well-up in tears. “Ji-wi-an Wester. Not Jiwia...

35 likes 16 comments 16
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Egg Casserole for Christmas

Submitted to Contest #140

“This was one of the best Christmases I’ve ever had,” Hope said, leaning down to give her mother, Alice, a kiss on her furrowed cheek. Clara smiled and held up her glass of fizzy citrus to cheers her sister. “Merry Christmas,” Clara said as she swallowed a mouthful of her mimosa, spilling a dribble on her fleece, snowflake patterned pajamas. “This was second to the Christmas when we got that amazing Barbie dream house.” “I want a Barbie dream house, Mommy,” Clara’s daughter, Meg, said as she took a bite of Alice’s famous breakfast cass...

36 likes 23 comments 23
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Diary of an Answering Machine

Submitted to Contest #139

July 18, 1985 “You’ve reached Matt Nicholson and Buddy. Buddy say hi: Woof! We can’t come to the phone right now, but if you leave a message, we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. Thanks!” BEEP “Matt, it’s mom. Are you still at work? It’s nearly seven thirty; you should be home by now. It’s time you settled down; you’ll be thirty in two weeks-you’re too old to be barhopping and galivanting around. Anyways, it’s Kelsey’s baby shower tomorrow and I wanted to know if you’d like to carpool with me and dad. No use in takin...

70 likes 50 comments 50
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The Pest Cowboy

Submitted to Contest #138

“Here kitty, kitty, kitty,” Norman breathed to the wide-eyed racoon gaping at him from across the crawl space. “Daddy’s not gonna hurt ya,” he muttered calmly as he army-crawled towards the creature, hoping it was not rabid. He’d had one rabies scare in his nineteen years of pest management. He didn’t want to have to go to the ER today to deal with a coon bite; it was 75-degrees out and he wanted to go fishing when he got off work. The racoon rubbed its paws over its eyes anxiously, darting its little beady orbs back and forth. “Don’t hu...

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The Hate They Gave

Submitted to Contest #137

“We’ve called you in here today to discuss the concerns that numerous parents have voiced over the past few weeks,” Scott said calmly to Nadia as he crossed one leg over the other. Nadia glanced at Scott, the head of Trinity Lincoln School, and then looked at the other members of the board in front of her. They were all coincidentally white, leaving Nadia as the sole, brown-skinned person in the room. Nadia couldn’t help but notice that her colleagues all somehow looked like someone jammed a pole right up each of their asses and they couldn’...

46 likes 22 comments 22
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One Last Chance

Submitted to Contest #136

“You need anything Mr. Abbott?” the nurse asked as she completed pumping nausea medicine and steroids into the bag that the chemo would drip from. “Michael,” Michael said with a warm smile as he retrieved a novel from his knapsack and placed it onto his lap. “Michael, I’m Mary,” the nurse corrected herself. “What book are you reading?” she asked, looking down at the novel that appeared on her patient’s lap. Michael glanced down at the novel and ran his hand along the front carefully, admiring the cover. “My granddaughter wrote thi...

48 likes 33 comments 33
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Metropolis Angst

Submitted to Contest #135

Clark took a sip of his coffee as he scrolled through the news stories for the day. “Shit!” he cursed as a dribble of coffee dripped down his chin and spilled onto his notepad. Even though he had been working remotely since the pandemic hit, he couldn’t get used to the cramped workspace and tight living quarters his apartment had turn into. He clicked on the link to the story he submitted yesterday evening for The Daily Planet and read: Burglary on Main Street By: Clark Kent Yesterday evening, there was a burglary at Pop’s Drug Store o...

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