I wake up. Another day. I have a couple of seconds of calm before I remember and the anxiety comes back. I should [[GET UP]] but I'd rather [[STARE AT THE CEILING]] a little longer. I start getting ready and I pack my work bag. I'm so tired already. Suddenly the phone rings. It's head office. I [[PICK UP]].I feel like my body weighs a ton. The weight of the dreaded day ahead is crushing. Suddenly, the phone rings. The called ID "Head Office" flashes across the screen. I [[ASNWER]]. I have a lesson in less than an hour. I need to get going. I rush out and head for the station, then I [[CATCH THE TRAIN]] just in time. I am late for work. I rush out of the house without packing my bag again, hoping that everything is in place from last night. I rush to the station but I [[MISS THE TRAIN]] by a second. I sigh in relief, slumping into one of the seats near the just-closed doors. All around me the other commuters are busy in their own distractions. I grab my earbuds to [[LISTEN TO SOME MUSIC]]. I arrive to work just in time despite the late start and begin setting up, only to realise I forgot my laptop at home. With no time to go home I need to choose between [[IMPROVISING]] or [[ASKING A COLLEAGUE I DON'T LIKE FOR HELP]]The presentation is over but it did not go well. I might come back to bite me during my performance review. I rub my eyes tiredly and massage the spot where the glasses rest. //Ugh. What a mess...// I look over the empty conference table, when a small movement in the corner catches my eye but as soon as my eyes focus on it, it's gone. A mouse? Didn't we just have pest control inspect the office? It must be stress, I'm probably not even fully awake yet. I think I will try and [[PLAN SOME WORK AHEAD]]... or maybe [[TAKE MY LUNCH BREAK]]? With a snarky comment Philip lends me a spare laptop and I hold my presentation, but I know they will somehow make this a problem for me in the future. God, the days has only just started and it's already a mess. Might just let everything be for now and [[TAKE MY LUNCH BREAK]] early.I got a leg up and prepped forms and documents for the next two days. I think it's finally time to [[TAKE MY LUNCH BREAK]].... Oh no... It's Philip... I thought today was his WFH day... He's giving me that sly, arrogant smile while walking over. //"Hello there... You seem a bit...frazzled. Sounds like that presentation didn't go to well, huh?"// I try to suppress a sneer. I am tempted to [[IGNORE]] him but office politics dictate I should just [[ANSWER POLITELY]].Going up to the kitchenette I bump into a couple coworkers from another department. I know their faces - I have seen them countless times before - and I also know their names... I just can't connect them to eachother. Janet/Melissa(?) asks me how my day is going and I politely answer. She is nice but I never feel like she actually cares for the answer I give. I open the fridge and notice that next to today's lunch I have the snack I forgot to eat yesterday and I immediately grin. Chocolate! Pudding! I do a little jig without even realizing it and grab the small container, piling it up on my tupperware container. Time to go enjoy my treasure. Should I [[GO TO THE BREAK ROOM]] or [[GO OUTSIDE]]?Wow, great! I have the break room all to myself! Shame, it is a nice day outside today.... But I have chocky pudding, so doesn't matter! I grab a chair and the spoon is already in the chocolate-y goodness before I have even sat down. [[DELICIOUS]] What a wonderful day... Even if I am sitting on a bench next to a busy street it still feels much more comfortable than the stuffy office. The birds are chirping and the clouds move lazily across the sky. The warm air feels just right and it make you want to close your eyes. I guess I could just close my eyes and relax... maybe? I sigh laying back on the bench, and it feels almost comfier than my own bed. I am just so sleepy... ...Wait, why is the so sticky and ... (text-style: "shudder")[red?] [[WAKE UP]]//"Oh hi there!"// I don't even lift my head from the cup. //"Oh hey"// Another spoonful. //"How are you?"// The chair in front of me is pulled out and they sit in it, grasping their hands together on the table, long black-painted nails interlocking. //"Looks delicious..."// //"Hm"// I reply, still with my mouth full. //"Wonder if you are too."// [[I FREEZE]] //"Hey, didn't you hear me??"// Philip's fox-like face has turned red and annoyed. //"Sorry"// I say nonchalantly, //"I wasn't paying attention. Come again?"// He huffs in annoyance and takes off, glaring back while holding a novelty coffee mug in his hand and shuffling toward the coffee machine. I haven't had mine today but at this point I might skip it altogether. It's time to [[TAKE MY LUNCH BREAK]] anyway. //"Good morning, Philip. Not working from home today?"// He grins, a fox-like expression that makes the corner of his eyes crinkle. //"Oh, not today. I have a meeting with the department leaders. Y'know, the kind of meeting you need to have in person".// I cringe, trying to keep staring at my desktop screen to not let it show. He's been buttering up the department for ages trying to get a promotion. He even ratted out Janet when she accidentaly got those files damaged, just to make himself look better. It cost her that raise she had been working towards for months. //"I see"//. He lifts his novelty coffee mug to his lips, taking the last sip from it and setting it down on the documents on my desk. A dark coffee ring seeps into the white paper. //"Oops, my bad!"// I snap. Somehow, in half a second the mug has been flung against Philip's temple. He lies on the light grey carpet, a small cut on the side of his head pooling to his left. What...what just happened? Did I...? (text-style: "shudder")[What?] [[WAKE UP]] A Midweek Day's Dream WARNING: Blood, Death (text-style: "shudder")[Suddenly, as we go through a tunnel, a sudden screech turns everyone's heads away from phones and books. Then silence. The train thuds, barely enough time to register that the carriage has flipped over in the dark. The train I am on ends up in a horrible railroad accident. [[WAKE UP]] ] //"Wha-"// The spoon slips out of my hand, clanging on the floor. The woman, no... that thing... It sat human-like. It smiled human-like. Politely as if waiting for the turn to speak. But the eyes. Round, black. Unmoving. //"What are you?"// (text-style: "shudder")[It smiles wider.] //"[[WAKE UP]]"//