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Predatory Puddles (11) : Summer rains aren’t uncommon, so finding puddles dotting your path isn’t in itself particularly surprising or abnormal. However, as you walk past them, you feel the sensation of being watched, like eyes are on you. If you look into the puddles, you don’t see your reflection--nor the reflection of anything familiar to you. Instead, you see strange, decayed buildings, and odd, rotting plants. Something is watching you through the puddles, but before you can investigate, between one blink and the next, it’s all gone. When you look back, the puddles are oddly non-reflective, and then in the next blink, they’re all gone. The feeling of being watched doesn’t fade, though.
Cecelia was on her way to go look at some chunks of wood. She had gotten a call earlier from a tree trimmer she knows, about some wood from a job that had a ‘unique pattern’. She was excited to start a new craft project, so much so that cost did not occur to her until she was halfway there. Her heart sank as it dawned on her, and she remember she had not done much work recently. She pulled over, checked her bank account, and knew it would not be enough.
She was sad for a moment, but then she started to think of solutions. If she did a few quick deliveries she might be in the ballpark, or at least close enough to convince the seller into a loan of sorts. He was a kind of friend after all, she thought. After some quick mental math, she had an estimated number of deliveries in mind to reach her goal. She was feeling determined. After a quick call to let him know she would not be able to make it today to see the wood, and asking him to hold it for a day, she set out.
One order after another and the day was going better than expected. Good enough tips, nowhere too difficult to get to, and no one was unnecessarily rude. She was thinking this as she walked back to her car from a drop-off, and immediately regretted it. “I jinxed myself didn’t I?”
On the very next job, as expected, none of that was true. The restaurant was hard to find, the tip was minimal, and the customer screamed at her for 5-10 straight minutes about things out of her control. She started to drive away, but only went about 2 houses down, then pulled over, hopped out, and sat on the damp curb. A tree was blocking a view of their windows so she was not worried they would see her. She just needed some air.
While watching people across the street, she noticed someone pull up in front of the house she had just delivered to, that also appeared to be delivering food. She thought for a second then decided to call out to him.
“Hey! Sir! Be careful with that house, he’s a screamer! Also a bit aggressive, so good luck if that’s not a soft food!”
amorremanet
