Midnight Meal Delivery

Chapter 0

It was 3 a.m., and my stomach was literally screaming, so I ordered some takeout—just me, solo at home.

Being extra cautious, I added a note:

[Still out, haven’t made it home yet. Just leave the food at the door and snap a pic.]

About 30 minutes later, the delivery guy hit me up, like he was supposed to:

[Miss, your food’s on the mat. Grab it when you can.]

[Picture.]

The photo showed the food chilling right outside my door. I waited a few minutes, not trying to run into him, then got up to grab it. Just before I turned the knob, I glanced at my phone: [Driver’s current distance - 0 meters.]

Chapter 1

I jumped, startled.

My hand, which had just reached for the doorknob, instinctively pulled back.

After refreshing the app a few times, I noticed the rider’s location hadn’t budged.

The map still showed they were 0 meters away from me.

A chill ran down my spine, and I could feel a cold sweat forming on my back.

Anyone who orders takeout knows the drill: once the rider drops off the food, snaps a pic for proof, and confirms the delivery, they’re off to their next order ASAP.

It’s all about avoiding penalties for being late.

Once the order’s marked as complete, the customer can’t see the rider’s location anymore.

But sometimes, riders slip up and forget to hit that button.

Like right now.

It’s such a tiny detail, but it gives them away.

In other words…

this rider is still outside my door!

Chapter 2

I held my breath, trembling as I peeked through the peephole.

It was pitch black.

Not a single sliver of light outside—I couldn’t see a thing.

I swallowed hard, my nerves on edge.

The motion-sensor light in our hallway was super sensitive, probably because the soundproofing here is trash.

Usually, if I’m blasting videos in the living room and the volume gets a little too loud, the light flickers on. So, if someone was lurking at my door, there should’ve been some noise, right? Even just a little?

But the sensor light stayed off. That had to mean no one was out there.

I stared into the dark hallway, trying to convince myself I was just overthinking it.

After waiting a few more minutes, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Still, I hesitated.

This is an older complex, and most people have already moved out. Only a handful of households are left, mostly elderly folks who stick to their routines and hit the hay early. My only neighbor on this floor left for a long trip a few days ago, so at this hour—early morning—the building was basically empty.

The whole place was dead silent.

Then my stomach growled.

Grumble—

I pressed a hand to my growling stomach and glanced at my phone screen again: Rider’s current distance from you: 0 meters.

I frowned.

There’s no way the rider would just hang out at my door without leaving.

Could the app’s GPS be glitching?

Honestly, yeah, that’s totally possible.

I usually keep an eye on the rider’s real-time location when I order takeout. Once, after the rider picked up my food, their location stayed frozen two miles away. I was worried something had happened to them, but then they showed up at my door, milkshake in hand.

Turns out, the app’s tracking was just delayed.

Today was probably the same deal.

With that thought, I took a deep breath.

And slowly, I opened the door.