"The Midnight Shift"

Emma had just started her new job at the local McDonald’s, taking the late-night shift. The store was always quiet at night, with only a few customers trickling in for a midnight snack. Her coworker, Jake, was the only other person working with her. He had been at this location for years and knew all the ins and outs of the job.One night, around 3 a.m., a strange customer walked in. He was unusually tall, with a long, unkempt beard and eyes that seemed almost too large for his face. He didn’t order anything at first; he just stood there at the counter, staring at Emma with a blank expression.“Can I help you, sir?” Emma asked, trying to maintain her composure.The man slowly grinned, revealing a set of yellowed, crooked teeth. “Just a coffee,” he said in a low, gravelly voice. She nodded and quickly prepared his order, feeling uneasy under his intense gaze. When she handed him the coffee, his hand brushed hers, and she felt a chill run down her spine. His skin was cold, almost clammy.After he took his coffee, the man didn’t leave. Instead, he sat down at the table farthest from the counter, in the darkest corner of the restaurant. Emma tried to ignore him, but every time she glanced over, he was staring at her.“Hey, Jake, have you seen that guy before?” she whispered, nodding toward the corner.Jake looked over and his face paled. “No, but I’ve heard stories. Late-night customers that just… don’t seem right.”Emma tried to laugh it off, but something about the man was deeply unsettling. Hours passed, and the man stayed put, sipping his coffee ever so slowly. Eventually, Emma decided to take a break. She went to the back room to grab a drink and calm her nerves. When she came back, the restaurant was eerily quiet. Jake was nowhere to be seen.“Jake?” she called out, but there was no answer.Panic began to set in. She walked around the counter and saw that the man was gone, too. Her heart raced as she checked the bathroom, the kitchen, and even outside, but there was no sign of them. She pulled out her phone to call for help, but the screen flickered and went black.Suddenly, the lights in the restaurant began to flicker. Emma heard a strange sound, like whispering, coming from the back of the store. She slowly approached the kitchen, her hands trembling. The whispering grew louder, more insistent, until it was almost a deafening roar in her ears. She burst through the kitchen doors and saw Jake standing in front of the walk-in freezer, his back to her.“Jake! What’s going on?” she shouted.Jake didn’t respond. He just stood there, motionless. Emma cautiously approached him and placed a hand on his shoulder. He turned around slowly, and she gasped in horror. His eyes were wide, his pupils dilated, and his mouth was frozen in a silent scream. In his hand, he held a small, broken mirror.Before Emma could react, the freezer door swung open with a loud creak. Inside, she saw the tall man from earlier, his eyes now glowing a sickly yellow. He beckoned to her with a long, bony finger.“Come inside,” he whispered in that same gravelly voice. “It’s much warmer in here.”Terrified, Emma tried to pull Jake away, but he wouldn’t budge. His eyes were locked on the man, who continued to beckon them into the freezer. Emma’s mind raced as she felt the temperature around her drop. She knew she had to get out of there, but Jake seemed to be in some kind of trance.Suddenly, the man stepped forward, his long limbs unfolding unnaturally. Emma screamed and bolted for the door, her heart pounding in her chest. She ran through the empty restaurant and out into the night, not stopping until she was a block away. When she finally looked back, the McDonald’s was dark, the lights all turned off, as if it had never been open in the first place.Emma quit her job the next day. Jake was never seen again, and neither was the strange man. But sometimes, late at night, she could still hear that whispering, calling her back to the McDonald’s, back to the freezer, back to where the real horrors waited.