☕︎ 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒇𝒕

12 - ᴋᴇɴᴊɪ

- ᴅᴇᴄᴇᴍʙᴇʀ 9ᴛʜ, ꜱᴀᴛᴜʀᴅᴀʏ

*ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴘᴏɪɴᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴠɪᴇᴡ*

paralyzed in fear, i stood a few feet from the thankfully locked front door. why can't i move? i feel like i'm trapped in my own damn body. fuck...sort of stuck right here, i had no other choice but to be forced to continue staring at the face of my stalker. i only know bits and pieces about him, but his face...seems so familiar. i know it's because i've seen him here and there, like when he was 'missing' his phone outside my apartment building, but that wasn't it. he said that we first met here.

so...i know him...

that's right. he did come in here one day, so he isn't lying. i can't forget a face like that. it's been imprinted on the back of my mind ever since. his once shoulder-length straight noirette black hair was longer now...not to mention it was greasy, had to reach about his collarbone, the bags under his green eyes looked darker than ever, and a still pale complexion. he pressed the tip of his aquiline nose and forehead against the glass, presumably to feel closer to me, but i think this distance was enough.

god, what's his name? it was...it started with a k. fuck. i don't remember it. i must've searched dozens of people that day. everything was so fuzzy. 'was it kairi? that can't be it...how about kanao? no, that's even close.' i thought, trying to wrack my brain into correctly identifying him. being able to connect a name to such a face can be useful if i'm able to go to the cops.

i spent the next few moments walking around in circles as i thought to myself, all the while lover boy outside moved his head to follow me along, his gaze unwavering and not daring to move off of me. not even for a second. when i finally reached a plausible answer to what his name could be, i stopped in my tracks. "kenji." i said mostly to myself but then decided to slowly look up at him to see that he was now smiling wider. he seemed to like that. that must be his name then: kenji.

trembling, i hurried to the back of the store and fumbled with my locker, hands shaking as i tried to retrieve my phone. i can try to call the police, but will they take too long to get here? i don't want to risk kenji breaking in, but still—i have to call someone. anyone will do. "come on, come on..." panic set in when i realized there was no signal. frantically, i pressed buttons, hoping for a miracle, but the screen remained stubbornly devoid of bars.

he must have tampered with the store's wifi earlier. machiko's assumption about the antenna repairs now made chilling sense; it was him all along. trapped in the confines of the store, i felt a wave of helplessness wash over me. desperation fueled my attempt to reach out for aid, but the phone's silent screen mocked my futile efforts.

i have to find another way out, my mind racing as i considered my options in this nightmarish scenario. i can't outrun him, so is there anything that could be considered a weapon? no...no, there is nothing here that would be as useful as a dagger other than maybe the portafilter that's used to hold espresso, but it's pretty much useless since i will have to be close to him to even land a blow. chances are that he'll disarm and subdue me.

"okay..." i hung my head low, my options dwindling quicker than i anticipated. i could always try and fix the antenna, but i'm not much of an engineer, so i won't know what to do. then there is of course the chance that kenji broke it and if that's the case, me going on the roof would be for nothing.

but what about hiding?

there is the storage room, the back room, and the main area. there are only windows in one and that's the main part of the store, so there is little to no cover. all he needs is a rock to break it and even if i hid behind the counter, he could just as easily peer into the drive-thru window and see me. then there's the back room, there are three doors— one that leads outside, which kenji can just lock pick if he knows how to do it, one that leads to the front, and one that connects to the storage room, but i broke that one down earlier when i rammed my body against it.

i still have the ladder. i could hide up on the roof and take it with me, so he has no chance of getting up there. it would buy me some time until, hopefully, the openers arrive tomorrow morning, but that means i'll have to stay up all night in the cold to make sure he doesn't try getting a ladder of his own and scaling the building. and he knows where i live and who i talk to. i can't just expect him to let me off the hook once i slip through his fingers.

already wasting plenty of time just thinking about everything, i then crouched behind some stacked boxes in the cluttered corner of the room, my attempt at hiding feeble at best. the sounds of my own ragged breaths seemed deafening as i tried to control the panic rising within me.

knock. knock. knock.

the ominous knocking reverberated through the room, making my heart leap into my throat. i quietly looked up to the door in front of me, the one that leads to the employee parking lot. my knees became too weak, they buckled under my weight and i collapsed onto the ground. "y/n..." kenji cooed, still knocking. "i know you're in there. are you hiding from me?" his voice seeped through the door, sending shivers down my spine.

tears welled up as i struggled to find my voice. i have to keep quiet...no, he knows this place like the back of his hand by now and it's like he said: he knows that i'm here. i just want this nightmare to end once and for all. "please, just go away. leave me alone!" i managed to scream at the top of my lungs before i rested my head on the ground and a great sob escaped me.

kenji stayed quiet for an uncomfortable amount of time for what i assume is because my words hurt him. but when he spoke next, his tone shifted, "open the door. right now. come on..." he trailed off. "i promise i'll be gentle."

"no, kenji, i-i can't. just leave me alone..." i repeated, weakly raising my head. "you're scaring me." i added and covered my face with my shaky hands. i just wanted to go home, safely, and as far away from him as possible.

"scaring you? you think this is scary? no, no, no, no, no..." kenji sounded so disappointed that i would say such a thing. "i'm just trying to be close to you. can't you say that? i love you."

i sobbed, the weight of the situation bearing down on me. "no, you don't! you're so fucking weird! this isn't love, so, please, let me go."

he paused for another moment. "you can't escape me, y/n. i won't let you." his voice grew even colder than before. a tense silence hung in the air before he declared, "i'm coming inside now." the muffled sounds of Kenji's footsteps retreated from the back room. then the fragile quiet shattered when an ominous crash echoed through the main part of the store. he really did it.

dread twisted in my stomach—he had broken the glass. he is inside now.

panic surged as i tried to remain hidden, even if i knew my efforts were now in vain. my breath catching at every click his shoes made against the floor. before i could retreat to the roof, the door swung open, revealing the sinister silhouette of the one who haunted my every thought.

"there you are." he smiled once our eyes locked. his gleamed with a twisted delight, but I couldn't endure another moment of his suffocating presence and so, i struck first. my hands connected with his chest, and i watched a flicker of surprise cross his face as he stumbled backward. seizing the opportunity, i scrambled away, my heart pounding in my ears. my legs carried me towards the main part of the shop, but before i could reach safety, a vice-like grip closed around my ankle.

i crashed to the ground, the impact sending a shockwave through my body. gasping for breath, i found myself pinned beneath kenji's weight who was now sitting on my back. panic surged as i struggled against his hold, but his strength prevailed. a guttural growl escaped kenji as he overpowered me

"y/n, darling, forgive me..." he murmured, a sickening mix of regret and anticipation in his voice as i heard a metallic shuffling. what was he grabbing? i can't see anything!

whatever it was, just as it made contact with the back of my head, darkness closed in, the world slipping away as consciousness abandoned me. the last sensation i felt was a haunting apology lingering in the air, the world spun, and a sharp pain radiated through my head before everything finally faded to black.