nathandouglasdavis

This story starts out built around the premise of germophobia taken to an extreme level, and has a horror factor sorta built around the exaggerated grossness of an unhygenic person. Then the story shifts partway through and has the obsessive hand-washing no longer be solely tied to germophobia, but also reflect a guilty conscience (Lady Macbeth type of thing). And then there's a final shift involving the titular groaning drains and the absolutely absurdist and creepy cause behind that groaning.

Structure-wise, the story feels a bit wobbly and the way the various elements got connected together didn't feel the most cohesive. Vibe-wise, the story did include some genuinely creepy and "what the fuck" type of moments, so I guess it was a success in that sense.