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The 100 Word Stories PodcastAuthor: Laurence Simon
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Weekly Challenge #1065 – Silence
Sunday, 20 September, 2026
Richard Lizzie Lisa Norval Joe Serendipidy Tom Planet Z The next topic is PICK TWO Poetry Pancreas Freakshow Frankenfood Postage stamp RICHARD From Butthole to Rabbit Hole Take it from me, calling yourself ‘Fluffy Butthole’ at a romantic meal is a sure fire way to prompt an embarrassed silence. She looked at me sympathetically. “You’re not very good at this sort of thing, are you?’ I have to admit, she had me there. We hadn’t really got off to a great start with the whole porn star thing, and I was struggling to reconcile the fact she was my boss, and this whole evening could only lead me down a rabbit hole I really didn’t want to pursue. I sipped my wine, and quietly planned my escape. LIZZIE Silence. She was teaching meditation now. Breathe in, breathe out. The group followed her lead. Suddenly, someone at the back moved out of sync. Breathe in, breathe out. Another one out of sync. She stood up and walked to the back of the room. Now, one in the front row. Stop! What is going on? Everyone shrugged. OK, back to breathing. In sync again. For a few seconds only… She squinted. A corpse-pale specter kept pushing her students. She rolled her mattress and swung it. The specter looked shocked. Breathe in, breathe out, she said, a smirk on her face. LISA The Quiet One Sandra hadn’t heard the sound of silence at home for a while so the house felt disorientating. The clock with the noisy tick was still on the floor. Smashed. Broken. Never to make a noise again. She crept upstairs to surprise her family; after years of trying not to wake babies she automatically avoided the creaky steps. Nobody was up there. She knew that before she climbed the stairs. Her phone shattered the silence, the hospital calling. Her husband was awake. She should come in immediately. No mention of the children and she couldn’t ask, for now she could pretend. NORVAL JOE The three sat in the back seat while Billbert’s mother drove home. She made eye contact with him in the rear-view mirror, raised an eyebrow, and nodded her head. He wasn’t sure what that signal meant, so he broke the silence. “Look, Sabrina. We’re all tired. We’re all stressed. And we’re confused. That’s still no reason to be mean to Mandi. You should apologize.” To Billbert’s surprise, Sabrina said, “You’re right. I am tired and stressed.” She looked out the window. “I’m sorry, Mandi.” Sabrina’s shoulders shook. Billbert couldn’t see her face, but he thought Sabrina must be crying again. SERENDIPIDY Timmy called me to discuss details of a contract he’d like me to consider. He feels that Tom has been victimising him and it’s about time someone put a stop to it. Permanently. Sounds right up my street, and I guess it works in my favour too… taking out some competition, if you know what I mean? So, I’ve drawn up the details. All I need is Timmy’s signature, and the deposit up front, and then everything’s in place to silence Tom, for good. Unless, Tom, you have a counter-offer to take out Timmy? Business is business, after all. PLANET Z By the time Harmony and Melody’s parents were told that their twin daughters were deaf, it was too late to change their names. They got cochlear implants young, but preferred to shut them off and chat with each other. Their grades sucked, but they were pretty, and they ended up on the pole together, feeling the beat of the music through their hands and feet as they twisted and writhed on the stage. On days off, they were models by day and escorts by night. Saving and investing until they could ditch the heels and makeup and never perform again.
