An umber colored woman wearing a simple white dress was draped across a luxurious leather couch. Her golden eyes were half shut indicating how sleepy she was. Her long silver hair flowed off the couch, touching the rug below. The rug was fluffy and white resembling a cloud. The wooden floor matched the wooden walls. Green vines crept out of the walls, climbing up to the pitch-black ceiling, giving definition to the otherwise empty void. Across from the woman was a tv screen that seemed to be broadcasting only static. The woman yawned and as if to respond the room filled with natural sounds. From bees buzzing, monkeys howling, oxen snorting. Among the jungle noises words formed.

“Diana, Diana, Diana…”

She sat up and the noise ceased.

“How boring… Can’t something just come on already?”

As if to answer her call, the static parted, revealing images on the screen. She jumped off her couch causing another round of animal noises. Happy chirps. Croaks of excitement. Roars of laughter.

“Let the hunt begin!”

Diana jumped back onto the couch. The animal calls grew louder as Diana leaned forward in anticipation. The calls reached a crescendo before being muted by Diana.

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Kei Seto stared at the alleyway, covering her mouth with both hands, trying to make no noise. Her violet eyes were filled with fear. She could feel her legs shaking. Kei began backing away, only to make a break for it at the last second, with no intention of looking back. The light drizzle had turned into a downpour. Her white top became slightly see through revealing her light blue bra beneath. Dirt hit her legs as she kicked through puddles. She ran as fast as she could, not caring about getting her longer black skirt dirty or her modest purple heels. Kei’s short black hair was now drenched enabling the rain to stream flawlessly down her face. The cold rain sent a chill all the way down her spine.

Kei kept one hand over her mouth as she struggled to put the key into the lock on her apartment door. She kept hitting the sides as her hands trembled. After multiple attempts the key slipped into place, and she turned it, revealing her apartment. There was a small shoe rack right before a step up into the short hallway. Inside was a kitchenette; past it was a tiny table she used to eat. To the left, just before the kitchenette, there was another short hallway with a small cubby for her laundry machine and dryer. To the right was the door to her bathroom. Kei turned to shut the door, her heart pounding. She pressed the door firmly expecting it to close, only to be baffled that it remained ajar. Glancing down she saw a shoe in the doorway. Kei fell backward her hands instinctively moving to lighten the fall. Without her hand firmly in place a scream escaped her lips. She backed into the hallway and scrambled on her hands and knees towards her laundry machine in an attempt to hide. The door opened revealing a taller man who was also damp from the rain. His brown hair had odd white spots all over it. He was wearing a business suit, black jacket, damp semi-transparent white top with the top button undone, and a pair of nicely pressed black pants. His eyes were pitch black and unsettlingly not human. Kei had managed to scramble in the corner far enough that he could not see her. The man entered closing the door behind him. He took his shoes off placing them on the shoe rack.

“Kei, it’s me!”, the man called out.

Kei peeked around the corner recognizing the voice of the man. However, his appearance still was foreign to her. She retreated into the cubby, pressing against the dryer, dripping water droplets on the floor with her every movement. Her heels scrapped the floor giving away her location. She braced for impact as the man approached her, only to feel herself being carefully lifted up. The man gently spoke to her.

“It’s me, Yasu.”

Kei looked up to face Yasu who was holding her up. He looked normal unlike moments ago. His fluffy brown hair was dripping wet. His eyes were a forest green. Yasu looked concerned unlike the man she saw before who seemed cold and uncaring. Kei grabbed onto Yasu’s chest gripping him tightly in the small enclosed cubby. Yasu held Kei tightly in his arms waiting patiently for her to talk. Kei’s body began to relax, no longer trembling, her muscles softened, her heart no longer was racing. Kei breathed in Yasu’s familiar scent that always seemed to calm her down after an episode. After a couple of huffs, she released him and decided to remove her uncomfortable footwear. Yasu held out a hand intent on placing the shoes on the rack next to his. Kei handed over the heels waiting for Yasu to return before speaking.

“I saw something awful again. Like really bad. Worse than any of those other nightmares.”

Kei began walking toward the small living room. She brushed against the wall trying to avoid her arm touching Yasu in passing. Before she managed to sneak by him, Yasu’s arm extended blocking her path forward.

“Shouldn’t get your living space wet.”

Kei turned to face him in disbelief,

“I saw something horrible. And you're worried about my floor?”

Yasu nodded unfazed by the question. Kei laughed out loud. It felt so surreal to have seen something straight out of a horror film one minute to now be scolded by her crush about getting her floor wet. Kei glanced down to evaluate herself realizing for the first time that she looked indecent. She ducked under Yasu’s arm heading straight to the bathroom. She grabbed a towel and draped it over her shoulders to cover herself. She looked into the mirror seeing her blushing face. She grabbed a smaller towel for Yasu. Kei peeked out of the bathroom and tossed Yasu a towel. He jerked back, letting it fall to the floor.

“You really need to learn how to catch, dummy.”

She picked up another towel and exited the bathroom placing it on Yasu’s shoulder. Yasu dried his hair; while he was occupied Kei stared at his chest. His white shirt had become just as transparent as her own, revealing his thin yet surprisingly toned figure. Yasu looked up at Kei, his green eyes sparkling.

“Your hair.”

Kei reached for her hair touching the wet ends. She went to dry it herself only to remember the towel was preventing Yasu from seeing her chest. She crouched down to pick up the towel Yasu refused to catch. Yasu crouched down as well placing his towel on Kei’s short black hair. He rustled it until her hair was dry. Despite being soaked to the bone Kei could feel Yasu’s heat. She didn’t try to stop Yasu, relishing in the moment. Yasu backed away having finished.

“How are you feeling?”

Kei remained crouched fidgeting with the towel on the ground. Now that Yasu was further away the images of the alleyway kept appearing in front of her. Over and over. She felt her legs freeze up again. Yasu tried to get her attention.

“Kei, talk to me.”

Kei lifted the towel. She quickly put the towel into the laundry machine. She could not face Yasu, facing the wall instead as she spoke.

“Good. Nothing I haven’t dealt with before.”

Kei tried to keep a steady tone in her voice not wanting Yasu to worry further. Yasu nodded despite Kei not being able to see him.

“Take your time. I’ll be here.”

Yasu moved into the kitchenette. Kei tried to dry herself off further with the large towel but her hands kept shaking. The sound of her cabinets opening confirmed her suspicion that Yasu was rummaging for snacks. Kei took a couple deep breaths to gather her strength. The fear was not gone but the loneliness she felt in the hallway was worse. More composed she made her way into her living room. Yasu had made himself comfortable, his jacket was on her coat hanger, and he was sitting at her small table. He was eating wasabi peas out of a small bowl. Kei spoke to him from the kitchenette closing the cabinets he left open.

“You're like a kid.”

Yasu responded promptly.

“Why close it to open it, I don’t see the point.”

Kei grabbed some green tea out of the fridge and poured herself a glass. She then sat down at the table across from Yasu. He ate one more pea before focusing entirely on her.

“Ready?”

Kei gulped before nodding. She decided to explain her nightmare from the beginning like usual.

“I was walking home the normal way. I remember the rain had started ,and I had no umbrella. I decided to try to walk faster, but had to stop, because of my heels. When I looked down, the pavement was red.”

Kei paused. She remembered it vividly. It had felt so real in the moment; she didn’t want to relive it, but she had to tell someone what she saw. Yasu was looking at her skeptically. Kei knew what she saw was probably another nightmare but she couldn’t help but try to defend what she saw with her own eyes.

“I know what I saw Yasu, it was red. Brighter red mixed with the dirt. When I turned around, I saw it…”

Kei paused briefly before expelling the words she had been holding back.

“A man being eaten alive.”

Yasu looked like he was about to reach over the small table but stopped right before touching Kei. Instead, he responded with words.

“Eaten? Kei these episodes are just getting worse.”

Yasu clenched his fist before continuing,

“I just, wish I could help you...”

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Kei shook her head. She withdrew a little into herself holding her arms tight to her body. She decided to continue explaining what she had seen.

“He was being eaten by a monster. It looked more like an animal than a person. It had pointy ears and a long tail. Its teeth were long sharp fangs.”

Kei shuddered, remembering the sparkling white fangs sinking into the man’s flesh. Chunks of his flesh were hanging out of its mouth. Blood dripped down their jaw line falling back onto the man’s corpse. The chunk of flesh once belonging to his leg that now only barely seemed to be attached, a tendon holding it in place. Kei continued.

“The man was obviously dead. I saw his lifeless eyes. I covered my mouth to not scream but before I could leave the creature spotted me.”

Kei recalled the other monster that she had mistaken Yasu for. Maybe it was because he looked like the creature she decided to omit it from her retelling. It was like a man but their eyes were pitch black and not human. It had two large antlers on its head and was hunched over like a four-legged beast trying to imitate a human.

“That's when I decided to run for it and not look back.”

Yasu looked concerned. His hand had formed an even tighter fist as if he wanted to punch something. Something that no one could hope to punch.

“Kei, I saw you fall over from across the street. By the time I caught up you were sprinting over to your apartment. I’m just glad I caught you before you locked the door.”

Kei remained quiet for a while. She wanted to believe Yasu. She knew it was more likely she had fallen asleep on the street than seeing someone being eaten in broad daylight. But something about it felt too real. Kei decided to try to cut the conversation short.

“I’m going to take a bath quickly before bed. You can go home. If it was just a dream, I should be safe here.”

Yasu seemed to hesitate for a minute before replying.

“I don’t mind staying.”

Kei was half expecting Yasu to retract his offer but he didn’t. Kei prepared for her bath in a daze. Not sure how to process anything. She was confused about her interaction with Yasu. Nervous that he was still here in her apartment. Not sure if the Yasu who was here with her was just a figment of her imagination. A manifestation of her own desires.

“If that man really had died…”

Kei didn’t finish the sentence out loud but knew it ended with ‘I am a horrible person who did nothing’. Kei washed her body. Her hair was wet but she could not remember if she had even used shampoo. She entered the bathtub the warm water caressed her body. She quickly washed up, too afraid of slipping into sleep while bathing. Maybe Yasu would be gone before she finished.

“Is any of this even real?”

Kei pulled the bathtub stopper out watching the water swirl down the drain. She pinched herself, still feeling pain. She quickly dried her hair with a towel and brushed her teeth. Maybe the insomnia wasn’t too bad if it made Yasu willing to hug her, even for a minute. Kei laughed nervously. She put on her PJs and wandered back to setup her futon only to find it rolled out in front of her. A small note was on the table.

I will see you tomorrow. Talk more about the interviews then. Night. -Yasu

Kei picked up the little note shutting off the lights. Holding the note close to her she collapsed onto the futon ready for the day to end.

“Tomorrow will be better.”

Hoping those words would cue her slumber, Kei closed her eyes. Kei waited in the darkness for her body to listen only to toss and turn in a futile effort to find rest. While the darkness should have invited her to sleep instead all it invited were images from her nightmare. The man’s empty eyes. The blood on the stone path. The body torn to pieces. The eyes of the creature that saw her. Sharp brown eyes filled with malice. Kei could taste the rain. Kei marinated in the images that haunted her until the morning sun rose.

------------------

A small hole in the wall café was bustling with the afternoon rush. The décor was cutesy aimed to attract those into Kawaii culture. Small cute animal miniatures sat on even smaller cuter shelves. Pastel colors gave the café a fantastical feel as if being placed directly into a story book. Stuffed animals sat on tables and even hung from the ceiling. It was a popular location for both the overworked office worker needing a refresher or the over studied student seeking an oasis during exam season. Fuyuko Obi rushed around serving the tables like she did every day. Fuyuko had her long black hair tied up into a bun. Her light brown eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. She was the most popular waitress and would even be requested as a server for many of the more stubborn regulars. Fuyuko made her best attempt to not look overwhelmed in the storm of orders. She would chit chat with people with a kind of finesse that left people feeling seen and heard.

“Obi-San can I have another water?”

Another customer nearby also chimed in.

“Fuyuko-Chan can I have the check?”

Nodding to all requests Fuyuko rushed around unable to have even a minute to breathe. Her energy seemed never-ending as she carefully but quickly delivered each order. After the rush seemed to have finally receded she sat down in the break room.

“Obi-Sama you can take your break.”

Fuyuko’s boss told her, peaking his head into the break room. Fuyuko moved to him and elbowed him lightly in the stomach.

“Didn’t I tell you to stop calling me that!”

He laughed heartily. Before ruffling Fuyuko’s hair. Itsuki Uno was like a second father to Fuyuko. He had broad shoulders and a light tan. His short hair was now almost completely gray, showing his age. She would have done anything to help repay him for giving her a chance when it felt like no one else would. She fake pouted causing Itsuki to laugh even more. She smiled laughing alongside him before taking off her apron and heading out for her traditional break time walk. Fuyuko passed by a male customer who was heading into the café. The man froze in place while Fuyuko stepped past a little confused why a customer would stop in the door. Maybe he dislikes crowds, Fuyuko thought to herself before heading out into the chilly afternoon air. Yasu froze in the doorway seeing the familiar looking girl. He began speed walking towards Kei’s table. Kei was barely awake. Her eyelids were heavy. Her pen felt even heavier in her hand and kept sliding out of her grasp. Her elbow that was holding her head up kept sliding slowly down. Yasu shook Kei with urgency.

“We need to go.”

Kei drifted further off muttering under her breath.

“There is no rush. The exam isn’t for another few hours…”

Kei finally gave into her drowsiness slipping onto the hard café table. Yasu sighed sitting across from her. He looked through the papers that were scattered across the table and started placing them into neat piles. Yasu took a book out of his backpack and looked over it while watching Kei sleep. Yasu kept tapping his foot obviously not happy to wait around for Kei to rise.

------------------

Kei woke up in the café unsure how long she had fallen asleep.

“Ya... su?”

She called out unsure why he would have left her alone. The café was dark as if it had been closed for the day and no one woke her to get her out. Her notes no longer were scattered everywhere but were in neat little piles in front of her laptop that she had used as a pillow. The notes she had been typing contained a string of nonsense from her head moving over the keyboard. Yasu’s backpack was on the ground next to her feet.

“Yasu?”

She called again hoping that he just had not heard her. Kei got up and wandered to the entrance of the café. No one seemed to be inside at all, not even the owner.

“Where is everyone…”

Kei spoke softly to herself struggling to tell if this was another lucid dream or reality. She went to pinch herself but was interrupted by a creature breaking down the door. It was the same creature as before. It loomed over her about 2 meters tall. It looked humanoid in shape leaning over like a tall person. Large clumps of gray fur grew off its pale colored skin. Pointy ears stuff off its head. Its jaw was elongated like a wolf's snout. A large bushy tail swayed back and forth in front of Kei mesmerizing her. The creature sniffed the air, saliva dripping down its parted lips, sharp claws on its hands extended toward Kei.

“You…”

A harsh voice exited the lips of the creature as it lunged towards her. Kei scrambled towards safety running through the employee only doors hoping to find a back entrance. She spotted the exit into the alleyway and dove at the door. The monster followed suit hitting into the objects on its way towards her. Scratching the floor and ruining the cute mood of the café. The creature was now on all fours catching up to Kei. She ran with all her might, but the wolf-like creature was much faster catching up in no time. Kei scrambled but still found herself cornered in a dead-end back alley. The creature snarled again, speaking once more.

“I found you. If you leave now you will ruin the game.”

Kei shook her head pressing her body against the stone wall hoping to pass through it. Wishing to stall for time she spoke back.

“I don’t understand. Why me?”

The creature pressed its claws above Kei’s head. Its brown eyes stared holes into her. The creature was alert to even the slightest movements.

“You saw. Now it's your time to satisfy me.”

Another claw dragged across Kei’s shirt down to her legs. It left no mark, carefully not pressing into her, at least not yet. Kei cried tears flowing down blocking her vision. She had so much she still wanted to do.

“Please let this be another nightmare. I don’t want to die!”

Kei screamed not having much left to lose. Hoping to wake up any minute and see Yasu’s kind smile. The creature howled at her holding its paw up to swipe at her for real. Kei closed her eyes instinctively. But there was no pain. When she opened them the other creature from before was standing in front of her: shielding her. Its back was facing her and she could see a small little brown tail with a white underside just like a deer. Their head also had two prominent antlers. Soft fluffy brown hair with white spots. Unlike the wolf creature their body was much smaller and fragile.

“I came just in time…”

The deer creature’s soft voice faded. Kei recognized it immediately.

“Yasu?”

As the deer creature fell, it slowly transformed back into the man that Kei knew so well. Yasu was bleeding from the giant gash across his body. Kei grabbed him but he was too heavy for her to hold. She fell keeping him on her lap. His green eyes still reminded her of a tranquil forest. The antlers faded into small specks of ash. His fluffy brown hair still had specks of white.

“Yasu, why?”

He lifted his index finger to his lips indicating for her to not talk.

“I’m sorry. I got you caught up in this. Please forgive me.”

Kei caressed Yasu’s checks. Her vision was still blurry from her tears. The light in Yasu’s eye faded leaving his unsettling still pupils. No more movement. Cold and dead. Just like the man from the alleyway. Kei screamed. The wolf-like creature also transformed back to its original shape. A young woman with long black hair wearing a waitress uniform.

------------------

Diana was sitting on the edge of her couch only to flop backwards.

“Seriously.”

Diana grabbed the remote and shut off the tv. Her dress was no longer properly covering her body. Her long silver hair made her more modest even if it was not intentional. Animal calls echoed through the room.

“Geez, this was supposed to be a longer hunt. What was that idiot deer thinking?”

The animal calls resounded a couple words could be made out of the chaos.

“Idiot… kind… love.”

Diana responded sharply.

“That is no excuse for cutting my time short.”

Diana’s eyes were filled with a range of emotions from wonder to rage, to confusion.

“The wolf wins again. I’m going to sleep so I am not bored for the next lifetime.”

The animal noises sounded mournful. She slid off the couch onto the soft cloud rug below in a fluid motion. Diana curled up. Her silver hair covered her entire body. She grew larger with soft white fur covering her. Diana now was a beautiful polar bear curled up in her den preparing for a long winter.