Choosing Endings

Short stories where you get to choose out of three choices how a story ends.

Seeing First

“I can’t believe my best friend has a girlfriend,” Joe said, as he took a seat at a table in a diner.

“Well I–”

“And had one for the past four months. In here sure is empty,” he said, as he looked around. It was neither hot nor warm; cold enough for people to stay indoors. Those are the ones with common sense, he thought. “Why are we even out in this kind of weather?”

“Because I want you to meet her,” he said, looking at his watch and then at the other only two customers. “She’ll be here soon”

The sound of the door opening said that she was.

a) When Joe looked up, he was shocked to see his ex-girlfriend, and then felt a nervousness coming from the person sitting opposite him.

b) The woman that entered literally took his breath away for a few seconds, and when he started to breathe again, he too was in love.

c) The smile that lit up his friend’s face ignited a bonfire of warmness in his heart. And as he watched her, there was enough happiness to go around.

———————————————————————————————————————————————

CHOICE #1

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

———————————————————————————————————————————————

Loud Enough

After the applause died down, the leader of The Society Makers walked up to the podium. The sight of him, his presence, sent out a trance like awe that caused even those who were fidgeting to stop.

“It’s been a long night,” he said. “I know you all are tired, so am I, so no speech. Mingle for a few minutes and then go home.”

They obeyed. He was the person they looked up to. His kindness, his good deeds and pleasant smile had won their approvals. So as the crowd mingled; he still stood at the podium, talking to someone, and unbeknown to him, the mic was still alive.

“What a bunch of idiots. They’ll do whatever I say. Why? Because I’m the one with status,” he said, sticking out his chest as if conceit was pushing it forward.

a) The conversation stopped and the crowd stared in a disappointing disbelief.

b) The person pulled him away, pointing and indicating to him that the mic was still on. He looked at the crowd, and it was as if no one had heard anything.

c) “At least that’s what some people are saying that I should be saying,” he continued. Applause rang out once again, and acting as if not sure why, the person he was talking to explained. Whew, he thought.

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

Choice#2

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

Speechless

She sat there, quiet as a rock; her stoic personality always telling her to just let things go.

“When are you going to learn?” the person she loathed the most asked. “You’ve been in this office how many times? Don’t answer that; I don’t even think you know.”

“Eighteen times.”

And for every time she was sent to the principal’s office, it was never her fault. She looked up just in time to see one of her classmates standing at the secretary’s desk. Her instigator, following her eyes, got up and closed the door. Fifteen minutes later, she was back in the hall, heading back to class.

“If that was me, I would let him have it,” the same classmate told her. She waited for her.

“My mom said don’t argue with a fool because people might not know the difference.”

“You’re a fool for being quiet.”

a) She stopped walking, turned around and went back to the principal’s office. Without waiting for approval to go in, she opened the door and all those eighteen times of unfairness gushed out in angry words.

b) “My mom’s wise; she knows what she’s talking about. I look up to her. And it’s not my fault that our principal is an idiot. It doesn’t bother me.”

c) “If I wanted your opinion, I would’ve ask for it.”

“I wish you had that attitude with him.”

“All you want to do is start trouble. Just leave me alone,” she said, as she walked away.

———————————————————————————————————————————————-

Choice #3

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

Finder

He had it for days up in his room, on his desk. Sometimes he would stare at it; other times when his eyes accidentally fell on it, he would quickly turn it away. Day and night were fighting for the same arrival time within his heart. He had found it one afternoon on his way back home after his regular teenage hangout period.

Kicking a can around, he had kicked something, and when he had bent down and picked it up, he had noticed that it was a wallet. And when he had opened it after taking it home, a lot of hundred dollar bills had stared up at him.  And so did the identity card of the person who owned it.

a) Out of putting his mind at ease, he grabbed the wallet, and taking out the ID card, called the person but then hung up.

b) Trying to make himself feel better, he took out three-hundred dollars and bought himself a game to play.

c) He went to the man’s home, and with hesitation, rang the doorbell. When the door opened and he saw him, it was as if a weight was lifted off his shoulders.

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

Choice #4

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

I Do

He was not only a man but also a gentleman. She liked that about him, so when he asked her to marry him, she was elated. Harry was like men of eras past that held a special place in her heart. The answer would be an easy yes, except for Thomas.

He was the opposite, and she liked that about him. She loved both men; both offered different things that she wanted, including marriage. So when the week elapsed that she had asked for in order to make her decision, she called the man she loved to marry most.

a) Thomas, I do.

b) Harry I do.

c) Through tears she said, “It’ll be unfair to you if my answer isn’t a one-hundred percent yes. So for the moment, my I do has to be no.”

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

Choice #5

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

The Pageant

If there was one thing that everyone knew about her, it was that she could not make up her own mind, even when it came down to what to wear. So when she was chosen to be a judge in a beauty pageant, she panic and desired so much not to vote for one of the twelve ladies competing.

“I don’t want to do this,” she told the head of the selection committee.

“But you must.”

“I can’t; I just can’t.”

When the day came, the town was filled with excitement like kids on a playground. And her?

a) She covered her head with her blanket, not wanting to get out of bed.

b) This is the beginning of a new me, she said to herself while she eagerly got dress and smiled at herself in a mirror.

c) I don’t care who wins, she thought, I’ll just copy another judge.

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

Choice #6

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

Separated Love

“Why didn’t you ask?”

“I’m sorry, I thought I could do it on my own.”

“Phil, no man’s an island.”

“Is it too late; she might . . . I should have come to you for advice sooner.”

He thought he could handle that problem himself; the strain that was happening in his marriage because he was afraid to tell his wife that he had gotten fired. She had moved out, separated from him, and he wanted her back.

So with a hopeful desire, he drove over to where she lived.

a) He got out his car, nervously walked up to the door and knocked. She stood behind the curtain, watching him, but did not let him in.

b) She heard a car drive up, and looking out, saw him. Her heart raced with fear, with excitement.

c) “Can I come in?” he asked. She stared at him for a few minutes; a silence that cut through his heart, but then, she smiled. He knew that smile.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Choice #7

Thank you for reading

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Staying Behind

She sat there by a window, her forehead against a glass, as she watched the rain glide down like dizzy ants crawling all over the place. Someone tapped her shoulder and she turned around. Wiping her eyes, she said, “I thought everyone had left.”

“But I’m your friend.”

“And I thought so were the others. I told them the truth and they all left.”

“Do you want me to leave?”

a) She looked up in her face and saw that she was crying too. “No,” she said.

b) “You’ll soon be like everyone else, so leave me alone,” she said, and then turned back to look out the window.

c) “The choice is yours,” she said, dreading that the last friend she had would walk away.

—————————————————————————————————————————————-

Choice #8

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————

Do It

He woke up grasping for air, his body covered in sweat. He threw his blanket off him; it was like a lid of a coffin. He got up and sat on the edge of the bed. Too much problems, he thought, as he held on tightly to his hair.

“Do it,” a voice said to him.

Looking around he saw no one. Again the voice said the same thing.

Standing to his feet, he asked, “Who’s there?”

“Do it.”

“Do what?”

a) Ignore them and they’ll go away.

b) To solve all your problems, take your life.

c) Move to a new city; a new place brings a new beginning.

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

Choice #9

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

Madam Discontent

She called over the waiter and he reluctantly went over.

“This coffee is cold,” she said.

“When I brought it over, it was hot.”

“Take it back and bring me another cup.”

“Okay,” he said with a fake customer service smile.

He went back into the kitchen and then returned with a fresh cup.

She took a sip, and said, “It’s hot, but tasteless.”

“I’ll carry–”

“Don’t, you’ve wasted my morning already.”

“If there’s anything else I can do for you, I’ll be right over there,” he said, pointing to where he would be.

“You’ve done enough,” she scornfully said.

a) He reached his limit with her complaints, and told her about it.

b) To save his job, he just smiled and walked away.

c) He noticed her calling him, but acted as if he didn’t see her waving to get his attention.

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

Choice #10

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

A number

The wrinkles on her face were more evident. She sat in front of a mirror, pulling and pushing at her drooping skin, anything to make the wrinkles go away and her face smoother. I’m being silly, she thought. But a fear of a number going up not down scared her.

Her hair she noticed had some grays, and the fear grew. What am I afraid of? she asked herself. She sat there, conflicted, still pushing, pulling, and now pouting. She laughed out loud. Her daughter hearing her, came in.

“What’s so funny?” she asked.

a) Growing old.

b) Life is base on numbers, and the higher the number, the worse life gets.

c) The joy and beauty in aging.

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

Choice #11

Thank you for reading. (~*)

———————————————————————————————————————————————

The Line

“It’s something you can’t buy sir.”

“Bunk bosh. He should have known who I was.”

“But even if he did, that didn’t mean that he had to respect you.”

“Are you agreeing with what he did?”

Fifteen minutes earlier, he had entered a bank, but instead of joining a line that was formed, he walked up to a teller expecting to be served. But instead he was told to join the line. Astonished and upset, he left, vowing to withdraw all his money.

“Maybe you should go back and apologize,” his driver suggested.

He thought for a moment, and said,

a)  “Not on your life, they need my money; I don’t need their bank.

b) “And be ridicule, I don’t think so.”

c) “I’ll send them a card telling them I ‘ll join the line next time.”

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

Choice #12

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

Twenty-seven cents

She was standing at a counter counting up coins; “I’m twenty-seven cents short,” she said to the cashier.

“You’ll have to put something back.”

She looked at the four items, and told herself that she needed everything. She stood there not knowing what to do.

The customer behind her cleared his throat.

a) “I’ll pay the difference,” he said.

b) “My goodness, just pick one, I have somewhere else to go.”

c) “Go home and get the twenty-seven cents and then come back.”

—————————————————————————————————————————————————

Choice  #13

Thank you for reading. (~_*)

—————————————————————————————————————————————————

The end of choosing endings.