Bikini coffee near me

So I just started the game as a rogue and been using the hide action during combat and it seems very weird to me on how it work.

1. The vision cone seems confusing, when I am in dim-light sometimes if I hide right in front of them and within the vision cone I would succeed with a stealth check and continue hiding. But if I get too close to them then hiding would always fail with no stealth check happening. It seems like there is 2 levels of vision cone, one is when you are in the vision cone but still somewhat far away (this performs a stealth check) and the other one is when you are too near in the vision cone (this one you are always spotted no matter what).
2. So when in combat and I do succeed in stealth check and continue hiding in their vision cone, it seems that a stealth check is constantly performed even though this is turn base now since I am in combat. If I move I perform another stealth check, if I ready an attack but cancel it I perform another stealth check. Seems really weird on when the stealth check occurs. Moving I can understand if you need another stealth check but if I ready an attack but cancel it I shouldn't need another stealth check.
3. When in combat and you go into hiding and perform an attack, do you automatically lose the hiding status? what about when not in combat, does it work the same way?

Coming from playing solasta as a rogue the stealth mechanic seems very wonky and weird to me compare to solasta.

Hi everybody,
I landed a job in Graz recently and the company requires me to move there (I am currently living in another country). I am curious what are the good/bad districts of the city or are there any areas that I should avoid when looking for a flat to rent. My workplace will be near Augarten but I don't mind the distance if the public transport is good. Thanks in advance.

We've been exclusive for over a year now, and he would make some plans at the beginning of our relationships but it has always been unbalanced because I do most of the initiating. When he does make plans, I would have to follow up near the date because if not, he probably won't or we wouldn't go out.
How do I tell him it hurts me and wish that he'd initiate more without making it seem like I'm forcing him. I don't want to feel like he's doing it out of obligation.

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Seen it twice, probably going to go a third time.
There's a lot of interesting things I noticed on rewatch. Second time I really tried to pick up on all the minor details, pay more attention to the script, the construction of the movie since I wasn't too busy having my eyeballs blasted into the back of my skull... but on rewatch, I think this probably one of the best Spider-Man stories ever put to film, if not the best. It's really painfully refreshing to see this after the MCU's take on the character left me near ice cold.
All the multiverse stuff aside, the movie is built around an idea, and a question.
Can Miles have his cake and eat it too? Is it possible to be Spider-Man without the personal sacrifices that heroism demands of the role, and the personal tragedy that defines who he is? They straight up say this as a line of dialogue. The school counselor flat out says to Miles' parents that he can't have his cake and eat it too, to which Miles responds, flippantly, unless you buy two cakes!
It's no coincidence that the movie then proceeds to show him buying two cakes and messing them both up.
Is it possible to be Spider-Man without having to sacrifice anything? The movie immediately throws Pavitr Prabhakar up as a case study for this. His introduction is perfect. Pavitr's dialogue: "Being Spider-Man is so easy." He is someone who has never had to sacrifice, had everything come naturally to him, and expects his problems to solve themselves ("Another easy case for Spider-Man!"). That's why his canon event involved the death of his girlfriend's father. As he's trying to pull the bus with his girlfriend in it up from the bridge, he's pleading, not joking. "I can save both!" Thanks to Miles, he does, and the captain immediately approves of his relationship with his daughter.
This whole idea comes to a head with the orbital elevator chase. It's not a heroic or triumphant moment, even though Miguel is essentially a feral lunatic at that point in the movie, sick of cleaning up other people's messes and Miles' in particular. The scriptwriters chose to have him reference the "My name is Miles Morales" speech, but also notable is what they omit from that speech. The full text includes the line 'And for six months I have been Brooklyn's one and only Spider-Man'. He says the line, but he ends it at 'I was bitten by a radioactive spider', the thing that gives him his powers, the thing that makes him special. He's not Spider-Man in that moment, because he's acting entirely based on his own desires, to hell with the risk it would cause to his own universe or the larger multiverse. He's a fifteen year old kid who refuses to lose his dad.
And when he returns to what he thinks is his universe, he's hopped up on what he's done. The swinging sequence through the rain, showing what he's been through, throws up Spider-Ham's line - "the worst thing about this job is that you can't save everybody". Miles speaking to who he thinks is his mother is uncomfortable. Even the dialogue is ominous. Compared to the sequence where Gwen pours out her heart to her father, this has some much darker hints. Miles says his mother was right (her concerns about how the people he meets might not love him like she does), but it doesn't matter, because he beat them. He beat them all. He brags to his mother about it. He tells her because in that moment, he thinks he's stronger, better than the others, and he can tell his family without consequence. At this moment, Miles is fully convinced he can have it all.
Of course, he's then immediately faced with the realization that because he got bitten from a spider not from his universe, Earth-42's New York looks like Gotham City on a Tuesday.
(One incredibly dark hint I noticed - when he realizes he's in the wrong Earth, we dimly hear his Uncle Aaron discussing money with his mother. His mother is talking about shifts, saying she won't have the money, and his uncle is reassuring her that it's alright, she doesn't have to pay him immediately. Just from these brief snippets of dialogue you can infer that his uncle is extorting money from his mother.)
I'm actually more worried about the third movie, because they have to answer this question definitively. If Miles can really have his cake and eat it too, it makes the sacrifices every other Spider-Man has gone through to become who they are and what they've done inherently pointless. There's no reason that Peter wouldn't save Uncle Ben if Miles could save his father without consequence, and then you get the same issues that happen when the Flash decides to go back in time and save his mother. There's some issue with having canon be the critical story element, because a canon event and what counts as breaking canon/causing the universe to collapse, as well as the ability to model canon events with a reasonable degree of accuracy, have serious implications for every universe they're in.

Hey guys. Throw away for obvious reasons, I don't want people to know because I'm feeling weird about it.
Let me set the scene. I ( 25, F) met a wonderful man (31, M) who is everything I've ever wanted. We've been dating for about 2 years now, and were long distance for about a year of that time. 8 months ago I packed up all my belongings and emptied my savings account to drive across the country to be with him. And most things have been great - yay! The only real issue is... well... He doesn't have sex with me.
When we were long distance, we sexted, sent photos, and even had phone sex quite often. I have a high libido and was pretty much always the one who initiated. We had sex a few times when I first moved in - I even gave him head nearly every morning but after that it died down... Completely. It started when I would initiate and he would turn me down. Then I would try to give him head and he turned me down. I know it has nothing to do with our connection or my skills in the bedroom, as I made him orgasm every time and catered to his every fantasy... Anywho. He expressed to me that while he was feeling romantic for me, he wasn't feeling those sexual urges. He told me he was very attracted to me and wanted to have sex - but that ultimately he enjoyed cuddling with me more. So! We decided that I would cool it and back off, and I have... But that was December 2022 and now, it's June 2023 and we have had sex a total of 2 times this entire year. I'm trying not to let it bother me, but I'm having a hard time. I guess I'm looking for advice of some kind. I'm too embarrassed to tell anyone about it. I'm in a brand new city and I don't really know anyone besides him... I'm just kind of at a loss. Conversations with him about it seem to end the same, the few times I have brought it up. He definitely feels some sort of shame about it, as he has referenced and made jokes of how "the bedroom is the one place he falls short in our relationship"... which is true but I don't want to openly agree and make him feel like shit. Ugh. I even bought myself more sex toys to spice up my alone time but honestly? It's the intimacy I'm missing. The being wanted. It was SO intense when we were long-distance and now I don't know.
I've made suggestions on how we can try to fix our sex life? He is definitely bothered by it too and has confessed it's something he thinks about almost every day and feels guilt for... but then does nothing about it? I did find some notes he had written about it... and he was essentially saying that he wanted to work out and remove stress from his life so he could be a better lover.
Do I just be patient? Do I bring it up again? I've told him that maybe he is asexual... My love for him is worth more than sex but fuck sakes man. It's really hard when we had such a killer connection and when my sex drive makes me want to make love multiple times a day. He was the first man to ever make me feel safe, truly wanted, and sexy. Now I just feel like an unwanted bump on a log lol. Are we just sexually incompatible? Am I being stupid?

I F(19) have a boyfriend since nearly 9 months now. My mother F (43) hates lie the most. She is someone who argues and won’t let you really talk back, I do it anyways to stand up for myself and what’s right. She was raised in a different country (Kosovo) with different rules, while war. My parents want me to marry someone from my homecountry. I told them multiple time Staat since we live in Germany I can make any promises. Now I am in a relationship with someone who’s roots are from turkey. They will accept it one day, I know that. But today she screamed at me again that if I have a boyfriend she doesn’t know about she’ll kill herself and it will be my faul. She exaggerates most of the time. I know she wouldn’t actually do it. I’m nearly finished with 13th grade and will study in January next year. I will live in a city that is 1h away from home. And I just don’t know what to do. I had to lie to her to prove that I’m serious about him. I never had a relationship before because I wanktest for the right one. I’m not someone who needs the experience with multiple partners in life. I just want one partner and to build up a life with him. But what should I do now? Should I tell her in the next few months like I planned or should I wait until I move out so I don’t have to take in the pain she will give me while still living here ? I wanted to be honest to her since the second week we were dating but my older sister said I should wait. I don’t if it’ll be worse if I keep lying to her or telling her and having to go through the pain she’ll give me while I’m still living at home. Any advice? Maybe people who experienced the same or have similar parents. Or just any advice.

Platforms): Mobile
Genre: fashion/ maybe dress up
Estimated year of release: early to mid 2010s
Graphics/art style: closest art style that reminds me of the game social girls, cartoonish western style (mixed with chibi? Idk)
Notable characters:The theme of the game was mostly purple? It has the option for you to click on the globe and travel the world and choose a location. After you choose your location for example like France, they'll show it in the background of a French setting (Eiffel tower, coffee shop, etc) with the main character standing on a purple pedestal. The character was a light skin girl
Other details: the animation of the game is refined ig (btw it's not fashion addict/fashion designer world your, star girl, or social girls)

To hit the broad details of this up front just in case I start to go off on a rant.
I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was a child in elementary school. Near the end of my elementary school education my family more or less fell apart and I stopped receiving treatment for my ADHD some time around 5th grade to the beginning of the 6th grade, due to not having parental figures afterwards that cared or at one point simply couldn't afford the treatment any longer. The treatment I received was in the form of a Ritalin prescription, though the dosage I can't remember because I was still pretty young at the time. My parents/guardians either lost or didn't keep the records of it.
From that point on I have not had any treatment for ADHD, and I struggled with passing my schoolwork in all but a few subjects, for some reason history manages to stick with me.
After public education I would join the Army. It might sound weird but I kind of forgot that I had ADHD during this time, and also generally speaking you can't really join the military while on any sort of mind altering prescription so I might have unconsciously chose to not reveal that fact when I was in the process of joining some 10 years ago.
Some years after that career I am starting school again in Engineering, and am struggling really hard to get by. It feels like I only retain a portion of the lecture in class that my peers do, and when I study or do the homework it's almost like I'm learning the material for the first time, again. I managed to pass my first semester, but only barely.
Additionally I can feel that my general forgetfulness, procrastination, and scatterbraininess puts a lot of pressure on my spouse.
Though I have survived thus far without much treatment from ADHD I feel going back on treatment is personally the right move for me and my family. And after several consultations with a psychiatrist, (basically starting over from scratch because of the aforementioned lack of records), their results indicated I do have ADHD and they will start me on new medication soon, though they haven't mentioned what exactly it might be over the phone. My general phsyician tried me on Guanfacine before this and I noticed basically no measure of improvement in focus, and I generally thought it had no effect until we agreed to discontinue that where the side effects of withdrawal gave me the worst hangover I've ever had and to be weened off it.
So I guess my question is if anyone else has had such a long break in treatment before, and if there are things I should be aware of / watch-out for when finally resuming treatment. I am sure the actual doctor will go over with the most important stuff when I finally have that consultation soon, but I live in a country that is extremely suspicious/cautious about treating ADHD.

It's almost 3 in the morning but I just need some opinions on this because I feel like I'm losing my mind. I (F17) have been dating my boyfriend (M18) for nearly 10 months. Overall it is a very happy relationship, and I really love him a lot. However, we got into a pretty heated debate when it came to body count. He truly believes that if a man and a woman have the same body count, the man is worth more than the woman because women "get to choose". He also believes that even if the woman has less sexual history than a man, the man still has more worth in a relationship. No matter how much time I try to explain that sexual history doesn't deem anyone's worth, regardless of gender", and that no gender is worth more than the other, he doesn't listen. I told him that what he is saying is sexist, but he doesn't care and just shrugs and says "Guess I'm sexist" and laughs at me when I start getting upset with him. What do I do????? I don't want to just dump him, should I just be the bigger person and forget about this? Is there anything I can do??? Please help.

Hi everyone, yesterday (04/06/23) my family and I were on A9 near Milan, Italy, I was sleeping and my dad told me that we got passed by a really new Ferrari with “TI 24” on the plate (I think that’s from Swiss). I wanted to know what car was and my dad said to me it was a Ferrari with a deep sounding engine and a back close to a Ferrari 812. There are three model of 812 (if I’m not wrong) and my dad can’t exactly remember the back of the car, so I was wondering if someone else have seen it yesterday, if someone can find the car by its plate or if the owner of the Ferrari is in this sub, just to know what car my dad saw because he looked pretty interested. Hope someone’ll help me. 🙂

I work full time so after work and other life commitments I'm not putting in some of the hours I've seen others put in, but even so don't quite get how you're meant to get really good at this game.
It has taken me forever to get to just a couple of the regions you need to go to near the start of the game. I pretty much get killed by anything other Bokoblins. I'm enjoying the shrines I find along the way at least.
I'm collecting a lot of different stuff but the things I use the most (arrows and good attachments) are always low on supply. As a result I tend to just avoid most monsters now and take really unconventional routes to my destinations, which I assume makes me miss out on some scripted/planned events and key item drops.
And let's not even get into Zonai devices or the Depths!
Am I missing something? Should I have done a lot more local exploring to unlock critical armour etc that help?

I really like playing chamber, but there is something that annoys me a lot, I don’t understand why chambers trademark brings up a red bar - even when players are not getting hit or near the small radius of it. And for some reason there is a second very large circle around the trademark in the mini map. Can someone please explain?

I'm 15. I cut myself nesrly every single day, I cry nearly every single night, it hurts so much all the time. I wish it could just be over. People say that it will get beter over time, but I don't think it will. I am absolutely nothing without her and that won't change. The pain isn't getting any better, when it changes it only gets worse. I sinply cannot live wihtout her, I want to die. My future only has pain in it, and I am mot strong enough to keeo tanking all the pain. One of the very few things that help me deal with all the pain is walking downstairs, grabbing the steak knife and cutting myself with it, I have cut myself a lot the past few weeks. I only hope that I will be strong enough to survive until my dog dies, because I don't want to leave her behind wondering why the little boss who she is supposed to protect isn't coming to pet her. No one knows it, except my closest friends and the people on the internet. I don't tell my parents, because I am afraid my mom won't understand and get mad at me for being a crybaby, I don't tell my little brother becausw he will bully me with it, I don't tell other people in my life because my parents might find out. I am broken beyond repair, I have no future, and I am not even sure if I will even see the day I would graduate highschool. If my life ever had a meaning or purpose than I have fulfilled that because it is really getting time for me to go. I often think about hiw my final note will look and what I want to be done with all my stuff. I just wish I would die. In life I have been put down before, but this time I don't think I'll get up again, this time life took me down and I will be staying down.

Hello Everyone,
Complete Background Picture:-
I am 27M working professional in corporate and my Mom is 48F a school teacher. My parents got divorced when I was 2 years old and I've been living with my mother since then. Just the two of us. My mom has sacrificed a lot for me, for raising me, paying for my school, college etc. I love her to core. My mom never tried to date any man or considered getting Re-married, I've never asked her anything about this or discussed anything related to this with her ever. We have a 3 bedroom house but since the childhood i used to sleep with my mom in same room and still to this date we both sleep together. Whenever I am out of town for work or with friends my mom always calls me at night. Like we have this habit of discussing the day at call. Also, I have a Girlfriend and i plan to marry her in near future, My mom is of the opinion that my GF should live with her in the same house that I live in currently, like the three of us together. (I know married couples should stay separate and girls usually don't want to live with their MILs!) But still I know my mom wants this, She don't want me to live separately with my to be Wife and leave her all alone.
Now, my question: I've explained everything above, painted the picture. Am i "ENMESHED" with my mom? Is it a "TOXIC" relationship that my mom have with me? Is it emotional incest? That my mom is using me for her emotional well-being? My mom using me as her surrogate husband?
I asked above questions because I DO feel extremely guilty whenever I think of shifting separately with my girlfriend. I feel like i will be betraying my mom if I leave her alone to live. And it's selfish for me to think about my Girlfriends desire of living together separately. And also my girlfriend do believe that it's extremely gross that I sleep on same bed with my mother, but I don't feel anything gross about it and it's normal for me.
Kindly advise here, How to fix things up?
TL;DR, I think i am Enmeshed with my mother, Need to figure out ways to fix things for good.

It's a bank holiday today, so I decided to do something productive and read the book I've been beating myself up for postponing.
​
My saga started at 8:30 am. Can't read without coffee, so I got to the kitchen and started to pick up what I needed to brew some, and realized that the dish I use for filtering my cofee was in the washing machine, so I started to put out the clean dishes. During the boring task I wanted to drink some water so I went to the bedroom to get my water bottle. I went to the bathroom instead and forgot what I was doing because it was sunny outside and I realised I hadn't applied any sunblock yet, so I washed my face, and while changing my clothes I saw my water bottle on the bedside table, which reminded me of the dishes, so I went back to the kitchen, finished putting out the dishes only to realise I hadn't applied sunblock, but on my way to the bathroom, I saw my water bottle beside the bed again, picked it up and drank some water. I then went to the bathroom, brushed my teeth, got back to the kitchen, and finished making the coffee. While the coffee was brewing I went to the bedroom to pick up my Kindle, only to realise it was out of battery. That's ok, I'll charge it an apply sunclock on my face. I went to the living room where the charger was, put the Kindle to charge. The power socket is beside a plant so I remembered it's Monday, plant-watering day. This took me 5 or 10 minutes without any distractions. Then I finally applied the damn sunblock because I saw my spray one sitting on my desk (I usually leave it inside my purse, but guess I forgot to store it last time I used it).
​
I served myself some coffee and sat down to read from my phone while the Kindle charged. I checked my email, checked the delivery date of something I bought last week, doom-scrolled for about 10 minutes, and then remembered about the book, so I tried to log in to Amazon but couldn't log in because I recently had to wipe my phone and lost my one-time-password authenticator app, so I had to go through a verification process. Need my computer for that, so I went to the other room to pick it up and saw some towels that had to be washed, so I picked them up and put them on the washing machine, turned the washing machine on, took the clothes that were air drying on the hanger since yesterday, and started to fold them in the living room. It was quiet so decided I wanted some music and turned on the tv - almost clicked on Netflix but remembered that I wanted to go to Youtube, focus! I chose some music and realized I never picked up my coffee, so I went back to the kitchen, whipped the counters, went back to the living room, and continued folding the clothes. Went to the other room to store the clothes I had just folded, got back to the living room, picked up my phone, and saw Amazon open - oh shoot, the computer for the verification process!
​
I picked up the computer, turned it on, and of course, it was on battery saving mode, so I went to the room again to pick up the charger. I saw the cat's litter box that I should have cleaned yesterday. Made a mental note about it, not starting something else now - I'm getting back to it after a few chapters of my book! Got to the living room, put the charger on the notebook, and checked my email again, no news. Amazon requires a picture of my document, so I went to get the document and realized the bed wasn't made, so I cleaned up a bit in the bedroom and stopped mid-way because I remembered that I had to take a picture of my document. I took a picture of it, sat on the computer to upload it but then decided to write my mental process so far so I don't forget how ridiculously ridiculous I am. This must have taken me a long time because it's already 10:00 am. Back to the verification process.
​
Ok, I had to install an app on my computer to transfer the file, did that, and uploaded it to Amazon but got an error. I realized that I can buy it from the Kindle device without OTP, so I'll just wait until it's charged. Now I'm going to put my document back where it belongs so I don't lose it again, and then I'll clean the cat's litter box. Once I'm done I'll (hopefully) have enough battery to start reading.
My half-drank coffee got cold, btw.

I love the library. The resources it offers have helped me tremendously in various ways.
Of course, one of the resources I take advantage of is books. I read voraciously. Without the library, I would have nowhere near the income necessary to buy all the books I read. Occasionally, I have gotten the chance to speak to the writers of the works that mean so much to me. The library has and continues to be a big part of my life that I just mention it so casually even when I speak to these writers.
I can't help but wonder if I'm offending them. I am reading their work without contributing to their bottom line. Would y'all take offense if a one of your readers consumes your work from the library for free?

Age 28
Sex female
Height 5’2
Weight 103 Lbs
Race Caucasian
Duration of complaint since Friday evening
Location right hip, lower back, left side of middle back
Any existing relevant medical issues no
Current medications none
A lot of pain seeming to radiate from my left hip and lower back.
I reached into my car on Friday, and had my knee on the driver seat, just to grab my car keys, I am normally in good shape, and pretty flexible, I was in no way straining myself or even stretching, and suddenly i felt something shift near inside my hip or the bottom of my spine, and it hurt so badly that I needed help to get out of the car and into my house.
I went to urgent care, but the doctor didn’t order any x rays or anything and told me he thought I was being dramatic, I think he may have thought I was drug seeking, even though I don’t have any history of that, lots of people around here do.
It takes my breath away to walk, or to even just shift positions in my bed. I’ve needed help getting dressed and various other things. Sitting down to urinate hurts so badly that I stop urinating and have to really concentrate in order to finish.

Read Chapters 26, 27, and 28 Here: https://www.reddit.com/saw/comments/13v6mcx/legacy_from_the_book_of_saw_chapter_26_27_28/
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*** CHAPTER 29 **\*
Inside the exhibit, the faint whir of a helicopter flying overhead, penetrated the survivors’ ears, injecting their weary hearts with a frail glimmer of hope. Undeterred by adversity, Renee and Sarah persevered in their quest to uncover the key to the elusive lock box. With resolute determination, Sarah tore through the sandbags, while Renee upended the buckets of paint and dirt, hoping to unearth their salvation.
Confident of their impending rescue, Gavin remained reclined against the glass, observing his companions. His attention fixated on the box, turning it around to admire its design. Yet, the pain in his abdomen had intensified, transforming even the gentle touch of his shirt into searing knives. Placing the box on his lap, he unfastened a button, peering inside to discover a sizable hematoma, its purple hue speckled with dull pinks.
“I found something!” Renee said excitedly.
On the back wall was a ventilation shaft. Renee stood by while Sarah rubbed her fingers against the screws that sealed the screen to the duct, then retrieved another brick from the tower. She forcibly slammed the stone into the bolt repeatedly, but it wasn’t budging.
A piercing shriek echoed off the walls, drawing their attention to Gavin, who trembled as he peeled off his shirt. His face etched with fear and frailty. In a testament to his weakened state, his breath came in rapid pants.
Sarah rushed forward, “You have internal bleeding,” she proclaimed, “You need medical attention.”
Gavin blinked wildly, struggling to see, “Son of a bitch,” he said, wincing.
“How do you know that?” Renee asked.
Sarah grabs a sandbag and brings it closer to Gavin. “You need to apply pressure and stay elevated.”
“Goddamnit… Goddamnit. He knocked me down.” Gavin said.
Renee could see the fear on Gavin’s face, and despite his aggression towards her, she felt sympathy for him, “Sarah, are you sure about this?”
“I think so,” she replied, “I was going to be a nurse.”
As Sarah lowers the sandbag onto Gavin’s abdomen, he endures a sudden jolt of pain, “Jesus….” he whimpers.
Renee looks up at her, “A nurse?”
Observing the patient, Sarah explained, “I didn’t finish.”
Gavin’s voice trembles, “What happened?”
The memories of her children flock to Sarah’s mind, and she contorts her face in self-reproach. “I had kids,” she said, “I lost focus.”
“I always wanted to be a Mother,” Renee said thoughtlessly.
Trying to ignore the pain, Gavin asked, “What happened with your kids?”
Sarah leans onto a barrel and appears sunken, slow to respond, “It started as a game,” she said, remembering the day she was tested.
On an ordinary summer afternoon, Sarah strolled through the Oaks Mall in the company of her two children, Charlie and Charlotte. At the time, the youngsters were merely eleven and thirteen, with Charlotte assuming the role of elder sibling, ceaselessly provoking her younger brother.
While Sarah admired a jewelry display, Charlotte began arguing with Charlie.
“I said you could have a sip!” She glowered.
“I did!”
“You drank the whole thing!” Charlotte declared, tossing the empty drink at her brother, hitting him in the chest.
As the bottle tumbled to the ground, its lid catapulted off, scattering remnants of ice across the sleek marble tile. A gathering of shoppers paused to eavesdrop on the squabbling children, silently questioning when parental intervention would ensue. However, Sarah remained engrossed in her negotiation with the salesman, completely oblivious to the unfolding chaos.
The incessant bickering continued until a push gave way, toppling a display and capturing Sarah’s attention. A wave of embarrassment surged through her as she acutely sensed the disapproving gazes fixed upon her. Reacting swiftly, she tightly grasped their wrists and whisked them away from the store.
Their valiant attempts to vindicate themselves were futile; Sarah was livid. While in earshot of the customers, she scolded her children, relinquishing her promise to buy them gifts, and insisting she wouldn’t tolerate any more arguing.
Folding her arms, Charlotte pouted, displeased with her Mother’s verdict.
As they approached the exit of the mall, the anxiety of the situation had created an urgency in Charlie to use the restroom.
“I need to go,” he cooed.
Moving up the escalators, they stopped outside the laboratories, next to a concession stand, and Charlie hurried inside. With the jewelry store out of sight, they could finally drop the act. Charlotte reached into her pocket and produced the diamond bracelet that her Mother wanted.
“How was that?” Charlotte inquired about her performance.
Sarah fitted the stolen bracelet onto her wrist and smiled, “You’re a natural.”
Her daughter beamed at the compliment, “Let’s do it again. That was fun!”
“Soon, baby, soon. “ Sarah reached into her purse and pulled out a handful of cash, extracting a crispy twenty-dollar bill, “How ‘bout a lemonade, then?”
Charlotte grinned widely and stood in line with her mother. She reviewed the menu and decided a deluxe strawberry lemonade would be adequate for a thespian of her stature. More patrons would appear behind them, blocking their view of the restroom.
Before returning to the group, Charlie’s eyes locked on the enchanting display of an opulent toy store. He glided towards the shop, his heart aflutter with a potent blend of anticipation and awe. With a reverent gaze, he took in the kaleidoscope of toys that sprawled before him, each beckoning with its own unique allure.
Moments later, Charlotte joined her brother, her eyes reflecting his infectious enthusiasm. Their faces adorned with radiant smiles, the siblings gazed excitedly at the toys and gadgets, longing to claim them as their own.
“So, you taught your kids to help you steal?” Gavin asked, bemused with the story thus far.
Renee waited for Sarah’s response, but it never came.
“You’ve got money. Why would you do that?” He asked.
Sarah sat on the floor and looked off into the distance, “You had a mistress, didn’t you?”
“What?” Gavin was taken aback.
“It was exciting, right? She made you feel special... Important.”
Gavin remained quiet. It was hard to argue with the claim.
“We didn’t grow up with much,” she began, her voice trailing off as memories of her childhood flooded her mind. Sarah grappled with the words, struggling to articulate the complexities of her past. “My mother… she….” Her voice faltered, “Mom battled with anxiety and paranoia. She… She was confused. Maybe it was bipolar or schizophrenia. I don’t know. We couldn’t afford an evaluation. And my dad… He wasn’t there. He couldn’t handle the mood swings, y’know?”
“So what? Every family has issues….” Gavin said.
“Sometimes, it was the only way for us to put food on the table,” she explained, “but it became a compulsion for her.”
“It rubbed off on you?” Renee asked in a sympathetic tone.
“Maybe,” she replied, her eyes falling to the floor, “Maybe it was always there.”
“Where’s she now?” Renee asked.
Saddened by the thought, Sarah revealed, “She’s gone…. She passed, I mean. Almost twenty years now. Small service. She didn’t have a lot of friends.”
To the point, Gavin asked, “So, when did you get tested?”
“That night…,” She said, “We got home pretty late and the lights weren’t working. I thought nothing of it. A blown fuse or something, right?” A look of sorrow befell her, “My husband normally fixed those things.”
Renee met the gaze of Sarah and flashed her a sweet smile.
“Anyways, the kids dashed to their rooms while I looked for the electrical box.”
Concealed within the shrouds of darkness, Amanda Young lingered, her anticipation building as she waited for the imminent arrival of the unsuspecting family. In the dimly lit living room, Sarah’s searching hand came across a solitary candle. As she struck a match, its feeble glow revealed the haunting silhouette of a grotesquely contorted head, sending a chilling tremor down her spine. On the precipice of releasing a scream, Sarah’s world was abruptly invaded by the stealthy approach of Mark Hoffman. From the shadows, he ensnared her in a vice-like grip, swiftly pressing a rag infused with chloroform against her face, plunging her consciousness into an unsettling abyss.
“The next thing I knew, I woke up in a room like this,” she said, “but there was a window that separated me from my kids, and my wrist was pulled through a hole in the glass.”
Surprised, Renee asked, “Your kids were in the trap with you?”
Gavin spoke softly, “Wouldn’t be the first time….” he said, remembering the threat of death towards Dr. Gordon’s family.
Sarah let out a deep sigh and nodded, “When I woke up, I could see them lying across from me.”
Immersed in the flickering glow of white noise from a television screen, Charlotte and Charlie lay upon the grimy floor of a forsaken laboratory. The dilapidated chamber exudes a musty odor, its atmosphere saturated with neglect. The bluish-green walls, tinged with decay, reveal patches of a worn brown foundation, marking the passage of time.
Sarah's eyes widened with fear as the cacophony of static intensified, her heart pounding in her chest. She fought desperately, her wrist contorting and straining, in an attempt to free herself from the confining hole. And then, as if emerging from a nightmare, an unsettling puppet materialized through the static of the television.
“Hello Sarah, I want to play a game,” John’s chilling voice emitted from the doll and seized her attention, “Despite your advantages, you’ve chosen to lie, cheat, and steal. Well, Today, you will have a chance to give."
Startled by the haunting voice, Charlie emerged from his slumber. As he rubbed his eyes, he caught sight of his mother through the glass and hurriedly made his way towards her. A flood of relief washed over Sarah as she beheld her son unharmed. Sarah enveloped him in a tight embrace, pressing his little body against the cool surface, yearning to feel the warmth of his skin once more.
“Sarah, you’ve long considered your children to be an extension of yourself, using them like a tool for your criminal acts. Today, they will be the key, the key to saving your life.”
Charlotte is awoken to the sound of her brother pounding on the glass walls. Frightened, she rushes towards the window.
“If you are comfortable using their hands, perhaps, you don’t need your own?” Jigsaw suggests.
“Oh my God,” Sarah says.
“If you want freedom, I require a sacrifice. A sacrifice of flesh.”
Charlotte turns around slowly and watches the TV.
“There’s a tool in the room with you, and you will need it to be set free. But hurry up. In 10 minutes, the door will lock, and this room will become your tomb. Live or die, Sarah. Make your choice.”
A timer beneath the TV switches on, piercing the darkness with its red digits.
Charlie wipes tears from his face, his words nearly incomprehensible, “Mom, I want to go home.”
“Me too, baby. We’re gonna be okay, I promise you. It’s just a game.”
“I don’t want to play anymore!” Charlie declared.
Sarah’s throat swelled, and she was stricken with guilt, “Just once more, honey, okay?”
Charlotte quickly evaluated the room, searching for the tool.
“No more!” Charlie yelled.
Embracing her son, Sarah ran her hand against his head, soothing him, “Okay, sweetheart. It’s Okay.”
Charlotte remained determined as she searched the room, playing the role of Detective. Her love of movies crept in, and she was strangely fearless. She knew the good guys always prevailed based on the films she had seen. She knocked on the walls listening for a hollow point, and proceeded into the darkness. It was there that she felt something on her foot. Kneeling, she reached for a medium-sized box wrapped like a Christmas present. Tearing open the covering, she lifted the lid and found a rusty hacksaw.
Clutching the tool firmly in her hand, she made her way back to her mother, a sense of pride surging through her. Oblivious to the gravity of the situation, she remained unaware of the implications of her discovery. As Sarah’s gaze locked onto the object, an overwhelming sense of dread and regret consumed her.
“Good job, Char!” She said, concealing her inner turmoil, “Now, look at me, okay?”
The children stared desperately into her watering eyes.
“I need you to do one more thing, okay? Both of you.”
Without uttering the words, Charlotte realized what was coming. “No, Mom, I can’t.”
“You have to, sweetheart. It’s a game, remember?” Sarah said, looking back at her son.
She continued, “You just play the role.”
Glancing at the timer, Sarah’s eyes met the display reading seven minutes. With a determined resolve, she quickly discarded her blouse, revealing a white tank top beneath. Wrapping the fabric tightly around her arm, she sought to staunch the impending flow of blood. “We can’t wait, honey. You can do this.”
Charlie began to tremble when his sister laid the saw against their Mother’s wrist.
“It’s okay….” She said, consoling Charlotte, but the young girl was terrified.
“You can do this, Charlotte. You can. I need you to do this.”
“Mom?” Charlie muttered.
Sarah pressed her hand against the glass, wanting to touch his face. “Just cover your ears, baby. And look away. I’ll be there before you know it.”
Charlie turned around, and Charlotte locked eyes with her Mother. “Hurry…”
Charlotte braced herself, inhaling a deep breath to steady her trembling hand. With trepidation, she commenced the arduous task of sawing through her mother’s arm, observing in horror as the serrated edges tore through the delicate flesh. Sarah turned her gaze away, concealing the excruciating pain etched across her face, her hand instinctively rising to cover her mouth. Each sway of the blade elicited a sickening peeling sound as her skin yielded, unleashing a torrent of crimson that spilled forth unrelentingly.
The ghastly scene proved nearly unbearable, pushing Charlotte to the brink of halting her agonizing task. Overwhelmed, she shut her eyes tightly, unwilling to witness the gruesome dismemberment unfolding before her. Tears welled up, streaming down her reddened cheeks, mirroring the profound anguish that weighed upon her.
When the blade reached bone, the endeavor became increasingly harder. “I can’t do it!” Charlotte’s voice echoed with desperation.
Sarah pivoted to face the gory wound, a surge of dizziness threatening to overpower her. Mustering every ounce of strength, she fought against the encroaching syncope, her voice wavering yet resolute as she sought to reassure her daughter, “You’re almost done, honey… Almost done.”
“It’s too hard! I’m not strong enough.”
Sarah tried pulling her arm through the hole, but it was no use; the opening was sealed tightly.
“I need help!” Charlotte said.
The pleading words of his sister prompted Charlie to remove his hands from his ears.
“Charlie, I need you. Your sister needs help.”
The young boy moved closer to the carnage but refused to look at the wound. He stepped into a large puddle of blood and gripped the opposite end of the hacksaw.
“Back and forth,” Sarah instructed them.
The two children synchronized their efforts, and with their combined strength, they propelled the blade to glide across the appendage in a hauntingly rhythmic motion. The eerie and nauseating sound of metal grinding through bone reverberated in the air as they skillfully maneuvered from side to side. As the bone finally yielded and severed, Sarah unleashed a primal scream. The agony displayed on her face became undeniable, impossible to conceal, yet the objective stood tantalizingly close to completion. A few more determined slices, and the blade mercilessly tore through the remaining layers of skin, marking the near-accomplishment of their grim task.
They dropped the blade and watched Sarah twist and pull on her wrist, trying to bring it through the hole. While the timer continued to count down, Charlotte acted swiftly, aiding her mother by forcefully pushing the tender stump through the hole. Within moments, Sarah was free from the trap.
Dazed by the significant blood loss, Sarah struggled to her feet, but with only seconds remaining, she forced herself up and staggered towards the exit.
“Jesus,” Gavin said in shock.
Sarah’s eyes remained on the museum floor, finding it difficult to stare Renee or Gavin in the face, “My husband left me after that. He said it would be easier for the kids. That I was a trigger for them. A reminder.”
“Your kids… How are they now?” Gavin asked.
“It took some time, but they managed. Therapy, y’know? Counseling. Medication. Truth is, they deserve better than me. After it happened, after I lost everything, I was… suicidal. I was lucky to meet Addy and Dr. Steward.”
“Right? A lot of good that did us.” Gavin said.
Renee looks back at the ventilation duct, “It’s not over yet. We have to keep trying.”
“What did you find over there?” Gavin asked.
Sarah’s pessimism comes through, “It’s probably a trap.”
Gavin conjures a weak smile, “At last, we agree on something,” he said.
Sarah smiles back, “Better late than never.”
“Y’all of little faith,” Renee quipped.
“So, what does he want? I learned my lesson.” Gavin declared, turning to address Renee, “And you’re basically in love with Jigsaw, so why are you here? None of this makes any sense.”
As Gavin spoke, Sarah’s mind lingered on the murderous assignment bestowed upon her. Wracked with grief, she wondered if the prize was real and if she even deserved it.
“Nurse Harper?” Renee said, offering her hand.
Renee lifted Sarah from the floor and they proceeded to the ventilation shaft. With their backs turned, Gavin deftly reached into his pocket with measured caution, and removed his own white card that read:
“Your aim in this game is to kill Sarah*.”*
Once more, he delved into his pocket, retrieving a gleaming silver key. Vigilant of the surrounding figures, he covertly unlocked the box, revealing its enigmatic contents. A delicate piano wire, tautly connected to two finely crafted wooden handles, lay before him.
***
TO BE CONTINUED....