Hide–and–Seek
“No. It’s oluy,” Aether sad while shaking her head frantically. “I’m not into women. You should just go home. If you get paid, use it to get the HPV vaccine. Also, get gular check–ups and don’t overwork yourselves. Always use protection and take care of your hygiene to stay safe.”
The curry women’s eyes reddened. “Aether, no one’s ever cared about me like this before. You’re the first. You’re so kind.”
The Innocent–looling woman grabbed Aether’s hand. “Can stay with you? I can do laundry, cook–anything!”
Arther pulled her hand fire. “No, you all should live your own lives, post be careful in this line of work Stay safe. That’s all. You can go now. I’ll tell Zachary that we did everything so that you’ll all get paid.”
Rekstantly, the women finally left.
“So you get to play the saint, huh?” Zachary said coldly” “How noble of you.”
[Zachary Conner’s favorability rent favorablĺšty: -101]
IL
Aether was mirprised to hear the favorability increase again. After all, she hadn’t done anything for Zachary, and he wasn’t even there.
She opened the door and peeked into the hallway. There was no sign of him, so how did his favorability go up?
She returned to the dorm to grab her phone. Then, she headed out to look for a part–time job. With only 600 dollars in her bank account, it was getting expensive to Teed both herself and Zachary
She tried talding the elevator, but it wouldn’t open. Left with no choice, she took the stairs. But something was off. Instead of the first floor, she ended up in an ⠀enormous, luxurious docmitory,
Aether looked around aimlessly, trying to find the exit. Unsure of where it was, she tried pulling open every door. But the place was like a maze, and soon, she had no idea how to get back
“Hello? Is anyone here?” she called out, opening another door, only to see..
Aether immediately spun acound in shock. “5–Sorry! I didn’t mean to see that. I was trying to get to the first floor, but the elevator wasn’t working, so I took the stairs. That was how ended up here. I–1 didn’t see anything”
“Go left and walk straight ahead. There will be a kind samaritanon the first floor who will show you the way out,” Russell replied indifferently.
“Alright.” Aetherodded vigorously. “I’ll go right now. Thank you! Thank you so much!”
Russell felt a wave of frustration as he watched Aether walk away “Thank me? For sending you to your death?”
Aether hurriedly an off, following Russell’s Instructions to head downstairs. But this time, the first floor wasn’t what she expected. At the very least, it didn’t match the grand lobby she had seen when she first got in the elevator.
The place appeared to be a chemistrylab, Ded with glassware
Arther stepped closer, then stumbled back in horror, collapsing to the floor.
The containers were filled with living creatures with heads, faces, noses, and eyes. But she couldn’t tell if they were human heads or small animals.
he was so panicked that she nearly crawled in an attempt to leave. But before she could reach the stairs, the staircase to the second floor vanished. Even the stairwell entrance had disappeared, replaced by a flat ceiling.
Aether desperately wanted to escape the lab when she suddenly brand footsteps.
The door slid open automatically. A man stood in the doorway, holding a bloody hamster inqne hand and a surgical instrument in the other.
He tilted his head and said, was just wondering how I could get my hands on a liwe sperimen for dissection. I guess I just use you.”
Aether was trembling in fear she tried to get up and run, but Neil grabbed the back of her collar. Then, he seized her arm and forcibly pushed her onto the operating table. He picked upp scalpel as if preparing to dissect her alive.
Terited, Aether immediately grabbed hold of his crotch. “If you keep going. I’ll crush it.”
A strange sensation washed over Nell. His hand, still gripping the scalpel, froze mid–air for what seemed like an eternity. “It’s such an odd feeling, yet it feels kind of pleasant, Why is that?”
Aether swallowed hard, her forehead still beaded with sweat. “H–Have you ever been with a woman before?”
“What do you mean?
“Let me go, and I’ll show you something amazing Something that’ll make you feel good all the time.”
“Like the feeling I have now?
-Yek” Arther’s valce quivered. “Just like what you’re feeling now. You won’t regret it.”
She released her grip and was about to get off the operating table. But Neil, having lost the sensation from earlier, grew irritated. “Hold on to IL!”
“Keep going”
to–okay.” Aether had no choice but to continur holding | augh she knew that this clearly couldn’t last forever. “D–Do you have a phone?”
“It’s in the master bedroom”
“I could use it to find things that’ll make you even happier. Will you let me go if I do that?
- ow. If you can’t, then just die so that I can use
“I don’t trust humans,” Neil said. He gripped her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Make me feel the same way I did just now. you as an experiment.”
Arther kept working her hand, in then he spoke again. “So this is how it works fout the hands alone can feel andazing. But I have hands too, so what purpose do
Aether panicked. In a moment of desperation, she leaned in and forcefully kissed Nell on the lips. A tingling, electre sensation shot through his mind. Meil experienced an inerme pleasure like nothing he’d ever felt before.
[Nell Hubbard’s favorability +1. Comment faverability–00.1
Hearing the favorability had gone up, Aether gave it her all and kossed Meil even more fiercely.
Minering heretiers, Nell slowly began to kiss herback.
The two of thein were locked in a deep kiss, with one sitting on the operating table and the other standing before..
Arther could barely breathe. She tried to pull back, but he pursued her, comtiming the kiss. She collapsed against him, struggling for air and weakly pushing him nway. Yet Nell seemed addicted, barely letting her catch her breath before claiming her lipsance more.
Dizzy from the lack of oxygen, Aether thally shoved him away desperately, no longer caring about the scalpel in his hand. “[stbat enough?”
Nell moved to kiss her again, but she braced both hands against him. “No more, otherwise, I’ll suffocate. If you need more, find a woman outside. I’ve taught you what could, so can you let me go now? Hlease, I don’t want to die.”
Well hesitated for a moment and continued to dissect the hamster. “I haven’t had a live human sperimen in a long time. I need to conduct an experiment.”
Aether was so terrified by his winds that tears immediately streamed down her face. She felt a sting in her nose as she choked back a sob to ask, “Do it to be me?
“It’s not like you have anything of value when you’re alive. At least in death, you have experimental value ”
Arther lowered her head.
Neil felt no pity for her. He looked at her, clearly in need of someone to dissect. “Considering how you gave me a unique experience earlier, let’s play a game “
“What kind of game?”
“Hide–and–seek” Neil explained the rules, “You hide. I’ll count down one minute, then come find you.”
He handed her an hourglass “When I finish counting to 60 seconds and start searching, flip the hourglass, You may live if I don’t find you before the sand runs our
Aether took the hourglass and left the lab to search for a hiding spot.
Meanwhile, Neil leisurely pulled out his phone and checked the surveillance feed. It was his lab, so naturally, he had cameras covering every angle inside and out.
The point wasn’t to find her but to see if she would deceive him. After all, he despised liars more than anything.
Watching the live feed, he began counting down aloud. 50, 49, 48.—”
To his surprise, she still hadn’t flipped the hourglass. He wondered if she could really wait until the full 60 seconds.
He doubted it.
After all, every person sent to him before, who were also desperate to survive, had immediately tipped the hourglass once they received it. Some even did it after hiding, trying to trick him into believing time was up and that he’d failed to find them
But did they really think that be, with full surveillance, was stupid?
Nell continued counting 30, 20, 28…”
