CChapter One - Quintville

The air in Quintville smelled like sourdough. And it was always dark and gloomy.It wasn't very full either, most shops were out of business and the houses were empty. Dean always hated it. But it was his home, how could he leave it? His mother and father were both dead, and he lived by himself in a cold half empty apartment. He had never left Quintville.

He had slender dark brown eyes with scruffy black hair to his neck just below his ears. He always wore brown or black or white colored clothes and boots. He didn't work, but mooched off his friend, Lainey.

Lainey was tall, her jet black hair was always loose and wavy. It reached almost to her ankles. She was a slightly dark skinned girl. She had soft baby blue eyes. Her face was soft, her hair sometimes getting in her face. She was nice and smart. She was sarcastic a lot however. Dean and her had been friends ever since Dean's sister, Karra, was born.

Karra had short black hair to her ears and round framed glasses. Her eyes were almost black. Dean had another friend, Ronnie.

Ronnie had a mullet-like haircut, which was dyed a strawberry blonde. He worked with Lainey at a grocery store. He always had a smiley face sticker. He always wore a tank top and shorts. His legs and arms were hairy but his face was clean shaven. His eyes were green.

He had a brother who was older than everyone. His name was Ren. He was tall and had a strong build. His hair was grown out to his shoulders but was it always in a ponytail. He wore a heavy jacket and jeans. His eyes were hazel.

Dean fumbled his keys in the door, opening it. Sun beamed in from the window, shining into his clothes on the floor. He flopped onto his unmade bed. He rolled over onto his side and stared out the window at the big sign that read, "Welcome to Quintville! A quaint ol' town in the 'middle of nowhere'!"

"I'll say." Dean said, rolling onto his back. His held a random book he found in the bed over his head to skim through it. His phone buzzed in his baggy jeans pocket. He tossed the book aside and answered his phone.

"Hey?" He asked.

"Hey Dean. It's Lainey, I was wondering if you could come work a few hours at the store."

"What for?"

"You owe me 256$."

". . .Right." Dean turned and sat up.

"Mr. Man (a nickname used for Lainey and Ronnies boss, Mr. Wren.) already said it was okay."

"Give me about 40 minutes to get a shower and ready." Dean said, standing up.

"Alright. And this time make sure when you bend over your heart undies don't show." She said before hanging up. Dean shook his head and set his phone on the dresser, going over to his pile of folded clothes and finding proper atire. He grabbed a blue towel hanging off the bathroom door and went in and closed the door.

He locked the door and tossed the clothes and towel onto the sink. He tugged off his shirt and slid out of his pants and climbed into the shower. He turned on the water and grabbed a bar of soap. He scrubbed his body and put shampoo in his hair, he skipped the conditioner.

He shut off the water and climbed out of the shower. He wrapped the towel around his waist and brushed his teeth. He then did his regular hair rountine. Brush, spray, curly, spray, repeat. He tugged on the jeans and button up shirt.

He opened the bathroom door and grabbed his phone. Heading out the apartment. He was locking the door when an old lady left her apartment.

"Dean!" She exclaimed happily. Dean turned to face her after locking his door.

"Oh, heya Mrs. Miriam." He said, shoving his phone and keys into his pocket.

"Where ya headed? You look all dressed up."

"I'm heading to Dusty's Market. Gonna work a bit."

"I see...I hope the cookies tasted good?"

"They were divine."

"Well that's good. Well, I best be headin on my way. You have a good time and drive safely darlin'." She said before wadding up the stairs. Dean walked down the stairs and out the door of the apartment building.

He shielded his eyes from the bright summer sun. He pulled out his keys (his car keys and apartment keys where on the same keychain) from his pocket and unlocked his car. He turned on the radio when he started the car. He tapped his thumb on the steering wheel as he drove.

"Disturbances in local homes." The radio sputted out after a song. Dean turned it up. "In Quintville, the quaint home, has turned out to have missing persons. House have been losing family members, then the rest of the families have been abandoning the houses. We hope others are staying safe in Quintville." The radio went back to music.

Dean shook his head slightly, before continuing tapping his thumb. He passed by dark houses with windows smashed through, crushed beer cans scattered everywhere, graffiti, and even furniture dragged out and demolished. Kids ran through the empty lawns of some of the houses.

Stray dogs and cats ran around with the kids, the cats ran away and the dogs chased the kids. middle aged people sat on the porches, either holding guns or wine glasses filled with grape juice. The ones with guns would wave their guns in Dean's direction.

Dean stopped the car when he arrived at the supermarket. He climbed out and locked the car. He shoved the keys back in his pocket and trudged towards the almost empty lot of the supermarket. It was the second one in town, and was always messy it seemed. He trudged through the gloomy puddles and stepped over the cracks. He put a hand on the door handle and opened it, and went inside.