Hey y'all,
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I'm getting bored of my 2016 Honda Civic after 7 years of ownership, and I'm looking to trade it off. It's been great on gas and very reliable, but it's a small coupe and frankly not interesting to drive anymore.
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I enjoy road trips, driving down trails, and offering rides to my friends. It's kind of embarrassing asking them to climb way down into the backseat. The Civic definitely prefers smooth, well-leveled, pothole-free roads... a rarity in Oklahoma. It would be great to drive something more rugged and capable for passengers (4 doors please!) and rough roads. Still, you will also see sedans and hatchbacks on my list because I think they are a good value. I make longer road trips occasionally: my family lives 700 miles away, and there are trips to Dallas about 3 hr away. Although they are great all-rounders, I dislike nearly all unibody SUV's made today. They all look and feel the exact same to me.
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I'm aware that the car market and most dealers are still horrible, and it may really not be a good time for me to trade away the Civic. However, I'm looking forward to hearing from y'all so I can narrow my search! :-)
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Current car:
2016 Honda Civic Coupe LX-P, ~78,000 miles. Paid off.
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Budget:
$34,000 on hand including the expected value of the Civic. Prefer not to finance or lease; don't want to pay interest.
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A shortlist of the cars that I'm most interested in, in no particular order:
* Jeep Wrangler w/ the 3.6L (2015+)
* Toyota Tacoma w/ V6 (2016+)
* Toyota RAV4
* Toyota Corolla Cross
* Honda Accord LX (2023)
* Honda Civic Hatch EX-L (2021+)
* Subaru Crosstrek w/ the 2.5L (2021+)
* Subaru Outback w/ the 3.6L
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About me:
25 M, single, no prospects, no kids. Apartment. Graduated college and moved out to Oklahoma a year ago. No debts. 10-mile daily commute.
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Thanks!

I’m sitting outside during my free period. Seniors are having a ‘picnic’ with donuts, pizza and subs.
We have a bouncy house and a water slide. I’m not interested in any of it, but it’s weird sitting here looking around at everybody knowing that it’s the last time besides graduation that i’ll see them together.
Graduation is in 2 weeks. Guess it’s finally happening. And it’s strange.
After struggling every single year, only now am I being tested for neurodivergency. It’s suspected autism and bipolar, both of which are in my family.
I wonder what it would’ve been like to be diagnosed sooner. All I can do now is wonder what God’s plan was for making me wait, and what it’ll be from here.

Happy Friday Friends, We have made it through another week!! Please let me know if anyone can relate to this. So Ill give you a little bit of background First. I've been dealing with ADHD my whole life. I was Diagnosed in Elementary school and was put on Adderall but was taken off a short time after due the terrible side effects. I went through school and college completely unmedicated and surprisingly was a pretty decent student I graduated with Straight Bs and it was living hell but i managed to pull it off. Last year I took the initiative to start medication again and It was life changing in many areas of my life, I wish I did it sooner. But as you know, ADHD medication does not fix everything. Here's the thing, The only thing I cant seem to fix is I lose motivation very quickly and as well as my drive. I'm sure many of you can relate, I hyper focus on stuff that has absolute no importance what so ever then when it comes to stuff that is actually very important I have zero drive or motivation and I lose interest very fast. I find my self being Mentally exhausted after trying to get through many things. What are some tips and pointers to keep motivated and driven on all of the important things? And yes my medication has made a significant improvement in my concentration. I just Concentrated on all of the wrong things. I want to take baby steps to improve this so. Anything is helpful. Feel free to DM too if your too shy to comment.

Looking to find a group of girls to hangout especially with the warmer weather :) Graduating out of the pandemic and going straight into a job has made it hard to make friends. I have only really been hanging out with my boyfriend and sometimes friend group, but it's usually me suggesting ideas and would love to have a group equally enthused to suggest hangouts. Preferably want to make a group around the same age and life stage (22-30 year olds) and located downtown. I'm usually free after work!
About me: love art (drawing, painting, photography), reading (mostly romances), hiking, bird watching, movies/shows, museums and galleries. I don't drink nor do any drugs. Being downtown, I like exploring events and greenspaces. Lmk :)

Hi :) I am not entirely sure if I am doing this correctly because I have never used reddit before. I have written a little under half of an adult fantasy novel, and I am looking for feedback. I will take any and all feedback, but I am mostly looking for unbiased parties to tell me if I have an potential at all with this story/as a writer. Honestly I am mainly looking for peers/friends. I am happy to read your work in return (though I am mostly only familiar with fiction/fantasy work)! If you are interested, comment below or chat me (IDK how that works but I shall figure it out hehe).
Content warnings: So far the story is not spicy but I do intend to take it there. I am 22 and the characters are around 20 so I am looking for older readers, not minors. I wouldn't be comfortable discussing that sort of things with younger readers though you are still ofc welcome to read it! There is very minor violence but nothing too grim. There is also some LGBTQ+ rep so bigots stay away!
Disclaimer the first chapter is only one of the main characters, but I do have to say, once they meet there is some wonderful witty banter so I swear it gets more intriguing.
First chapter:
Chapter 1: Bearnas The innate driving force of human nature is vengeance. This was a certitude I had come to realize from a young age, and it was a concept I relied on as I got older. Vengeance was the primary motivator for my people. It was our currency. The way we managed to survive. I didn’t stop to consider the morality of this outlook. I didn’t like to contemplate the state of my existence. Found that to be a waste of time. I focused on the here-and-now. The mutable present. It was simply the way the world was, so I had to deal with it like a man should. This was an ideal my father had instilled in me since the time of my birth. I was the son of a victorious warrior. Osgar Nieva was a well-respected war lieutenant during the Great Slaughtering. He never let me forget that I had a legacy to uphold. I knew my father hated me. I figured his disappointment began from the moment I received my name. In Dolag, tradition dictates that the father names their son. Names were believed to be prophetic. Osgar had a strong name-befitting of a warrior. His name meant “divine spear.” My grandfather claimed he could sense that Osgar would be a brave warrior from the moment he was born. So he was prophesied to be graced by the luck of God in battles. Typically, women were only allowed to name the baby if it was a girl. I was the exception. The process of my birth brought my Mother to her deathbed. The doctor was certain that she wouldn’t recover. As she lovingly admired the newborn baby boy in her arms, her attention was drawn by a bird pecking gently on the window. Tears streamed out of her eyes as it took off soundlessly into the winter dawn. “Wren.” She’d muttered softly, still gazing peacefully out the window. The room of family members and midwives stood in puzzled silence. The world seemed to pause in wait for her next words. She turned her head back to meet Osgar’s eyes. “He shall be named Wren. He will be gentle. Beautiful. Free.” She reached down to caress her baby’s face. “And he will be loved.” Despite my Father’s protests, the council voted to accept the name. The wishes of the dying outweighed naming traditions. Only my Mother never died. Doctors considered her survival a miracle. She returned back to full health only a few months later. She and I have paid for her decision every day since. Osgar refused to call me Wren. Anyone who referred to me as such, other than my Mother, was punished accordingly. To the rest of the world, I became known as Bearnas Nieva. Bearnas was the name Osgar would have chosen for his son if he had been given the opportunity. Bearnas. Meaning bringer of victory. My father did everything in his power to ensure that I would fulfill this destiny, whether it was the result of prophetic nomenclature or resolute determination. The story of my name was all I could think about as I prepared for my sendoff. I was tightening my last bootstring when a small hand clapped me on the back with a force intended to knock me off balance. “The famed Bear Nieva preparing for his grand expedition. What luck I must possess to witness you in all your glory.” I was grateful for El’s arrival, despite the copious amount of sarcasm she brought with her. My sister's presence was probably the only thing that could pull me out of my thoughts right now. “Using mockery as a mechanism to cover up your total despair about my departure, I assume.” I tried to keep my tone light, but in truth it was myself I was worried about. El held the chief role in keeping me sane throughout the later part of my life. She was my only tether to my true self. I worried about how I would stay grounded on my Hunt without her there to tease my worries away. El flopped on my bed with feigned anguish. “Yes, whatever will I do without my idiot older brother around to hog all the scrambled eggs at breakfast. Oh, how I will miss the putrid scent you plague the house with after training all day. Your constant nagging about my lack of tidiness will be missed most ardently.” I swatted her gently with my leather gloves. “Speaking of, get your disgusting outdoor shoes out of my clean bed immediately.” I shooed her out of my room, and chased her towards the door, nearly colliding with my father as a result. “This isn’t befitting behavior for a man about to begin his First Hunt” Osgar admonished. “Elowen, go to the kitchen and help your Mother tidy up before we head to town.” El skirted around our father into the hallway. Safely out of his eyeline, she directed one last mocking tongue in my direction before slinking away. “Are you ready to go?” He raked his disapproving gaze over my gear, searching for any flaw he could call attention to. “Yes, sir.” I responded. I did feel ready. This was the moment I had been preparing for my whole life. My body was honed by years of workouts and my skills were unquestioned. I had graduated top of my class in my training group. I was certainly ready to leave the house, as I wanted nothing more than independence. Besides my Mother and sister, I had nothing keeping me here. Not anymore. So I grabbed my bag and walked out the door. When my family was all ready, we began the walk to the edge of town where the sendoff was taking place. There we would eat, drink, dance and say our goodbyes. I spent my time standing on the outskirts of the group, hoping my stern face would signal everyone to leave me alone. I didn’t have any desire to get my ego fluffed by a bunch of people who just wanted to get in the good graces of my Father. I just wanted to leave. The one person I actually wished had come to bid me farewell had decided not to show up, not that I could blame him. Eleven other men would be sent off at the same time as me. We were all being sent in different directions, but we were all given the same instruction: go kill a witch. That is exactly what I intended to do. Success rates had been much lower over the past few years. After the Great Slaughter fifty years prior, there were only so many witches left to kill. In fact a witch hadn’t been successfully hunted in around 4 years. Most hunters came back many months after their departure unable to track any down. The people of Dolag figured the warriors of the Great Slaughter had ushered the witches into near extinction. The only evidence we had that they weren’t entirely eradicated were the cases of the men who never returned. Every once in a while, there was a man who was assumed to have met his demise at the hands of one of the remaining witches. So the Hunts continued on. After a few hours of festivities, it was time for us to set off. I was ready to say my goodbyes. I knelt down so El could wrap her arms around my neck. Her hot tears dampened the fabric covering my shoulders. “Promise me you will come back,” she said. I squeezed her a little tighter. “Don’t worry, you’ll get a few months of the stench free, scrambled-egg-filled, only-child experience and then I will be right back to boss you around.” El released me from her grip in order to look me in the eyes. “I’m not kidding around Bear.” Her piercing gaze mirrored the intensity of her voice. “Promise me.” Even though I knew it wasn’t something I could realistically guarantee, I hugged her once more and said “I promise, Elly.” After a moment, I stood up and ruffled my little sister’s hair. Then I turned to my Mother, who watched with watery eyes. The hair that had escaped from her tight bun was wisping around her face in the gentle breeze. The sun shining behind her produced an effect reminiscent of a halo. She embraced me with a level of care only a Mother could deliver. “I love you, Wren. You will always be my darling songbird,” she whispered into my ear. I released myself from the hug, and smiled one last time at my adoring Mother. I nodded once before forcing myself to turn to my Father. “Don’t disappoint me, son.” He stuck out his calloused hand and I shook it begrudgingly. It felt like cold leather in my grip. That was it. That was my final farewell from my Father. ‘Don’t disappoint’. No good luck, no I love you, nothing of the sort. Only a damn handshake. I knew I shouldn’t have expected anything different, but it still put me in a sour mood. What a great start to my expedition. I looked one last time at my sister and Mother in an effort to preserve some positive thoughts about my home. When I cemented this image in my mind, I omitted the withering glare of my Father beside them. I spun around and started down the path towards Deirtalamh. I marched towards witch country without so much as a glance over my shoulder. I was days into my trek when I came across the cabin. Being the son of Osgar Nieva gave me claim to the most promising Hunt. My journey was actually mapped to this location, whereas the rest of my group had to resort to aimless meandering. I heard the gentle melody of a person humming drifting out from within the house. How odd. My superiors swore it was a witch that lived here. A hunter from a few years prior reported catching a glimpse of a cabin before he was suddenly lost in the woods. Who could be humming so pleasantly within this peaceful home so deep into witch territory? I maneuvered my head to look through the open window and saw the source of the cheerful noise. She appeared like the sun incarnate. Her dark skin contrasted beautifully against the pale yellow of her clothes. Her hair curled unbound around her face. She stirred a pot of stew as she swayed softly to her own music, the fabric of her dress swishing mesmerizingly around her thighs. Beautiful suddenly seemed like an insufficient word to describe someone of her standing. I knew she was not the witch I had come to hunt. Of course I was no fool, I was aware that witches could glamor themselves to be beautiful. But their false beauty was always like that of a succubus, unnatural and deadly. No witch would have been able to conjure up the effortless and soft beauty of the woman in front of me. I was sure of it. Never mind the fact that if she were a witch, I would most certainly be dead. She would have sensed me coming from the moment I stepped foot onto her land, and she would have been ready to strike. If I had let myself get distracted for this long in the presence of a witch, I would have paid for my mistake in blood. I wondered how she had come to live in Deirtalamh. I’d heard tales of villagers who’d tried their luck here out of desperation, choosing to brave the dangers of witch territory rather than living in the impoverished slums of Dolag. I’d also heard of extreme cases where dangerous criminals were exiled here. This woman looked neither criminal in nature nor desperate to survive. She looked content. Regardless, I must get her to safety. I walked briskly over to the door and entered the cabin.

Hey everyone! 👋 I'm thrilled to be joining this vibrant social media community. Allow me to introduce myself—I'm MSK. 🌟
I'm a fresh graduate looking for someopportunities], and I absolutely love to talk to new poeple. I'm all about embracing creativity, spreading positivity, and connecting with like-minded individual. I'm constantly seeking new knowledge and exploring different perspectives. So, if you have any recommendations for books, podcasts, or documentaries, feel free to share them with me! 📖🎧🎬 Don't hesitate to reach out, comment, or DM me.

Hey everyone! 👋 I'm thrilled to be joining this vibrant social media community. Allow me to introduce myself—I'm MSK. 🌟
I'm a fresh graduate looking for someopportunities], and I absolutely love to talk to new poeple. I'm all about embracing creativity, spreading positivity, and connecting with like-minded individual. I'm constantly seeking new knowledge and exploring different perspectives. So, if you have any recommendations for books, podcasts, or documentaries, feel free to share them with me! 📖🎧🎬 Don't hesitate to reach out, comment, or DM me.

If you’re reading this I am begging you to believe me. Especially if you have children. My name is Leon and I have been investigating strange disappearances for four years. I am not an official investigator or a journalist. Before I started this whole thing I did not believe in ghosts or the paranormal. For me to believe in something I had to see it with my own two eyes! Everything had to be factual and everything had an explanation.
At least this is what I used to believe until my wife was murdered four years ago. They found her at work completely skinless. She was drained of blood and was missing all of her nails. They told me the precision required to accomplish this was not heard of yet. I waited months for answers and they never came, so I decided to go get them myself. I had no idea where to start or who to speak to so I went back to the store to try and dig up as much information as I could find.
Her manager eventually told me that she had gotten into a fight with a customer that day and that he assumed she went home on time. When her body was found in the employee break room he was shocked. He had no idea she was still in the building. He said he told me exactly what he told the police. I asked him if there was any footage of the man she was arguing with but he told me the security cameras were not working that day. I vividly remember wanting to punch this guy in his damn face. He was no help and I was determined to solve my wife's murder.
I ended up searching for the guy for months. I asked every one of her coworkers if they saw the argument and a couple of times I even had a run-in with the cops. They insisted that I should let them do their jobs and that they had everything handled. There was no chance I was going to listen to them. I had to take time off from my investigation to attend her funeral and make sure I got all of the preparations right. In hindsight, I was not growing properly and I really should've taken some time to reassess.
So fast forward another month and I finally get a lead. Something I assumed the cops didn't have, this meant I could finally get some answers before being stonewalled again. I ended up finding this guy, Will Brookes at a fucken motel off of the highway about three miles from where my wife worked. I waited for two days before I saw him leave his room to get ice. Once I knew what room to find him in I knocked until he opened the door. He was rightfully pissed but not as pissed as I was. It took every ounce of willpower in my body to not kill him on the spot.
“Why did you kill my wife?!” I snapped as I forced myself into the room and slammed the door behind me. He looked shocked.
“I did not kill her!” He screamed and tried to move around me. So I grabbed him by his shirt and slammed him into the wall next to the tv. This guy was not very heavy and not very strong. At that moment I was wondering how he could kill anyone.
“You were the last person to be seen with her alive!” I barked. I wanted to push his body through the wall. I wanted to crush him.
“I was bringing her the papers she requested for a job offer she accepted in a place called LittleBrooke!” The man said. He was shaking so I put him down and pushed him to the side. “Show me the papers,” I demanded. My wife had told me twice that she had gotten a new job offer. I was extremely excited! I work from home and would be happy to live wherever she wanted. All she had to do was say the word and we could’ve left as soon as possible. But she never made it home to tell me the news.
I watched as the shaking man handed me a stack of papers and even a suitcase. “Here, take it and please leave me alone!” He shouted. “Okay.” I left the motel room and went right to my car. I put everything on the passenger seat and went home. Once I got there I sobbed in the driveway for over an hour before finally getting out and heading inside. I never got to see her body and I never got to say goodbye. Being in this house felt like I was walking into a damn shallow grave of sorts.
I went right to the master bedroom and packed up as many clothes as I could. I even took some of her favorite items, I don’t know why. I took a couple of pillows and two blankets, and after that, I went around to search the rest of the house. Once I had finished in the master bedroom I went and grabbed all my items from the bathroom. After that, I went into the nursery. We were planning on trying to have a baby once she got her new job. I looked around the nursery and took some stuffed animals and blankets, nothing too crazy. I also made sure to grab our family photo album. Finally, I made sure to grab all of the savings from the jar we had plus anything I kept in the safe. I also made sure to grab our wedding video and once I had everything I thought I could need I left the house. On my way out I made sure to tell the building goodbye.
Once I got back into my car I decided to drive a bit. No way in hell was I going to the same motel as that guy so I drove until I hit a hotel far enough away from my house. I did not end up checking in though. Once I got close enough I backed up and just kept driving. I eventually hit a truck stop after a couple of hours and decided to rest my eyes for a while. I was exhausted and there were way too many questions rushing through my head. I knew if I kept driving in that state I would probably crash or something.
After sleeping for four hours I decided it was time to look through the papers and figure out what I was going to do next. I took the first paper from the stack and started to read it. For the sake of time here I will only tell you guys what I found that was interesting.
Paper One: You have been accepted to work as a store manager! Please review your employee packet for more information.
So as I am going over this first paper a couple of things stick out to me. Whoever wrote this was trying not to be specific. The whole paper was one big announcement for a new store opening up in a place called LittleBrooke. There was no state mentioned anywhere on this paper, I would later find out that this place was supposed to be in Washington D.C.
I decided to dig around and eventually found the employee packet. She accepted a job at a mega-store called BrightMarketZ. I thought it was a pretty weird name but what stood out to me was what they were offering to pay her. $22.00 an hour! I couldn't believe it. No wonder she said yes and didn’t bother to ask any questions.
Paper Twenty: To find LittleBrooke please enter [REDACTED] into your GPS device. You will be staying inside apartment 307. All rent for your first month in LittleBrooke is covered by your employer. Please note that all apartments are two-bedroom only. If you have a larger household please speak to Sydney May at Town Hall for bigger accommodations.
After reading this I decided to just go to LittleBrooke and get answers. I was assuming that I would find out what the hell happened if I just went. I wanted to know what my wife died for and I wanted to know why this was some big secret in the first place. I went back to bed and as soon as the sun came up I put the information into my GPS and headed for LittleBrooke.

Year One in LittleBrooke

It took me three weeks to reach LittleBrooke and I could tell that something was wrong the moment I found the town. If I wasn't so damn desperate for answers I would've turned around as soon as I saw the library. The building itself wasn't big but the two huge lions on either side of the staircase gave me the creeps.
After that I passed a mechanic, the whole place looked run down as hell. There wasn't a single car to be seen but the sign said open. The man standing outside of the building waved to me so I gave him a slow wave back. He looked weird. At the time I couldn’t place my finger on why but now I know it’s because he was not human.
The theater was kind of cool to look at in a vintage kind of way. They were not showing anything when I drove by and I made the decision early on to stay out of the theater altogether. After the theater, I saw a small building that said LittleBrooke Press. If anything else I figured I could write for the paper.
As I approached the apartment building a woman was standing outside. Her face was weird as hell. It looked like she had far too much plastic surgery like her face was threatening to pop at any moment. “Hi, can I help you?” she asked me. Her voice was shrill, it was gross to even hear her speak. It sounded like she was putting on a fake voice just to speak to me. “Hi, my wife accepted a job offer. Unfortunately, she has passed away. I would still like to claim the apartment left to us. I can work at any place that currently has an opening.” I offered.
“LittleBrooke Press has space for two more writers!” She smiled and handed me the keys to the apartment. She never asked my name and she knew exactly where I wanted to go. I thought it was weird but I didn’t argue. Instead, I took the keys and thanked her. I spent that whole day getting settled into the new apartment. A couple of things, the front door had four different locks on it. I thought that was pretty weird. I also did not see or hear any other people until my third night in the apartment. I called the LittleBrooke Press about a potential job and they told me to email my submissions. There was no need for me to come in person and honestly, I liked this deal a lot.
For the first few months, I spent my time writing about whatever came to my mind. After that, I would send it in and get my money back. The editor never told me what to do and they never requested anything. It was sweet. As December rolled around I could feel myself slipping into a seasonal depression. At that point, I had made no progress in any of my investigations. I did not know the town well enough and frankly, I felt like I was wasting my time. That night I decided to check out the local bar. It was pretty hidden, you had to drive further into LittleBrooke to find it. Once I got there I was shocked! The place was packed. I sat down at the bar and ordered a drink.
The bartender was hot as hell, too hot. She was so even looking so perfectly symmetrical that it made me extremely uncomfortable. There wasn’t a single hair out of place. “So are you new in town?” She asked me. “Yeah, I just got here a couple of months ago. My now-deceased wife accepted a job offer here.” I said bluntly and dryly. I wanted to finish my drink and go. It was like the bones in my body were screaming at me to leave. The woman looked shocked. “Tell me, does that happen often? Do people accept a job offer in LittleBrooke and turn up dead a couple of days later?” I hissed. It was a genuine question but she did not take it too kindly. She took my drink from my hands and told me to leave.
As I made my way back to my car I could hear someone coming up from behind me. I turned around as fast as possible and had to take three steps back. It was the bartender, but she did not look the same. Half of her face was weighed down like she had no bones at all. Her eyes were bulging out of her head. She gurgled at me. “You need to leave!” She finally snapped and swung her arm in my direction. I moved back before she could hit me. As her hand hit my car window it shattered like it was made of ice. I watched as her arm popped and clicked. I could see it slowly getting longer. Before I knew it her arm was dragging on the pavement! She lunged at me so I punched her in her stomach. She gurgled again and sunk her teeth into my jacket. I screamed for help as we hit the pavement. She was trying fucken eat me! I grabbed her by her hair and threw her backward as hard as I could. As I scrambled to my feet and looked at her I screamed again. Her skin was pulled back. Now hugging the bones on her face. Her eyes were completely exposed! I turned and dove into my car as fast as I could. I slammed the door behind me and sped out of the parking lot like a bat out of hell.
The next morning I received a letter under my door. “Sorry, you had problems last night! Please accept our sincerest apologies.” -Mayor Brookes. There was $300 included with the letter. Now, I thought about leaving but decided I had to stay. Something was going on here and I had to find out what. I removed my jacket to see if the woman had injured me, she didn't but the experience was still terrifying. For the first time in a very long time, I was scared. But I also felt closer to the truth than I have ever been before.

Year Two in LittleBrooke

I spent all of January writing about the women who attacked me. I even contacted the police. I quickly learned that the police were going to be completely useless. My editor never sent the story back so I had assumed it was published.
At the end of the month, I left to shop for some supplies. Let me tell you, the grocery store in LittleBrooke is something else. They don’t have any brands you’ve ever heard of and at first, that drove me nuts. However, I quickly came to fall in love with the food here. It was comforting to have something to enjoy. Like always, I made sure to shop for two to three months at a time. Shopping was easy, I used the self-checkout to make sure I didn’t have to speak to anyone.
Once I got home I put everything away and decided to look around the apartment building. My whole floor started with 301 and went all the way to 310. The first floor was 501 to 509. There was a technical second floor but none of the doors were labeled. It looked like someone was renovating the place.
I got to see some of my neighbors too. An older woman, two men, and I were living next door to a lady the whole time. I had never seen or heard from these people before. It seemed like everyone wanted to keep to themselves too. I wanted to try and talk to someone but every time I approached them they turned and walked away. For what it's worth they looked completely normal.
So I left the apartment building and ventured around the property. There were no other apartments anywhere close to the one I was staying at, or so I thought until I found one about thirty minutes away. It was so out of the way you wouldn't find it unless you were looking. Against my better judgment, I opened the doors to the building and walked right inside. The place smelled like rust and soot.
I went to explore the first floor and was shocked to find blood trails on the floor and the ceiling. I followed the trail and made sure to look at the numbers on each door. This floor was numbered 1-10. Most of the doors were locked and I wasn’t going to try and knock anything down. I opened the door to apartment 10 and walked right inside. There was just enough light from the sun to illuminate the place. It looked like the whole place had been ransacked. I checked the tables and cabinets before heading into the bedroom. I searched the dresser and under the pillows before finally checking under the bed. When I looked under I spotted a black box. I grabbed it and that is when I got the feeling again. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I felt something sharp dig into my shoulders.
I screamed as loudly as I could, my face slammed off of the carpet and I clenched the box with one hand. Before I could figure out what the hell was happening I was tossed backward. I went into the bedroom door and rolled a couple of times until I reached the torn-up couch. I slowly lifted my head and to my horror what I was looking at was way too far from human to be real.
It looked like a dog ape thing. It was mostly skinless aside from some skin on its torso and face. The creature had thick, long claws and was standing on its hind legs. It barked at me. Its fangs were huge! I quickly scrambled to my feet and rushed out of the door as fast as possible. I could feel the blood running down my back. Never once did I consider letting this box go.
“Help!” I screamed as I burst through the apartment complex doors and started to run back to the main road. My heart was pounding, I could feel my chest getting tighter with each step. I could hear the beast behind me, it was screeching. I thought I was going to die for sure, there was no way I could continue to outrun this beast. That’s when I heard a car and before I knew it I could see it! A woman was waving me over, she was just up ahead! I had to push a little harder. I had to be just a little stronger.
When I felt the embrace of the car door I ripped it open and dove inside. She sped away and I looked out of the window. The beast did not follow us any further. “Are you insane!” She snapped at me. That’s the last thing I remember before passing out.
When I woke up I was laying on my stomach on an extremely comfortable couch. I could smell someone making pasta with meat sauce. My stomach was going insane. Everything hurt though, especially my back and my left side. I figured I had hurt my side when I was tossed across the room.
At this point, I did not dive into the box yet. I could barely move. “Hi.” I heard a woman say from the kitchen. “Thank you,” I replied before trying to sit up. I was so concerned that this woman would be another monster. When I saw her though I knew she was normal. She didn't look so damn perfect and that was a breath of fresh air.
“What's your name?” She asked me as I watched her prepare two bowls of food.
“Leon,” I said before closing my eyes. “You heard me screaming?” I asked her seriously.
“I did. I’m pretty sure everyone in our building did. You got hurt pretty badly, I did my best to patch you up.” She paused and laughed. “My name is Ashley.”
So I ended up crashing at her place. During this time I tried to focus on recovering. Sleeping became hell, I was having constant nightmares. I also spent a lot of time working on articles. I ended up giving Ash the keys to my apartment so she could get my laptop. It was a big move to trust anyone here but I am glad I did.
​

Year Three and Four in LittleBrooke

During my recovery, I spent most of my time writing. I wanted to write about everything I have seen and experienced. I had a lot of questions and way too much time with my thoughts. Ash and I got to know each other too.
I told her about how my wife had died mysteriously. I eventually opened up about her being skinned and drained of her blood. Ash told me she had come to LittleBrooke with her older sister. Her sister went to work one day and never came back. She was working at the theater. Ash had told me that she was stuck here, she didn’t feel right leaving with her sister still missing. Every time she would try the cops would meet her at the town line.
It was during this time that we both shared that we had never seen a police station. We talked about the monsters too. Her first run-in with one was at the grocery store. I told her about what happened to me at the bar. She told me that she heard rumors of the beast living beyond the apartments. The first time she saw it was when it was attacking me.
As I started to recover more we discussed a couple of things. First, the neighbors here suck. She could hear me screaming and came to help but no one else did. Second, neither of us has seen any families since we moved here. It was at this point I decided I wanted to leave and I offered to take her with me. We could both get out come hell or high water. She agreed but there was something I had to do first.
I showed her the box I had taken from the apartment.
“You almost died for a box?” Ash asked me. “Yes,” I said seriously.
I opened it and blinked. I found a picture of a girl with black hair and bright green eyes. It read, Stephanie. I found a missing persons report too. This girl had been missing a year before I got here. I decided that my last article would be about her. I had written about a couple of missing people before this. For example, the old lady in our building vanished and her apartment was rented out two days later.
I also found a badge inside the box. It read F.O.P.P. and there was a name! Jack Bridges. We tried to look up the organization's name but we came up empty-handed. I ended up writing the story about Stephanie and the next day Ash and I got packing. We decided to take my car since the cops know what hers looks like. I packed up the essentials all over again and we piled into the car. “We should check the other direction. Before we leave.” I suggested. Ash knew about the bar already but neither of us knew what was beyond that point: This suggested changed the course of our lives forever.
So we started driving in the other direction. We passed the bar where the woman had tried to eat me, we passed a convenience store I didn’t know this town had and we just kept driving. Eventually, I could hear Ash speaking to me, “Holy shit! The police station.” she pointed out. I couldn’t believe it either. I did not stop driving though but I wish I did.
Eventually, we saw a sign that read, LittleBrooke High. Go Bears!
I started to slow down a bit until the school was in view. The place looked run down as hell. There were holes in the walls and leaves growing up the side of the building. The parking lot was massive and full of buses. I pulled the car into the parking lot and told Ash to get into the driver's seat.
“You’re not serious?” She asked me. I could tell she wanted to go but I said, “This is it! This is the last place of note in this fucken town. Just take the wheel and I will be right back.” I said as I jumped out of the car and went to look around.
As I approached one of the buses I grabbed the doors, they were already open a crack. I pulled them open and was hit with a horrible stench. I had to step back and puke and no I am not going to describe what I saw in that fucken bus. At that point, I decided I had seen enough and it was time to fucken go.
“Help!” I heard someone cry from a couple of buses over. “Please!” I heard again. I wanted to slap myself because I knew better. I had already decided it was time to leave but I went to investigate anyway. I went to the bus and pulled the doors open. It smelled like stale piss and blood. “Back here!” A girl screamed out to me. I made my way to the back of the bus, stepping on school jackets and over backpacks. That is where I found them. Two teenagers are tied to the leg of a bus seat. They looked horrible, caking in blood and sweat. They were both injured. “Stephanie?!” I exclaimed as I bent over to free them. I recognized her face the moment I saw it.
“Can you move? I asked the blonde girl.” As I started to let her go. “Everything hurts.” She told me. I opened the emergency exit and called for Ash to pull the car over. It took her a second to hear me but she came as fast as possible. “I am going to get you guys in the car and we are going to get out of here, okay?” I told them. I wanted to tell them everything was going to be okay, but I couldn't. It felt like that would be a huge lie.
Ash stepped out of the car and helped get the girls into the backseat. As I stopped to look around I could feel the bus shift in weight. I turned around and inhaled sharply. Standing before me was a creature wearing a jacket that said COACH on it. He looked sickly, and pale, and his veins were protruding from his face and hands. As he ran at me I jumped out of the emergency exit door just in time to feel something slam off of the back of my head. I looked down to see a barbed football. I could feel blood trickling down my neck, I stumbled forward and felt a hand grab my arm. Ash was shoving me into the car. She slid over me, closed the passenger door, and backed the car up. I thought she was moving like lightning.
At this point, everyone was screaming. My heart was threatening to jump out of my fucken chest. I was so sure we were all going to die here, just like everyone else I had seen on the buses. But no, Ash sped out of the parking lot. The coach chased us to the school limits but for some reason, he did not follow us anymore.
I know we should've stopped to see if the kids could find their parents but we didn't. Instead, Ash just kept driving. Eventually, we could hear the cops behind us but that did not stop her. It took us six hours to finally see the You Are New Leaving LittleBrooke sign! I couldn’t believe it. This place was not that big at all.
So listen, if you’re invited to take a job in LittleBrooke. Don’t take it. It’s not worth your life.

If you’re reading this I am begging you to believe me. Especially if you have children. My name is Leon and I have been investigating strange disappearances for four years. I am not an official investigator or a journalist. Before I started this whole thing I did not believe in ghosts or the paranormal. For me to believe in something I had to see it with my own two eyes! Everything had to be factual and everything had an explanation.
At least this is what I used to believe until my wife was murdered four years ago. They found her at work completely skinless. She was drained of blood and was missing all of her nails. They told me the precision required to accomplish this was not heard of yet. I waited months for answers and they never came, so I decided to go get them myself. I had no idea where to start or who to speak to so I went back to the store to try and dig up as much information as I could find.
Her manager eventually told me that she had gotten into a fight with a customer that day and that he assumed she went home on time. When her body was found in the employee break room he was shocked. He had no idea she was still in the building. He said he told me exactly what he told the police. I asked him if there was any footage of the man she was arguing with but he told me the security cameras were not working that day. I vividly remember wanting to punch this guy in his damn face. He was no help and I was determined to solve my wife's murder.
I ended up searching for the guy for months. I asked every one of her coworkers if they saw the argument and a couple of times I even had a run-in with the cops. They insisted that I should let them do their jobs and that they had everything handled. There was no chance I was going to listen to them. I had to take time off from my investigation to attend her funeral and make sure I got all of the preparations right. In hindsight, I was not growing properly and I really should've taken some time to reassess.
So fast forward another month and I finally get a lead. Something I assumed the cops didn't have, this meant I could finally get some answers before being stonewalled again. I ended up finding this guy, Will Brookes at a fucken motel off of the highway about three miles from where my wife worked. I waited for two days before I saw him leave his room to get ice. Once I knew what room to find him in I knocked until he opened the door. He was rightfully pissed but not as pissed as I was. It took every ounce of willpower in my body to not kill him on the spot.
“Why did you kill my wife?!” I snapped as I forced myself into the room and slammed the door behind me. He looked shocked.
“I did not kill her!” He screamed and tried to move around me. So I grabbed him by his shirt and slammed him into the wall next to the tv. This guy was not very heavy and not very strong. At that moment I was wondering how he could kill anyone.
“You were the last person to be seen with her alive!” I barked. I wanted to push his body through the wall. I wanted to crush him.
“I was bringing her the papers she requested for a job offer she accepted in a place called LittleBrooke!” The man said. He was shaking so I put him down and pushed him to the side. “Show me the papers,” I demanded. My wife had told me twice that she had gotten a new job offer. I was extremely excited! I work from home and would be happy to live wherever she wanted. All she had to do was say the word and we could’ve left as soon as possible. But she never made it home to tell me the news.
I watched as the shaking man handed me a stack of papers and even a suitcase. “Here, take it and please leave me alone!” He shouted. “Okay.” I left the motel room and went right to my car. I put everything on the passenger seat and went home. Once I got there I sobbed in the driveway for over an hour before finally getting out and heading inside. I never got to see her body and I never got to say goodbye. Being in this house felt like I was walking into a damn shallow grave of sorts.
I went right to the master bedroom and packed up as many clothes as I could. I even took some of her favorite items, I don’t know why. I took a couple of pillows and two blankets, and after that, I went around to search the rest of the house. Once I had finished in the master bedroom I went and grabbed all my items from the bathroom. After that, I went into the nursery. We were planning on trying to have a baby once she got her new job. I looked around the nursery and took some stuffed animals and blankets, nothing too crazy. I also made sure to grab our family photo album. Finally, I made sure to grab all of the savings from the jar we had plus anything I kept in the safe. I also made sure to grab our wedding video and once I had everything I thought I could need I left the house. On my way out I made sure to tell the building goodbye.
Once I got back into my car I decided to drive a bit. No way in hell was I going to the same motel as that guy so I drove until I hit a hotel far enough away from my house. I did not end up checking in though. Once I got close enough I backed up and just kept driving. I eventually hit a truck stop after a couple of hours and decided to rest my eyes for a while. I was exhausted and there were way too many questions rushing through my head. I knew if I kept driving in that state I would probably crash or something. After sleeping for four hours I decided it was time to look through the papers and figure out what I was going to do next. I took the first paper from the stack and started to read it. For the sake of time here I will only tell you guys what I found that was interesting.
Paper One: You have been accepted to work as a store manager! Please review your employee packet for more information.
So as I am going over this first paper a couple of things stick out to me. Whoever wrote this was trying not to be specific. The whole paper was one big announcement for a new store opening up in a place called LittleBrooke. There was no state mentioned anywhere on this paper, I would later find out that this place was supposed to be in Washington D.C.
I decided to dig around and eventually found the employee packet. She accepted a job at a mega-store called BrightMarketZ. I thought it was a pretty weird name but what stood out to me was what they were offering to pay her. $22.00 an hour! I couldn't believe it. No wonder she said yes and didn’t bother to ask any questions.
Paper Twenty: To find LittleBrooke please enter [REDACTED] into your GPS device. You will be staying inside apartment 307. All rent for your first month in LittleBrooke is covered by your employer. Please note that all apartments are two-bedroom only. If you have a larger household please speak to Sydney May at Town Hall for bigger accommodations. After reading this I decided to just go to LittleBrooke and get answers. I was assuming that I would find out what the hell happened if I just went. I wanted to know what my wife died for and I wanted to know why this was some big secret in the first place. I went back to bed and as soon as the sun came up I put the information into my GPS and headed for LittleBrooke.

Year One in LittleBrooke

It took me three weeks to reach LittleBrooke and I could tell that something was wrong the moment I found the town. If I wasn't so damn desperate for answers I would've turned around as soon as I saw the library. The building itself wasn't big but the two huge lions on either side of the staircase gave me the creeps.
After that I passed a mechanic, the whole place looked run down as hell. There wasn't a single car to be seen but the sign said open. The man standing outside of the building waved to me so I gave him a slow wave back. He looked weird. At the time I couldn’t place my finger on why but now I know it’s because he was not human.
The theater was kind of cool to look at in a vintage kind of way. They were not showing anything when I drove by and I made the decision early on to stay out of the theater altogether. After the theater, I saw a small building that said LittleBrooke Press. If anything else I figured I could write for the paper.
As I approached the apartment building a woman was standing outside. Her face was weird as hell. It looked like she had far too much plastic surgery like her face was threatening to pop at any moment. “Hi, can I help you?” she asked me. Her voice was shrill, it was gross to even hear her speak. It sounded like she was putting on a fake voice just to speak to me. “Hi, my wife accepted a job offer. Unfortunately, she has passed away. I would still like to claim the apartment left to us. I can work at any place that currently has an opening.” I offered.
“LittleBrooke Press has space for two more writers!” She smiled and handed me the keys to the apartment. She never asked my name and she knew exactly where I wanted to go. I thought it was weird but I didn’t argue. Instead, I took the keys and thanked her. I spent that whole day getting settled into the new apartment. A couple of things, the front door had four different locks on it. I thought that was pretty weird. I also did not see or hear any other people until my third night in the apartment. I called the LittleBrooke Press about a potential job and they told me to email my submissions. There was no need for me to come in person and honestly, I liked this deal a lot.
For the first few months, I spent my time writing about whatever came to my mind. After that, I would send it in and get my money back. The editor never told me what to do and they never requested anything. It was sweet. As December rolled around I could feel myself slipping into a seasonal depression. At that point, I had made no progress in any of my investigations. I did not know the town well enough and frankly, I felt like I was wasting my time. That night I decided to check out the local bar. It was pretty hidden, you had to drive further into LittleBrooke to find it. Once I got there I was shocked! The place was packed. I sat down at the bar and ordered a drink.
The bartender was hot as hell, too hot. She was so even looking so perfectly symmetrical that it made me extremely uncomfortable. There wasn’t a single hair out of place. “So are you new in town?” She asked me. “Yeah, I just got here a couple of months ago. My now-deceased wife accepted a job offer here.” I said bluntly and dryly. I wanted to finish my drink and go. It was like the bones in my body were screaming at me to leave. The woman looked shocked. “Tell me, does that happen often? Do people accept a job offer in LittleBrooke and turn up dead a couple of days later?” I hissed. It was a genuine question but she did not take it too kindly. She took my drink from my hands and told me to leave.
As I made my way back to my car I could hear someone coming up from behind me. I turned around as fast as possible and had to take three steps back. It was the bartender, but she did not look the same. Half of her face was weighed down like she had no bones at all. Her eyes were bulging out of her head. She gurgled at me. “You need to leave!” She finally snapped and swung her arm in my direction. I moved back before she could hit me. As her hand hit my car window it shattered like it was made of ice. I watched as her arm popped and clicked. I could see it slowly getting longer. Before I knew it her arm was dragging on the pavement! She lunged at me so I punched her in her stomach. She gurgled again and sunk her teeth into my jacket. I screamed for help as we hit the pavement. She was trying fucken eat me! I grabbed her by her hair and threw her backward as hard as I could. As I scrambled to my feet and looked at her I screamed again. Her skin was pulled back. Now hugging the bones on her face. Her eyes were completely exposed! I turned and dove into my car as fast as I could. I slammed the door behind me and sped out of the parking lot like a bat out of hell.
The next morning I received a letter under my door. “Sorry, you had problems last night! Please accept our sincerest apologies.” -Mayor Brookes. There was $300 included with the letter. Now, I thought about leaving but decided I had to stay. Something was going on here and I had to find out what. I removed my jacket to see if the woman had injured me, she didn't but the experience was still terrifying. For the first time in a very long time, I was scared. But I also felt closer to the truth than I have ever been before.

Year Two in LittleBrooke

I spent all of January writing about the women who attacked me. I even contacted the police. I quickly learned that the police were going to be completely useless. My editor never sent the story back so I had assumed it was published.
At the end of the month, I left to shop for some supplies. Let me tell you, the grocery store in LittleBrooke is something else. They don’t have any brands you’ve ever heard of and at first, that drove me nuts. However, I quickly came to fall in love with the food here. It was comforting to have something to enjoy. Like always, I made sure to shop for two to three months at a time. Shopping was easy, I used the self-checkout to make sure I didn’t have to speak to anyone.
Once I got home I put everything away and decided to look around the apartment building. My whole floor started with 301 and went all the way to 310. The first floor was 501 to 509. There was a technical second floor but none of the doors were labeled. It looked like someone was renovating the place.
I got to see some of my neighbors too. An older woman, two men, and I were living next door to a lady the whole time. I had never seen or heard from these people before. It seemed like everyone wanted to keep to themselves too. I wanted to try and talk to someone but every time I approached them they turned and walked away. For what it's worth they looked completely normal.
So I left the apartment building and ventured around the property. There were no other apartments anywhere close to the one I was staying at, or so I thought until I found one about thirty minutes away. It was so out of the way you wouldn't find it unless you were looking. Against my better judgment, I opened the doors to the building and walked right inside. The place smelled like rust and soot.
I went to explore the first floor and was shocked to find blood trails on the floor and the ceiling. I followed the trail and made sure to look at the numbers on each door. This floor was numbered 1-10. Most of the doors were locked and I wasn’t going to try and knock anything down. I opened the door to apartment 10 and walked right inside. There was just enough light from the sun to illuminate the place. It looked like the whole place had been ransacked. I checked the tables and cabinets before heading into the bedroom. I searched the dresser and under the pillows before finally checking under the bed. When I looked under I spotted a black box. I grabbed it and that is when I got the feeling again. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I felt something sharp dig into my shoulders.
I screamed as loudly as I could, my face slammed off of the carpet and I clenched the box with one hand. Before I could figure out what the hell was happening I was tossed backward. I went into the bedroom door and rolled a couple of times until I reached the torn-up couch. I slowly lifted my head and to my horror what I was looking at was way too far from human to be real.
It looked like a dog ape thing. It was mostly skinless aside from some skin on its torso and face. The creature had thick, long claws and was standing on its hind legs. It barked at me. Its fangs were huge! I quickly scrambled to my feet and rushed out of the door as fast as possible. I could feel the blood running down my back. Never once did I consider letting this box go.
“Help!” I screamed as I burst through the apartment complex doors and started to run back to the main road. My heart was pounding, I could feel my chest getting tighter with each step. I could hear the beast behind me, it was screeching. I thought I was going to die for sure, there was no way I could continue to outrun this beast. That’s when I heard a car and before I knew it I could see it! A woman was waving me over, she was just up ahead! I had to push a little harder. I had to be just a little stronger.
When I felt the embrace of the car door I ripped it open and dove inside. She sped away and I looked out of the window. The beast did not follow us any further. “Are you insane!” She snapped at me. That’s the last thing I remember before passing out.
When I woke up I was laying on my stomach on an extremely comfortable couch. I could smell someone making pasta with meat sauce. My stomach was going insane. Everything hurt though, especially my back and my left side. I figured I had hurt my side when I was tossed across the room.
At this point, I did not dive into the box yet. I could barely move. “Hi.” I heard a woman say from the kitchen. “Thank you,” I replied before trying to sit up. I was so concerned that this woman would be another monster. When I saw her though I knew she was normal. She didn't look so damn perfect and that was a breath of fresh air.
“What's your name?” She asked me as I watched her prepare two bowls of food.
“Leon,” I said before closing my eyes. “You heard me screaming?” I asked her seriously.
“I did. I’m pretty sure everyone in our building did. You got hurt pretty badly, I did my best to patch you up.” She paused and laughed. “My name is Ashley.”
So I ended up crashing at her place. During this time I tried to focus on recovering. Sleeping became hell, I was having constant nightmares. I also spent a lot of time working on articles. I ended up giving Ash the keys to my apartment so she could get my laptop. It was a big move to trust anyone here but I am glad I did.

Year Three and Four in LittleBrooke

During my recovery, I spent most of my time writing. I wanted to write about everything I have seen and experienced. I had a lot of questions and way too much time with my thoughts. Ash and I got to know each other too.
I told her about how my wife had died mysteriously. I eventually opened up about her being skinned and drained of her blood. Ash told me she had come to LittleBrooke with her older sister. Her sister went to work one day and never came back. She was working at the theater. Ash had told me that she was stuck here, she didn’t feel right leaving with her sister still missing. Every time she would try the cops would meet her at the town line.
It was during this time that we both shared that we had never seen a police station. We talked about the monsters too. Her first run-in with one was at the grocery store. I told her about what happened to me at the bar. She told me that she heard rumors of the beast living beyond the apartments. The first time she saw it was when it was attacking me.
As I started to recover more we discussed a couple of things. First, the neighbors here suck. She could hear me screaming and came to help but no one else did. Second, neither of us has seen any families since we moved here. It was at this point I decided I wanted to leave and I offered to take her with me. We could both get out come hell or high water. She agreed but there was something I had to do first.
I showed her the box I had taken from the apartment.
“You almost died for a box?” Ash asked me. “Yes,” I said seriously.
I opened it and blinked. I found a picture of a girl with black hair and bright green eyes. It read, Stephanie. I found a missing persons report too. This girl had been missing a year before I got here. I decided that my last article would be about her. I had written about a couple of missing people before this. For example, the old lady in our building vanished and her apartment was rented out two days later.
I also found a badge inside the box. It read F.O.P.P. and there was a name! Jack Bridges. We tried to look up the organization's name but we came up empty-handed. I ended up writing the story about Stephanie and the next day Ash and I got packing. We decided to take my car since the cops know what hers looks like. I packed up the essentials all over again and we piled into the car.
“We should check the other direction. Before we leave.” I suggested. Ash knew about the bar already but neither of us knew what was beyond that point: This suggested changed the course of our lives forever.
So we started driving in the other direction. We passed the bar where the woman had tried to eat me, we passed a convenience store I didn’t know this town had and we just kept driving. Eventually, I could hear Ash speaking to me, “Holy shit! The police station.” she pointed out. I couldn’t believe it either. I did not stop driving though but I wish I did.
Eventually, we saw a sign that read, LittleBrooke High. Go Bears!
I started to slow down a bit until the school was in view. The place looked run down as hell. There were holes in the walls and leaves growing up the side of the building. The parking lot was massive and full of buses. I pulled the car into the parking lot and told Ash to get into the driver's seat.
“You’re not serious?” She asked me. I could tell she wanted to go but I said, “This is it! This is the last place of note in this fucken town. Just take the wheel and I will be right back.” I said as I jumped out of the car and went to look around.
As I approached one of the buses I grabbed the doors, they were already open a crack. I pulled them open and was hit with a horrible stench. I had to step back and puke and no I am not going to describe what I saw in that fucken bus. At that point, I decided I had seen enough and it was time to fucken go.
“Help!” I heard someone cry from a couple of buses over. “Please!” I heard again. I wanted to slap myself because I knew better. I had already decided it was time to leave but I went to investigate anyway. I went to the bus and pulled the doors open. It smelled like stale piss and blood. “Back here!” A girl screamed out to me. I made my way to the back of the bus, stepping on school jackets and over backpacks. That is where I found them. Two teenagers are tied to the leg of a bus seat. They looked horrible, caking in blood and sweat. They were both injured. “Stephanie?!” I exclaimed as I bent over to free them. I recognized her face the moment I saw it.
“Can you move? I asked the blonde girl.” As I started to let her go. “Everything hurts.” She told me. I opened the emergency exit and called for Ash to pull the car over. It took her a second to hear me but she came as fast as possible. “I am going to get you guys in the car and we are going to get out of here, okay?” I told them. I wanted to tell them everything was going to be okay, but I couldn't. It felt like that would be a huge lie.
Ash stepped out of the car and helped get the girls into the backseat. As I stopped to look around I could feel the bus shift in weight. I turned around and inhaled sharply. Standing before me was a creature wearing a jacket that said COACH on it. He looked sickly, and pale, and his veins were protruding from his face and hands. As he ran at me I jumped out of the emergency exit door just in time to feel something slam off of the back of my head. I looked down to see a barbed football. I could feel blood trickling down my neck, I stumbled forward and felt a hand grab my arm. Ash was shoving me into the car. She slid over me, closed the passenger door, and backed the car up. I thought she was moving like lightning.
At this point, everyone was screaming. My heart was threatening to jump out of my fucken chest. I was so sure we were all going to die here, just like everyone else I had seen on the buses. But no, Ash sped out of the parking lot. The coach chased us to the school limits but for some reason, he did not follow us anymore.
I know we should've stopped to see if the kids could find their parents but we didn't. Instead, Ash just kept driving. Eventually, we could hear the cops behind us but that did not stop her. It took us six hours to finally see the You Are New Leaving LittleBrooke sign! I couldn’t believe it. This place was not that big at all.
So listen, if you’re invited to take a job in LittleBrooke. Don’t take it. It’s not worth your life.

Long overdue but I wanted to write a recap and give some unsolicited thoughts because these posts were immensely helpful to me last year going into the cycle. Anecdotal as this evidence may be, I hope it will help someone and I'm happy to ask questions below or PM me!
A bit about me -
stats: 17low, 3.9high, nURM (mixed asian/white)
kJD humanities major, had part time internships during summer and semesters for all of junior and senior year (one legal one not), decently involved at school
Acceptances: Chicago, Columbia, Harvard (attending), NYU, Cornell, Northwestern, Georgetown, WashU, UT Austin, Vanderbilt, plus 2 local schools I won't include to avoid doxxing myself
Waitlists: Yale, Stanford, Penn, UVA, Berkeley, Michigan, Duke, Boston College
As I prepared my application, the thing I was most focused on was showcasing my strengths as an applicant despite being a kJD. I spent a lot of time thinking about who I was as a well-rounded individual, and what kind of narrative I wanted to craft through my materials so that when someone read my app, they would come away with clear takeaways about who I am. This was incredibly helpful in crafting a genuine and compelling personal statement that was deep and specific.
The biggest piece of advice I would give to anyone, but especially kJDs, is to focus on depth as opposed to breadth, both in what you do in the years leading up to your application and in the crafting of your materials themselves. When I think about what an application of someone who has graduated and worked for a few years must look like, they have the advantage of however many years of full time work experience to write and speak about, whereas a kJD probably has much shorter, more surface-level activities on their resume, whether that's internships, clubs, research, etc. I think it's important to show strong commitment and showcase the hard work you put into whatever you did. I obviously can't prove this, but I do think that is part of why my cycle was successful, because I had a solid resume and PS with depth. With only 4 years of life experience, kJDs have less to pull from, so show what you've got.
Finally, for your own well-being, do your best to limit how much time you spend on this god-forsaken site. Don't download the app on your phone to avoid doomscrolling, and remember that this process does not define you. Feel free to ask questions, and to the class of 2027, you got this!!

I’m a 38 year old Single White man in NW Houston. I’d like to find a fun woman to hang out with and date with the intention of developing a hotwife/cuckold relationship. I do have previous experience with this type of relationship, and am very sure about what I’m looking for. I’m extremely secure with myself, and lead a 100% drama free lifestyle. About me, I’m 6’3” 255 short brown hair, hazel eyes. I’ve been told I’m attractive haha. I have a very stable career in the Oil and Gas industry, and am an extensive world traveler. I’m well cultured, well educated, and a complete southern gentleman. I enjoy the outdoors, Lake days, movies, nice meals. Comfortable dressing down and hanging out at a dive bar, or I’m good with dressing up and enjoying some fine dining and cocktails. I’m pretty open minded to trying new things, and always up for an adventure. Looking for a fun, loyal partner in crime, but also still want the freedom to “do you”? I’m your guy! Have your cake and eat it too. If this sounds like something you’d be interested in feel free to send me a message. Looking forward to hearing from you!
PLEASE NO MEN.

I'm just about to file my first full year of wages abroad after graduating, and I earned less than $73k; I qualify for free file software (e.g. below), but I've heard they don't include some necessary forms (e.g. 1116, 2555).
Are there any that do, or that allow you to complete your taxes without physically mailing anything in? Is paying $100+ for expat-specific tax software the only way to avoid mailing extra forms in? Any guidance or suggestions would be greatly appreciated, TIA!
https://preview.redd.it/5i0tku8iuz4b1.png?width=703&format=png&auto=webp&s=9836db560888f54f2d8da2cdf3f107aaeb9dfe9c

So I've wasted the last two years by being in uni. The first year I was studying Japanese studies and realized after about a month that this won't work for me. I then took the year off and worked a couple student jobs. This year I'm at a different school and I'm studying computer science. I thought this would be it since I took programming classes and highschool and I did well in them. But now I feel like I missed again. I'm struggling with the work itself all that much, but I just don't see myself in this field and it's making me hate anything related to it. This also caused me to lose all motivation and I'm now on the verge of failing the year. And now I don't know what to do. If I fail this year I can't repeat it since I already changed schools once, nor can I change what I'm studying again. At least not for free, I would have to pay the tuition and I don't have the money for that. So let's say I drop school. Then what do I do? I'm a highschool graduate so I'm not really qualified for much. And the biggest problem of all, I don't know what I want. I have no interests, dreams, goals, just nothing. I play games so I can escape this reality, but other than that I also have no hobbies. I am just completely lost and struggling, so if anyone has any advice, it would be greatly appreciated.

Please feel free to share anything positive that has happened in your life this week. Purchased a new vehicle? Graduated school? It's your birthday? Let's celebrate you and all of your achievements.

Welcome to our weekly discussion thread about forensic science!
Forensic Scientists and Professionals! What's going on this week?
Use any of the following as a prompt if you need to

• What do you do?
• What kind of work are you doing?
• Are you doing any new kinds of analyses?
• What is your work week like?
• Do you have crazy stories from the field/lab? Tell us!

Remember! Don't reveal identifying info on decedents or victims. Change names or use nicknames if you must.
Students! How's school?
Use any one of the following as a prompt if you need to

• What degree are you pursuing?
• What are you learning about?
• Have you learned something new and/or exciting?
• Are you involved in research?
• Is there anything about the field you'd like to know?

Remember! Don't ask us to do your homework or assignments for you. We did the work and you have to do it too.
If you are asking for education or employment advice, please read our subreddit guide first and then look at our resources in the sidebar. If what we have doesn't address your needs, you can ask us a question here! Let us know where you are and which country or countries you're considering for school.
Don't know where to start when it comes to schools, programs, or degrees? Take a look at our subreddit wiki for a good rundown of what you should look out for.
Confused by all the job titles, requirements, and worried about things like starting salary? Please take a look at this collection of posts from Cdub919, one of our verified forensics members.
Have questions for someone working in the field? Take a look at our list of verified forensics professionals. They are frequently tagged in comments and posts when mods or other community members see that their expertise is needed. You might reach out to them in a private message or chat if you need their help. Please be respectful of their time and advice and don't harass anybody for a response.
​

Title	Description	Day	Frequency
Education Questions Roundup	Education questions and advice for students, graduates, enthusiasts, anyone interested in forensics	Monday	Weekly
Off-Topic Tuesday	General discussion, free-for-all thread; forensics topics also allowed	Tuesday	Weekly
Ask a Forensic Scientist	School surveys, "what's it like being a forensic scientist" questions, "is this the right career for me" questions, etc.	Thursday	Weekly
Forensic Friday	Forensic science discussion (work, school), forensics questions, education, employment advice also allowed	Friday	Weekly

The title speaks for itself.
This is the first time I'm renting through them and the entire process, from viewings, interactions with landlords, referrals, the actual contract, everything has been fantastic.
They draw up a basic AST contract and when you download the PDF, they highlight anything that's "non-standard" in blue. So you can just read that part and sign. Being the finicky soul that I am, I still took time to go through everything else and they leave clauses like a 6-month mutual break as standard. If the landlord removes that or any other "standard" clause, you get an email notifying you of the clause removed and any non-standard bits introduced. Love it!
And the icing on the cake is that all this comes with a complementary home setup service, free of charge!
I know this all reads like an ad but trust me, I've dealt with regular agents in the past. OpenRent it is for me, going forward.

Hey everyone! I’m a longtime player of hay day, but I took a break last year seems they are doing things a little differently, I got an offer today for the hayday birthday cake for 61 diamond, in previous years we would win the cake as a prize for an event. Is this how they did it las year as well? Looking for active players!
Level 185 🌻Sunflower Springs~Liss Tag PRQU9QQ2