⭐ What Is a Drabble?
A drabble is a miniature work of fiction — a complete story told in exactly 100 words. Its power lies in compression: a drabble must have a setup, tension, and resolution within a breath. It is literature distilled to its purest form — brief, sharp, evocative, and haunting long after the final line.
15 Original Drabbles
(Each approximately 100 words)
1. The Last Visitor
The old man heard footsteps every night at 2 a.m., stopping outside his door. No knock, no whisper — only presence. His children insisted no one lived on that floor anymore.
Tonight, he gathered courage and stepped into the corridor.
A figure stood there: young, familiar.
“Abba,” it said softly.
His breath froze. His eldest son — buried nine years ago — extended a hand.
The old man followed without fear.
Next morning, neighbors found his door slightly open, rocking gently as though someone invisible had just left.
2. The Call You Missed
Sara found 27 missed calls from an unknown number after waking from a nightmare. Each voicemail held only heavy breathing — panicked, desperate.
When she finally answered, a trembling voice whispered, “Please… help me…”
“I don’t know who you are,” she replied.
Silence.
Then her own voice echoed back: “Please… help me…”
The call ended abruptly.
Shaking, she opened her call log again.
Every voicemail timestamp showed one minute into the future.
She checked the next one.
Her own scream played.
3. The Man Who Returned
In the village, people swore Asim had died in the flood. They found his clothes, his watch, his broken glasses.
Yet one evening he walked back, soaked, shivering, smiling.
“My house,” he said, “is colder than I remember.”
His wife cried and hugged him, but her arms passed through air.
Asim blinked, confused.
“I’m here, can’t you feel me?” he asked.
The family fled in terror.
Asim returned to the riverbank, staring at his reflection — which wasn’t there.
4. The Locked Drawer
Naveed wasn’t allowed to touch the locked drawer in his grandfather’s study. After the funeral, curiosity won.
Inside lay only an old cassette labeled: FOR THE LAST ONE.
He played it.
“My child,” his grandfather’s voice rasped, “one of you was born with a darkness. It will seek the youngest.”
A door creaked.
Naveed froze.
Something moved behind him — crawling.
The tape ended with three words:
“Run, little one.”
5. When the Lights Flicker
Every time the lights flickered in Hina’s apartment, her mirror reflection smiled a moment too late.
She convinced herself it was fatigue.
One night, during a blackout, she lit a candle and looked directly at the mirror.
Her reflection stepped forward — though her own feet didn’t move.
“Finally,” it murmured, “I’m not trapped by the electricity anymore.”
The candle blew out.
6. The Train That Doesn’t Stop
Ahsan boarded the midnight train to Rawalpindi. Strange — no passengers, no staff, no stops.
Hours passed.
He checked his phone: no signal, no time display.
Finally, he approached the driver’s cabin.
It was empty.
The train sped into darkness, tracks dissolving behind it.
A distant announcement echoed:
“Welcome aboard the Final Carriage. All passengers are deceased.”
Ahsan whispered, “But I’m not…”
The voice replied,
“You will remember soon.”
7. The Forgotten Name
Rida woke with a ringing in her ears and a single thought: My name isn’t Rida.
Her family laughed it off.
All day she felt herself fading — cloudy, transparent.
At night, she whispered, “What is my real name?”
A voice answered from her shadow:
“Come back. You promised you wouldn’t forget.”
Rida’s form shimmered, breaking apart like dust returning to a shape waiting on the floor.
The shadow whispered, “Welcome home.”
8. The Empty Chair
Every evening, Baba set dinner for three. His daughter reminded him they were only two now.
He shook his head.
“She comes,” he insisted. “She never misses a meal.”
That night, the chair moved.
Thetable creaked.
A glass lifted, half-filled itself, and gently returned.
The daughter whispered, trembling, “Baba… she’s here.”
He nodded.
“She’s been here. You just stopped looking.”
9. The Stranger in Photos
Rehan reviewed photos from his birthday.
In each one — behind him, beside him, near the cake — stood a pale man in a black coat.
No one recognized him.
Zooming closer, Rehan noticed the stranger’s hand resting on his shoulder.
Cold spread through his bones.
His phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number displayed the same photo — but in that version, the stranger smiled.
Below it:
See you soon.
10. The Final Broadcast
A late-night radio DJ received a call.
A trembling voice whispered, “Warn them. It’s coming.”
“Who’s coming?”
“Not who… when.”
The line cut.
The next evening, the same caller repeated the warning.
Police traced the number — it didn’t exist.
On the third night, the DJ heard knocking on the recording room window.
A face identical to his own stared back.
“You didn’t warn them,” it said.
Static swallowed the station.
11. Borrowed Time
Zafar always felt someone watching him.
One day he found a note in his coat: Your time is not your own.
Shrugging, he ignored it.
On the bus home, a man sat beside him, whispering, “I gave you my remaining hours. Now I’ve come to take yours.”
Zafar panicked.
“But why me?”
The man smiled.
“You were the first newborn in the ward. I was dying. I borrowed time. Now it’s due.”
Zafar felt the hours draining.
12. Moonless Night
On a moonless night, a wandering child knocked on Ayesha’s door.
“My mother is lost,” the child cried.
Ayesha followed her into the fields.
At the edge of the village, the child vanished.
In the silence, a woman’s voice whispered, “Thank you for bringing me home.”
A hand touched her shoulder — warm, gentle.
When Ayesha returned, villagers stared.
She had left at 9 p.m.
She came back at 1 p.m. the next day.
13. The Room With No Corners
During a hotel stay, Farid noticed his room had no corners — only smooth curves.
When he complained, the concierge replied, “That room isn’t occupied, sir.”
Farid insisted.
He returned to prove it — but the hallway was gone.
A whisper floated behind him:
“Rooms without corners trap shadows.”
Farid turned.
His shadow wasn’t attached to him anymore.
14. The Matchbox
A beggar handed Ali a matchbox.
“Only strike one when you are ready to see the truth.”
Ali laughed, pocketing it.
That night during a blackout, he lit one.
A burning figure appeared — tall, skeletal, eyes glowing like embers.
“You called,” it said.
Ali dropped the match.
The flame didn’t die.
It followed him.
15. The Second Diary
Hiba kept a diary of daily events.
One morning, she found a second diary on her desk — same handwriting, same dates, but different events.
In this diary, she died on December 12.
Today was December 11.
Terrified, she burned the second diary.
The smoke curled into words:
“You cannot burn tomorrow.”
Her phone vibrated — an alarm she never set:
24 hours left.
⭐ For More Fiction, Vignettes, Drabbles, Short Stories & Literary Experiments:
Visit: TheMindScope.net — Fiction & Literature Category
By Professor Dr. Arshad Afzal
Pen Name: Faraz Parvez
Where imagination becomes experience, and stories breathe with shadows, mystery, and truth.
