I left college and bought a 1 way ticket after sitting in my apartment and asking a random person on my facebook chat where a good place to go would be. I was told Tucson. I bought the ticket 10 minutes later and booked a flight set for a week from that day. in the 7 days, I told no one but started saying my goodbyes. It was a strange moment in life. I knew i was leaving but no one else did. However, I did crack and tell a few souls. I'm only human. But i didn't tell my parents. I just fucking left. I stayed in Tucson for exactly two weeks. I arrived on a sunday and left on a sunday. The first week was what i thought the best week of my life was. The second was what i thought the worst.

i stayed at an airbnb the first week. It was a hostel set up at a bankruptcy lawyer's house. He was very intelligent but he was strange as well. He would display high levels of aptitude but then say something insanely biased or ignorant. It was weird to experience let alone explain through writing. But the man saw something in me and favored me right off the bat. He hired me as his assistant and essentially paid me to just handle his social media. I was 23. In 2017. Social Media. 20 dollars an hour.

A couple days into the first week was Valentine's Day. On that day, I pushed myself to go out; to do something. I got a Lyft (Lyft is better than Uber in my opinion) and went to where I figured would be the most electric part of Tucson. The downtown area. I was only there for two weeks so that's as detailed as it is going to get. I walked around for awhile and observed the activity around me. I was actually used to it being in Iowa City for 5 years so I just blended in as a by stander. The whole me being on my own in a different state was setting in but in a way that made this moment in my life exciting. I walked past this alley and saw this interesting looking bar. R Bar. That name itself had an aesthetic so I wandered in.

it was very dimly lit with red laserish streaks across the walls. They were neon but not entirely. There was a definite glow. immediately, I noticed an older man in the middle of the dance floor slowly dancing to the beat with a cowboy hat on. It was interestingly compelling. I analyzed the layout of the bar and noticed they had an upstairs. Why would I not check out the upstairs? There's a grandpa cowboy dancing on the first floor, what could be in store for me on the next? Pivotal factors to my story. That's what was up there.

The upstairs was empty aside from a guy and a girl on a date on the right side and a single girl on the left. the middle area was the walk way and the second level had less lights but candles sat on top of the tables. i sat at a table not really near either of the two groups. I scrolled through my phone and realized that the girl to my left was doing the same. I felt on top of the world so of course, without hesitation, walked over to her and told her I was new to the town and I wanted to know where to go. I asked if i could sit and she faced me and then told me to sit. we conversed and she was laughing. they sounded and felt real. so it allowed me to become comfortable talking. that may have helped her as well because she loosened up and actually talked to me.

As she's telling me about what to do and what she would recommend, two more girls come from the stairs holding drinks and sit at the table I'm at. instantly asking who I was. What powerful women. I repeat myself and one of them becomes very intrigued by me. I notice this because she keeps asking me questions. some personal and curious to say the least. in this moment, Im just living and not realistically thinking more than a minute ahead. This was a bit surreal. I actually get to a point where I have all three of them laughing and I'm just telling them stories of my life. It was cool to feel that accomplishment of making people laugh. Eventually we end up outside to have a cigarette and the one who asked me about my ever living existence, approaches me and asks if i want to come over and stay the night. Not in a sexual way, her roommate who was a dude was also with us. He showed up when we all got outside. He was... interesting as well to say the least. I thought everyone in the group was going so agreed pretty quickly. I mean they didn't kidnap me or anything but looking back at this moment, I should have been more thoughtful with my decisions with strangers.

We all go to her place and I find out there are two more guys that live with her that attend University of Arizona. We all kind of get a long. We potentially smoked weed and I passed out. I woke up the next day to the sunlight of Arizona beaming on my face. I could feel dried sweat across my skin. It's noon and the girl that let me stay over comes into the living room where i slept. She looked like she was up for a bit. She then says some shit that rocked my world.

She offered me to live with them for 100 dollars a month.

Of course I fucking agreed.

to be continued.