**Don’t Walk Home Alone**

The air was heavy with the lingering warmth of the day, but the encroaching darkness brought a sharp chill that crept through the streets. Nadia adjusted the strap of her backpack, her steps echoing through the deserted alleyway as she walked briskly toward her apartment. She told herself it was just another evening. But deep down, she knew something felt… off.

She had ...

“Don’t walk home alone, little one, there are monsters that lurk behind every corner.” My mother always used to tell me as she kissed me goodbye.

“Don’t walk alone, call or text a friend, beware monsters that wait to snatch young folks away.” My dad would tell me the day I drove off to college.

“Don’t walk home alone. I’ll be there to keep you from the shadows that creep.” My love told me the day...

“Don’t walk home alone alone!” My grandmother said.

“Why” I asked

“The boogieman will get you”

“Don’t walk home alone. Always walk in groups.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s harder for people to get you if you’re in a group”

“Don’t walk home alone, epically at night. Wait inside until we get there?”

“Why?”

“Because anyone could garb you and throw you in their”

“Don’t walk home alone. Make sure you keep a ...

I was leaving the music store in the plaza near my home. I had about a ten to fifteen minute walk ahead of me. I was wearing my usual mini skirt, fishnet stockings, and tight fit shirt. A look that I loved, but definitely had a tendency to attract the wrong type of attention. While I was in the store, this very creepy guy from the neighborhood was also there. Marc was his name, and while I wa...

They told us on day one to never walk home alone. They told us to bring a friend or ask security to walk you. I didn’t care much for company.

They told us to keep our books in our bag and keep our hands free incase we needed to drop our stuff and run. I never wanted to put my favorite books in my backpack. I didn’t want to damage them.

I’ve walked from the library to my dorm, night after night. ...

The warnings my mother gave me are far beyond what the typical woman experiences. Instead of predatory men lurking around trying to catch their next meal, I deal with otherworldly forces beyond the imaginings of others. Crystals, vials of salt, ancient markings burned into my skin repel these creatures, but they don’t hide me from the knowledge of bad intentions. Their malice is made known through...

I hate working nights.

There’s so much that’s inconvenient about it. The sleep schedule shift, the fact that nothing is open should you like to buy something, and there is this odd sort of unreality in the atmosphere. It’s a feeling of isolation. I work for a telecom company that handles emergency repairs and things break at all hours of the day so it’s not uncommon that I may have to work night...

“Ok next time i'm paying for drinks, you sneaky gentlemen” Matt punches me on the shoulder. 

Grinning back at him. “Don't get used to it princess, it was only a nice bonus. I’m back to ramen in a few weeks.” waving goodbye as i start the half mile walk back to my apartment. Whoever thought engineers were on par with lawyers and doctors can kick rocks for telling me that as a kid. If that were the...

As I concluded my summer housekeeping duties at the charming Sun Valley Inn in Franklin, Vermont, I couldn't help but revel in the early onset of autumn. Unlike the urban landscape of my hometown, Hoboken, New Jersey, the vibrant hues of the changing foliage in Vermont painted a captivating and picturesque panorama.

Exiting room 19, the final stop on my evening rounds at the quaint yellow motel n...

The street light was out. Only one of them, but it was next to a shady alley. The gaping maw of the passage looked before me as I creeped closer. I was alone, heading home from a party.

It’s seemed the smart decision; walking home instead of driving. I had been drinking and couldn’t afford points on my license. Now though, looking at the shadowy entrance before me, I wonder if I should have riske...