I clearly see my pattern in my past relationships: having no tolerance for perceived double standards or feeling accused or mischaracterized. So when I feel those things, I get defensive and try to stick up for myself, instead of just trying to see what my partner needs.
I’m in a good relationship now and I want to overcome this pattern so I can get better at relationships and help take this to the next level. My girlfriend and I have good communication until we’re hurt. I’ve been working on my reactions, taking a breath and separating my rational minds from my hurt ego. But like that’s one thing, she doesn’t think that’s healthy, and to walk away if I think I need to calm down in order to talk better is seen as immature.
We’re trying for the second time to live together and we’re in a small granny apartment on my parent’s property. It’s not ideal but it’s had its benefits. Anyway, she had to move out of her place and we hadn’t found an ideal place of our own yet, so she moved in with me at my parents. For context, I had moved away after college, got married and divorced, then came home to recover after the hard divorce. Now years later, I’m trying to make this new relationship work.
I feel like no matter what I do, she keeps telling me I’m not doing anything and is harboring resentment. She moved in with me and I had spent a lot of time, for example: making more shelves in the bathroom for her, cleaning out the bedroom closet and armoire so she could have everything for clothes, moving all my personal things out of the living room and rearranging to make more space, getting chickens and building a coop and multiple garden beds because she wanted them, I support her in building her business and try to help get navigate a stressful current job she reluctantly has while she wants to keep it. I financially provide and spend a lot of time working on my ego and not reacting from it.
Tonight has me really hurt, though, and my avoidant attachment is really kicking in. We had both worked all day and she was going to be late, so she said to do my own thing for dinner. I was working in the yard, took a shower, and was starting dishes, then planning to cook something for dinner. That’s when she walked in and freaked out because there wasn’t any dinner ready and the kitchen was dirty. She said she assumed that I might have food ready and was really disappointed. I offered to make her food and she said she didn’t want to think and didn’t want me to ask her questions. We calm down and try to talk later and she says that I didn’t do anything to prepare for her to move in. And that when I said my first priority was to make like comfortable for her here (but not complacent and stagnant), and second priority is to keep saving money and looking for a new house. She took this as so confusing and offensive and said we shouldn’t be comfortable here.
I get it she wants to move out but we have high standards and a lot of criteria we’re looking for and we haven’t found out yet on a place we can afford. So we’ve talked that we’re going to live here for the summer (about 4 months of time we talked about) and focus on increasing revenue and saving money so we can jump on a good place when we find it. A couple days, out of nowhere, she said that we only talked about staying 2 months and we have to be out by beginning of July.
I get that she’s anxious and needs reassurance. I repeat our plan back to her and she argues with it. Everyday she had a new idea that she wants to run with and I’ve seen she has a pattern of finding problems and focusing on them. She said awhile back that she feels anxious immediately upon waking in the morning.
How do I work with her and come from love and compassion when I feel legitimately disrespected and hurt? I communicate this and hold my boundary, and her response is, “do you understand why I feel this way?” And when I do understand, I say yes. Tonight, I don’t understand and I said that, then she stopped talking to me… until I started to do dishes again, then she came out yelled at me because I was making too much noise and she had to sleep for her big day tomorrow.
Am I missing something? My rough marriage was to an abusive woman and I didn’t have good boundaries back then and it took too long to recognize the issues.
Is this another abusive situation or am I being too sensitive, or not compromising enough? Even though I feel like I’m pretty much the only one compromising on things.
Thanks for reading. I tried to keep things clear as I could. Any help is appreciated.

At the city council meeting – council chambers, they’re called – I hop up, take the mic when the time comes for public input about the budget. The council likes it more when we speak off the cuff, but I’m horrible about time constraints – I tend to over explain certain points so that when I look up at the clock – it’s a countdown clock, and you get precisely five minutes – I sometimes laugh out loud about the thirty seconds remaining or whatever. Thirty seconds? Isn’t it funny how time rules our lives? – what I want to say to the city council as an aside, then contemplate my conscious experience of time as a kid, a child, when bedtime was like a curse, an adversary, and I would read by flashlight, fall asleep on the facing pages. Summers were how long then? Years? How long ‘til holiday? Decades? Old folks were unimaginable, evidence of time travel.
Good evening, City Council – nice chambers.
If a budget is a moral document, then conversation about the budget is really a discussion about the sort of justice we seek as a community.
This is never truer than with the budget of the police – a vocation that collects evidence of alleged crimes, whether it’s a homicide or a speeding ticket, and which vocation assists the state’s attorney in prosecuting cases by providing a report, physical evidence and sometimes courtroom testimony.
Did you notice how I did not say police are here to protect us? It’s a popular misconception. As a long-time member of community courtwatch, I’ve attended hundreds of criminal court hearings, listened to all the details of crimes and debates about guilt and innocence, and it’s rarely the case that police protect anyone. Mainly they are professionals at collecting evidence.
In the course of their duties, the police also sometimes respond to alleged crimes in progress, in which case they also try to mitigate harm – this is the image of policing we know from movies and tv shows, and while this is helpful in some instances, such as domestic violence cases where no-contact orders are routine, mostly what the police do is compile evidence.
I grew up in a very gun-friendly household – the sort of farm family that has a small arsenal in a bedroom closet and knows how to use it. I was 7-years-old when I first fired a gun, and I was carrying a shotgun through the woods when I was 10. I try neither to be overly respectful nor idly dismissive of those who carry guns for a living.
What I can fairly say about anyone who carries a weapon in service to their vocation is that, as soon as the weapon comes out, any notion of a budget as a moral document vanishes, and the interactions that follow are about following commands, not justice.
Even when guns and tasers and pepper spray are simply present – on display but still holstered – the use-of-force premise significantly robs a situation of its capacity for justice.
Don’t try to talk your way out of a speeding ticket – we’ve all heard this advice. Always say yes sir and no ma’am when dealing with the police – we’ve all said this to young people – to help them stay out of trouble, we say. Staying out of trouble – this is what comes to mind when municipal authority is represented by its use-of-force potential.
When weapons are present during the interaction, concepts of neighborliness and reason will always take a backseat to use-of-force potential. This is why we can never count on policing, as a vocation, to improve community justice or public safety, even if they lived in the communities they patrol, which as we know, most policer officers don’t.
As we discuss the city’s budget, I would like you to imagine funding a community responder model in place of more police – one that has its own department, its own budget, its own pathways to promotion.
A community responder model consists of licensed social workers, trained in trauma-informed nonviolent communication, with an expertise in connecting clients with the resources they need to solve problems and be sustainable – more than just helping people stay out of trouble.
The community responder model uses a different form of authority, which we call reflectivity, which is about sharing information and talking things out. An estimated 73% of the calls for policer service in our city could be handled by community responders. These are calls about noisy neighbors, suspicious persons, mental health crises, overgrown lawns.
As an activist, I know that institution building is not what government bodies like to do – they prefer to do almost anything but build new institutions. In practice, this means funding what’s already there, which are known quantities, even if they are also less effective than alternatives.
So I’m here asking you all to take on the hard task, go the extra step and assume the extra risk – by building a post-policing institution based on the community responder model.
By investing in nonviolent forms of authority, when and where we can, we do more than promote a law-abiding citizenry. We create the basis by which residents are more likely to trust municipal authority, are more willing to engage in nonviolent communication skills themselves, and are readier to think about what it means to make our city a better place to live.
This is the promise of building out a community responder model. More than closing criminal cases or impelling people to do as they’re told, we create the foundation for a new municipal authority premised on nonviolent intervention.
I urge you to ratify a budget that strongly supports a community responder model in place of traditional policing – thank you.
The mayor in response to my address – she has done this on more than one occasion after I’ve spoken – stopped the proceedings to wonder aloud how many members of the public planned to speak. There was a show of hands, then public comment continued. See, they have this rule related to time and the number of speakers, but in reality, it’s like she wants to say: how much more of this will I have to take? When I think it through later, I realize another interpretation is that she’s said to herself – bravo, bravo, this metaphysical weather reporter just said it all, I’ve made up my mind – I need hear no more! I wouldn’t feel comforted by that response either, though the mood of the chambers suggested this was unlikely. A dozen people spoke against extra funding for the police, some from the perspective of having been brutalized by police.
I fantasize about opening a coffee shop themed around tonight’s premise – daily disquisition by the patrons of the coffee shop about no extra funding for police. Day after day, week after week, regulars and total strangers would take the stage in one corner of the room to explain why there should be no extra funding for police. Sure, some people might have particular police officers in mind, certain agencies that bug them more than others, but the orators would be encouraged to speak against use-of-force as a form of authority generally. When we think of heaven, when we have visions of the good life for everyone, the sort of authority you won’t find is use-of-force – by definition, everyone feels welcome to be there, feels heard. True, we may be wise enough not to wish for heaven on earth, but let’s remember – better forms of authority than policing exist.
Afterthought: The mayor questions the figure of 73% in her public thoughts on the matter, and I agree the projections need to be taken apart, made accurate, but I find it just as likely over time that the percentage will be higher than that. A constricted police department – with specialized duties in the community – would be a sign of a new concept of reflective authority. I believe we are at a moment in history where that change can take place at the level of municipal authority, whatever the initial workload looks like.

Well long story short ended up shopping for a soundbar for my master bedroom and said to hell with that and bought a pair of CM9's. They are currently setup in my bedroom but I have plans to move them to my theater room. Have a few questions I'd appreciate opinions on.
I don't plan on moving these until I have everything ready to replace in Current Setup. If some upgrades fit now and wouldn't tarnish the current setup I would make that move earlier.

1. What would be best to upgrade or add first?
   
2. The Marantz 6012 - This was going to be the first thing I replaced but would use to drive the CM9's while I wait to complete. Should I look to keep this and run the new Bower speakers with it or upgrade to something a bit newer? Either way I absolutely hate the VX-30 GUI, remote controls and lack of HDMI ARC. I had my eyes on the Denon x3800H but trying to see if the price will come down. If the Marantz will work or be very comparable I'll opt for a less expensive AMP.
   
3. If I'm unable to complete the same CM series speaker lineup (center, rears) what would be an acceptable replacement? Would also like a suggestion for ceiling mounters.
   

4.. Thoughts on the upgrage from ELAC Debut to CM9? Did I make a good move in your opinion. I'm in absolute love with these and recall hearing them years ago and was amazed. Glad I scored these on the secondary market at what I thought was a very good deal.
I'm sure I left something out. The room I use to play games, listen to music on and watch movies is rather small. The master bedroom is much bigger. I know a room could play a vast difference in how these sound. Anything I can do to better accomodate the transition or better prepare the room the current setup is in?
Master Bedroom to replace current

• Pioneer VX-30
• Bowers & Wilkins CM9

Current Setup

• Marantz SR6012
• ELAC Debut FS 2.0
• ELAC ATMOS upfiring
• ELAC Bookshelf 2.0
• ELAC Debut Center
• Martin Logan Dynamo 700w

I, 35 female, had been in an on again off again relationship with my boyfriend, 45 male, for the last 3 years. I won't bore you with the details of how we met and what went on for the last 3 years of our relationship, I'm just going to get to the point.
Back in late September 2023, my boyfriend moved to Iowa. We had just gotten back together when he sprung that on me and I was rather upset at first but knew that he was only moving because it was for his mental health. Living in the big city can be very costly and stressful, so I understood his reasoning. I did not go with him and figured we would go our separate ways. Fast forward four months later and I get a message from him through Facebook messenger asking me to call him. I call him and learned rather quickly that he had been drinking but he was asking why I suddenly ghosted him by not replying back to his texts or calls. For context, I never blocked his number.
I told him that I did not get any of his texts or calls. He asked me why I never tried reaching out to him and I explained that I thought him moving away and not staying in contact meant the end of our relationship. We had a lengthy conversation that night and he asked me to come visit him. I told him that I will consider it but would need to build up some PTO as I had just started a new job and didn't want to risk anything during my first 90 days. We stayed in touch after that, calling each other daily and talking on the phone for hours just catching up and going over mutual interests and so on until I've built up enough PTO to go visit him.
You may wonder why I was the one to go visit him in Iowa. Firstly, he wanted me to see the town he had decided to settle in. Secondly, we had discussed resuming our relationship and possibly having me move out there as it was out of the question for him to move back to the city where I live. I understood his reasoning for moving but felt that leaving the life I have behind for him felt a bit extreme. But I kept an open mind about Iowa and went to visit (side note, there are no direct flights to where he moved to. I had to fly to Chicago, which is a 2.5 hour drive away and he had to rent a car to pick me up). I spent a four day weekend with him, and I'm not going to lie and say that it was magical and romantic because it's Iowa. Seeing him again, however, brought back all the feelings I had for him and I realized just how much I had missed him.
I honestly didn't see much during my visit as it wasn't a dense town like I would see back home, as everything was very spread out. That should have been my very first clue to the kind of life it was like. It was very quiet and peaceful, which was a change. Unlike the city where it was always busy and sirens going off in the distance was a constant, at night it's dead silent. It was definitely a change in pace and I was more or less charmed, but not impressed. My weekend visit was over before we knew it and I returned home back to the life I was most comfortable with.
My boyfriend and I resumed our daily phone calls, but I noticed our conversations began to shift towards me moving out to Iowa. And in truth I was swayed by the idea of leaving the big city for small town life, however, my biggest hesitation was job security. I work in the medical field and finding a job with my skill-sets wasn't a huge challenge aside from the lack of urgency of callbacks from the jobs I had applied to. My boyfriend reassured me that it was just how things were in Iowa, that unlike the city, the businesses moved through a system that was much slower than what I was used to. I had my doubts but then again I didn't know much about the hiring process in the mid-west. My boyfriend then said it would probably go a lot faster if I was actually in the area (which I was skeptical about but didn't comment). I knew he just wanted me there with him and, at that time, I wanted to be with him because I had truly believed that we had talked through our past issues and were now on the same wavelength of what we wanted as a couple moving forward.
Boy was I in for a rude awakening.
I literally packed up my life into my SUV. I didn't take any furniture with me knowing that what my boyfriend lacked we could always buy. It took me 3 days of driving to reach Iowa and I had never thought I'd be so happy to be in Iowa or all places, but I was. I was blinded by hopes and dreams of a happy life with the man I thought I was in love with. I should mention that I have been saving money for a down payment on a house for the last 5 years and have managed to save $20k. It has been a personal goal, not dream, for myself to be a homeowner, not because I want that white picket fence dream, but because I simply want a home that is truly MY home. I want a safe space that truly feels mine and have it reflect the type of person that I am, instead of apartments where I would have to return the space to the manufactured setting once I leave.
Now, the housing market in Iowa is relatively cheap compared to Washington. And when I saw the cheap listings, cheap as in less than $200k for a 3 bedroom 2 bath, move-in ready house I was ready to commit my new life in Iowa with my boyfriend. At first, my boyfriend was very supportive of my house hunting, he knew that it was personal goal of mine and had always said how he admired my ambition to become a home owner. I got in touch with a realtor agent who collaborated with me on what my boyfriend and I were looking for in a home. I probably saw about a dozen houses within my first 2 weeks since arriving to Iowa and I actually found a house that we both really liked. I was ready to put in an offer when my boyfriend suddenly told me that he didn't want to become a home owner, saying that it was too much of a commitment that he never wants to make.
It gave me pause, and though I was very disappointed in having to put aside a goal I made for myself, I half-heartedly agreed. It was then things started to unravel between us and his mood just quickly declined. I should note that my boyfriend has diagnosed PTSD from childhood trauma and he has a tendency to become anxious and agitated when stressed out. The days that followed I had noticed a shift in him and because he works from home, I just assumed it was because his work was stressing him out.
I tried to be a good girlfriend by staying out of his way while he was working and try to be as quiet as possible while at home. I would try to help out with small things like letting the dogs out to relieve themselves and take them on short walks. I tried to be mindful to not make a mess. Along with my boyfriend's anxiety and mental health struggles he also has OCD, and while back in Seattle I had noticed he liked to keep a clean home, out in Iowa it had become abundantly clear that the smallest mess would upset him.
His bad mood only worsened. One day, while he was folding laundry, I asked him if there was anything he'd like me to do around the house because I wanted to be helpful. He said "If you see a mess, clean it." That came off as truly strange to me.
"Do you want me to vacuum or clean the bathrooms?" I asked.
He looked at me like what I had asked was the dumbest question he had ever heard and snapped at me with: "If you see a mess, clean it. You're not 12 years old, you're not being paid an allowance to do simple chores. You're an adult, you should already know what to do."
What he said embarrassed me and made me feel so small and inferior, but it also truly angered me. Where was all this hostility suddenly coming from? I didn't want to start a fight over chores and simply helped him fold the laundry. We eventually had a talk, which turned into him going on a tangent about how he requires to keep a clean and sterile house, that "everything has its place" in the house. He then went on about not wanting the commitment of home ownership and that he has no intentions of ever returning to Seattle. He told me how all my stuff cluttering the bedroom and office is taking a toll on his mental health and that it's my job to make sure that they're all put away so he doesn't have to see them (mind you, I was still unpacking and with limited storage space the rest of my belongings are still packed away).
Then he suggested something that blindsided me. He suggested that I possibly look for my own place so that we live separately and slowly integrate into each other's lives again. It was then that I took account of all the red flags that had sprung up from before I foolishly packed up my life to be with this man that I suddenly no longer loved. It was as if a switch in me had been flipped and all those feelings of affection just left my system. I told him that what he was proposing wasn't possible because I was struggling to find employment and didn't want to waste my savings on a brand new lease, especially since I was just added onto his lease.
I tried to find a middle ground with him, especially when it came to my personal belongings. I knew that he was talking about my makeup being out on the counter. Mind you, my second day in Iowa, we had gone to Costco where I found a makeup organizer and purchased it. All my makeup fits neatly in it and isn't scattered all over the place, he just doesn't like seeing them. That still wasn't good enough for him but I had to point it out to him by saying "I live here, too. It's only fair that I should feel like this is my home."
After that, the tension between us only got worse. He would have angry outbursts over the smallest inconveniences and prioritize more on his "mental and physical health" than work on our rapidly deteriorating relationship. I'm also at fault for not trying harder to talk things out but after he suggested I find my own place I subconsciously knew our relationship was over, on top of that, I was also emotionally drained and feeling depressed.
Now moving to the present, I had finally secured a job that would be opening a clinic nearby, meaning I wouldn't have to waste gas as much and would finally be able to contribute financially to the household. When I told my boyfriend the news it was received with a rather lackluster response but I still held out hope that once I start working and be out of the house more things might mellow out. Then, over the weekend, everything fell apart.
I had woken up early because the dogs needed to go outside. I knew my boyfriend wasn't getting much sleep lately so I let him sleep in as much as possible. Once the dogs had finished relieving themselves I had the intention of going back to bed to get another hour or so of sleep but the dogs came in to disrupt that plan. My boyfriend didn't like that and got up explosively, cursing and yelling as he stomped downstairs about how he couldn't get any sleep. I go downstairs to tell him that he can go back to bed, that I forgot to feed the dogs after letting them outside and that I would take care of it. He yells at me that he would do it since he's up and then goes on a rant about how his life was disrupted ever since I arrived. Let me remind you that he wanted me there in the first place.
He blamed me for the poor sleep he's been having ever since I arrived (there is also 3 dogs sleeping in the bed with us). He blamed me for his financial woes (he took care of the bills until I found a job). He blamed me for the hit to his credit score (I took a hit as well because we were getting pre-approval for a home loan before he said he didn't want to move forward with it). Blamed me for the decline in his mental and physical health (he vapes throughout the day and his vices are scotch and ice cream). And he blamed me for his inability to focus on drawing his comic series because of his mental health decline (he's a decent artist but I can't take credit for his creative block).
While he listed off all the things I am to be blamed for and how he had made so many compromises for me I reflected back on my surprisingly short time here (3 weeks, nearing 4), I was the one who made all the compromises. I was the one who made the bigger sacrifice. I traveled half-way across the country for a man who will never make my happiness a priority. From the start of our relationship 3 years ago to now, I was the only one who had to make sacrifices just to pacify this giant man-child.
He brought up me finding my own place again and I told him that if I have to move out then I'm returning to Seattle. He didn't fight me on that but the downside is that I have to wait for my parents, who had planned to drive out this way in June from Seattle, to visit friends in Chicago. They've been made aware of the situation and will be driving out in my step-dad's pickup truck to haul back all of my belongings and we would leave together in both my step-dad;s truck and my SUV. I had emailed the hiring manager I had gone through my interview process with, letting her know that I unfortunately will be returning to Seattle due to personal circumstances.
In the meantime I have begun submitting my resume to clinics and hospitals back in Seattle and already have several interviews set up (much faster turn-around than Iowa) and hopefully soon I will have secured a job before my return home.

Okay, so I’ll start by saying- DO NOT view an apartment at night while the unit is only half way renovated, unless you’re in desperate times like me (24) and my bf (27)were back in November. (We have since added our daughter to our family as of late march)
We fell for a scam rental unit that is the has some of the most hazardous, dangerous and disgusting living conditions I have seen/ heard of for a legal rental unit (i say legal lightly). My partner and I have bad credit after using all credit cards and lines of credit possible to get his grandma into a home after I could not longer meet her needs as her psw. Our credit scores are around 589-600 right now. We payed 3 months in advance to get approval for this unit (1450+ utilities) which is less then 300 sq ft in London ont.
This is embarrassing but urgent I find a way out of here for my babies health.
When I came on move in day to collect the keys, it looked like a bunch of crack heads broke in and spent a few nights in the unit. There was no bedroom door (had a hole kicked in it apparently), no fridge and no stove(was a grease fire apparently) huge punched holes in the walls, throwing knife holes, a leaking ceiling (it was raining) no breaker box panel, no toilet handle or seat, a broken window and crazy crack head jibberish written on the walls. I asked the property manager what the heck is going on and if he’s going to fix anything- he said no, and left down the stairs. We have since fixed up the place out of pocket to make it livable because we spent over 4K in the application process to get approved. They refused to fix anything, and we had no money to move. We had made the unit livable and as I got closer to my due date I had complications and my bf needed to stop working to be here for me and our baby- eating into our savings.
Since the weather has changed, the building absolutely smells of horrid mold and mildew, we’ve seen rats the size of small dogs. In the hallway out side of our unit and by the buildings garbage, our outlets spark when it rains bc of water leaks, we hear the rats scratching in all our walls, the AC doesn’t work and the landlord gave us a black mold infested unit. That made us all very sick. I have allergies to mold and have a rash all over my body all of us have respiratory issues from the rat smell and mold( we see the doc on thurs) I could go on and on- but I just need to know-
If I withhold rent to quickly save what we need to move- what kind of long term consequences will I have. I think it’ll be worth it. Two three months tops and we are out of here and safe. We’ve tried everything we can to get the property manager and landlord to address these issues and they won’t. We’ve documented everything, we don’t want to go through the LtB and would rather move asap.
Is this the best plan I can have for this situation??

My mom recently signed a lease to rent a 3-bedroom apartment. We were originally told the price would be about $1700 a month for rent, but when we picked up the lease the document said rent would be about $1300 a month. We figured there was some sort of mistake but didn’t want to question it, as the extra $400 would be nice to have. My mom wanted to be sure, so she even emailed and asked if everything was accurate on the lease before signing, and the landlord said yes. The lease was signed, she paid the security deposit, and we got the keys. However, the landlord emailed my mom again today and said that she accidentally requested the amount for a 2-bedroom apartment. She said that the actual amount listed should be $1700, and asked for my mom to pay the remaining $400 by Thursday. The landlord does seem very nice and we did originally know that the rent was listed as $1700. We didn’t know why the lease had a smaller amount, but also didn’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth. Should we just pay the amount and move on? Or does the lease offer any guarantee that we should only pay $1300 for rent since that is what we signed up for? At the end of the day, $1700 is a great amount nowadays. I know how lucky we are to find a nice place with such a low rent in comparison to other places nearby. We were originally planning for $1700 anyway. However, $400 that could be put towards groceries, my younger siblings, the electric bill, the phone bill, savings, etc. every month would be nice. TLDR: we signed a lease for $1300 when we were expecting the rent to be $1700, but now the landlord is saying they made a mistake on the lease and the amount shown on our lease should be $1700.

2 weeks ago I moved from a 2 bedroom apartment where my roommate also had a dog to a studio apartment where my dog (Baxter) is the only animal and i’m the only person. He is a husky x lab so he has a lot of energy but since the move he just lays around all day and i know that’s my fault because there’s not much for him to do in a small space without a playmate while i’m gone but it was the only option and i can’t stand seeing him so lethargic. He has a snuffle mat and a lick mat, the first week those excited him but how he’ll just lay in bed even if i put his favorite things on his mat. The windows in this apartment are very high so i built a box for him to sit on to look out the window and he’ll sit on the box and stare at the wall. I don’t have a car and dogs of his size aren’t allowed on the bus and there are no dog parks or sniff spots around me. I’ve thought about buying something to keep him occupied but money is tight and i’m not even sure what i can buy that’ll entertain him. Any advice or ideas? i have a plan for him to play with my old roommates dog this weekend but that won’t be able to happen often and he is very large with selective aggression so playdates with new dogs are out of the question.

i'm working on a novel and would like to know if anyone could tell me any improvements i could make to the first chapter and prologue
Prologue
The day had started the same way it had for the past two years. The only difference was that I was going home. The hallway was crowded with people walking to and from their classes. Everyone was crowded next to each other so the halls were making the area feel claustrophobic. All the people talking mixed with the summer heat made me feel like I was locked in a sauna. I walked with Preston to the last class we would ever have together and as usual he was smiling. I never got why he always smiled even in situations where people should be sad he still smiled. He knew what today meant for me and he tried to keep light of the situation. I kept my head down away from what was ahead of me. My mind was too clouded about returning to see my family to notice anything in front of me. I walked into another student. It felt like I had walked into a wall. I knew immediately I had walked into tree. I stumble onto the ground and the commotion around me slows down to make room for us. He turned his bulky body around and apologized profusely without saying a word even though I had walked into him. He helped me off of the ground before hurrying down the hall.
“Alexandria, are you doing okay?” Preston said he had tilted his body downward so I had to look down to look him in his eyes. The way he was standing made him look like an idiot but he didn't seem to care. The way he acted made me laugh, which caused his smile to widen.
“I'm doing fine, just got lost in my head.”
“Thinking about how you’ll leave soon,” he said
“Was it that obvious?” He was the only person I told about me being an exchange student. I came to spend high school in Newkinawa and he was the only person I ever hung out with.
“I see what you mean,” he said “Newkinawa is a beautiful place with beautiful people to live in it…myself included”
“You wish,” I say with a smile we continue walking through the hallway “I'm just not excited to go back yet”
After I say that his smile grows wider “So you will miss me after all”
“I wouldn't say that much” I responded whilst smiling.
We had made it to our last class only to see it closed with a sign labeled “Uma incident” Uma was a student known for messing with the chemistry lab and destroying school property in the process. I've never actually met her but Preston says “She's a little weird but still nice”
“Guess class is canceled for today,” Preston remarked with a smile “Wanna go out to the court till the bell rings.”
“Sure let's go” I respond
The place we ate every day was outside. It used to be a tennis court before I moved in. Now they put trees and flowers all over the place. Preston really liked the blue color of the flowers but it just never clicked for me. I look over at Preston and he's staring up at the sky. There are a number of clouds in almost enough to block the sun but it still pokes its rays through and lands on Preston's face. The clouds swim in front of the sun till they block out the sun's light. Preston faces towards me.
“I'm gonna miss you Alexandria” he says
“You know you can just call me Alex,” I replied. I start to smile again. “I'll miss you too!" He smiles toward me again as we get up to leave as the clouds start to clump together and rain slowly falls. As we're walking back to the school there's a loud tearing sound followed by screams as the ground shakes.
The ground tears itself apart as the dirt and stone erupt from the ground. The sky blackens and a pale blue light escapes the earth. Then creatures erupt from the ground in a violent ejection from the earth creating a white pillar diffusing as they reach higher in the air. Some are clawing their way out of the cracks like maggots out of a corpse. People are swept into the updraft screaming for their lives.
The creatures descend like a tidal wave and tear apart any people caught in their path. They storm out of the crack in hundreds as more cracks in the earth form. Me and Preston started running away as people were screaming behind us. A girl running next to us has her legs slashed by a creature. The monster begins to tear open her chest as she chokes on her own blood. The monster shovels her lungs and innards into its decrepit mouth. Me and Preston keep running until we're met at the entrance of the school and we catch the attention of a monster as it begins to savagely rush toward us. The monster resembles ghosts my father told me about. But this one looks monstrously horrific. It floats in the air and opens its mouth so wide it nearly replaces its entire torso; its jaws hold savage teeth each the same old gray color of its body. Its eyes glow a rotten yellow color through the dark. It stretches out its arms showing its giant hands and claws like fingers. It swipes at us leaving a giant claw mark on the door behind us but Preston ducks my body down to avoid the attack. We run around it as the monster swaps its focus to another bystander. Screaming past us. Me and Preston run into the parking lot as people scream around us. We hide next to a car.
“What the hell is happening!?” I yell to Preston. More of the creatures fly over us and swoop down to people like vultures on roadkill devouring the fleeing people.
Preston starts to breathe heavily ”we need to get out of here and someplace safer”. As we were talking one of the monster phases through the car we were hiding next to forcing us to run into the street.
“Lets go to your house till things cool down” i say to Preston through panted breaths
“Wait couldn't we head to your house instead” Preston says.
“Why would that matter your house is closer anyways” i respond
“But-” Preston is interrupted by two creatures swooping above us to grab another person. The two monsters begin to pull the person apart while he writhes in pain before having his flesh be torn in half and having his organs be devoured.
“Come on lets go!!” I say as I grab his hand and run even faster.
By the time we reach Preston's house any living person is gone. On the street are just corpses laying torn and mutilated on the roads and sidewalk. The air in the neighborhood feels cold despite the season being summer. When I walk down the street I can still hear the occasional horrific wail the monsters give off. We move closer to Preston's house and I can see him sweating. He looked more worried than before when the creatures were chasing us and he kept darting his eyes away from his home.
“Preston, are you feeling okay?” he doesn't respond to my question and keeps darting his eyes. He walks slowly behind me and as I reach for the door handle and when I touch it it feels nearly freezing. I wrap my hoodie around my hand and slowly open the door. The house is quiet so me and Preston creep further into his house. The inside is cold and damp as if we were locked in a freezer. The further we move into the house the louder a subtle chewing sound is heard.
“It sounds like rats are eating a dead cow over there” I whisper. Preston continues to stay silent behind me. We slowly walk closer towards the kitchen and the sound gets louder and louder and louder until we reach the room.
We're met with a rancid smell of vomit and blood. My blood starts to run cold and every instinct in my body is telling me to run. I can feel Preston breathing get heavier as we get closer. We turn the corner and see Preston's mom lying on the ground dead with one of the creatures hunched over slurping her intestines. The sight causes me to vomit alerting the monster to our presence. The creature turns around and its mouth turns into a mortifying grin as it flies into Preston's moms body. The corpse begins to rise and spur splashing blood over the kitchen. When the corpse stops spasming it picks itself up from the ground and with glazed over eyes it holds its intestines in its hand and gives us the same grin it did when it was outside her body. The possessed corpse lunges at me and starts to chase me around the kitchen. The body is running into the walls and cabinets spraying its blood and other loose organs around the area as I'm avoiding its assault. The corpse leans over and ejects one of its loose intestines towards me, wrapping me in it. It pulls me towards it so fast I'm flung towards the ground. The corpse limbers over to me and raises its free hand aiming for my head. The creature's deranged smile causes the corpse’s cheeks to tear apart. It places both of its bloodied and demented hands on my face and starts to press my skull into the ground. I struggle to breathe. The room starts to get dark and blood escapes my head.
Until Preston jumps on top of his mothers corpse with a kitchen knife and repeatedly stabs it in the head. The possessed body tries to shake him off but he keeps stabbing, blood gets in on his face and tears start to escape his eyes. The creature violently ejects from the corpse's mouth causing her head to nearly explode and Preston stops stabbing the body. The body falls over in a splash of blood and organs. The monster leaves phasing through the roof leaving Preston crying over his mother's body. As the blood mixes with the tears he collapses to his knees crying. I walk over and hug him as the air around us turns bitter and the chill of death leaves the room and us with it.
Chapter 1 Eclipse
It's been 2 months since the apocalypse started. We've kept ourselves alive by looting grocery stores and houses, we hide from the creatures as we have no way to fight back against them. Preston came up with the idea to call them glanter’s. He’s looking better since we left his family home but I can tell something is wrong with him that he's not telling me. Everytime I ask him about it he tells me it's no big deal. I asked him earlier today and he just told me
“don't worry about it, I'm over it” without even looking at me. Now we're walking through the street and I'm walking behind Preston, I can barely see his head past the giant bag we're both carrying on our backs we use to carry supplies. I look up at the sky and it's still pitch black except for the moon giving us any amount of light. Preston turns around to face me.
“Let's check out that house, it might have some cool stuff in it” he points to a white house to our right. The house is a two story building with steps leading to the front door. There's a generator poking out from the backyard. The driveway is empty save for a couple of dried blood stains and tire marks. It's similar to the other houses in the neighborhood except for a couple broken windows.
“Sure why not” We head over to the house and I see something shining on the side of the house in the corner of my eye. I turn my head to look at it closer but it quickly disappears before I can see it clearly.
“Probably squirrel or something” I mumble to myself. Preston walks up the stairs to the house and I walk up the steps behind him as a breeze blows past my face. Preston tries to turn the door knob but the door is locked. I start to pull out a lockpick I grabbed at the store earlier. I motion towards Preston to move out of the way as I kneel down to pick the lock. It takes me a couple of minutes to unlock the door so I walk inside the house and Preston follows behind me while closing and locking the door. The doorway of the house leads to a dark room so I take a flashlight out of my bag to illuminate the area. Were put into the living room and bookshelves are on the walls and a large TV sat in front of a large black couch with smaller chairs surrounding it. Dust is covering every surface of the room and spiderwebs litter the corners of the walls. The area smells like moth balls and there's a lack of blood anywhere nearby.
“Guess the owners got out before the Glanter’s got in, '' I say to Preston. When he doesn't respond I turn around and he's already looking further into the house. When I find him he's managed to find a flight of stairs that lead to a lower portion of the house.
“I'll check on him later,” I think to myself as I headed towards the kitchen to see if we could restock on food. I walk past a bedroom and remark on how childish it looked. The walls were painted with blue and green stripes and a bunk bed sat on the right wall. There's a chest at the foot of the bed so I walk over and lift the top off of it. The box is layered with children's toys, a multitude of dolls, bears, and figures all jut out of the box. I notice a small robot toy and inspect it in my hands.
The cold metal makes my hand shiver and the sharp body shape makes the robot bigger than my hand. There's red lining around the robot's buttons surrounded by the cold gray of the robot's “skin”. It reminds me of a toy my little brother had. My heart feels heavy as I worry about what happened to my family. If they're alive, dead, or worse…possessed. The thoughts send a chill down my spine but I push them aside for now. I put the toy in my bag and exit the bedroom.
I can see the kitchen is down the hallway so I walk down the hall and enter. The kitchen is pretty clean except for a couple of dishes in the sink and the dust. There's a table seated for 3 people in the center of the room. I start opening the cabinets in search for any food or water. There's boxes of cereal leftover on top of shelves and a mix of chip bags and cookies in neat boxes stationed in the cabinets.
“Score,” I say to myself as I begin to put the snacks into my bag. When the cabinets are empty I look inside the fridge. The inside of the fridge ran out of power so most of the food inside is rotted. There are a couple of bottles of water in the front so I shove those in my bag. There's also a bag of oranges that still seem to be healthy in the back. I grab them and toss them on the table. There's rotten sandwich meat hidden in the drawer of the fridge.it smells like a dumpster outside of a butcher shop. I wrinkle my nose at the smell. I look around the kitchen for any bread with no luck.
I continue to look through the fridge until I hear Preston scream from another room. Immediately I bolt out of the kitchen leaving my bag behind and run towards the lower part of the house. I run down the stairs and nearly trip on the steps. The stairs lead to a big room. There are posters to tv shows and movies I don't recognize. The walls are painted black and there's a bear skin rug on the floor. I notice Preston standing next to a really big TV hyperventilating. I walk over to him and ask him.
“Are you ok? What happened?”
He talks through deep breaths “I… saw a… spider.”
“What?!” I respond in confusion.
“It was really big and I had jumped at my face”
“Sure it was.” I say while laughing “Let's go upstairs there's some food in the fridge we can eat”
“Wait, I think you should check this out.” He says while pointing towards one of the walls. I grab Preston's flashlight off the floor and face it towards the wall. Hanging halfway off the wall is a large map labeled Newkiwana scavenger hunt of 76.
“I think we should take it,” Preston says “You can read a map right?”
“A little but I'm not the best at it,” I say to him “can you read a map?”
“it shouldn’t be too hard it’s mainly pictures any way I'm sure I can figure it out”
I walk over to the wall where the map is hung there are trophies covering tables and shelved in their own personal cases one of them reads “1st place 100-meter swimming competition for 1986 Zack Hemmingway” and another one reads “2nd place 100-meter swimming competition for 1989 Zack Hemmingway”
“Guess this guy really liked swimming,” Preston remarks while staring at a wall of newspaper clippings. All of them are about the same person in swimming competitions. All labeled different things like “a new record for Zack “the dolphin” Hemmingway”,
‘Zach Hemmingway our star plans for the future” all the newspapers are about this kind he has paler skin and a bulky enough build to swim pretty well. Most of the pictures have him coming out of the water in a pool, his long black hair soaked and sitting at his shoulders. Another one has him sitting at a desk over a pile of books and his hair in a knot , “vicious wipeout ends the Dolphins career”, and “ex-swim champ Zack Hemmingway found in a drunken stupor outside strip club.
“Everyone has their own hobbies I guess,” I say as I take the map off of the wall and fold it up. “Sucks what happened to Zack though” I walked over to Preston’s bag and put the rolled map in one of the pockets. I walk back up the stairs and Preston grabs his bag and follows behind me.
We make our way towards the kitchen and Preston starts looking through the fridge for anything to eat. I grab an orange from the table and throw it at his head. The fruit bounces off his head and rolls on the floor. He turns around and grabs the fruit from the floor
“Why did you throw an orange at me?”
“It's the only food we have unless you plan on eating spoiled a sandwich“ He starts to peel it while walking towards the table. We both take a seat and start to eat the oranges from the bag. He plants his feet on top of the table and bites into the fully peeled orange. I grab a water bottle from a bag and start to drink from it as Preston says.
“I saw a dvd player in that man cave downstairs we could watch a movie if it still has power”
“Sure it could be fun.” Me and Preston spend the rest of our time eating until the bag of oranges is emptied and we head back downstairs. Preston grabs the DVD player from under the table and blows the dust off the top of it; he plugs it into the wall as I plop myself onto the couch. He plugs the DVD player into the TV and sits on the recliner next to me. He presses a few buttons on the remote and the TV lights up. I squint my eyes at how bright it is. It's the most amount of light I've seen that didn't come from a flashlight. I notice there's a box filled with DVDs. I pull the box over towards me. I ruffle through the box and see movies like Silence of the Lambs, Terminator 2, and Home alone.
“Dude some of these came out just before the world turned inside out” I say to him.
“Really? Let's play one.” He responds. I toss him Terminator 2 and he puts it into the DVD player.
We spend the next couple hours watching movies and laughing together. It's some of our only moments of peace we’ve had since the end of the world and to me it's the most fun I've had yet. We're putting in the next DVD when there's a loud crash outside and the TV shuts off. Preston goes behind it to see if it's still plugged in.
“I think the generator outside is busted” i say
“It seems that way” Preston replies while backing away from the tv” i'm gonna go check it out”
“Don't worry I got it” I say as I hop out of my chair. Preston waves goodbye as I head up the stairs. I make my way back through the hallway leading to the living room and front door. I reach the door and start to turn the knob. I open the door wide as a car speeds down the street. I step out of the door to see what had happened when I hear the screech of a glanter. It cuts through the sky like an unholy opera singer. A group of them fly by and chase the car as I rush back inside the house. I slam the door shut and look through the window as I see a couple of smaller glanters grab and shake the car violently looking for the driver. They tear at it, ripping off doors and breaking the windows. The driver screams as the seats cover with blood and he's ripped out of the car as multiple smaller glanters tear and bite off parts of his body like piranha's until his body is completely devoured. I run back to the man cave to warn Preston about what had happened. I spot him laying in his chair spinning a DVD disc on his finger.
“It's not safe outside right now”
“Why not?
“There's glanter's outside, they just ate a dude in his car”
“Did they see you come inside?”
“I don't think so , they flew off before I went inside.”
“well we're not dead so I'm gonna say they didn't see you. But let's stay here for a couple more hours just to be safe”
“Sounds good i'm gonna go find the master bedroom.” I start to walk back up the stairs to the house
“ Hold on why do you get the master bedroom” Preston says while walking after me.
“Because I'm gonna find it first” I say as I start to run to find the bedroom. He chases after me in pursuit of the bedroom. Me and Preston run around the house looking for the master bedroom. We look through room after room finding closets, the garage, a bathroom and a door leading to a balcony in the back of the house. I manage to run into the bedroom and yell out to Preston.``Found it!!”
He comes walking into the room breathing heavily from the running. We both check out the room. The walls are painted a cream yellow and the bed takes up most of the room's center. The bed has burgundy sheets poking out from its bottom and a quilt with multi-colored floral designs lay sprawled out on top of it. There's a wardrobe built into the wall and a black leather couch sits comfortably on the left wall.
“Dibs on the bed” I say as I jump on top of it. I stretch out on top of the quilt and search for a comfortable part to sleep in.
“Where am I supposed to sleep then?” Preston complains
“You can sleep on the couch it looks soft enough” I respond while pointing towards the couch “I saw some spare blankets in one of the closets”
“Alright i’ll be right back” he mumbles to himself “why do i always get the couch”
“ I'll be right here if you need me,” i call after him. I sit up on the bed and start to look around the room more. I notice the entrance to the wardrobe is cracked open slightly. I hop out of the bed and grab a flashlight from my bag as I walk into the wardrobe. I turn on my flashlight and stare in awe at how many clothes are in there. The room is only half as big as the bedroom but it's still bigger than any closet I've ever had. The wardrobe is full of shirts, dresses, pants, and shoes for men and women. I immediately start to look through the shoes to see if any fit my size. I throw a pair of black high heels behind me as Preston finds me in the wardrobe. He looks around before asking me.
“What are you doing?”
“Finding a new pair of clothes to wear cause I've been wearing the same pair of jeans for waaaaay too long”
“Fair enough. Is there any guy stuff in there?”
“Yeah right there” I hook my thumb behind me to point to the other end of the closet.
“I'm sure they won't mind if we take a couple of things…they're probably dead by now anyways,” Preston says with a slight grin on his face. The way he said made me spin my head to look at him but he was already on the opposite end of the wardrobe looking at suits.
I shake away the thought and continue looking for any pair of sneakers in my size. 40 minutes pass before I walk out of the wardrobe holding a new pair of jeans and a black guns-N-roses t-shirt. I toss the clothes on top of the bed and check to see if the shower in the bathroom still works. I turn the dial and wait for a moment. The shower head chokes a little before water comes pouring out. I reach my hand under the showerhead to feel the water. The water is cold, it causes my hand to shiver when I take it out. I shake the water off and say to myself.
“Good enough” as I start to take off my old clothes and get in the shower. The cold water bounces off my skin, it sends shivers down my spine but I still get the old dirt from the last few months off of me. I step out and see a couple of dry towels hanging off of the door. I grab one and dry my body off and grab another to wrap around my head and dry my hair. I step out of the bathroom and Preston is still inside the wardrobe. I put on my new clothes while his back is turned and walk over towards him when I'm finished.
“Still haven't found anything,” I ask him
He turns around “Nothing yet, the only thing interesting was this coat.” He holds a leather coat up to me. The coat is made of black leather and has a skull covered with blue flames on the back. There's a black shirt inside the coat with a skeleton hand making a thumbs-up embroidered on the front.
“ That's pretty cool, it's better than what you're wearing right now at least” he's outfitted in a blue hoodie with holes on the chest and tears at the sleeves. He also has a shirt with a faded picture of a blue flower printed on it.
“I guess you're right” he gets up from the floor and exits the wardrobe. He lays the clothes on the couch along next to the blanket and pillow he brought into the room.
“The shower works so you can get yourself clean In there,” I say to him
“You know, a shower sounds really good right now.” He gets up from the floor and grabs a pair of pajama pants that were laying next to him. He leaves the wardrobe and enters the bathroom, closing the door behind him. After a moment the water turns on and I hop on the bed to get ready to sleep. I squirm myself into the quilt and rest my head against one of the pillows. I shut my eyes and fall asleep listening to the passive sound of the shower like rain on a car.
I'm in a void. It feels like I'm standing in a puddle of water that reaches to my knees. I wade my way forward looking around for anything in the darkness. In the distance I can see 3 figures l. I moved closer to them and their silhouettes get clearer. I realize they are my dad and brothers. I start to run towards them kicking up water behind me until something grabs my leg. It pulls down violently forcing me under the water without a breath of air. I kick at the thing grabbing me until something grabs my other leg. I look down and see two glanter's each with a monstrous smile on their faces. They stare back at me and one of them tugs my leg harder than before and tears it off of my body. The water around me turns red as the glanter laugh's. The other smiles wider as it starts to fling me around the water forcing any air left in my lungs to be forced out as I scream in pain. The glanter throws me away and I can see my family slowly fade into the distance as I'm flown away.
I struggle to swim back to where I was, one of my legs is missing and the other is broken. The glanter's find me again and I try to get to the surface to escape them. I'm flapping my arms in any attempt to escape as one of the glanter's flies in front of me and grabs my arm. I look at the monster with tears in my eyes as it bites my arm and tears my body away from it. It flings my body away and with my remaining arm I clutch the wound as the water floods into my body leaving me in the void I started in. I look around and the glanter's seem to have left. I turn behind me and see my family again, this time I'm closer than before.
I grit my teeth and drag my body towards them slowly as I leave a trail of blood and tears behind me. I finally reach my family and grab one of my father's shoes. I stare up and he looks at me. His stare causes me to feel cold as a grotesque smile grows on his face. I stare in shock as my brothers each have the same look as my father.
I shoot up from my sleep panting heavily in a cold sweat.
“It was just a dream..just a dream…just a dream” I look at my hands as tears fall into them. I look around the room and see Preston sleeping peacefully on the couch. The room feels frozen in place as a chill runs down my spine. I get out of the bed and walk out of the bedroom. I make my way through the dark hallway and find the entrance to the balcony I saw earlier. I creak open the screen door and head outside. The Balcony is pretty large, about the size of the kitchen in the house. There are some chairs knocked over next to a table and I pick one up to sit on it. I look out into the expanse of the neighborhood, houses lined up next to each other, dozens broken apart by roads, and dead bodies scattered across the roads.
I look up in the sky and sit back in the chair. The sky looks empty except for the moon giving this world its only source of light. Without the moon, we’d be left in darkness. It hangs in the sky alone, no stars, no clouds, nothing but itself, and the void of the sky. I think back about the dream I had. My dad and my brother's all dead and possessed and then they kill me. I start to tear up thinking about it. I try to wipe away the tears but it’s no use. I'm too scared for my family. I don't know where they are if they're alive if they're worried about me I don't know anything! I start to quietly cry into my hands. I don't know how long I'm sitting there until I feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn my head to face it and I see Preston. He was smiling and looking at me. I turn away to wipe my tears and he walks next to me.
“I heard you sneaking out of the bedroom so I followed you to see where you were going.” he says “but that's not my question.” he pauses and looks at me “my question is what’s got you feeling so down?” he leans over the railing of the balcony
“It's nothing, I just came out here to clear my head.” I say as more tears escape from my eyes in big slow drops that ride down the sides of my face.
“if you don't feel like telling me you don't have to but i'll be here if you ever change your mind”. He looks up at the moon before turning to face me and his smile widens “I'll always be here with you…trust me I'm not going anywhere”
I stare up at him and wipe away my tears as a smile grows on my face to match his. I get up and stare over the balcony with him. “So where are we heading next?” I say to him, Preston pulls the map we got from the man cave downstairs out from his pocket.
“After I got out of the shower I decided to take a look at the map for anything interesting we could see.”
“Ok did you find anything?” i ask
“I did,” he points at a spot on the right of the map. “We should head to the museum”
“I didn't want to go to a museum before the apocalypse why would i want to go now?'' I ask him.
“Well the best part of museums is the cool stuff right”
“Yeah what about it”
“The only problem is that you could only look at the fossils and armor but you could never take them.”
“So you want to rob a museum?” Prestons eyes light up at the question
“Exactly they might have a really cool sword I could use, or I could sharpen a dinosaur tooth and use that as a weapon, there might be a cursed shield that can summon the dead to fight for you. This opportunity is too good to pass up. We need to go!”
“That does seem pretty cool but wouldn't carrying that stuff weigh us down. What if a glanter is chasing us and we can't run fast enough because of the stuff we took from the museum.”
“We’ll only take things that are light. Even then I could just block the glanter with my newly acquired 2000 year old shield.”
“Fair enough we can go in a couple hours” I yawn and stretch out my arms. “Cause I'm feeling way too tired to walk all the way over there right now.”
“Alright i'm heading back to my couch and THEN we’ll head out to the museum” he leaves the balcony and heads back to the master bedroom leaving me alone on the balcony.
“Thanks Preston I'm not leaving either” I say into the sky. I turn around and walk back inside the house, closing the balcony door behind me. I walk back into the bedroom and Preston is hunched over and holding a flashlight looking at the map. He’s drawing lines through roads and marking X’s in different areas.
“What are the X’s for?” i ask him
“They’re places that glanter’s usually stay around. I'm marking them off so we remember not to go through them, or at least be more cautious.”
“Cool. Did you find where we are right now?” He points to an area where the lines all converge out of.
“Right around here is where the neighborhood ends. So if we follow this path we can make it to the museum in one piece” I pat him on the back and take the map from his hands.
“Get some sleep Preston, we have a full day tomorrow” he grins to himself before laying down on the couch. I put the map back into my bag and hop on the bed to get to sleep. I cover my body in the quilt and roll over facing away from Preston as he falls asleep. I nestle myself into the bed and slowly fall asleep to get ready for the next day.
I'm awoken by Preston shaking the bed I'm sleeping on. My eyes open and the room is foggy, I wipe away the sleep from my eyes and focus my attention towards Preston. He's practically jumping out of his skin with excitement, he's already fully dressed for the trip and shaking the bed with a wide smile on his face.
“Ok ok i'm up the air feels heavy as a groggy feeling fills my body. I wipe my eyes and the room starts to clear up. I turn to face Preston. He's still shaking my bed to wake me up, he’s already fully dressed and nearly jumping out of his skin in excitement.
“Ok ok, i'm up you can stop shaking the bed” i say
“Then get up we’ve got a long walk ahead of us” he says as he stops shaking the mattress. He grabs the map from my bag and points to one of the red lines.
“We're gonna follow this way to the museum. We’ll move past the hotel around the ice skating rink and around the park. We’ll mainly stick to walking through the streets, we might have to go rooftop hopping to avoid any glanter’s if we see them but i'm sure we won’t reach that point.” he explains
“Wait, wait, wait, why are avoiding the skating rink and the park” i ask
“ everytime we go near the park there's weird noises and light coming out of it”
“And why can't we go to the ice skating rink?”
“I didn't think it would be important”
“It couldn't hurt to check it out at least”
“Fine we could make a detour”
“Ok and how do you plan on getting on top of roofs?”
“I'm sure we'll figure it out when we get to it”
“Ok man as long as you’re sure '' I yawn and step out of the bed. Preston starts to put the map in his bag. I walk into the bathroom with my clothes and change out of my pajamas. Minutes later I walk out and see Preston sitting on the couch twiddling his thumbs.
“Finally you're out” he smiles at me before handing me my bag and slinging it over his shoulder. We took a last look inside the kitchen to see if we missed anything. Afterwards we leave for the outside. The cold air bites at my face but Preston walks down the stairs, his face buried in the map. I jog to catch up to him as we both head into the street.
“Hey Preston, could I see the map?”
“Sure” he hands over the map and continues walking. I look at the map and the numerous lines drawn on roads. I look at the corner of the map and notice a small map key with numerous symbols for different areas like a library, school, hospital, and more. There's even a way to tell how far away each location is. The text reads “1 inch=5 miles” I quickly count how far we are from the museum.
“Dude this museum is like 100 miles away.”
“Yep it'll be a long walk, it'll take us a while to get there”
“Did you plan on us walking there the whole time?”
“We might find bikes or something.” he pauses “well i did think we would walk the whole way”
“This is gonna take us weeks to get there!”
“Did you have anything else planned?”
“Well…i guess not but we should still try to find some bikes or something”
“Ok if we see any way to travel faster we’ll take it”
“Alright cool” I hand him the map back and he folds it back up and puts it in his bag. We walk further until we leave the gated neighborhood we started in. Preston takes the map back out and looks at it before he turns right and continues walking. I follow him staring forward at the expanse of the road. The outside of the neighborhood is surrounded by roads all leading to different parts of Newkinawa. We walk past a sign that reads “Coretown 20 miles ahead” I nudge Preston towards the sign and he checks the map again.
“Yep, the museum’s in Coretown. Would you believe the residents were pretty proud of it. Should be a fun place to explore” he says
“Yeah but it’ll take us a million years to get there.” i complain
“Lighten up, I'm sure it will be worth it”. We continue walking down the road slowly making our way to Coretown.

12:25
https://youtu.be/2wBTImHKbqE?si=x9Wk-maeq8xhFyUW
Nika offers/plans to stay with grandparents for 3 weeks. She knows this means leaving the shelter would get her kicked off the housing list
6:36 https://youtu.be/HpWzQmXIi5w?si=x0YaMuIbXlpyJVlg
Nika left her grandparents place early. Returns to madison with two emails waiting for her offering 2 different places dorm room and one bedroom apartments she also mentions an appeal which idk what that was about either
Im confused I thought leaving the shelter meant she would be kicked off of the waitlist
Also what is the appeal she is talking about
Full disclosure i didnt watch any of the farm videos so its possible she explains these things in those videos so if anyone remembers and could fill me in that would be great
Thank you

So, my older sisters birthday is a day before mine. I always plan my birthday a few months ahead of time, and communicate with my sister, dates and location, so we'd have a general idea of expense. For atleast, about 6 years on and of we'd take vacation together, unless my family and i fly out. It's me, my husband, and our 6yr old daughter. And her end is, her, her husband, and 3 kids (18yr girl, 16yr boy, 5yr girl) I'm always the one planning, and always the one paying upfront for all expenses for the air bnb. They would give me a payment plan to pay back because they can't afford to pay upfront for their half. A few times they can't pay the "half" so they would end up shorting me a few hundred that I end up paying the extra for. I also end up buying all the alcohol. And we'd split food. Ideally because I'm paying more and my family is smaller, we'd take the master bed room which is a single bed, and my daughter sleep with us. The room she take would have a double queen bed to fit her family. This year, I told her I'm going on vacation for my bday, and asked if she would like to join my family, again. She said yes. For about 2 months I've been searching air bnb vacation spots and activities to do while over there. I've been stressed between work, home life and planning my birthday vacation. A few homes I chose that are more affordable can't accommodate our group since it's to many of us, so we had to pick a bigger house, with the extra room for her kids. After I sent the link for the house and expense, her first response was, I want the master bedroom. I stood quiet. My husband then responsed and said, he think it would be fair for me to chose what room I want since I was the only one who planned and took the time and effort to make it happen. She then responsed and said that, it isn't fair I always get to have the better room, every year. She proceeded to talk crap about the situation and said I was petty and selfish for not giving her the bigger room when it's both our birthday vacation. I don't think thats fair to say when every year I'm always paying more money so her and her entire family can enjoy themselves. This year is the first time we're suppose to split even for the house, but I was the only one who cared enough to plan the entire trip and do the research alone between working and home duties. She's a stay at home mom. She knew we were taking this trip months in advance and she never bothered to look into anything to help me.
So, am I the AH for being petty and agreeing with my husband that i should have the master bedroom since I'm the one planning for MY birthday vacation, and did all the research?

We’re at a frustrating point in the bid process for our home remodel project… Looking for some insight. We live in Portland, Or and have plans drawn up for a 8x9 bathroom to be added to an upstairs finished space and an 8x6 closet to be added to an attic space off of our primary bedroom. Total is about 125 sq ft. Basic closet; framing, drywall, floor, lighting, paint and 2 windows. Small/Medium tier tiled bathroom, single sink/vanity, a toilet, small storage, maybe heated floors and 2 skylights or solar tubes. We’ve run a pretty detailed cost of materials list for both rooms and even adding extra materials for everything and a 30% mark up costs come to roughly $25k. We have received several (over 5) bids from gcs and design builds, ranging from 100k (without fixtures and permits) to 250k. This can’t be normal? Most are averaging around $800-900 per sq foot. We were thinking tops would be close to $650 per sq ft. Including labor and profit… that seems pretty generous to us. Are we missing something here or have prices really gotten that bonkers?

My lease is up in September, and I just received my renewal offer. Surprisingly, it only went up by about $30. Even with this small increase, the rent for my two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment is a steal compared to what others are paying for a one-bedroom, one-bath in this area. Despite the great rate, I am planning to move and would like to help an elderly family member benefit from this low rent. I intend to put them on the lease, but I’m curious about the process if I want to be removed from the lease next year. My plan is to add her to the lease before signing the new agreement, so she can continue on the lease seamlessly. Is this still considered subleasing or is this a lease takeover or what is this? I feel like it’s something I shouldn’t even be doing. Lol Right now, the the same exact inits as mine are $600 to $900 more than what I’m currently paying.

i am a 22 F, and i am planning on moving out in a month. i thought i was fully prepared to move out, but after talking with my parents, i don’t know. my parents have never told me to leave or pressured me to leave, i’m moving out because i feel like that’s what i “should” be doing. i am turning 23 in less than a month, i feel like i’m too old to still be residing in my childhood bedroom.
my parents think i’m too young to move out and that i’m rushing things. i have a good paying job, for a 22 year old, and i am very responsible for my age. everything points to me being ready to move out, but now i’m second guessing everything. is 22 too young to move out, or should i just jump in the deep end and hope for the best?

Spoilers for Benedict’s book.
I’ll write what I think will happen, with a long explanation about WHY and, what I think they’ll change, so read what you like and tell me what you think.
Well to start, I think they’ll change Sophie’s backstory to make it hit harder; she’ll be the bastard child of a working class man and a female relative of the Cowper’s who died giving birth to Sophie. So she’ll be the Cowper’s ward who they work as a maid (since that’s her birth-station anyway) and hide from the ton.
This way, Sophie inherits nothing and they can’t just say “she’s an earl’s illegitimate daughter it’s ok.” It’s actually MORE unacceptable and Benedict would actually have to compromise to marry her. And, of course she could still have that great personal conflict with being a mistress, because she doesn’t want to put another child through the same fate.
God that would be so good, I love forbidden love which is why I’m so excited for this story
How I think it’ll go:
S3:

• Benedict, finding out that Collin is engaged, and with Anthony coming back and being Viscount again, starts to feel lost (not that he wasn’t before) and, on a whim, proposes to Lady Tilly who turns him down.
  
• There’ll be no masquerade, Benophie will meet during the unmasking LW ball (which Benedict won’t see since he’ll be off with Sophie) SO we get a shot of her from the back holding up something while helping Cressida prepare for the ball in her own room OR Cressida won’t go to the ball due to conflict with her parents (?).
  

Why: Lady Cowper’s first-name is Araminta (tweeted by a hairdresser) and the show people said we’d see a Cowper bedroom in S3.

• Sophie steals a dress with gloves that have the Cowper’s family seal and goes to the ball

Im not sure but maybe she thinks she can avoid running into Cressida at the ball? This is why I think maybe the Cowper’s won’t attend.

• Benedict, broken from Lady Tilly at this point, shares a close moment with Sophie and he slips off her glove (probably gets into the moment, but feels a deeper understanding with Sophie). BUT he doesn’t really see her face that well because they’re outside alone in the dark while everyone’s dancing since Sophie can’t dance and Benedict doesn’t feel like it.

Why: He’d probably find comfort in the fact that he doesn’t recognize her and she doesn’t recognize him. Of course, her pure joy would also enchant him :)

• The clock strikes midnight and Sophie has to leave before she tells Benedict her name, which she was never going to do obv. OR, Sophie spots the Cowpers and decidedly runs away.

Why: A teaser for part 2 (that I happened to find I swear I’m not obsessed lol) emphasizes the clock striking midnight, and Eloise threatens to expose Pen to Collin if she doesn’t admit it by midnight so I think Pen will faint as Sophie runs away. Here’s the link but it’s spoiler-y: https://youtu.be/HO6SwAnQlMc?feature=shared

• Benedict asks Violet if she recognizes the crest on the glove he still has and she says it’s the Cowper’s. (I can’t wait for his conflict with Violet on this, since we know she still values the standards of society).
  
• Ok, idk about this but maybe Benedict calls on the Cowpers and asks if they know about the girl in silver at the ball. Obv they say no.
  
• Lady Cowper obv realizes, because they thought he came to call on Cressida before he started talking and Lady Cowper’s like ”No, he came for her!!!” and kicks Sophie out as opposed to trying to arrest her and admitting they worked a ward as a servant or had a bastard child in their family(?).
  

End of S3 Benophie.
S4: Very vague ofc

• Benedict’s been limerent for the Lady in Silver for a year and she’s reignited his art hobby, but now he’s obsessed with painting and drawing her. And/or he’s more serious about getting married now that his grown brothers are.
  
• Maybe Sophie works for the Mondrichs now? That makes the most sense to me, and I think that’s probably why they had a plotline. I bet they treat her better than the Cowpers who overworked her out of spite probably. OR she’s a maid for Francesca and John which would make it easier for Benedict to first see her and continue to meet with her. Maybe Sophie’s planning to become a real governess since she found better employers than in the book.
  
• Benedict somehow meets her without being sure if she’s the LIS and they bond over their similarities, his art, and how they make each other joyful. It really shouldn’t take Benedict that long to figure it out, man’s a junkie but not a dummy.
  
• Then we get the book conflict of Sophie refusing a relationship because of her personal values. BUT Benedict’s not as creepy as in the book (please). I remember he just accepted Madame Delecaux’s similar rejection in S2 in a sweet way so maybe they put that in to tell us he wouldn’t be…yeah.
  
• Then idk, they pine for each other (scandalous). Cue what Granville said to Benedict in S1 (paraphrasing) “I risk my life every day for love. Do you know what it’s like to be in the same room as someone you cannot live without and yet still feel still that you are oceans apart…we cannot so much as smile at each other without making sure that no one else is watching.”
  
• Eventually the line must drawn and Benedict has to seriously consider sacrificing his family (or at least his place in his family’s world, the world he was born and raised in) for Sophie, and think about how they would even support each other financially. Also I doubt Sophie could be a governess with that scandal.
  
• Insert conflicts with other single ladies, Violet and Anthony’s opinions, and conflict with the Cowpers (I mean Sophie has to get arrested at some point) along the way.
  

Yeah, this is all speculation and I’m excited to see what’s correct and what’s not.
I think that Jess Brownell (the new show runner starting S3) can do this story great if she keeps the heavy drama parts while using her lighter brighter style to maintain the humor of Benedict, and the laughter and mutual comfort found in his and Sophie’s relationship.
Theirs is the ONLY book I read since I love forbidden romance.
As for the actress playing Sophie, I think the only things that matter are her skills and her chemistry with Luke T.
Please tell me what you think!

I’m looking at installing LVP in my spare bedroom, office, hallway, and basement. Well, eventually my entire house but I’m ripping up the carpet in these areas right now.
There is 12x12 tile in some places, probably not asbestos, but it was glued on with asbestos containing “black mastic.” In the spare bedroom closet (just covered with feather finish), hallway closet, and entire office area.
There’s a large hump in my floor in the spare bedroom so I’m having a self leveling company come out and apply a self leveler concrete over the entire floor in there, and probably the hallway and office area as well just because they’re already out there and then I can use no transitions. The tile is glued on there pretty well. The basement will probably need it as well. My thought is if I’m going to do one room, might as well do them all while they’re out there. I’m thinking the self leveler will sort of act as an abatement from the tile coming up. I’m also worried about ripping it up because of the asbestos underneath.
Is this a good idea? Any flaws in the plan?
I would ask the company for help but I’m kind of concerned they’ll be bias and want more work.

Hi everyone, first post, I'll try to be as accurate as possible, I have been minimally involved.
My (23 Trans He/Him) partner (25 He/Him) Dan (fake name) has, with family help, purchased his first block of land and package house. The issue is a family member of his might be trying to push him into doing illegal.
Dan is planning to rent out his house, 1 master bedroom, 4-5 rooms with their own bathroom and walk in closet, 2 shared living and kitchen areas, roof top access, and more. So far looking amazing for house sharing which he wants to do.
This issue is, he wants me to rent out one of the rooms that is furthest from everyone else and has its own kitchen, bathroom, living space, entrance, etc. We aren't married but have been together for almost 8 years, he is planning to not marry while I live there, but he also plans to live there with me. He's planning to sign off that his main address that he "lives" at is his parents house whilst living in the house he built.
I have no idea about any of the legalities and don't even know where to start. He's planning on never using his last name so it's just a "coincidence" that my partner and the landlord have the same first name and he's planning on having the rental agreement drawn up and sorted with rental agency so there's no money linked between us.
TLDR: Would it be illegal for the landlord to secretly live with me, am I doing something illegal, what would be the consequences
EDIT: I know him and his family are making sure I can't claim the house of anything of his if we split, we already had the prenup talk and I informed him that I don't want anything from him if we split (house, money, property, crypto, gold, silver, etc). He does earn more than me but I'm happy to just have what I brought into the relationship. I don't own property, inheritance, or anything more expensive than a PS5, but I am the one financially supporting our dates and outtings since all his money is going into the house.

Below is a list of some recent releases that are highly rated and some that will be released in June for your perusal. If you know of any other upcoming releases please post them in the comments!

RECENT RELEASES

The Burning Witch 3: A Humorous Romantic Fantasy by Delemhach

Lady Katarina Ashowan is used to getting into trouble, but her latest muddle takes the cake. A moment’s weakness in her attraction to Eric Reyes, crown prince of Daxaria, has landed her in an unexpected marriage with the man . . . just as her father, Lord Finlay Ashowan, arrives in Troivack to check on his headstrong daughter. As if figuring out how to acclimate her father to her scandalous elopement isn’t bad enough, there are rumors of dangerous magical plots afoot at court—with Kat seemingly at the center of them all.
For one thing, the devil is still prowling around, with dubious intentions as to Kat’s powers. For another, an underground network of wrongdoers has been spreading a mysterious and addictive drug throughout both Troivack and Daxaria. And perhaps most concerning, a villainess is hiding in plain sight somewhere close to Kat and her best friend, Queen Alina, hoping to use them to strike at the devil. Now it’s up to Kat—with the help of her kitten familiar, Pina, as well as her friends and family—to untangle the twisted web of courtly and magical intrigue before her hurried honeymoon is cut short by deadly disaster . . .

The Runaway Mate: A Rejected Mate Shifter Romance (Shifters of the Three Rivers) By Kira Nightingale

After what he did, I never wanted to see my fated mate again…
Mai: Four years ago, Ryan Shaw broke my heart, tore it into little pieces and then stomped on it. Ryan is my fated mate, but when I saw him with another woman at the regional meet of all the Packs, I’d had enough. I finally told him what he meant to me, and being the jerk that he is, he rejected me in front of everyone.
Heartbroken, I ran, trying to get as far away from him and the memory of that night as possible. Except I’m on a roll with picking jerks. So now I’m on the run again and heading back to the one place I know I’ll be safe. My brilliant plan is to lie low, heal, and then take off someplace new to start again. But Ryan knows I’m here now, and he has very different ideas.
Ryan: Mai is back, and my wolf is going crazy. I’ll do anything to protect her. It won’t be easy with secret plots to take over our Pack, her abusive ex sniffing around, and Mai’s urge to run every time she sees me. But there’s no way I’m letting her go, not again.

Fastlander Fallen by T.S. Joyce

Ace has one last promise to fulfill.
His father has asked him to try to join one of the Crews of Damon’s Mountains. When the new Fastlander Crew starts accepting applicants, Ace puts his name in the hat on a whim. Will the new Alpha ever allow him to be a part of his Crew? Not if he finds out who he really is. Ace has been hiding a secret about his lineage since he was a child, and now the Fastlanders are getting way too close for comfort. And to add to the pressure, there’s a human coordinating the Crew’s interview process that has his animal’s attention. At first he thinks his animal is hunting her, but the more he gets to know her, the more he realizes she is important. Corey Gable just might be the glue of the Fastlanders, and she doesn’t even realize her part in the destiny of this Crew. The problem? It’s twofold. One, he cannot under any circumstances bond to a human, and two? His life is in a free fall, and he cannot drag her into what is about to happen. If she wants to live, she’s got to stay human, and stay away from the Fastlanders. And most importantly? She has to stay away from Ace.
Corey Gable has lost someone she loves.
Corey’s cousin, Hallie, has been consumed by her new life with the shifters of Damon’s Mountains, and she’s left Corey behind. The only way to maintain her relationship with her cousin is to get involved in her new life—the ups, the downs, all of it. When Corey is roped into helping with the interview process of creating the new Fastlanders Crew, there are definitely some interesting characters who want the invite. One of them is tall, dark, and mysterious, and there’s something about him that keeps drawing her in—but he has big warnings for her. She’s messing with a destiny that could be the end of her life as she knows it. She wants to heed his advice, truly she does, but there’s just something about the mysterious stranger. And the more she finds out about who he is, the more she thinks she couldn’t leave him alone if she tried.

Hellhounds and Angel Cakes by Zoe Chant

He’s supposed to be a rough, tough, terrifying hellhound. That's hard when you're covered in chihuahuas.
Henry’s used to everyone being afraid of him – being a hellhound has that effect on people. What he’s not used to is having every animal within a four-mile radius suddenly wanting to be his best friend. Pigeons roosting on your shoulder: annoying, but mostly harmless. The local moose population stampeding toward you in the hopes of a hug: somewhat more worrying.
There’s nothing for it but to escape to the mountains, where he can use his hellhound form to intimidate the local wildlife into leaving him alone. But a stop for one last piece of cake before heading into the wilderness leads him straight to his fated mate. He's over the moon... but how can he court her when every animal in town is trying to leap into his arms?
Travel journalist Luna was looking forward to this assignment: covering the first annual Girdwood Springs Food Festival, along with her trademark: Fillmore, the world's ugliest dog. Specifically, she was looking forward to sampling all the amazing, mouth-watering local delicacies.
But there's other delights to sample in Girdwood Springs – such as the mind-bogglingly gorgeous, hunky man who is now covered in cake, thanks to Fillmore. And who seems to be strangely popular with the local animal population.
Suddenly, writing her article is the last thing on her mind…

Wild Scottish Beauty by Tricia O'Malley

“She was sunshine to my storm clouds, and I wondered how the two could ever coexist.”
A chance job offer in Scotland gives Willow Barlowe an excuse to escape the predictable life her overly controlling brother, Miles, wants for her. Excited to start fresh as a fashion intern for the local kiltmaker, Willow lands in small town Loren Brae brimming with sunshine and hope.
Until she discovers that her new boss is none other than Ramsay McMillan, her brother’s best friend, and the grumpiest man this side of the Atlantic. Never mind the ghost Highland coo that haunts the castle, nor the supposedly bewitched waters of Loch Mirren, Willow refuses to work under Ramsay’s watchful eyes, certain he’s reporting back to her brother.
Ramsay Kilts is home to one of the last remaining traditional kiltmakers in Scotland, Ramsay McMillan. Loyalty, continuity, and tradition are important to Ramsay–as is his privacy. After a family betrayal, Ramsay keeps his walls up, running a veritable kilt empire with as minimum fuss as he can. Enter Willow Barlowe–his new intern, good friend’s little sister, and a veritable thorn in his side.
If the thorn is made of sunshine and sparkles that is.
As the two clash, Ramsay must decide if loyalty is really more important than love?

Devious Gods by Caroline Peckham

Callie: Ruin chases close on our heels and the price we have paid for a chance at our salvation is higher than any of us could have presumed.
I have claimed a love so brutal that I fear losing it might destroy not just me but the world I have fought so desperately to save.
The gods watch us more closely than ever, urging us to fulfil the task our destiny demands. We only have to make it to the end of this road, but I fear what we might find when we reach that final destination.
Montana: I am no longer the girl born to ruin and ash, but a woman set on a path of salvation with my heart in the clutches of a monster.
Our eyes are finally open to the true enemies of our kind and now that we have managed to unite against all odds, we are determined to see the games of the gods end.
Time is running out and fate calls our name on a tumultuous wind. Let’s pray that we can answer it before damnation claims us all.

The Throne of Honour and Blood by J Bree

In our arrogance, the high fae forgot everything that mattered.
I carved out a reputation as the Savage Prince for my brutality against witches, but unable to wield our magic, I couldn’t stop my kingdom from being torn apart by war and famine while the Fates demanded my patience.
The worst was still to come.
After almost a thousand years of waiting for my Fates-blessed mate, and thousands of witches dead by my hand, the Fates revealed their cruelest truth yet.
With silver eyes that sliced to the bone and a humility that defied all reason, the witch I’m bound to has tested every inch of my restraint, but that was only the beginning.
Everything I once knew as true has come into question.
Loyalties will be tested, treaties broken, treason committed, and only the strongest will survive.
I am Prince Soren Celestial.
The rightful heir to the throne of the Southern Lands.
Nothing will keep me from my Fates-blessed mate.
Not even her hatred for me.

Devourer of Men: A Captain Hook, Crocodile, and Wendy Darling Reimagining by Nikki St. Crowe

I have few friends and fewer allies. What I do have on the island of Everland is a lot of people who want me gone. So when the Crocodile and Captain Hook reappear in my life, I am in no mood. And worse, they’re unknowingly endangering themselves by asking for me by a name I long considered dead.
Now, not only do I have to save myself, I have to save the two men who I swore I would murder with my bare hands if I ever set eyes on them again considering they abandoned me.
Unfortunately for me, Roc and Hook have other plans, and when I find myself caught between them, I have to make a decision: risk my heart or risk my life?
Devourer of Men is a dark MMF romantasy fairytale retelling. Characters have been aged up for this darker, grittier version. For a full list of content warnings, please visit the author's website.

Bespelled (Bewitched Book 2) By Laura Thalassa

“Neither magic, nor time, can keep us apart. We are like the stars. Eternal.”
No one told witch Selene Bowers having a soul mate would be so difficult. Nor did they warn her that he might be a vengeful, ancient sorcerer who would frame her for murder, force her to remember a past life he swears she lived, and then coerce her into an unbreakable marriage pact. But that’s exactly what happens the night of the Samhain Ball, when Selene finds herself in a jail cell.
After waking from enchanted sleep, Memnon swore to discover why Selene betrayed him long ago. But when his soul mate’s memories return, the truth reveals something else entirely. Horrified by his own actions and desperate to make amends, Memnon offers Selene the unthinkable: a magic bond that will give her full control over his will. And Selene is desperate enough to accept it.
But other enemies still haunt Henbane Coven, Selene’s magical academy, and they’ve taken a keen interest in her. If she wants to stop them, she’ll need Memnon’s help. But partnering with the sorcerer is a tricky business, especially when he’s dead set on winning her heart. And that can’t happen…because the bond controlling him will break the moment she falls in love with him.

Beautiful Beast (Dragons of Viria) by Devyn Sinclair

Standing in front of a dragon means dying by fire, but the heart knows there’s more than one way to burn.
Humans and dragons are at war, and I am a pawn in the battle.
Princess of a dying land, my life is not my own, and a marriage to a vicious, dragon-hunting prince will save my people from deadly famine or death by fire.
But before I can vow my life to a monster, dragons drop screaming from the sky with a single aim. End the alliance. Kill me. I welcome the flames, relieved to burn instead of rot.
But the flames never come.
One look in the dragons' eyes, and they carry me away. Three dragons whose gaze burns with hunger and fills me with fire.
They're not what we were taught, and every passing day I learn more of the truth. Dragons are not the enemy we thought they were.
Still, one question remains: for centuries no one has stood before a dragon and survived. If these dragons were sent to kill me, why am I still alive?

Midlife Vampire Hunter (The Forty Proof Series Book 9) by Shannon Mayer

Crash:
I had her in my arms, only to lose her moments later. Frantic doesn't even begin to describe my state of mind as I search for Bree.
That search takes me deep into my past and to a family home that I swore I would never return to.
To find Bree, I must face a queen I defied and a monster that wants my soul. All while being heckled by a demon-infested blade.
Goddess help me succeed.
Breena:
Being abducted by a woman who is supposed to be dead, and weirdly looks a heck of a lot like me, is disturbing. Being told my death is needed to complete a wicked spell and that I'll be turned into a vampire? Even more disturbing.
I can't reach Crash or my friends. I have no idea where I am. My only ally? Alan. My ex-husband. Yup, you read that right,
The path to the end of my story is shadowed in fog, danger, and mystery, but I begin to see through it as the players and truth emerge. And that sight shows me that the sliver of hope is worth hanging onto, that my friends are with me even when I cannot see them, and that a future free of those who mean us harm is possible.
Even if it costs me more than I ever planned on paying

UPCOMING JUNE RELEASES

The Little Shop of Grand Curiosities by Iris Lake

Nepheli’s Little Shop of Grand Curiosities is the last scrap of magic left in the humdrum city of Elora as the Dreadful Mundane slowly takes over its residents’ hearts, and she is determined to preserve it any way she can. But when Apollo, a charming and mysterious traveler from the other side of the world, walks into her Shop, bringing her all kinds of trouble, Nepheli, for the first time in her life, is stolen away from the familiar wonders of her Curiosity Shop and is thrust into a dangerous world of lethal creatures and heartbreaking magic. As the two of them embark on a long journey of self-discovery, Nepheli will soon realize that the most curious things in life lie right beyond the reach of one’s comfort zone.
The Little Shop Of Grand Curiosities is a lighthearted fantasy romance about the true meaning of love, the power of empathy, and the unremitting yearning to be extraordinary as an act of rebellion against the mundaneness of the world.

Filthy Rich Fae by Geneva Lee

Cate Holloway knows the unspoken rule of New Orleans: avoid the powerful Gage crime family at all costs. Of course, that was before her brother got caught in their chaos. Now Cate has no choice but to confront the dark and forbidding prince of New Orleans himself and beg for her brother’s life. But Lachlan Gage is as lethal as he is beautiful…and the only currency he’s interested in is her soul.
Because Lachlan isn’t just some ruthless criminal. He’s fae. And he has his own secret reasons for binding her to him. Tricked and desperate, Cate is torn between humanity and the breathtaking Otherworld. A place filled with shadows and secrets, with members of each fae court plotting against her just as her captor’s motives for trapping her become more mysterious. And if she can’t break this sinister bargain in the next thirty days, she’ll be bound to the inscrutable yet infuriatingly tempting fae prince and his deadly world…forever.

The Princess and the Pack by Fallon English

Princess Ivy and Prince Cillian have been fated since birth. Ivy has always known that one day, she must leave her country to become not only Cillian’s bride, but Namara’s future Queen.
As an Omega and a princess, her life revolves around duty; not the dream that she harbors of life-altering love. Her station dictates she deny Nature’s call for a pack of her own. Instead, she must wed and settle for one - and only one - Alpha to preserve their pristine, royal bloodlines.
But fate has other plans in mind for Princess Ivy. Plans that involve not just her Betrothed, but his best friend and Ivy’s childhood nemesis - a nobleman, and the handsome son of the Royal Gardener.
Will societal expectations and tradition pull them apart? Or will Ivy and her Alphas take charge of their fate and give in to a love with the power to change the world?

A Rival of Hearts by Tessonja Odette

Two rival writers. One prestigious publishing contract. A bargain of hearts and seduction.
They say never bargain with the fae. They also say don’t get drunk on fae wine. Yet romance author Edwina Danforth has managed a blunder with both on her first visit to the infamous faelands. Now she's trapped in a magic-fueled bet she barely remembers with a man she’d be happier to forget. The terms? Whoever can bed the most lovers during their month-long dueling book tour wins a coveted publishing contract.
The win should be easy for Edwina. She’s known for penning scintillating tales of whirlwind romance. There’s just one her imagination vastly exceeds her bedroom experience. But when failure means plummeting her career back into obscurity, losing isn’t an option.
Her handsome fae rival, William Haywood, poses an even greater challenge. Not only are his looks as aggravatingly perfect as his track record behind closed doors, but he has his own reasons for playing to win, and he won’t go down without a fight. Unless, of course, it’s a different kind of going down. In that case, he’s fair game.
Edwina and William clash in a rivalry of romance. But what happens when their objects of desire…turn out to be each other?

Hi everyone, first post, I'll try to be as accurate as possible, I have been minimally involved.
My (23M) partner (25M) Dan (fake name) has, with family help, purchased his first block of land and package house. The issue is a family member of his might be trying to push him into doing illegal.
Dan is planning to rent out his house, 1 master bedroom, 4-5 rooms with their own bathroom and walk in closet, 2 shared living and kitchen areas, roof top access, and more. So far looking amazing for house sharing which he wants to do.
This issue is, he wants me to rent out one of the rooms that is furthest from everyone else and has its own kitchen, bathroom, living space, entrance, etc. We aren't married but have been together for almost 8 years, he is planning to not marry while I live there, but he also plans to live there with me. He's planning to sign off that his main address that he "lives" at is his parents house whilst living in the house he built.
I have no idea about any of the legalities and don't even know where to start. He's planning on never using his last name so it's just a "coincidence" that my partner and the landlord have the same first name and he's planning on having the rental agreement drawn up and sorted with rental agency so there's no money linked between us.
TLDR: Would it be illegal for the landlord to secretly live with me, am I doing something illegal, what would be the consequences

Good evening, dear community!
My wife and I are considering renting out our two-bedroom basement. We live in a bungalow with a spacious basement featuring high ceilings, located two hours from Toronto. Since it's just the two of us, we don’t need all that space. However, our basement currently lacks a separate entrance and some features aren't up to code. For instance, there aren't smoke detectors in every bedroom, and our furnace doesn't have a sensor to shut it off in case of smoke.
To make it rental-ready, we need to undertake major renovations, estimated to cost around 50,000 CAD. Here’s the breakdown:

• Architectural drawings: 4,000 CAD
• Separate entrance: 15,000 CAD
• Electrical and fire upgrades: 10,000 CAD
• Kitchen (10ft): 5,000 CAD
• Kitchen appliances: 4,000 CAD
• WasheDryer: 3,000 CAD
• Drywall, patching, new door, and paint for adding another bedroom: 4,000 CAD
• Unexpected expenses: 5,000 CAD

We don’t need to upgrade the ceiling (already compliant) or the floor (already done). The shower and toilet are also completed.
Once renovated, the basement will be a compliant, separate apartment with two large bedrooms, a new kitchen, and a separate entrance. We plan to rent it out for 1,400-1,900 CAD per month, either by room or as a whole unit.
However, I’m concerned about potential tenant issues, such as those who might stop paying rent and take a year to evict. I learned that having roommates instead of tenants makes eviction easier if problems arise. To classify them as roommates, I need to share a kitchen or bathroom with them. Our basement has a large utility room housing the water heater, electrical box, and furnace. This room is big enough for a bed, desk, and chair, so I could theoretically use it as my "bedroom."
I have several questions:

1. Am I breaking any laws by living in a utility room without a window, given that I am the property owner? (The rented rooms will be code-compliant.)
2. Can my tenants be considered roommates in this case?
3. What do you think of our plan overall? Are we aiming for something unrealistic?

Thank you for your time and advice.

It happened. He didn't deny that. Not like he was a suspect or anything—not yet—but he never denied it to himself. At the same time, this all happened over a decade ago—twelve years to be exact.
He didn't think of it every day; in fact, sometimes an entire month would go by where it barely crossed his mind.
In a way, that whole experience—he thought of all the abductions and murders as a singular event—now felt as if it belonged to somebody else.
It was a time in his life when he was confused, mixed-up, searching; a dark time, you know, like a phase. Who didn't have one of those in their past?
Plus, he was married now. His wife, Dee, obviously didn't know about it and he felt no obligation to tell her. Did he ask about her former lovers?
Sometimes there are things in the past and you just let them be. Whether it was Dee losing her virginity to the quarterback of the football team in the backseat at a drive-in or him using multiple black garbage bags and masking tape on that thing he didn't have time to bury in rural Tennessee, everyone has things they would rather forget about. Sometimes you just leave things where they lie.
So that's what Ned Doyle did.
Until that Sunday morning, November 6th, 1988.
He was a having a glass of Dee's pulpy homemade orange juice, waiting for his coffee to percolate, when he opened his heavy weekend edition of the New York Times (probably Ned's greatest extravagance—he liked its heft; and how the Arts & Leisure section made him feel culturally superior to his Ohio townsfolk, “the Philistines of Findlay,” he called them) when he saw the article buried in the back.
The country was two days from heading to the polls for the General Election—Bush v. Dukakis—so most everything else that week had been relegated to the back.
He read the article twice before he could even begin to make sense of it. It seemed to be a story about something called "DNA fingerprinting" and a 27-year-old baker in Great Britain named Colin Pitchfork who had confessed to raping and murdering two 15-year-old girls, in separate incidents a few years apart, after a new scientific process had been used to extract information from semen which he, Colin Pitchfork, had left at the crime scenes (likely inside the victims) some five years earlier.
Now if they could do all that after five years, why not ten years—or maybe even… twelve?
"Interesting story here," he said to Dee. It wasn't uncommon for Ned to read a news story twice—once for himself and a second time aloud to Dee while she brewed his coffee and burnt her toast. But this was his third reading and Ned acted as if it were his first.
"What do you make of that?" he asked. It somehow got worse each time he read it. After the third time, he felt as if he had been sucker punched in the stomach.
"Science Fiction is what it sounds like," Dee said matter-of-factly, pouring Ned his coffee in a mug that bore the Marathon Oil insignia. Findlay, Ohio was Marathon’s headquarters although there had been rumors circulating about a move to Texas.
"And unconstitutional," he said. "Cops running a dragnet like that, taking blood samples from 5,000 townspeople. Thankfully, that would never pass the muster here."
"They did catch the killer so maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea," she said, buttering her burnt toast. "Otherwise, who knows? They could have convicted the wrong man.”
Ned had already gotten lucky once – astonishingly so. Griffin Gerald Jones, the famed “I-75 Corridor Child Killer,” had claimed responsibility for all but one of Ned’s victims before dying in Florida’s electric chair.
"You can't have police in this country running around, sticking everyone with needles, drawing blood for some sort of science experiment,” he said. “Nevermind the Constitution, what about AIDS?”
“What about it?” she asked.
“There's been hundreds, thousands of cases now where people have been infected by giving blood,” he said. “That's a medical fact. Get accused of a crime and AIDS too?"
"It doesn't sound like any of the townspeople there in England got AIDS, darling. Unless there's more to the story, besides what you read to me."
He watched her spread orange marmalade over her burnt toast and take a bite. She had a dead tooth and he saw it every time she opened her mouth. He loved Dee but had never been sexually attracted to her. Not in the way he had been attracted to others.
"It really is just a matter of time before that stuff makes it over here," she said with her mouth full. "To this side of the pond, as they say." She took a sip of his orange juice. "Isn’t that how it always works? Things start over there in England, or in California, and then phht, before you know it, it makes its way to Findlay."
He held his hand over his stomach. She saw him wince.
"Was it my orange juice again? Was it still pulpy? I squeezed it by hand and even strained it twice this time."
"It’s not your fault,” he said. “I think it’s me. Orange juice is getting too… acidic for me." He looked at the clock on the coffee maker. "I'm going to be late."
He turned the page.
He played the 8 o'clock Mass by rote as he had many a bleary-eyed Sunday morning. It was pure muscle memory at this point. He made a few mistakes here and there, missed a key or two, but it was nothing the organ's sustain pedal couldn't mask – not that anyone would complain (not at the 8 o'clock anyway).
On Sundays Ned had four Masses: the 8, the 9:30, the big one at 11, and the 12:30 for the dilettantes who couldn't get their acts together for the 11.
He turned the page.
Today he was using Glory and Praise, AKA "the blue hymnal" for songs he knew by heart.
Turning the pages of his sheet music, reading each note, he was able to keep his mind off it.
Ned abhorred cliches (especially those involving sports) but he made an exception for “Out of sight, out of mind.” For Ned, that wasn’t a cliché; it was a way of life. He was a man who preferred to be heard, not seen, which made St. Bartholomew (or St. Bart’s) the perfect home for him.
In a spectacular architectural oversight, the church's pipe organ was situated so the organist's back was to the altar and pews. The organist of course needs to see what's going on in the Mass to read certain non-verbal cues but the arrangement suited Ned just fine. The congregation was comprised of many young families who had many young children—boys in particular—and it wasn't so much that he couldn't control himself because he was now firmly in control of all that; it was more that he didn't need any reminders of that time when he couldn't.
Especially during church.
So to see the altar behind him, Ned had installed an actual rearview mirror, the type you'd find on an old Buick, and he used a special type of putty to affix it to the mantle of the pipe organ. Having been the church organist at St. Bart's for nine years, he seldom needed it anymore—he could do it in his sleep—but it came in handy today as he found his attention drifting and he nearly missed the oratory refrain at the 9:30 Mass.
His real problems didn't start until the 35-minute break between the 8 and 9:30.
He was reorganizing his sheet music after the first wave of churchgoers had cleared out, when he began thinking about Colin Pitchfork again. The article said he was a baker in England somewhere—did it say he baked cakes or was that Ned's invention?
Even though no picture was provided in the Times article, Ned spent the balance of the 9:30 service picturing the 27- year-old ex-rapist/murderer working in his small English bakery, quietly going about his business, baking his cakes, when the police (Bobbies?) came.
Was he expecting them?
He played the offertory hymn, "On Eagle's Wings," as the ushers began taking up the collections and a family of parishioners he’d never seen before brought the gifts up.
And what was going through Pitchfork's head when he saw the Bobbies there? When they began asking him about rapes and murders that happened almost five years ago? The article said that he had initially given investigators someone else's blood when “the enquiry” began. Had he somehow caught wind of this “DNA Fingerprinting?”
There was a new usher, Ned noticed, in his makeshift rearview mirror.
The Times article said that one of Pitchfork's co-workers at the bakery had taken the blood test masquerading as Pitchfork because Pitchfork had told the co-worker that ‘he could not give blood under his own name because he had already given blood while pretending to be a friend of his who had wanted to avoid being harassed by police because of a youthful conviction for burglary.’ This story was later overheard by a woman in a pub who immediately went to the police.
Ned realized he had missed the homily twice now. Not that it mattered. Heard one you've heard them all and Ned was pretty sure there would be no surprises. Plus, he'd have two more chances to catch it. He knew he would have to really focus for the 11 o'clock. That was always the main event. He was going to play "I Will Raise Him Up," a complex hymn, which required his full attention. He would scratch that one now if he hadn’t read that article and if the Sunday programs hadn't already been printed. People liked that one –it was a real barn burner, as they say—and if he skipped it, there might be questions.
The last thing Ned needed right now were fucking questions.
Who was this new usher, by the way?

By the start of the 11 o'clock Mass, Ned wondered whether anyone would even show for the 12:30, seeing that it was already standing room only. The 11 was always the most popular Mass, but today felt different; it was packed like Christmas Eve. What was the occasion? Was the predominantly conservative town that afraid of Dukakis winning the presidency? Ohio was a swing state after all and that image of the little Greek man in the tank was unnerving, sure, but was it enough to warrant this sort of turnout for the 11 AM Mass at St. Bart's in Findlay?
Or was something else going on?
Ned didn’t believe they had come to hear his rendition of "I Will Raise Him Up."
Or could there be another reason? Maybe they had all read the same Times article. Maybe there had long been simmering suspicion of Ned in the community and maybe the article finally prompted the townspeople to join together and take arms. With pitchforks.
On March 31, 1892, the only known lynching in the history of Hancock County occurred when a mob of 1,000 men, many "respectable citizens," broke into the county jail in Findlay. They lynched Mr. Lytle, a man who had killed his wife and two daughters with a hatchet the day before. The townsfolk hanged the man twice (first from the bridge, then a telegraph pole) and then, in a classic case of overkill, shot his body over a dozen times. The authorities had intended to transfer the prisoner out of town at 1 o'clock in secret, where a train was scheduled to transport him to Lima, but someone talked.
Ned had only confessed what he had done to one person – a priest eight years prior. The priest was set to retire as he was dying of pancreatic cancer and visiting from a nearby parish. For years Ned had heard this priest was “of the old school” – i.e., your word to God’s ear, and it went no further. He was as safe as they come. Still, even then, Ned used the screened side of the Confessional, lowered his voice a full octave, and spoke of what he had done obliquely and in generalities. They were mortal sins. His penance severe: to repent and refrain from repeating the act again. The priest was now long dead. There’s no way he could have tracked Ned down and told anyone. Was there?
The last one was named Derek. That was the only one left unsolved.
He would play "I Will Raise Him Up" during Communion. Because of the crowds, he knew the communion lines would be longer and would thus require him to stretch the already difficult song a few minutes longer. If he was going to supply the masses, he was going to need a bigger yield. In a way it was like baking a cake, wasn't it?
He met Derek at a Dairy Queen in Paducah, Kentucky. It was Labor Day 1976. It must have been 100 degrees out, but it felt even hotter with the humidity. It was a real scorcher.
Derek had a bicycle with an American flag banana seat. It was the summer of Bicentennial Fever. The Dairy Queen was in an area known as Noble Park. It had a tin canopy that kept cars cool in the shade.
Ned missed a note as he turned the page. He stepped on the sustain pedal and his mistake sounded deliberate and beautiful even.
It was early evening; fireflies were out in full force and Ned was blotto. He had been drinking beer—cans of Schlitz—all day at the picnic of a friend (technically, the friend of an acquaintance so basically a stranger). A born introvert who still lived alone (this was pre-Dee), Ned was very drunk and primed for small talk. You must also remember this was a very different time. This was back when you still opened cans with an opener; drunk driving was frowned upon but not the cardinal sin it is today; and a grown man could still park outside a Dairy Queen and strike up an innocent conversation with a prepubescent boy on a bike.
"What da ya' got there?" Ned asked.
"Butterscotch Sundae," the boy said. The boy was blonde with brown eyes.
"Butterscotch, eh?"
The boy licked his plastic spoon and stared somewhere beyond the pea-green 1974 Buick Riviera Ned had inherited from his old man after he had kicked the bucket.
"For the life of me, I can't remember if I like butterscotch or not," Ned said. "That probably sounds pretty screwy, I bet."
"Get a free sample at the window,” the kid said. “They're free."
"Looks awfully busy over there. Mind if I have a taste of yours? I don't have any cooties, I promise."
The kid dragged his spoon over his ice cream as he mulled it over. Maybe seeing that he was almost done with it anyway, he figured what's the harm. He handed Ned the Styrofoam cup.
Ned looked at the boy as he stirred it a little and then placed the curved side of the spoon on his tongue and kept it there.
"I do like butterscotch," Ned said, giving it back. "Thank you for sharing that with me, that was awfully kind of you—say, what is your name?"
"Derek," the boy said.
"Derek. What a nice boy you are. Do you like dogs, Derek?"
"Sure," Derek said.
"Do you have a dog?"
"Not anymore. Used to. We had a beagle named Eleanor but she went blind and then lame and then..."
"What kind of dog was she?" Ned asked.
"A beagle," the boy said.
"A beagle, yes you said that. You like Golden Retrievers?"
"Sure," the boy said.
"Cause I have a Golden Retriever. It's a girl too. A bitch."
Derek smiled.
"She's pregnant. I mean she was. But… she just gave birth."
"To puppies?"
"You betcha. It was just a few weeks ago. She had a whole litter of 'em. Boys, girls. Cutest little pups you've ever seen. The thing is, Derek, I don't know what to do with them all. You're a nice boy. You just shared your Butterscotch Sundae with me and I'd care to return the favor. Would you… like a puppy?"
"How much?"
"For nothing,” Ned said. “For free.”
"You'll give me a puppy for nothing? And I can pick the one I want?"
"Sure can. They're at my place just down the road. Thing is, it's probably too far to bike there. And you're going to need both hands to hold on to the puppy. Hop in, I’ll give you a lift."
"What about my bike?"
"We could put it in the trunk but we're not going to be long. We'll be right back. It'll be safe here. People don't take things that aren’t theirs around here – especially when there's a lot of people around."
He remembered waking up on the floor of his apartment disoriented. He was late for work. He was still working as a salesman at the piano store. There was a big Labor Day sale still going on. Labor Day was always a big day for retail. The owner was a nice man and Ned wanted to call him and apologize but he wasn't sure what to say yet.
He hadn't planned on sleeping in. Forgetting work on Labor Day. The irony.
He saw the boy's underwear on his floor. They were tighty-whities from Fruit of the Loom. He thought of that every time he saw an ad for that company afterward.
They weren’t bloody but they were torn.
He remembered the sound of the filter on the aquarium he used to keep in his apartment. It was noisy but sometimes that was a good thing. He was very into Japanese Fighting Fish for a while until it became too expensive as they always killed each other.
There were no puppies obviously.
His apartment did not allow dogs.
His sense of disorientation and the ensuing panic prevented him from experiencing any of the usual remorse he felt afterward.
There would be plenty of time for that later.
The boy's body was in the bathroom just off the bedroom and he needed to get rid of it. He needed to get out of town. Out of Paducah. Out of Kentucky.
He placed the boy in a hardshell Samsonite suitcase, carried it out of his apartment, walked down the one flight of steps. He saw no one and he was confident no one had seen him. The suitcase was lighter than it should have been—a detail he never forgot—and he walked out to the carport where he saw his Riviera parked sloppily between the lines. He felt a wave of nausea come over him but he suppressed it. He opened his trunk, placed the suitcase in the back, and then looked around the apartment complex before walking back inside. He cleaned up with bleach. Showered. Hit the road.
There were no police gathered outside the Dairy Queen. It wasn’t a crime scene. He didn't look to see if the boy’s bike was still there; he didn’t want to appear suspicious.
He needed to get out of Paducah so he headed toward the freeway.
For a moment he briefly considered the Shawnee National Forest, which was to the north, but he stuck to his gut and took the newly-constructed Interstate 24 East toward Tennessee. Aside from getting out of Kentucky, he didn't have a plan. The asphalt was brand new and at times he felt as though he were floating across the highway. It took about two hours to get to the state line and once he was over, he filled up at a 76 Station in Clarksville, Tennessee. Only when he was filling his tank and had a moment to reflect, did he think about what was in the trunk. He imagined he had Superman's X-Ray vision and pictured the suitcase in the back, the boy's tiny body folded like a pretzel inside.
He missed both the readings, the Gospel, and the homily again. Then came the Consecration which was over before he knew it. It was time. He began to play "I Will Raise Him Up." In his rearview, he saw the communion lines forming and he thought he caught a glimpse of the new usher staring at him, but he couldn't be sure. He needed to concentrate on the song. People knew this one; people wanted to hear it exactly as they remembered it, and it was a full house, so the sustain pedal wouldn't save him this time.
Once he made it through the chorus, he knew he could relax a little.
The "DNA fingerprinting" in Pitchfork's case came from semen that was left inside of the victims.
Ned had made it to the outskirts of Nashville faster than he expected. He still hadn't checked in with Mr. Cory, the owner of the piano store. He desperately needed an alibi. Old Mr. Cory could probably send Ned to the electric chair if he wasn't careful.
He got on Highway 386 and headed north. After 20 minutes, he exited in Gallatin and drove around until he found an area he thought was remote. There was a road called Cages Bend.
He liked the sound of that.
It sounded hopeful.
He took that until he came to a gravel road, which looked as if it led to an even more secluded wooded area.
In the rearview, he remembered the cloud of dust kicked up by the tires of the Riviera he had inherited from his father, the drunk, who had done to him what he had gone on to do to others.
In the rearview, the communion lines were still going strong. No sign of that new usher.
He came upon a bend in the road that looked totally secluded, as if no one had been there in years. He cut the engine and listened for a moment. The invisible cicadas high up in the trees made it sound as if a giant rattle snake was slithering around him, preparing to strike. He got out of the car.
He didn't know if it was the trees or the fields of tall grass, but something smelled like semen.
He opened the trunk with his keys and pulled out the hardshell suitcase. When he closed the trunk there was a rustling in the tall grass but when he looked, he saw only a herd of white tail deer scattering.
Initially he had planned on dumping the body and taking the suitcase home with him. He didn't think to bring a shovel. Then he heard the sound of a bush hog—a piece of farm equipment with spinning blades that cut vegetation and cleared the land. He couldn't tell which direction it was coming from. He checked to make sure his suitcase didn't have any labels on it or name tags. He then two black trash bags in his back seat and wrapped the suitcase – one bag around the top, the other on the bottom, and secured it with masking tape. Then he carried it into the woods and set it down in some brush. He began snapping tree branches off to make cover but as the bush hog got louder and closer he panicked, leaving it only partially covered.
The communion lines had dissipated. Everyone was sitting now, even the priest.
Everyone always knelt until the priest sat and Ned should never be playing if the priest was sitting but somehow, Ned had missed his cue.
He concluded "I Will Raise Him Up" softly, using the sustain to ease himself out.
He looked in the rearview and saw the priest staring at him.
As was the rest of the congregation.
They would all be coming for him soon enough.
Unless he could make it back down to Tennessee and get rid of that thing once and for all – assuming it hadn’t been found yet.
Somehow, deep down, Ned always knew it was going to happen.
He was raised up, alright.
Now it was just a matter of time.

Good evening, dear community!
My wife and I are considering renting out our two-bedroom basement. We live in a bungalow with a spacious basement featuring high ceilings, located two hours from Toronto. Since it's just the two of us, we don’t need all that space. However, our basement currently lacks a separate entrance and some features aren't up to code. For instance, there aren't smoke detectors in every bedroom, and our furnace doesn't have a sensor to shut it off in case of smoke.
To make it rental-ready, we need to undertake major renovations, estimated to cost around 50,000 CAD. Here’s the breakdown:

• Architectural drawings: 4,000 CAD
• Separate entrance: 15,000 CAD
• Electrical and fire upgrades: 10,000 CAD
• Kitchen (10ft): 5,000 CAD
• Kitchen appliances: 4,000 CAD
• WasheDryer: 3,000 CAD
• Drywall, patching, new door, and paint for adding another bedroom: 4,000 CAD
• Unexpected expenses: 5,000 CAD

We don’t need to upgrade the ceiling (already compliant) or the floor (already done). The shower and toilet are also completed.
Once renovated, the basement will be a compliant, separate apartment with two large bedrooms, a new kitchen, and a separate entrance. We plan to rent it out for 1,400-1,900 CAD per month, either by room or as a whole unit.
However, I’m concerned about potential tenant issues, such as those who might stop paying rent and take a year to evict. I learned that having roommates instead of tenants makes eviction easier if problems arise. To classify them as roommates, I need to share a kitchen or bathroom with them. Our basement has a large utility room housing the water heater, electrical box, and furnace. This room is big enough for a bed, desk, and chair, so I could theoretically use it as my "bedroom."
I have several questions:

1. Am I breaking any laws by living in a utility room without a window, given that I am the property owner? (The rented rooms will be code-compliant.)
2. Can my tenants be considered roommates in this case?
3. What do you think of our plan overall? Are we aiming for something unrealistic?

Thank you for your time and advice.