[Please read the instructions before jumping in!]

“You knew Aunt Grace?” Jay asked, surprised. This time it was his turn to grimace when the stranger gave him a surprised once-over. “She was my great-aunt on my mother’s side.”

The young man’s expression cleared, a fondness crossing it that gentled his features. “I, uh, I knew Miss Grace,” he agreed, hands folded in front of himself, fingers squeezing together. His dismal tone was somewhat at odds with the crisp way he enunciated his words—at least, those he managed to get out between his stammering. “I’d say. Er, well. Everyone… everyone knew Miss Grace. S-she was one of a kind.”

Jay thought back to her gregarious way of including him in the conversation always, when all the other older relatives just wanted to talk about adult things, and nodded. “She was,” he said quietly. “I take it you know about her disappearance?”

[Remember to read the instructions before jumping in!]

It was early enough in the day, he decided, to start with the worst place—the kitchen. There was a good chance the fridge would be full of old-ass food well in need of disposal, and better to get it over with than have it hanging over his head. Besides, even though he planned to order food in tonight, he’d need somewhere relatively uncontaminated to put his leftovers.

After that, he could check out both the living room and bedroom, decide which seemed like a more viable immediate sleeping option, and go from there.

With that plan in mind, he grabbed his bag of cleaning supplies from the car, and started up the steps to his new house.

[Please read the instructions before jumping in!]

Jay stared out the car window for a long moment before finally getting out of the car, still gazing up at the imposing, run-down house with its intimidating gambrel roof and odd, jutting bay windows. “Mine,” he said aloud, just to hear it, and it sounded absurd even to him.

It’s time to choose your own adventure again–my yearly Halloween Interactive Fiction begins tomorrow. It’s gonna be spooky, gonna be queer, and gonna be driven by you!