Cici's Graveyard Shift: Haunting Deals Await

"Let me ask you one last thing. Are you really sure you want to work here?"

"Huh?"

I snapped out of my trance, looking back at the manager's face, drenched in sweat under the harsh fluorescent lighting. I was currently being interviewed at a traditional convenience store called 888 Convenience Mart located in a desolate area, where people rarely pass by and only vehicles.

Is there a problem? What did he mean by "Are you sure?"

He must have noticed the change in my expression, for before I could respond, he continued, his words spilling out a little too quickly. "Well, I assume you applied for this part-time job because of the hourly wage. It's... quite generous, isn't it?" His eyes flickered up to the store's dull ceiling, seemingly searching for the right words to soften the moment.

He wasn't wrong—the wage had caught my attention immediately. It was surprisingly high for a shabby convenience store as this, especially in such a remote area. The job ad promised minimal tasks, flexible hours, and pay that didn't align with the work involved. It sounded almost too good to be true.

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, now fully aware that there was something off about this whole situation. "Even though this is my first time working as a part-timer, I do my job well done," I half-lied, trying to keep my voice casual. "Is there something I should know more about the job?"

The manager tried to smile but it didn't reach his eyes. "There's one tiny detail I didn't include in the ad," he began, his voice dropping to a murmur. "Once you're hired, you'll need to work for seven consecutive nights—before you decide quitting this job," He tried for a smile again, but it faltered. "That's the only condition."

My mind tripped over his words. That's okay for me but you need to work the entire week before you decide to resign? "But why? That wasn't mentioned anywhere in the job posting," I replied, confusion creeping into my voice.

He twirled the pen on the table, his fingers twitching nervously. "All the part-timers I've hired resigned after a day or two. Some people claim they hear things, while others say they've seen things," he added with a soft, uneasy chuckle. "Not that I'm trying to scare you, but if you're afraid of ghosts or being alone at night, you're free to quit. No hard feelings."

I stared at him, my mind racing to comprehend what he meant. Ghosts? Alone? Is he joking right now? Or he just doesn't want me to accept this job? 'Cause right now, I badly need it since all of the jobs I tried to apply rejected me nor sent me any message that accepted me.

He leaned back, sighing as if he'd had this conversation too many times before. "Look strange things happen around here sometimes, especially at night, this is why it's hard to look for part-timers especially if they quickly resigned so I have this condition that part-timers can only quit after a week." 

I swallowed, my mouth suddenly dry. "To make sure people stick around for a week?"

He nodded. "Exactly. We can't have people quitting after the first night. It messes with the schedule, and well... let's just say it disrupts the balance here."

I glanced around the store again, the aisles seeming a little darker now, a little more... unsettling. The lights above flickered for just a second, as if responding to the shift in the conversation.

"Do you still want the job?" the manager asked, his tone eerily calm.

"Of course," I said enthusiastically, "I'm sure."

The words left my mouth before I could fully process what I was agreeing to. I'm sure. I'm not a scaredy cat. told myself that as long as I could pay my bills and get out of debt, this would all be worth it. But a creeping unease settled into the pit of my stomach as the manager's smile widened, just a little too much for comfort.

"Great! You can start working tomorrow. Make sure to be here by 7 PM." The manager shook my head excitedly as he sighed in relief. 

I was hired on the spot, no hassle, no waiting period. It was almost too easy, but at the time, I didn't care. I needed the money, and the quicker I started, the better. It didn't really hit me until I was back home, staring at the clock, that I'd committed to working at a place that felt... off.

The convenience store was a bit far from where I lived—definitely not in a prime location. It sat on the outskirts of the city, nestled in a stretch of road where hardly anyone passed by unless they were tourists or drivers looking for a quick stop on their way somewhere else. The area felt isolated, the kind of place you could easily forget about, which made me wonder why the store was even there in the first place.

Still, I reminded myself that this was the only job that hired me so easily. The other places I'd interviewed at either dragged their feet or flat-out rejected me. But here, at 888 Convenience Mart, I was hired after one interview, no hassle. I should've felt lucky—this kind of quick acceptance was rare—but instead, I felt uneasy.

As I lay in bed that night, my thoughts kept drifting back to the manager's sweaty face, the way he had stressed how important it was to "think carefully" before accepting. And that rule about staying for an entire week—it gnawed at me. Why did everyone quit so quickly?

I told myself that I could handle it. I didn't believe in ghosts or anything supernatural, so whatever had scared off the previous employees wouldn't affect me, right?

But as I closed my eyes, trying to shake off the strange feeling, I couldn't help but think about the flickering lights in the store and the shadow I thought I'd seen darting between the aisles. Was it just my imagination?

'This will be easy,' I reminded myself. 'How hard can it be?'