Midnight Takeout

It was 1:23 am, and the entire city seemed to have been muted. I was tossing and turning in bed, the hunger in my stomach lingering like a shadow, making it impossible for me to fall asleep. Outside the window, the streetlights cast a dim yellow glow, and occasionally a vehicle would speed by, breaking the momentary silence.

Unable to bear it any longer, I sat up, picked up my phone, and opened the food delivery app. The screen's bright light was particularly dazzling in the darkness. I squinted and browsed through various dishes. The delivery fee was outrageously expensive, three times higher than usual. But at this moment, with my growling stomach, I didn't have the time to care. I quickly selected a fried rice with good sales and placed an order.

After placing the order, I slumped lazily on the sofa, aimlessly scrolling through videos to pass the time while waiting for the takeout. The wall clock ticked away, each sound seeming to be a reminder of the passing time.

Twenty minutes later, the doorbell suddenly rang, sounding particularly abrupt in the quiet room. I got up, shuffled towards the door in my slippers, and peeked through the peephole. Outside stood a food delivery guy in a yellow uniform. He had his head lowered, and the brim of his cap was pulled down so low that I couldn't see his face at all.

I opened the door, and a chill rushed towards me, making me shiver involuntarily. "Your takeout," the delivery guy said. His voice was as hoarse as sandpaper, dry and piercing, as if he hadn't had a drop of water for a long time.

I reached out to take the bag, and the icy touch startled me. It was only a twenty - minute journey from the restaurant to my place. Even without insulation measures, it shouldn't be this cold. "Thank you," I said instinctively, and at the same time, I looked up, trying to see his face clearly.

Just then, the voice - activated light in the corridor went out without warning, and the surroundings were plunged into darkness instantly. By the faint light of my phone screen, I saw the delivery guy slowly raise his head. His face was as pale as paper, without a trace of blood. What made my hair stand on end even more was that his eyes had no pupils, only a blank white, like two bottomless whirlpools.

I gasped in horror and instinctively took a step back. With a "snap," the voice - activated light came back on. The delivery guy had already turned around and was walking away with strange steps. It was as if he was dragging heavy shackles, and each step made a "rustling" sound.

After closing the door, my heart was pounding, as if it was about to jump out of my throat. I kept reassuring myself that I must have been hallucinating due to being too tired recently. I opened the takeout bag, and to my surprise, the fried rice inside was still steaming. The chill from before seemed to be just my imagination.

Driven by hunger, I didn't think much and started eating ravenously. I had to admit that the fried rice tasted really good. The ingredients were fresh, and the seasoning was just right. After eating my fill, sleepiness came over me like a tide. I didn't even bother to wash up and just fell onto the bed and sank into a deep sleep.

I don't know how long I had slept. In the middle of the night, a sharp pain shot through my stomach like lightning, yanking me out of my sleep. Instantly, cold sweat poured out of me. I curled up into a ball, tightly clutching my stomach, feeling as if a group of wild beasts were tearing at my insides.

I endured the pain and stumbled towards the bathroom. As soon as I got to the toilet, I couldn't help but start retching. Black, viscous liquid gushed out of my mouth, emitting a disgusting putrid smell, like the sewage from a sewer that hadn't been cleaned for years.

I tremblingly turned on the light. The person in the mirror was almost unrecognizable to me. My face was as pale as the remaining snow in winter, my lips were purple, and there was no sign of life. What was even more terrifying was that my pupils were gradually shrinking, and the whites of my eyes were expanding, exuding an indescribable eeriness.

The abdominal pain became more and more intense. My legs gave way, and I knelt directly on the ground. I could clearly feel something wriggling in my stomach, as if there were countless worms crawling around inside. In a state of extreme panic, I tore open my clothes with both hands. I saw my belly heaving violently, as if something was eager to break through this restraint.

"Help... help..." I shouted desperately, but my voice was as weak as a mosquito's whine, as if it was instantly swallowed up by the darkness.

Just then, the doorbell rang suddenly. The clear ringtone seemed particularly terrifying in this deathly silence, like a summons from hell.

I used all my remaining strength to crawl towards the door on my hands and knees. Every inch of movement was accompanied by excruciating pain, but the instinct to survive made me ignore everything. Finally, I reached the door and shakily reached out to open it.

Outside the door stood the delivery guy. He still had his head lowered, and the shadow under the brim of his cap covered most of his face. Slowly, he raised his head, and the sight of his face almost made me faint. His skin had started to rot, pieces of it falling off, revealing the dark red muscles and white bones beneath. Maggots were squirming wantonly in his eye sockets and nostrils, emitting a suffocating stench.

"Your takeout," he grinned, revealing a row of uneven teeth, and squeezed out these words. His voice seemed to come from the depths of hell. "This time, it's... fresh."

I subconsciously looked at my stomach. My original skin had become as transparent as paper, and I could clearly see a black object wriggling wildly inside. Looking closely, it turned out to be a miniature version of myself, with distorted facial features full of endless fear.

The delivery guy stretched out his hand. His fingers were long, thin, and pitch - black, and his fingernails were as sharp as blades, glinting with a strange light in the dim light. I watched helplessly as his hand slowly reached towards my stomach, and my consciousness gradually faded, and the scene in front of me became fragmented.

"Welcome to join us," these were the last words I heard before losing consciousness.

The next morning, the sunlight shone through the window into the room, but the room was filled with a disgusting stench. The neighbor, smelling the strange odor, felt that something was wrong and immediately called the police.

The police arrived at the scene quickly and broke in. The room was in a mess. The quilt on the bed was torn to pieces, and the clothes I had torn last night were thrown on the ground. On the dining table, the uneaten takeout had already rotted and deteriorated. The food was covered with密密麻麻的 maggots, giving off a pungent smell.

The police searched the room carefully but couldn't find any trace of me, as if I had vanished into thin air.

On the review section of the food delivery app, a five - star review appeared out of nowhere: "The delivery was fast, and the food tasted great. Just a bit sleepy after eating. Recommend everyone to try it."

The accompanying picture was a selfie. The person in the photo had a face as pale as paper, no pupils in the eyes, and a terrifyingly strange smile on the corner of the mouth.