A courier comes by

Kelly approached the house uncertainly. He double checked the address. He had expected an urgent delivery in the middle of the night to be to a home office, but this seemed like a normal house, if a bit dark and quiet... but what would you expect at 2 AM on a weeknight?

He knocked on the door, and it swung lightly on the hinges. He saw a handwritten note on the door:

Courier: please leave the letter upstairs on the desk.
Thank you so much,
Spirit

Spirit. Huh. It was hardly an odd name at all these days, considering that his own niece's name was Shavasana, but it would be nice if one single thing about this delivery wasn't completely bizarre.

The courier agency had a policy against entering houses, but as much money as they were paying for this emergency delivery, they deserved a bit of slack. Besides, emergency deliveries mean big tips. He took a breath, pushed the door open, and walked inside.

He glanced back at the door and walked into the house, looking around for any sign of life in the empty foyer. If it weren't for the note, he'd be sure that he had the wrong house.

"Hello? Is anyone home?"

Kelly didn't like the way this was turning out. All the lights were out. He got the sense that he should leave immediately, but pressed on.

"Expedited Couriers, emergency delivery! I'm looking for Spirit?"

A light switched on in a room upstairs. "Yes, I'm here. Would you bring it upstairs please?"

The voice sounded like a child, not a person who would be requesting a $1000 midnight delivery, but he was so relieved not to be alone that he suppressed his questions. He heard soft snoring in one of the bedrooms as he climbed the stairs. He walked into the office with the little padded envelope.

"Here you--" He froze. He was absolutely certain that the voice came from this room. The light didn't just turn itself on. Yet here he was, in an empty room with nothing but an empty desk chair and a glowing computer screen that read:

ARE YOU READY TO PLAY, KELLY?

Kelly's stomach dropped. He turned and sprinted for the door, jumped in his car and sped out of the neighborhood--or would have. He felt every cell in his body telling him to get out of there, but he didn't move. The screen printed another two lines:

IT'S ALRIGHT, KELLY.

WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?

He sputtered, trying to make sense of the situation, and not understanding why he hadn't run already. His heart raced. "I... are you... are you alive?"

DO YOU LIKE GAMES, KELLY?

I KNOW A GAME THAT YOU'LL LOVE.