Wrench restlessly tapped their foot on the shiny, tiled floor.

The staff at Miyatama's Mental Health Association had recently adopted a habit of oversanitizing everything, leaving the place with a sickly scent of ammonia, even in the waiting room beside the drafty glass doors. With the recent news of more and more missing people and random cadavers lying about the street following the volon incident at Maroon, Wrench figured the janitors were somewhat on edge.

Wrench figured everyone was, really. Checking local news outlets and social media pages flooded them with a cesspool of fearmongering and wildly sensationalized articles about impending doom and apocalypse. Thankfully, Wrench had lots of practice with keeping their wandering thoughts in check – something regular therapy had helped them with.

The Association was also probably either understaffed or mismanaged, since Wrench's wait times to see their counsellor always ranged from 30 minutes to an hour, emergency meeting or not. They considered just coming later than their scheduled time, but they knew that the instant they pulled something like that, their counsellor would be as punctual as ever.

In the meantime, they were content leaning back in their seat, bouncing their leg on the floor to expel some of that excess energy.

Wrench's therapist was a fairly decent person that clicked rather well with them, despite the annoying wait times. However, they couldn't shake a feeling of unease this visit. Unsure why, they put it down to anxiety rearing its ugly head.

That's why I'm here, I guess.

They'd brought their phone with them, but forgot their headset at home. Not particularly fond of openly blasting music in a waiting room, they opted to pass the time with some quiet mobile games instead.

Sudoku was an easy pick.

Wrench frowned at their phone, totally stumped. I guess they mean it when they say “expert mode.”

They started a new game one difficulty level lower than before. “Intermediate mode” was far more manageable.

Meanwhile, a woman opened the door and walked into the waiting room. Curious, Wrench looked at her from the corner of their eye, ready to look away the instant she even hinted at returning her gaze.

She stood around in the middle of the room, looking quite lost.

...Wait, is that?

Wrench opened their mouth to speak, but wasn't sure what to say. The robotic receptionist at the far end of the hall stared at her with equal confusion.

The lady ultimately decided to walk down the room and speak with the robot.

Wrench took the opportunity to look her over. The hair... and that outfit? That's totally her! They still weren't sure what to say, but they weren't going to squander such a chance encounter.

Their foot-tapping intensified as their mind raced, trying to come up with something to say to spark a conversation. Part of them wanted to message Skye to ask for advice, but by the time he got back to Wrench, the woman would probably be long gone.

It's just one person, dude. You've been practicing this. Come on, let's go.

The lady eventually said her goodbyes to the receptionist after a short chat, and she started walking back to the entrance.

Just before she passed by Wrench, they held up their hand towards her. “Uh, hey! Are you the lady I ran into at the club?”

She looked at Wrench inquisitively for a few long, silent seconds. Suddenly, she seemed surprised.

“Oh! Oh, yes, I think so! Funny seeing you here.”

“What a coincidence. Um... are you here for counselling too?”

“Oh, no. I'm looking for someone. I figured this place might have some leads, but no dice so far.” The woman sat down on a chair opposite Wrench, brushing her hair away from her face.

Hmm. She's kinda pretty.

“Right... you said earlier you were looking for psychology labs?” Wrench asked.

“Ah! Y-yeah... that was a slip of the tongue, I think. I mean, I would like to know where I could find a lab like that, but my goal right now is to scour these therapy offices for clues.” She unbuttoned her coat and removed it, setting it on her lap.

“Are you looking for a particular therapist?”

“Not quite... I don't think, at least. He was in charge of a psychology department in... somewhere I worked.”

“Ah, yeah. What's his name? I-if you don't mind a stranger prying into your business. Gosh, I'm sorry for bombarding you with questions like this, haha.” A cold sweat of embarrassment crept up Wrench's back as they realized how nosy they'd been.

The lady giggled. “It's no problem. His name is Carson Lowe. No relation. He was a coworker of mine until we were both... let go, I suppose.”

Her delivery of “let go” struck Wrench as unusual, but they refrained from commenting on it. They'd already been snoopy enough.

Instead, they settled with a simple “ohh, okay,” which led to a stifling, awkward silence.

Fuck. I was doing so well.

“I can't say I've heard of any Lowes before,” Wrench continued, breaking the quiet atmosphere. “I-I have some friends, though. I just met the boyfriend of one of my best buds, and apparently he works in Maroon's employee resources department. He's probably got some connections. Mmmaybe I could ask him about it.”

“Ah! Uh.” The lady clenched her teeth, looking rather nervous. “Between you and me, Maroon kind of freaks me out. Especially after the breakout.”

Wrench hummed in acknowledgment, slowly nodding their head. “Yeah. I get that. Another one of my friends works the night shift at a bakery... and there's been a monster appearing there, stalking him, and it even tried to eat him. He's okay, but... eh. I... don't really know. Maybe it's a volon?” Wrench shrugged.

The woman seemed shocked.

“S-sorry! I shouldn't be talking about such grim stuff like this.” Wrench waved their hand in the air beside them.

“No no, it's okay! It's just... that... yeah. It sounds like a volon from what I know about them. Not that I know much, I've just been watching the news.” Janice clasped her hands together atop her coat.

Another hum and nod from Wrench.

“Do you mind if I ask you a question?” the lady asked.

“Sure.”

“What do you think about volons...?”

“Uh, well... that's a good question.” Wrench paused, then laughed. “A couple nights ago I actually saw the monster stalking Skye's – er, my friend's – workplace. And, laugh all you like, but my first thought was “wow, I should get its phone number.””

They both shared another chuckle.

Wrench cleared their throat. “But, in all seriousness... I don't know. If they weren't bent on killing people, I'd be hanging out with them 24/7. That one little caveat is kind of a deal breaker though. Same with genofexians, too, though; I hope they get to integrate with our society. That would be so cool. Hope our government doesn't screw them over or anything...”

“You're a fan of aliens, I take it?” she asked.

“That obvious, huh?”

“Well, you've been smiling ever since you mentioned wanting to get the monster's phone number.”

“O-oh, gosh.” Wrench buried their face in their hands. “I'm... I'm so sorry. I tend to ramble on about things like that.”

“You're not rambling, don't worry. I've been traveling a lot lately, and this is the first time I've had a proper conversation with somebody since I came to Miyatama. So, in all reality, this is very refreshing for me.”

Wrench unburied their face. “Honestly? Same here. Glad I could provide that for you too. But, uh, hey... I never caught your name.”

“Janice! It's a pleasure to meet you.” Janice extended her hand, before quickly retracting it. “Oh, sorry, u-um. I'm supposed to be avoiding physical contact with people. It slips my mind often.”

Wrench raised their eyebrows, even more intrigued about her now. “No worries. I'm not a big fan of handshakes to begin with, so that works for me.” They forced another quick laugh.

“Ahh, goodness, I'm glad. I-if you don't mind, may I ask you one more question? It's about your friend.” Janice asked.

“Oh?”

“That monster that you and your friend saw, do you remember what it looked like?”

“Hmm...” Wrench recalled the video Skye had sent them. “It was really tall. Like twice the size of a human. Uhh... it had white skin, cross eyes – like, its eyes were big black crosses, not that it was cross-eyed. You know what I mean?”

“Yeah... yeah, I know. Please continue!” Janice listened intently.

“It had a huge toothy smile, unkempt grey hair, black coat and pants, and a pair of purple scarves.”

Janice covered her mouth for a moment. “No way. I... know... who that is.”

“You mean it's got a name?”

“Yeah... n-not all of them do, but that one in particular does. I happen know that particular volon.”

“Well, uh, what's its name, then?”

Janice leaned forward and held a hand up beside her mouth. “It calls itself Zev.”

“Zev.” Wrench raised their eyebrows. “I'll have to tell my friend.”

“Okay, this might sound like a weird request, but... do you think you could tell me where you saw Zev? You said it was a bakery?”

“Yeah, that's right. I suppose I could do that... forgive me for saying, but I don't think you should go looking for Zev. It put my friend in the hospital after trying to eat him.”

Janice inhaled through her teeth. “Goodness, I'm so sorry. Zev is... yeah. Dangerous. I've got a bit of history with them, you could say. I'm confident I can get through to them, and hopefully get them off your friend's case.”

“You really think you could do that?” Wrench asked, wide-eyed.

Janice nodded. “I really do.”

“Well, I don't actually know where the bakery is, but I could ask my friend after my counselling session and get back to you about it! Maybe we can exchange phone numbers to stay in touch?”

“Sounds good!”

Wrench stood up, pointing to the seat beside Janice. “May I?”

“Yes, of course.”

They took a seat beside Janice. Wrench pulled out their phone and looked around in the settings to remember what their number was, and Janice promptly typed it into her contact list.

“How did you do that?” Janice asked. “I'm not so good with phones.”

“Oh, from the main screen, tap on the settings icon,” they explained, waiting for Janice to catch up. While guiding her through the menus, Wrench couldn't help but notice a widget in the upper corner of her phone screen had the owner's name listed as “Ashley.”

Huh. Maybe changing identity? I know what that's like.

After some more menu navigating, Janice's phone number was displayed on screen, and Wrench added it to their contacts.

“Perfect.” Wrench smiled, standing up. “Would you be available for a call in a couple of hours?” They stepped over to their old seat and sat back down.

“Yes, absolutely!”

“Awesome.” Wrench pondered about her. A lone woman walking the streets of Lower Miyatama, seemingly familiar with volons, looking for a certain psychologist? “Are you going to be safe out there?” they asked.

“Ah? How so?”

Her response took Wrench aback. “Uh... Lower Miyatama doesn't tend to be the safest place on hallow. Especially now that volons are lurking around, yanking people into the shadows, never to be seen again.”

“That's... right.” She giggled and shook her head. “I don't know how that slipped my mind. I haven't even been in Miyatama for a week, so I guess it just hasn't sunk in yet.”

“Ahh, fair, fair.” There's something up with you, Janice. What it is, I don't know. But I'm damn well curious.

“I should probably get going, though.” Janice stood up. “Got lots of places to ask around at, but it was nice meeting you! I promise I'll be safe.”

“Good, and likewise! I suppose I'll be talking with you later.”

“Yes! I look forward to your call. Take care, Wrench. Hopefully counselling treats you well!” She walked over to the entrance.

“Thanks! Be careful out there.”

Janice glanced back at Wrench. “Thank you, will do!” She pushed the glass door open and walked outside.

As soon as Wrench was sure Janice wasn't in eyesight anymore, they covered their mouth, barely hiding their excitement.

That went really well? Did I seriously just hold a full conversation, on my own, with a stranger? And we even exchanged phone numbers?! Oh my fucking god.

Wrench couldn't help but curl their lips into an eager smile. They pulled out their phone, rapidly typing a message to their friend group.

“Guys? I just had a full conversation with a stranger, 1 on 1, for maybe 10 minutes and I didn't freak out. And you'll never guess who it was. Ray remember that girl I encountered at the club a few days ago? IT WAS HER AND I GOT HER PHONE NUMBER TOO LOL”

Neither Skye nor Ray replied straight away, so they rested their phone on their lap, still wiggling with excitement.

I can't wait to tell my therapist. Oh my gosh. I'm seriously improving. This is great!

Another thought popped into their head, prompting Wrench to pick up their phone again. “Also, Skye, that monster? It's named Zev apparently. That woman actually knows it. And she's trying to find it. Maybe we could set something up???”

Skye began typing. “are you serious” he replied. “you met someone who knows about Zev? can we meet up, like, NOW? i'm serious”

“Yeah, I don't know what her schedule is like (her name is Janice btw) but I told her I'd call her as soon as I get the address of the bakery you work at. Since Zev tends to Be There a lot.”

“velvet crumble at 69-41 street. let's get this going dude”

“nice,” Ray suddenly joined the conversation.

“can you let me know when you've called her and asked about a meetup?” Skye asked. “i really fucking need anything i can get at this point. like asap.”

“Of course, I'll call her after my therapy session. I'm in the waiting room now so it'll probably be just under a couple hours.”

“thank you so much wrench, i'm free tomorrow so if you can arrange something? i'm completely available, aside from popping over to ray's place sometime”

“Yeah, I'll see when she's available. But, like, anytime dude. If you want to talk about things and let me hold your hair back while you puke, I'm all ears. I just want you to feel better.”

“i really appreciate you wrench. i don't know if I can manage talking about shit over text right now but when we get together i don't mind talking about stuff”

“Cool, it's a date. Or, er, after we figure out when. Then it'll be a date.”

Skye sent a kissing face emoji.

“gaylords” Ray commented.

“you are literally dating a guy” Skye retorted.

“ya but ur gay”

Wrench chortled and continued typing. “I'm still so pumped that I managed a conversation with a stranger like that!! Sorry for changing the subject but damn! I'm feeling so proud.”

“nice, maybe it was because you met her before at the club?” Skye suggested.

“That could be true! Whatever the case is, I'm big hype right now.”

A door opened down at the far end of the waiting room, opposite the robotic receptionist. Out stepped a rather plump woman with comfy, casual clothes, and a head of curly hair.

“Kylie Spencer?” She asked the waiting room (more specifically, she asked Wrench – they were the only one there).

“Hey,” Wrench quietly answered, pocketing their phone and giving her a wave. They stood up and walked over to their therapist.

“Come on in,” she invited Wrench into her office.