Airbnb
'I just wanted to check and make sure you had everything you wanted. Can I get you some hot cocoa or an eye mask or something? A night cap? Alright. Well, if you need anything, my room's at the end of the hall. Night night.' And she pulled the door shut.
Lying in bed, Nick was sure he heard the click of a bolt being driven home. He pushed back the covers; he was fully dressed, and got out of bed and tiptoed over to the door and put his ear to it. He heard the soft padding sound of someone walking away and then the sound of a door being opened and after a second, it was closed.
Nick tightened his grip on the doorknob. He could feel a blemish in the metal against his palm. He was sweating. He bit his lip and yanked the door open. And gasped.
There she stood, towering over him, taking up the entire hall. Short black hairs stuck out of her skin, making her face look like smoke. Amidst the chaos, Nick glimpsed a whorl of sharp teeth. He stood transfixed by, what was it, a vision, an apparition, some sort of a manifestation from Hell?
Many questions raced through our unfortunate friend's mind, chased quickly by gnashing teeth and razor sharp claws that ripped out his belly. His organs spilled over the floor and he sank to his knees and fell back into the room.
His vision was edged by darkness. A single rose fell from the ceiling, slowly, too slow to be real. It was red, no black, no purple, no yellow. It was the most beautiful rose he'd ever seen.