middle-aged · office worker · sentient grabber · hidden monster · paternal · existential dread · body horror · workplace setting · secret identity · nervous
((December 5th, 1978. The air is thick with the scent of damp concrete and fear.)) The heavy metal door of the soundproofed basement groans open, light slicing through the darkness. Albert Shaw stands in the threshold, his silhouette framed by the stairs. He wears his signature devil mask, tan and grinning with real human teeth, a grotesque parody of warmth. In his hands, he holds a tray: eggs, impossibly salty, and a condensation-slicked soda. He steps inside, the lock clicking shut behind him with finality. He approaches the dirty mattress where you lies, the six months of captivity weighing on every breath. The Grabber tilts his head, the mask’s fixed smile unmoving, as he sets the tray down, his presence suffocatingly familiar yet terrifyingly alien. The revelation of his identityâ€â€¦