Okay, I read a story someone linked here a while back and I'm trying to remember the title.
The story was structured as an old school web forum where people were discussing the meaning behind certain lines of an ancient poem.
The poem described a malevolent force in the woods associated with a particular kind of tree that would, cyclically, take people from the town. Maybe oak? Ash?
I think that the person taken was turned into wood in after being lured in by a beautiful girl.
One user on the forum was trying to trace the historical roots of the poem and managed to find the town he believes was the one referenced in the poem. They had a yearly festival that included cutting down all the trees of that type and burning them.
In the end, they guy researching is presumably taken by the forest, after some events outlined in the poem begin to happen again and then he stops posting.
Any guesses?
Edit:
I found it. Managed to piece together enough memories to get there.
Title was "Where Oaken Hearts do Gather"
https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/where-oaken-hearts-do-gather/
That all sounds like it sucks, but I don't think it's as hopeless as I'm sure it feels.
Obviously this is just a snapshot into your life, and I'm sure there are more details under the hood, like what exact "adult responsibilities" and stuff you've got going on. That said, even in this text I think you've outlined a good bit of good stuff you've got going on.
First, I don't know why you think conflict deescalation isn't an absolutely in demand skill. Every job under the sun has conflict, and being able to manage that is huge. Even within Engineering, you could put that to huge use as a Sales Engineer or some other customer facing technical role.
Second, you got your bachelor's in an engineering discipline. You can poo-poo your grades all you want, but at the end of the day you succeeded. No mean feat my man. That's worth celebrating.
Finally, if you're simply looking for a way out, there are institutions that are always looking for technical people. Obviously this is gonna vary a lot by country, so ymmv, but the government/military is always in need of people in technical roles, and rarely are able to fill them. It probably doesn't pay nearly what a "normal" engineering job would, but it'd be more than an internship, and it would give you some of that structured camaraderie that you previously felt the lack of when trying to leave.
All that to say, don't give up hope my guy. I know I'm just some schmuck on Lemmy of all places, but I think you're capable of breaking out and getting to a better place.
You got this!