In Sickness And Health
a microfiction
I stood in front of his safe.
Tyler always bought in bulk: a crate of a hundred beers, a hundred condoms, probably would have bought a hundred tires for his hundred thousand dollar truck he bought when we barely had a hundred dollars in Cam’s college fund.
He said it made him feel manly.
I wonder, did she? Was there one? One hundred?
The safe’s cogs slid into place. The idiot never even changed the fucking combo.
The thing was heavier than I expected, but aren’t a lot of things? It’s a lesson I’m very tired of learning.
After all, he would never learn it.
Yeah, Tyler always bought in bulk.
But the funny thing about affairs is they’re like bullets…
…it only takes one.
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A/N:
WC:125. Written for DK's contest, details below:
If you've enjoyed this, please leave a like and an insight below. If you really enjoyed this, tips to fuel my coffee addiction are always appreciated. All formatting is designed for desktops. Want to read more? Below are the best of the very best of my works:
About the Creator
Matthew J. Fromm
Full-time nerd, history enthusiast, and proprietor of arcane knowledge.
Here there be dragons, knights, castles, and quests (plus the occasional dose of absurdity).
I can be reached at [email protected]
Reader insights
Nice work
Very well written. Keep up the good work!
Top insights
Heartfelt and relatable
The story invoked strong personal emotions
Easy to read and follow
Well-structured & engaging content
Masterful proofreading
Zero grammar & spelling mistakes
Excellent storytelling
Original narrative & well developed characters
On-point and relevant
Writing reflected the title & theme
Eye opening
Niche topic & fresh perspectives
Compelling and original writing
Creative use of language & vocab
Expert insights and opinions
Arguments were carefully researched and presented




Comments (28)
I went ooooooh, as I read through. 👁️👄👁️The ending I was like, 🫣damn💔.
This is awesome. Very well done. I had to read it three times and I consider that an excellent thing!! Congrats on placing!
Congrats on placing in the challenge… well deserved 🤩✅
This is so powerful. So much is said in such a simple scene. Congrats on the Top Story, making the leaderboard, and placing third in D.K.'s challenge! 🎉
Congrats on 2nd most popular story Matthew!! 🎉
Back to say congratulations on placing second for Most Popular Stories on this week's leaderboard with this piece! Well done!
This is a great story. What a powerful ending!
Belter of a last line. Great top story - well done.
🎉 Congratulations on hitting Top Story on Vocal! 🏆 Your hard work and creativity truly shine through, and it’s so well-deserved! 🌟 Keep up the amazing storytelling—this is just the beginning of even more success! 🎈📖🙌
That ending was great. Congrats on the TS.
Whoa! Awesome read: congratulations on your Top Story!
That was really, really good! Definitely deserved top story!
A haunting tale of obsession and the destructive power of unchecked desire.
Nice! What you were able to do with 100 or so words, makes me wonder what you can do with 50. Awesome little vignette! Many congrats on making it to the front page on the same day!
Fantastic! Well written Congratulations also 💫👏💥😊
Ooooo! Matthew, that final line.... I can totally see why you got an instant TS!! Congrats btw!! This was so good!!
Back to say 'congratulations', Matthew, on the Top Story recognition for this story! Well done.
This is a great piece of writing,
Blimey, sir! congrats on Top Story!
This is an amazing story!
Excellent Top Story… such a punch in so few words✅. Will have to check out the challenge.
Wow, not only did you meet the prompt definition, but you made it central to the plot. Definitely a strong contender. Every good microfiction needs the M. Knight Shyamalan reveal at the end for that lasting note, and you nailed it. Bonus: it brought my attention to probably one of the most well-orchestrated "unofficial" (can we come up with a better term than that?) challenges I've seen. An independent panel? Rank-choice voting? Multiple prizes? Amazing
Wow, Matthew!! You are a true master of the micro!! This had everything! I don’t know how you told so much of a story in so few words! I mean I see it in front of me but I’m still dumbfounded! Thank you so much for participating in the challenge and huge congratulations on Top Story! I just mentioned to Cathy in a comment how I hoped there’d be at least one entry to the challenge that would earn a Top Story and you made that dream a reality in the first 36 hours! Great work, friend!
You shoot and hit the target with this short story that says so much.
Wow, this drew me in right away. Raw frustration came through. Great writing!