Softdread Stories

init(); connect(shadow); observe(user); if (user.sees_too_much) {  warn("You weren't supposed to see that."); } There's something wrong with Pelican Town. Sebastian was supposed to be just a guy. Hoodie, cigarette, code glowing in the dark. But his blood has other plans. The shadows know his name, the darkness his voice. He's turning into something the valley remembers-and the internet sees. He's a myth in the making. A cryptid you can @. A local folklore story going viral. Then he opened the wrong file. The system's flickering. The viewers are circling. And the noose tightens. // identity: corrupted // containment: failed // phase: initializing... > continue boot sequence? (y/n) README.txt: Started as Stardew Valley fanfic. Still technically is. Took a turn somewhere around chapter... I don't know. It got weird. Didn't stop it. Don't plan to. English isn't my first language. If the grammar breaks, just assume it's a stylistic choice. (Or a system error. Either works.) The story's done. But I keep patching things. Glitches, mood swings, misplaced metaphors. It updates when I do. Cover is hand drawn by myself. WARNINGS: slow-burn body horror involuntary transformation dysphoria (both literal and metaphorical) mental health decline grief and emotional breakdowns derealization / identity loss sensory distortion paranoia / surveillance themes blood, injury, teeth (yes, really) soft psychological horror unsolicited internet fame extremely bad code occasionally worse poetry > proceed anyway? (y/n)

It was supposed to be an easy overnight shift. Her first night at the Holloway Inn. Simple. Quiet. Nothing strange. But the moment Elise clocks in, the air feels wrong-heavy, watching, aware. Then a woman appears on the lobby couch without ever walking through the door. Blank eyes. Still body. No answers. And that's only the beginning. Something prowls the boiler room. Something watches from across the street. And Elise's ex-the man who drained her dry and broke something inside her-keeps showing up where he shouldn't be. Alive. Uninvited. Wrong. Every hallway bends a little too far. Every corner hides a breath she didn't hear. Every exit leads her deeper inside instead of out. The Holloway Inn doesn't want guests. It wants witnesses. And Elise is trapped until she learns what's really feeding in the dark. If you love slow dread, empty-eyed strangers, liminal horror, supernatural tension, and stories that feel like a nightmare you can't wake from... welcome to the Holloway. You can Check in, but don't expect to leave.