update: it seems like if i delete the save it works, the string of text doesn't appear and i load in like normal, this leads me to believe that there's some kind of loading error where the apartment screen gets rid of icons and such but the characters are still there? *just theorizing based on a limited knowledge of coding/programming* and that might cause the game to try and load the screen while it thinks the characters are and aren't available at the same time, I'd look at the procedures for the apartment select screen *again, just a guess* or maybe how the game handles character's when not in use