"Intro to Eternity" by Steve Capone Jr.

It’s about time you showed up. We’ve seen you around. With your grandkids, of course. And we’re glad you’re finally here, with us. Let me show you around.

Mickey over there—wave to him, now—he opens up the mall at 6:30 every morning, seven days a week. That’s our cue to start walking. We usually meet here, near the Orange Julius.

You’ll find the routine comforting, eventually. Don’t let it scare you, now.

We’re a community, and now you’re a part of it.

We walk counter-clockwise, every day. Nice and easy, always the same. Most important is that, with our crowd, you never have to be alone. You don’t have to feel unwanted.

The permanence is comfort.

We know how it is. The family grows on its own. They don’t need you anymore—don’t look at me like that. I’m only saying what you’ve been thinking for years. It’s not an insult. It’s life. You’ve made it this far. Now you can spend the rest of it with us. Day in, day out.

Not many people come to the mall anymore, so we kind of have the place to ourselves. I’d tell you to imagine it, but you don’t have to. Look upon our territory, the old and outmoded, and weep with joy! It matches our ragtag crew. You fit right in.

They open the shops at nine or ten, depending on the store. We walk until after they close again. Then we wait for Mickey and start the cycle over. We used to see soccer moms doing their daytime shopping, secret lovers at assignations in the food court, and teenagers on group dates in the afternoons and evenings. Now it’s just us.

But our number is growing. We number in the dozens, as you can see, and you’re the third addition this month!

Don’t worry, the store minders mind their stores and leave us to ourselves. Not alone. Never alone. To ourselves. They have their business, and we have ours. There’s a lot to be said for being let be. Our families are gone, and the clerks try to ignore us, and we are stronger together.
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Are you ready to walk? You never have to be alone again—not for an instant. Forever.

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Founder of Whisper House Press, whose Costs of Living inaugural horror anthology is in production for publication in late 2025, Steve Capone Jr. is a Utah-based writer hailing from the Rust Belt. His first YA historical fiction, Max in the Capital of Spies, was released in 2024. His second, Jimmy vs. Communism, is due out from Gibbs Smith in 2027. You can find his short fiction in anthologies including We Are Dangerous (LUW Press, 2023), Darkness 102 (Collective Tales Publishing, 2024), This Isn’t the Place (Timber Ghost Press, 2024), and elsewhere. He’s a pizza advocate, dog helper with Arctic Rescue, and a proud member of the Horror Writers Association and League of Utah Writers. You can find his incorporeal footprint on his website at www.stevecaponejr.com or at https://linktr.ee/stevecaponejr.