As Stanley walked around the block outside at night, he couldn’t help but wonder where everyone went and why no one appeared in the vicinity. The crickets chirped, and mosquitoes buzzed around the lampposts. As Stanley stood beside a lamppost, a chilly breeze flew through his body as he wrapped his arms around and shivered.

Why is it getting colder all of a sudden? I thought we were in spring.

He checked the map coordinates from his pockets and tried to retrace his steps to find his way to the apartment. Fortunately, he somehow found his way back to Willow View and ran inside.

After Stanley headed back into his room, the first thing he did was take a warm shower. He walked out, wearing a blue towel, and looked in the mirror while drying himself off.

“That shower sure was exhilarating. Hmm, I wonder if Hilary’s doing ok, why would she—?”

“Yuck, what is that smell?” A voice in the same room inquired.

Stanley took a step back as he blinked at the mirror. Did I hear things? Why did it sound like the voice was...? “Say what? Are you talking to me?” He pointed at himself.

“Well, yeah. It’s almost like something crawled inside and rotted away.” The reflection talked back at him with a creased brow.

“But, I just showered!” Stanley defended. “Or were you referring to my breath? Do I stink?”

“Not that kind of stink. Man, you’re pathetic! You need to better yourself!”

“Well, I wish I could, but—”

“Seriously? What has your family been trying to tell you?” The reflection inquired.

“Um, to get a job, wife, and friends?” Stanley guessed.

“Two out of three, I think...”

“Wait, how are we having this conversation? Are you even real? Is what’s happening right now even—?”

“Oh, believe whatever you’d like. You best be careful and keep your head up...”

“But wait, what do you mean by—?”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Loud ringing interrupted the conversation from outside the bathroom. Stanley walked out and found that it came from his phone; he went over to pick up and answer the call.

“Hello? Oh, hey, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? How are you doing? Ah, that, sorry I didn’t call you earlier, I just had a lot to do. No, no, not like that. What? But I already discussed that with— it’s going well, but please give me time to produce results, ok? It’s too early for that. Don’t worry; I promise I’ll make you guys proud of me. I got to go, talk to you soon. Bye.”

Stanley hung up and sighed. “Perhaps I should wait until tomorrow, after all.”

.-.-.-.

The next day, Stanley showed up for work, this time early, and with little to no problems getting there. When he arrived, Hilary talked to another employee about something in his view. It seemed everyone got ready for their first shifts before they would get announced and work again.

Stanley waited for the two to finish their conversation before walking over to greet Hilary. She, too, took notice and welcomed him back, surprised that he made it early. After exchanging some pleasantries, Stanley asked her a question about the boss.

She mentioned going to his office if he wanted to discuss something with him. Stanley thanked her and said goodbye before heading out, also saying that it was imperative to do it before the workday started for them.

The boss wrote something on a piece of paper when a knock broke his concentration. Stanley opened the door and excused himself before entering the room and sitting on a chair on the other side of the desk.

“Oh, you’re early!” The boss exclaimed, putting the papers away. “But what are you doing here? Work’s about to start.”

“Why yes, I’m aware of that, sir,” Stanley replied. “But I wanted to talk to you about something important.”

“And what would that be? Is it the products we provide?” The boss guessed.

“H-How did you know?”

“I heard about it from Hilary yesterday.” The boss told him. “So, what’s the problem with them?”

“Well, as you said, it’s about the cans. Doesn’t it just seem, I don’t know, strange, to stuff these random items into the small canisters and sell them to customers?”

“Oh, let me assure you, we found a way. Not to mention, it’s easy to store, buy, open, and use—”

“So, does that include eating the—?”

“Whoa, who said you had to eat the product inside?” The boss interrupted.

“Wait, you don’t have to?” Stanley questioned.

“That’s what makes these so great. You can do whatever you want with them. It’s helped so many people; that’s why we’re the best in the business!”

The boss proclaimed proudly. “...Or are we the only ones in business in this town? Business does only boon on particular days, after all...”

“You mean like yesterday?”

“Tell me, what’s your name again?”

“Uh, Stanley, sir.”

“Tell you what Stanley, write me an essay on why we should change our orders; if they’re good enough, then maybe I’ll consider changing the formula. Think you can do that for me?”

“I... I’ll try my best.”

“That’s the spirit! I’ll give you a week to figure something out, ok?”

“Alright.”