Chapter Text
"Hey Kojima-san, can you get more drinks for us?”
Mayuko, half buzzed, stared at her drunk colleagues before she nodded, slowly moving up to the bar to ask for more bottles of hard liquor. It was a Friday night and the bar was somewhat busy. But it was a time to celebrate, she and her team made the most sales than they did in previous years so they decided to go out and party, but today felt solemn for her…
The atmosphere was dimly lit, loud music pounding and people dancing. Mayuko dodged her way from the many bodies that were in front of her, the closer she started to feel sick, when she got to the counter she slumped to the seat, head spinning.
“Water please.” She muttered to the bartender, as Mayuko waited for her drink she looked from across the bar at a blonde man staring at her, in her drunken state and dimly lit room the details of his face were blurry but what was prominent for her was his short blonde hair and his cold demeanor. He reminded her of someone she knew a long time ago, leaning forward to take a better look at him, but once she blinked he disappeared.
“Your water, miss.” Bartender motioned her drink towards her, Mayuko smiled nodding in thanks before looking off in the distance, she thought nothing of it. She then remembered why she was at the bar again and ordered rounds for her coworkers.
As the night came to a close, her colleagues loudly cheered and congratulated each other for a hard but rewarding week. Rei, Mayuko’s senior co-worker looked at her with worry in her gaze, she nudged Mayuko “You going to be okay? We could always uber together?” She offered, Mayuko shook her head.
“My apartment is a 10-minute walk right across the street. I should be fine getting home, even drunk!” she cheered. “I’m just glad I have the week off to nurse the hangover I’m going to get in the morning.”
Rei nodded, “Alright… Make sure you text the group chat that you made it home safely!”
“‘Kay!” Mayuko gave the group the thumbs up before walking towards the crosswalk, it was a 10-minute walk from the club to her place, and she walked home drunk before she should be fine. It was a quiet night, the clacking of her heels to the occasional car passing by there wasn’t much to distract her from her thoughts. Mayuko thought about what happened at the bar, she wondered if the man she saw was the person she wanted to see, she felt nostalgic for her old coworker who disappeared, he was 4 years her senior, a tall blonde man with steel-blue eyes.
He was a quiet, no-nonsense man that took his work seriously, but he was subtle and sweet when you took a second to get to know him. When he used to reprimand Mayuko about the mistakes she made on the reports, he would also cover for her when their boss yelled at her about the same issues. She remembered the second-hand embarrassment she felt when her senpai had to make excuses for her and bow in apology to the senior managers.
“You didn’t have to cover for me, senpai... ” Mayuko said to him as she stared at their boss stomping his way back to the office. “I could have handled it.”
He closed his eyes while pinching the bridge of his nose, leaning back on his chair, after a few moments of silence, he turned to look at her….
“Kojima-san...As your senpai, I should take responsibility for you, but next time make sure you double-check your numbers so we both don't have a conflict…”
As strict as he was she fondly remembered that he would look over her shoulder, especially since this was her first job out of college, she was a newbie in comparison to the two years he worked at the company at the time. They weren’t close to calling each other friends, but Mayuko always took the time to see how his day was going, brought coffee and small treats to his desk, and invited him to after-work events, even if he always declined them.
Mayuko remembered when they both had to work overtime together, she went to the bakery and convenience store and brought some food for her senpai, his favorite meal, a crasse-coute sandwich, and a miso soup. She smiled at his bewildered look when she slid the meal to his desk.
“Ah, I always see you have this combo everyday… and I noticed you haven't eaten since lunch so I got you something,” Mayuko said, her senpai nodded.
“Thank you, I didn’t think you would be so perspective, I appreciate this.” He said as he unwrapped the plastic off the sandwich, Mayuko chuckled at his statement, there were times he sounded condescending or backhanded, but the more she observed him, he was just awkward and too formal for his own good.
She smiled “You should take more care of yourself, senpai! But you don’t have to pay me back or anything. It’s just a small thank you for being patient and covering for me all the time.”
Her senpai nodded. “You’re welcome.” they silently ate their meals together before going back to work.
Mayuko regretted not taking the initiative to close the gap between them, she really wanted them to be friends. It has been two years since he left the office job, she didn’t know what happened to him she remembered her boss angrily rant that he lost one of his best workers and then poured his shared work on the other team members.
She hoped he was doing okay in whatever he was doing now, she was disappointed that his name was escaping her mind at the moment, it was probably the alcohol affecting her brain. Mayuko stared at the street sign, she was one more street away from her destination, she could feel her head spinning, and her stomach was starting to ache.
“Fuck.” This wasn’t the best time to get sick, Mayuko stopped walking to take a moment to breathe, she sat down on the concrete leaning her head against the brick wall. As a few moments passed, the atmosphere started to tone down, there was a slight rustling sound coming from the bushes beside her. Mayuko’s skin felt like it was rising and her mind felt like it was running a mile, her instincts started to kick in.
Mayuko tried to get past her drunken sickness, in a panic and started to get up from her spot and walk across the street. She was in a vulnerable position and she needed to get home fast. The noises started to follow her, the ground started to shake. The second Mayuko took another step, the ground split from above her and a hand shot out and grabbed her by the ankle. She fell over, and turned, her eyes widened and tears started to weep up. As the unknown creature started to move up from its hole its grip hardened, making Mayuko wince in pain, the strong grip made it hard for her to shake off whatever was holding her.
The creature started to reveal itself under the streetlight as it came closer to the light the more it horrified Mayuko, it was a whitish blue creature with no eyes, nose, or mouth, just large holes that swirled of darkness in each one, the body was shaped like a spider with a stinger at the back. The creature kept twitching, as the holes of its face started to form sharp teeth inside.
“Hungry…..” It muttered, tightening its grip again, making her scream as she shields her face using her arms and closed her eyes, preparing for the worst. Until she heard a gruesome sound like bones being shattered, Mayuko felt herself getting lifted off the ground. She started to shake in shock and her breathing was becoming irregular and uneven until she felt a soft hand touch her face and covering her eyes, she didn’t know how but she felt herself starting to fall asleep.