#merrockstarter

WHERE: carnival

WHEN: july, 2026

"I'm going to go broke, but I'm going to win that unicorn," they pointed to the dark purple stuffed animal with a silver and blue mane and tail hanging out above the skee-ball slides, eyes narrowed in concentration, "in fact, if you help me out in my quest, I'll do whatever you want next, on my dime. Rides, more games, food... ice cream?" The last bit was supplied a bit sing-songed as they shot up both brows, trying to sound as appealing as possible.

LOCATION: Cul-De-Sac Diner, Suburbs.

JJ found himself at the Cul-De-Sac Diner much earlier than usual. Perhaps it was one of the downsides of sleep-training his daughter. Although she was now sleeping through the night, she always woke up at five o'clock in the morning. Before he adopted Mia, he never would have assumed that a baby monitor could serve as the most effective alarm clock in the world. However, that seemed to be the case for him now. He could not complain.

Nevertheless, he slipped into the booth after strapping Mia onto one of the high chairs, wondering how his little girl managed to have so much energy when the rest of the world was just waking up. As he flipped through the menu and stifled a yawn, he heard the chime of the bell as the door opened and looked up to see a familiar face. "Mornin'. Glad to know I'm not the only early bird in this town."

Wrangling children in a studio was one thing, wrangling them out in public was entirely another. Kenzie suddenly didn't envy teachers on field-trips. At least all of the kids she was keeping track of were in a specific costume and that had helped. But the performance had gone smoothly, so she really couldn't complain, and the kids parents had all the collected them to go enjoy the rest of the festival.

Kenzie's hand came up, running through her hair. "Okay, that was slightly more draining that I had expected." She mused, head tilting. "I think I need a little sweet treat."

WHERE: downtown merrock.

WHEN: may, 2026.

It was funny how you never really forgot some things about the place that you grew up. Even though Esther had only left town for eight years -- and had visited frequently -- she had been worried that coming back would feel foreign, that things would be new, she'd feel lost or out of place. Not so. Instead, it had felt a bit like getting back on the bike, puzzle pieces falling into the exact places that they belonged. She had settled into part-time work at her sister's business, worked hard alongside her uncle when he needed her help, and filling her free days with remembering every inch of her hometown. That particular afternoon, that concept meant standing just outside of the funeral home that she had dropped lunch off at and watching one of the flower boxes and a rather vibrant butterfly on a zinnia, trying to figure out what sounded good -- a light lunch along the coast at Fresh? A drink at Evolution? She hadn't even realized someone was speaking until they stepped more into view, startling a little as she let out a laugh. "Oh my God, sorry, I was completely zoned out. Did you say something?"

WHERE: community garden.

WHEN: cgw (april, 2026).

"I swear," Elena said with a laugh, brushing the back of her gloved hand across her forehead, crumbles of black soil left in its wake without her realizing, "every spring time, I'm reminded of how much work all of this gardening actually is, you know? Worth it, don't get me wrong! But I kind of get why some people just buy all their fruits and veggies at the market, instead."

WHERE: state park, countryside.

WHEN: early march, 2026.

It was something to be studied, how fast the tension had started spreading through town; the whispers in the grocery store, people stopping by the coast to look at the plot of land, watching older gentleman lecture their grandkids at the coffee shop about what this meant for the future of the town... Jason wasn't immune to it. He felt like he had been experiencing more of those days where he woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Case in point... standing on the steps of the lodge, watching someone head down one of the trails that he knew was dangerous. Too much ice and snow due to the cold.

"Hey," he called out, starting down the steps at a jog to catch the person before they could get too far ahead. He couldn't tell who it was from this distance, but regardless: he didn't want that call in half an hour, telling him he needed to pull someone out of the creek or off of the trail after a fall. "Do you have crampons? An ice pick, ropes? Because if not, you don't want to head down that trail, it's ice."