(^▽^) Come on, Let's Hurt Each Other!
The air inside the elevator seemed to have frozen. It was so quiet that even the sound of breathing seemed grating.
"..."
Still, since the lousy elevator wasn't making a move, Annie wasn't in any hurry either.
She leaned against the cabin wall, bored, lightly tapping the metal handrail that ran around it with her fingers. A series of faint "taps" rang out.
Just then!
The dim red emergency lights began flickering again. Then all the lights went out in an instant, including the floor indicator.
But before Annie could decide what to do, the lights came back on. The harsh, pale glow of the normal lighting replaced them, and when it first flashed on, Annie narrowed her eyes against the glare.
"??"
(.)
"Is this lousy elevator finally working again?"
-
(゜-゜)
Muttering under her breath, Annie instinctively glanced around, her voice carrying a trace of impatience.
The elevator still didn't budge!
The number on the floor display seemed frozen. It remained stuck on "18," and even when Annie pressed the door-open button or a button for another floor, the elevator showed no sign of going up, going down, or opening its doors.
"..."
('-')
Annie frowned at the sight.
Then she glanced around again, trying to spot anything unusual. Everything looked normal—except for a faint, lingering chill.
As if...
Something was silently creeping toward her?
An ordinary person probably wouldn't have sensed it, but who was Annie? She didn't even need to pay attention to feel that kind of dull malice. To her, the approaching presence stood out as glaringly as a thousand-watt floodlight in the middle of a dark square!
But knowing it was there didn't mean she had to show it. She simply let it approach, allowing it to