[Ginger]

As Alexis finished up an order with her last customer of the day before closing, she felt herself tired from the strenuous work of running her business by herself that afternoon. Clay, her hired book organizer, had called in sick that morning. He had hung up the phone in a hurry, as he started to violently choke into the phone. Lex felt sorry for the fella, but she didn't know how much longer she could manage her bookstore by herself. Thanking her final customer of the day, Alexis sighed in relief as she grabbed her purse, turned out the lights, and locked up shop. She couldn't help but wonder how Clay was doing, so she decided to purchase him a get well soon card at a nearby Hallmark store and deliver it to his place. She called a cab coming down the street, got inside, and asked the cab driver to take her to 241 East Main, the location of Clay's apartment.

When Lexi arrived, she got out of the cab and made her way up two flights of stairs since the elevator was under maintenance. She reached Clay's door and knocked four times. She didn't get a response. Trying again, she knocked another three times. Still no response. She took out the spare key to his apartment that he had given her and unlocked the door. Quietly, she pushed it open. The apartment was dark and silent, until she heard groaning in the back room. She made her way down the hallway and peeked into the room where the noise came from. What Alexis was seeing had been horrifying. Clay was standing behind his bed, chewing on his beloved cat. Alexis calmly tried getting his attention.

"...Clay? Are you alright?"

He instantly turned around, looked directly at her, and started stumbling towards her, gaining speed. Terrified, Alexis put the card on the dresser next to the entrance and started to quickly make her way out of the apartment complex. When she reached the front entrance door to the complex, she locked it and slammed it shut behind her, and ran down the street to the nearest taxi. Panicked, she asked the driver to take her to the nearest guns and ammunition store in fear of Clay coming after her. Those hungry eyes.. they frightened her.

Clay, or who she thought was Clay, was no longer Clay anymore, and she needed to protect herself.