ths of rent upfront and your last name? We were more than happy to make

cause of her last name. For twenty-four years, the Benson name had been nothing but a golden leash her parents used to keep he

d light and sweet. "I just needed a space of my own as quickl

the main entrance and the unit are right there, and i

od before turning around and walking down th

lued to the back of the manager's head until t

e, sweet smile melted right off her face, a

d the heavy door shut wit

mp. Late afternoon sun poured through the giant glass windows, stretching across the cle

e right next to them, and just stood in the very center o

her from down the hall about how she walked too

nce, she was standing in a room where n

whispered, her voice bo

ide her head, glowing with that bright, overl

excited ping-pong ball. [Your very own base of o

pulled at the corner

admitted, looking up

could lock from the inside where my mother couldn't just use he

a little flip in the air. [So, what's

ng the street below. Out there, people were driving home from work, picking up groceries, making dinner plans, completely obl

ld, pushing the small moment of

nda here," she said, leaning her

I can recruit before I'm stuck fighting flesh-

d down her face,

yesterday feeling so proud of myself for snagging a metal manip

anipulates vines, speeds up plant growth, and can make edible crops pop out of

empty floorboards. "Eating is great. I love eating. But cabbages aren't going to stop

ars flying around, I just... I was so busy trying to keep my baby

r bag and flipped to a fresh page,

nt (Done, even if it co

(Done, but she thinks

etal user (Current

phone started vibrating wildly against th

She picked up the phone, peeked at the screen, and ins

a

mooth out her face even though he couldn't see

lasted out of the speaker so loud she had to pull the phone a

her parents' house like a thief in the middle of the night, packed two massive suitcases while her heart pounded

n looked up fro

ice sounded surprisingly plain, almo

e hung on the line fo

ely thought he had misheard her. "What do you mean

, her chest was tight, that old, instinctual fear trying to tell

the mud. She remembered

telling her he threw an infan

al fast, replaced by

I'm not living at

ech suddenly cut through the speaker, having c

ssion to rent an apartment? Where did you even get the money for somethin

ic