Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

The Rainbow Warriors, coming off a critical win at Air Force, are idle this week before hosting Utah State on Saturday.

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Hawai‘i football looks to keep momentum going during bye week

Katie Helland Headshot

Katie Helland

Arts & Entertainment

Aloha Spirit

Young artists have a chance to win cash prizes and showcase their artwork at Capitol Modern. Submissions opened Oct. 1. Winners of the regional competition get a chance to compete at the national level.

Capitol Modern

Art contest for keiki open for submissions

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

The new store on Seaside Avenue is the business’s 15th location — and fourth one on Oʻahu. Its grand opening celebration will be at 10 a.m. Oct. 4, complete with a blessing and hula performance.

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Ululani’s Hawaiian Shave Ice just opened in Waikīkī

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Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

UHERO report warns that nonprofit healthcare services are in particular danger.

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$126 million for Hawai‘i nonprofits at risk from federal cuts, UHERO reports

Arrasmith Portrait

Perry Arrasmith

Columnists

In the 1970s, Hawai‘i gave in to fears of overpopulation, so much so that population control was put into the State Constitution.

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Hawai‘i's bizarre legacy of population control (and why it's still here)

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Keliʻi Akina, Ph.D.

Viewpoints

Hawai‘i's legislators vote "yes" on bills a staggering 98% of the time. Where is the debate on issues that affect us all?

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Community Voices: Do we really want a ‘rubber stamp’ Legislature?

Sunset Noodle House is a new Japanese-fusion eatery that recently opened in Kailua. The eatery offers donburi, combo meals and ramen — including a beefy short rib ramen.

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New noodle shop open in Kailua

Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros Headshot

Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros

Zucker, the face behind @trashcleanupshawaii, started cleaning up around his Oʻahu neighborhood during Covid. Now, through social media, his goal is to inspire others to do the same.

Cobalt Zucker

Faith inspires Cobalt Zucker to do good in his neighborhood

City Council passes bill establishing Downtown Business Improvement District.

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Council approves Downtown Improvement District

Hawaii History

Lopaka and Tanya Kapanui run this ghost tour company, which was just named the best in the nation by USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards. The company has been named No. 1 on the list for three years in a row.

Lopaka Kapanui

Ghost tour company ranks No. 1 in nation

Cruz was hired following former associate head coach Milan Zarkovic's departure to UCLA in September.

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Baldwin graduate Donan Cruz named new assistant coach for Hawai‘i men's volleyball team

The business, which started out as a hot sauce company, is known for sauces like Majah Flavah, Maui Owie, and BBQ Bruddah. Its sauces are currently being featured in season 28 of the popular talk show “Hot Ones.”

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Sauce boss: Aloha Sauced is open in downtown Honolulu

When it was time for the character of the 2025 University of Hawai‘i football team to be revealed, the Rainbow Warriors learned they're a resilient group that can still win games off the heels of disappointment. 

 at home to begin conference play, an opportunity to take an early lead in the conference standings was missed. For its next assignment, UH was sent to Colorado to 

. A 44-35 win over the Falcons on Sept. 27 served as a valuable reminder to the Rainbow Warriors that they can still contend in the Mountain West Conference. 

Perhaps no player's performance represented the team's one-week turnaround more than quarterback Micah Alejado, who struggled with three interceptions against Fresno State but recovered with a 

 against Air Force that won him Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week honors. 

"A lot of personal growth for me, mentally, for sure," Alejado said following Thursday's practice, the first of UH's bye week. "Just seeing how the resilience had to come and just seeing how I had to push through the last week, obviously wasn't the easiest week after Fresno State. 

"Just everything leading up to Air Force for me, it was more so just seeing who I am as a person and how I can bounce back. On Saturday, it gave me much more confidence in myself, and it was a great learning experience for me, great personal growth and I loved the lesson."

Idle until Oct. 11 against Utah State, the Rainbow Warriors took the field at the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex for their first practice of the week on Thursday. With no game to prepare for, the 'Bows still held an intense practice with the hopes of maintaining the progress they made as a team last weekend. 

"I think these guys are hungry, and they have a desire to go out there and be successful. I think that's what drives them," head coach Timmy Chang said. "I think the experiences of just continuing, learning and growing from their past to where we are now, they want to be better, and we get to look at the things that we weren't good at this season and try to correct them and get better, and we want to continue to grow."

The bye week was also timed conveniently for standout receivers 

. Cencale, who has not played since the team's loss at Arizona on Aug. 30, continued to ramp up in an attempt to get back in the receiver rotation against Utah State. Meanwhile, Ashlock was sidelined during Thursday's practice. Additionally, breakout defensive tackle De'Jon Benton was a sideline participant after missing the Air Force game. 

As for the players who did practice on Thursday, it was business as usual, even though there's not a game on Saturday to prepare for. 

"We're built on toughness," running back Landon Sims said. "Mental toughness is pretty much the core of our team values. The military training, everything that we did in the offseason, we do some hard a** s***. We're tough guys, and I think I like to embody that in the way I play, in the way I block and run. The bye week's great but we'd be ready to go this Saturday if we didn't (have one), but it is a blessing. Right in the middle of the season, that halfway point where we can kind of get guys that are banged up back on the field ready to go for next week."

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

<title>Hawai‘i football looks to keep momentum going during bye week</title>

The most bizarre section in Hawai‘i’s 

 is the one that relates to the state’s regulation of population growth. It is a testament to a bygone era informed by misguided local anxieties. 

Runaway population growth across the Hawaiian Islands once occupied the Hawai'i zeitgeist. While much of this mindset persists in the halls of society, it contrasts with Hawai‘i’s contemporary demographic woes. 

Between April 1960 and April 1970, Hawai‘i added 115,510 residents to its population, totalling 748,182 residents across the islands. It was a meteoric rise that stressed the Hawai‘i’s poor infrastructure, corrupt land management practices, and limited housing across the islands. 

Hawai‘i was a young, growing society. The median age of a resident was 25. Much of the State’s dynamism and vigour, in turn, were informed by a mix of talent both local and non-local.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Perhaps it was too much of a good thing. "}]

During this time, national commentators were fretting about the global population’s growth. Paul and Anne Ehrlich had co-authored 

in 1968. Internationally, the Club of Rome furnished the

report, which only further argued against overconsumption. Political views wrapped in scientific dogma started-off a new movement whose cultural salience was confirmed by the 1973 film 

While societies were wasteful and inefficient, these reports didn’t necessarily call for more efficiency. Instead, they called for fewer people. 

While the times have changed, our Constitution’s outdated language shows how we are still stuck in the ’70s. Through national debates over population control, Hawai‘i became a tragic guinea pig that used environmentalism to justify population control, opening the floodgates for arguments against urban development, immigration, and economic growth. 

These conversations continue to plague Hawai‘i’s zeitgeist, most notably when it comes to unnecessary conflict between economic growth and environmental stewardship.

In 1970, the Hawai‘i State Legislature passed Senate Resolution 305, establishing the State’s Temporary Commission on Population Stabilization. A 1972 report issued by the Commission suggested an inverse relationship between environmental stewardship and population growth. 

“It remains to be seen whether or not we will achieve a balance with the limits of the Hawaiian environment in this present period of growth in Hawaiian history,” the 

 warned, “but it should be recognized that with respect to maintaining the quality of the environment, population and prosperity are ‘trade-offs.’ If we expect to maintain a fixed level of pollution and impact on the environment by people in Hawaii, then any increase in one will require a corresponding decrease in the other.”

In the following year, the State Senate once again adopted a resolution calling for the establishment of an optimum state population. “The question of population equilibria among the Islands is a difficult one to answer quantitatively,” a 

 from the Department of Planning and Economic Development warned.

“One must consider the impact on the environment, what ‘quality of life’ should be used as a measure, means of developing a viable economy within a stable population, and the size of population on each Island which will bring about a desirable balance with the social and natural environment of Hawai‘i.”

Nationally, the Commission on Population and the American Future had been established by federal law in March 1970. A final 

 issued by the Commission was submitted to the U.S. Congress in March 1972, with proposals ranging from increased abortion access to voluntary sterilization to stricter immigration controls. Out of political embarrassment for its recommendations, the Nixon Administration largely distanced itself from the Commission.

However, the rhetoric which argued for limits on immigration had devastating consequences. In the present-day, arguments blaming immigrants for environmental degradation have had devastating 

Back in Hawai‘i, the reports stacked on one another. In 1972, Earl R. Babbie of the civic organization 

, a major argument for a cap on Hawai‘i’s population at one million (Hawai‘i’s population reached this threshold in the mid-’80s). 

These reports built a case for a more permanent state agency tasked with controlling the state’s population growth. As a result, the Commission on Population Stabilization and the Hawaiian Future was 

A primary architect of the measure, Nadao Yoshinga, was not solely worried about the influx of outsiders. Natural population growth among existing residents was another worry. Yoshinaga, an influential member of the State Senate, would 

 in the name of limited Hawai‘i’s population growth over the coming years. Limiting population by whatever means necessary (in the confines of the law) was the objective.

At around this time, Robert C. Schmitt, the State Statistician of Hawai‘i, 

 of the emerging field of population policy. Proponents of population control, at least in the early Statehood era, had started to organize in the late ’60s through such organizations as the University of Hawai‘i-sponsored Zero Population Growth-Honoulu, Citizens for Hawai‘i, Life of the Land, the Sierra Club, and Save our Surf. 

These groups advocated for policies to halt population migration, economic development, and other factors like densified communities in the name of environmentalism. Perhaps tragically, this misguided approach to Hawai‘i’s prevailing problems created a manichean world of values in conflict with one another.

Arguments for population control in the name of environmental stewardship had a real impact on policy in the late ’70s. Most notably, this came to a head in 1977.

During his annual State of the State address, Governor George Ariyoshi directly addressed population control, arguing for immigration controls and density regulation in the name of the ‘aloha spirit.’

“The problem of excessive population seems to be central to nearly every problem in the State.” he started. “Too many people means too few jobs and too much competition for them. Too many people means too little land for agriculture, parks, and scenic vistas. Too many people means too much crime and too much erosion of possibly our single most important commodity: the Aloha Spirit. Too many people means too much pressure on all our governmental and private institutions.” 

Ariyoshi wanted fewer people in Hawai‘i, plain and simple. To reinforce his views, the State Legislature even sponsored a 

 on population and the Hawaiian future in March 1977. 

One piece of legislation would have discriminated against recent arrivals to Hawai‘i through residency requirements for state jobs. A Federal Judge based in Honolulu, the part-Hawaiian Sam P. King, condemned the State of Hawai‘i’s flirtation with a flagrantly “anti-migratory” statute.

These attempts provide a marked contrast with the present day. In January 2025, the Department of Human Services 

 that the State suffers from a vacancy rate of 24% of all civil services positions (equivalent to more than 4,000 jobs). 

Nevertheless, Hawai‘i still inserted a section into its Constitution at the 1978 Constitutional Convention that called for population planning. To date, it is the only Constitution in the United States with such explicit language.

Instead of promoting smarter urban planning methods that conserved space while reducing sprawl or incentivizing farmers to bring more fallow agricultural land into cultivation, it was more convenient to blame the outside migrants for Hawai‘i’s development problems.

Instead of fostering solutions which invite greater societal innovation, it is more convenient to fall for an ideology wrapped in the veneer of science. 

Since 1970, Hawai‘i’s population fortunes have reversed.

Global population growth is not exponential, nor could it sustain the growth rates witnessed after the Second World War. In fact, our planet’s 

 will likely begin declining before 2100. 

The paranoia of the ’70s became irrelevant over the following decade. By 1983, the Commission on Population and the Hawaiian Future had been abolished.

For a majority of Hawai‘i’s residents in 2025, the ’70s are a foreign, unknown domain. Since Hawai‘i’s 

 was 41 as of 2024, it’s safe to conclude more than half of Hawai‘i’s population was born after 1980.

Today, Hawai‘i is missing people. It is one of the fastest aging states in the United States. The population is contracting, with more than half of all Native Hawaiians on the planet living outside of the archipelago.

Culturally, it is still easy to blame the outsider for our own problems. Instead of acknowledging our own complicitly in failing to plan for the future, it is far easier to find that the outsider is only exacerbating the problems we are not addressing. Policies which now arrest growth not only injure potential migrants. They also hurt residents.

The debates over population control in the ’70s were about a fear of change and a society’s failure to properly navigate the pressures wrought by new forces.

Contemporary conflicts over growth still magnify this attitude. Not unironically, stewarding Hawai‘i’s environment means Hawai‘i’s environment needs to also steward Hawai‘i’s people.

“It should be remembered,” Governor John Burns said in 

, “that the key ingredient in any environment is man himself: he is part and parcel of and the key to the value of our total system of symbiotic relationships on this earth. Being a part of the environment demands that we consider human economics together with biological ecology.” 

“If man is hungry, ill-housed, undereducated or poorly treated in his society,” he wondered, “what service is it to him that his environment remains in its pristine, natural state?”

A society without one cannot have the other. We need to think about growth, not stabilization. We need to think about people.

In our own time, we need a Constitution whose thinking is not tethered to the past. While the language in outdated documents like our Constitution locks our zeitgeist in another time, we need to get over our history. We need a better zeitgeist.

<title>Hawai‘i's bizarre legacy of population control (and why it's still here)</title>

Originally from Georgia, Molly Schmidt’s first exposure to the American Red Cross was during her childhood. She said she learned to swim at her local community pool and later got CPR certified with the organization.

She went on to serve with the Red Cross Movement after the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, based in Bangkok, Thailand, working with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Southeast Asia Regional Delegation.

“Eighteen countries were affected. It was a 10-year-long recovery effort coordinated by all kinds of agencies, Red Cross included,” Schmidt told Aloha State Daily. “It was really powerful to see neighbor helping neighbor. I was hooked with Red Cross at that point.”

She has more than 20 years of nonprofit experience. After moving to Hawaiʻi in 2019 with her family, she went on to become COO for 

American Red Cross the Pacific Islands Region

, which encompasses the state of Hawaiʻi, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands

 and America Samoa. Schmidt was named interim CEO of the nonprofit in May and took the helm in August, overseeing 33 staff members and 2,000 volunteers in Hawai

She added that volunteers make up 90% of its local workforce.

“The value of the American Red Cross is in our people,” Schmidt said. “They’re providing [for] the needs and are trained in approaching people with a human aspect. They can give a blanket, but they can also give hope. They can provide a meal, but they can sit and listen to somebody who just lost everything. That compassion is essentially where we will always drive our mission and values.”

The nonprofit depends heavily on volunteers and donations from “generous individuals, corporations and foundations” to deliver its mission, she noted. According to its website, “The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families.”

In the community, Schmidt serves with the 

Hawaiʻi’s Organization of Women Leaders

 and Troop Leader for Girl Scouts of Hawaiʻi’s Troop 193.

ASD asked Schmidt about lessons-learned from local disaster response, how she personally stays prepared in case of emergency, and current and future priorities for the organization.

Looking back on the recent wildfires, tsunami and hurricane warnings, what worked well and/or what would you do differently? 

When we get the call from the county, we work with federal, state and county officials, in partnership with other nonprofits. And partnership is key. We can’t do everything alone, nor should we. We’re the first to respond right after the first responders. The counties will designate where the shelters will be and whatever the number is. So, we open, operate and close those shelters. That includes the logistics – the welcoming manpower, providing mental health and case managers and supplies for immediate needs. We also operate feeding with our feeding partners. It takes four volunteers to open a shelter, and we have rotations of volunteers. It’s giving those community members a safe place to be.

Last year, we responded to 120 local disasters, but 80% were single-family home fires. Those are disasters that happened to a family and don’t make the news, but American Red Cross was there. We give financial assistance and resources to help the family initiate their recovery. For us the Home Fire Campaign and October’s National Sound the Alarm Campaign, to raise awareness around the value of having working smoke alarms in your house, are really important across the Islands. The fire alarms we install are good for 10 years, no battery, no wires.

Everyone wants to be prepared, but sometimes you don’t know how to. There’s a lot of information [following the 2023] Maui wildfires around how to be prepared. We all learned some hard lessons with that. I came on during the organization’s transition from response to long-term recovery. In Maui, during the first year, we provided more than 32,000 shelter/ hotel stays and over 3 million meals and snacks, touching thousands of people’s lives. We spent $109 million in response that first year. We don’t typically stay long-term except in special cases like Maui and Los Angeles. In year two, we partnered with 14 Maui-based nonprofits that had existing boots on the ground and operations, and we supported them with another $14 million [in total] to strengthen and continue their response focused on housing, health and hunger.

We are in hurricane season from June to November. Hurricane season also means wildfire season because the winds whip up the wildfires. We are seeing twice as many disasters on a year-over-year basis now than we saw 10 years ago. It’s an alarming rate the number of disasters happening. And we will respond to every single one of them with our amazing team.

How do you practice preparedness in your personal life? 

I have a go bag at home, in my office and in my car because you never know where you’re going to be, right? It has a change of clothes, can of soup with a pop top, running shoes, a head lamp, pocketknife, etc.

I also have the emergency Red Cross app. You can set the location and put in different ZIP coded nationwide, so I have a set location for my family in Georgia, at my children’s schools, so I can be notified about disasters in those areas. It’s completely customizable and pushes out the information you tell it to. This is a great way to be prepared. Having those conversations in families, schools, in churches, at your workplace also make a difference.

What are your current and long-term priorities? 

I’ve made it a point to be present across all of the islands with our “talk story sessions,” an opportunity to connect with partners, elected officials and volunteers, to talk about the needs, listen and partner thoughtfully, strategically. Asking, ‘How can we amplify the support the communities are going to need, using resources well?’ And then hearing feedback and working to ensure we are meeting those needs.

[Other goals include recruiting more volunteers and building workforce capacity for them; increasing fundraising through awareness; bolstering existing programs like Red Cross Youth Clubs (ages 13-24), which enables youth to start civic engagement early on through service projects, and support for veteran and military families; and the Human Animal Bond (HAB) Program, which involves therapy with dogs.]

What have you been learning as a leader lately?

This job is 24/7, 365 days a year. My team can reach me at any point. So, it is important for me to have my own boundaries. I like to hike. I love nature. I play tennis. My family support is critical; we enjoy playing cards and traveling together.

The greatest things about my life have been as a mother, a wife and serving as the American Red Cross CEO. To me, it is an honor to serve in this role. I don

’t feel like it’s just a job; it’s a way to serve. And everyone here – every volunteer, every staff member – is surrounded by their family support that helps people give of their heart and talents.

Molly Schmidt Red Cross 2025

<title>Hawai’i Red Cross CEO on preparedness and priorities</title>

Aloha State Daily recently sat down with Molly Schmidt, who was named interim CEO of American Red Cross the Pacific Islands Region in May and took the helm in August, for a wide-ranging conversation. Topics included her prior experience with the organization, lessons-learned from local disaster response, current priorities and more.

Hawai’i Red Cross CEO on preparedness and priorities

Stephanie Salmons Headshot

Stephanie Salmons

Business & Tourism

Kāhala Mall — the first enclosed, air-conditioned shopping center in the Islands — celebrates its 55th anniversary in October.

“Celebrating 55 years really means the world to us, and we truly couldn’t have done it without the incredible partnerships we’ve built with our merchants, the loyalty of our customers and the unwavering support of this amazing community,” 

Ezy Paeste said in statement. “Over the years, we’ve witnessed so many special moments unfold here — teens landing their first jobs, couples on their first dates, families and friends turning visits into lasting traditions. Some folks have been coming here for generations, and now we’re seeing their children and grandchildren strolling through the same halls. It’s been an absolute honor to be part of those memories and to grow alongside this community through the years.”

Now home to nearly 100 retailers, restaurants and service providers, the East Honolulu retail hub opened in 1970. But its origins date back even earlier.

What was then called the Wai‘alae Shopping Center opened in November 1954 by Bishop Estate, according to a timeline included in a recent announcement from the mall. It featured a Piggly Wiggly grocery store, later Star Market, and Longs Drugs, and had the state's first Woolworth variety store and Wai‘alae Bowl.

In 1957, Kāhala Barber Shop, which is still in operation today, opened in phase 2. The next year, Liberty House opened in a 70,000-square-foot space.

[{"type":"text","text":"Here are some more timeline tidbits:"}]

 formed the Kāhala Center Co. to redevelop the open-air Wai‘alae Shopping Center into the state's first fully enclosed, air-conditioned shopping mall.

: Construction begins and the existing anchor stores — Longs Drugs, Liberty House and Star Market — remain opened. The H-1 freeway is also under construction at the same time.

: Kāhala Mall officially opens, with anchor tenants that include JC Penney, Longs Drugs, Liberty House, Star Market and other early merchants like Yum Yum Tree, Zales, Kāhala Barber and Reyn's.

: Compleat Kitchen opens in 1976 and Calista by Cotton Cargo opens in 1979. Both shops are still open today.

: Consolidated Theatres opens its eight-screen complex, which underwent a complete renovation in 2020-21, during the Covid-19 pandemic.

: California Pizza Kitchen opens its first restaurant in the Islands — and the first outside of California.

Pizza Hut (1986), Jeans Warehouse (1987), The Paperie (1991), Marsha Nadalin Salon & Spa (1993), Sanrio Surprises, GNC (1996), 

, American Savings Bank (1997), GameStop, Pictures Plus (1998), Panda Express (1999) and Chili’s (2000).

: Starbucks opens its first Hawai‘i location at Kāhala Mall.

: Flash flooding on March 31 damages about 60 of the mall's 90 businesses but the mall quickly reopens.

: Whole Foods Market opens its first Hawai‘i location in the space formerly occupied by Piggly Wiggly and Star Market.

: Kāhala Mall spans 414,000 square feet with nearly 100 tenants. Thirty merchants have operated there for a decade or more.

commemorative merchant flags featuring photographs of longstanding tenants will be displayed throughout the center, the announcement noted.

According to the mall, popular gift-with-purchase promotions will showcase the colors and design of the Kahala Mall carpet, a recognizable feature of the center for decades. You can receive these limited-edition gifts in September and throughout the holiday season.

Follow @kahalamall on social media to see photos of the Center's early days and through the years. Customers also can share their own memories of Kahala Mall by tagging #KahalaMall55 for a chance to win Kahala Mall gift cards and a grand staycation at the Kahala Hotel & Resort.

Kahala Mall is located at 4211 Waialae Ave., and open from 

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Old Longs Drugs

<title>55 years of Kāhala Mall</title>

The first enclosed, air-conditioned shopping center in the Islands celebrates its 55th anniversary in October.

55 years of Kāhala Mall

Lopaka and Tanya Kapanui

Lopaka Kapanui and Tanya Kapanui

The Mānoa Falls Trail is one of Oʻahu’s most beloved hikes, leading through lush rainforest to a 150-foot waterfall at the back of Mānoa Valley. Managed by the state’s Nā Ala Hele trail system since 1988, the path is maintained as part of the Honolulu Mauka Trail System, which links multiple routes across the ridges and valleys above Honolulu. In recent years, the trail underwent significant improvements to better accommodate the many visitors who explore the valley each day.

While a popular attraction, the trail has also seen its share of challenges. The Honolulu Fire Department regularly responds to rescues for lost or injured hikers, with some requiring helicopter evacuations. In rare but serious cases, hikers have suffered fatal accidents near the waterfall itself. Temporary closures are also not uncommon, especially after heavy rain or storm damage, when fallen trees and slippery terrain make conditions dangerous.

By day, the Mānoa Falls Trail feels like a living postcard. Its lush forest and idyllic scenery draw countless visitors to its famous water cascade. But as with many places in Hawaiʻi, the beauty of the landscape holds a deeper layer of stories passed down through generations. Long after the hikers have gone home and the valley quiets under the canopy of trees, Mānoa takes on an entirely different presence that locals whisper about with caution, and visitors sometimes stumble upon when they least expect it. It is in these hushed moments, after dark, that the trail reveals its other side.

One weekend night in the early 1970s, Vance went on a double date with a friend. His girlfriend was beside him in the front seat, while the second couple sat in the back. On a whim, the group decided to drive up toward Mānoa Falls. They reached the chain that blocked cars from going farther and parked beneath the trees. It was late, and the valley was wrapped in silence and heavy darkness. The two couples sat for a while talking inside the car. That was when Vance noticed something strange: two eyes, suspended in the air in front of them.

At first, he didn’t understand what he was looking at. But the longer he stared, the more dread crept in.

[{"type":"text","text":"Grabbing his date’s arm, he blurted out, “Look! Eyes!”"}]

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