The following is the winning entry under Mystery from the Aim to Engage contest. Congratulations to our winner!
The full list of winning entries can be found here.
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PROMPT
It's a normal weekend. You've decided to restock your fridge at the nearest grocery store. When you leave, you notice a large white notice pinned to the bulletin board. It's a picture of you and, in bold letters, the word: MISSING.
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Missing
Grace froze in front of the board. She recognized the person in the picture because it was her. Yet she didn't remember when this was taken. She was grinning in the picture with a cake celebrating her sixteenth birthday. That was two years ago. She didn't remember having this cake. In the picture was a chocolate square cake but from what she remembered; her mother made a red velvet cake.
She greeted her neighbor who walked past before ripping the poster off the board. She had rushed back into the apartment in a panic. She rummaged through the apartment to find a photo album that her parents have been using. She took out her birthday picture and compared it to the poster. No doubt, they were different.
She clutched her head as she tried to think what's happening. She had to wait until her parents come by. Two hours past until her mother arrived. She came home, as usual, telling Grace about her day and asking what they should have for dinner. Without saying a word, Grace placed the poster on the table. Her mother paused to look at it. There was no reaction to the poster.
"Do you know what this means?" Grace asked.
Her mother gave a reassuring smile. "Must be a different person. Poor girl. Her family must be worried." She replied.
"I don't understand," Grace said. "I looked at the pictures. And I noticed that..."
She narrowed her eyes. "There were no pictures of me when I was a kid." She accused.
Her mother sighed as if Grace was giving her a headache. Her mother went into her bedroom and came out after a while, carrying a box. She opened it to reveal fifteen mini photo albums with numbers on it.
"These are when you were a baby until fifteen." She said. Her mother watched as Grace looked through the albums. They were real. Suspicion slowly disappeared as she looked at the poster.
"But..."
Her mother took the poster. "This is just another girl. She even has a different name." She explained.
Grace looked at the poster to see that the girl's name was Eliza. She began to feel ashamed that she accused her parents of kidnapping.
"You're my daughter and your dad and I love you very much." She assured.
Grace gave a small smile. She then remembered that she wanted to buy some grocery.
"You better go buy the grocery." Her mother replied. "I need them if I'm cooking dinner."
Grace nodded as she kissed her mother on the cheek. Her mother watched her leave and stared at the poster. She took out her phone and called her husband. She bit her lip nervously.
"Adam, they're... looking for Grace." She said. Her hand shook while holding the poster.
"What are we going to do?" She asked. "They can't take her away! She's ours!"
Her husband remained calm despite her concerns.
"We do what we've always done." He finally spoke.
"Keep her hidden."
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Chills & Thrills Anthology
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