Thankfully for the young man, he managed to clock off at the normal time. He rushed home as quickly as public transport allowed, waiting impatiently in the elevator and rushing to his door. But as he approached it, he unconsciously started slowing down.

  He stared at his cardboard door for a moment, and seeing nothing amiss, he slid the Esky out of the way and opened it slowly. The sunset streamed orange light through his window, illuminating much of the apartment, while also casting long shadows all over the environment. Regardless, as far as he could tell, everything was as he left it.

  Except for the creature.

  Daniel scanned the living room and the darkened kitchen, but he couldn’t find any signs of it. Anxiously, he dropped his bag onto the couch and delved deeper into the apartment. It wasn’t in his hallway, or the bathroom, or his bedroom. He made his way back to the kitchen, scratching his head. Maybe it left while he was gone. He didn't know what to think about that. Although they hadn’t known each other for very long, he’d gotten somewhat used to its presence, and now a strange but familiar feeling welled up inside him. He delved deep within himself, analyzing his emotions and what his body was telling him, before he had an epiphany.

  Ah, that’s right. I’m hungry. He thought to himself.

  The young man shoved all thoughts of the creature to the back of his mind as he opened the freezer, wondering what to have for dinner. He retrieved the frozen lasagna, but accidentally dislodged a freezer bag of frozen prawns. Bending down to pick it up, he coincidentally turned his head and receive the fright of his life.

  There, in the space between the fridge and the counter, was the creature. Its beady black eyes stared at him as he jumped back in surprise, knocking his head against the open freezer door.

  “Ow...” He said, massaging his head as he reached up and closed the open door. “Jeez, what the heck are you doing here?”

  It didn’t answer, content to lie in the dusty darkness. Daniel got to his feet, shaking his head. He looked down at the packet of frozen prawns in his hand, and the box of lasagna, then looked back at the creature.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Not too long later, a steaming rectangular tray of lasagna came fresh out of the microwave, as well as a small plate of defrosted prawns. Daniel placed the plate on the floor of the kitchen. The creature slowly extracted itself from the crevice, eyeing the prawns with some curiosity. Even so, it moved rather cautiously, and it was clearly less animated than it usually was.

  Daniel frowned, but returned dutifully to his lasagna. He didn’t know what was wrong with it, but whatever it was surely didn’t bode well for him. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the time to worry about it. He unlocked his phone and inputted a number, while idly putting a fork full of lasagna into his mouth. The call went straight to voice mail, and Daniel thought about what to say.

  “Hi Jason, it’s Daniel. Daniel Thislewitz from 2514. My door got broken in by... vandals, I guess. I’m going to need a replacement... Get in touch with me as soon as you can.”

  Daniel hung up the phone and sighed. Knowing his landlord, it would take some time for him to call him back, but that wasn’t so bad. While he could ask Jason to take care of the door, the same couldn’t be said about the TV. He would have to order a new one, and that would take a big chunk out of his savings. He had the money, but spending that much at once never felt good. Maybe he could trawl the electronics websites for sales later.

  The young man set it aside and got back to his dinner. Before he could even bear to think about that, he thought about the work he’d have to do tomorrow, the people he’d have to meet, the hundreds of little tasks he’d have to finish.

  His biggest issue was the creature. Daniel wondered what he should do about it and its sickness. Should he call a VET? A Doctor? The exterminator was always an option, but he had a feeling it wouldn’t turn out peacefully if he did that. For now, Daniel could only file that call away on his long list of things to do, just another in the ever-expanding list that was his life. Naturally, The first thing on that list was to finish his dinner.

  “What the hell are you doing!?” A familiar, shrill voice yelled suddenly.

  Daniel turned his head to look at the doorway, where a familiar teenager-fairy duo pushed past his flimsy cardboard door. The teenager had a nervous look on his face, as always, but the fairy, Petra, seemed rather aggrieved for some reason.

  “I’m having dinner,” He responded, confused. “What the hell are you doing?”

  Oblivious to Daniel's tumultuous thoughts, and the whirlwind entrance of the troublemaking fairy, the creature silently fed on the plump and juicy prawns.