Playmate

The Note.

We've been watching you.
We have for a long time.
We think you'd be an excellent canditate for a new experiment we are conducting.
If you are interested, come to the address at the bottom of this letter at your earliest convenience.
You will not be disappointed.

There were initially only one hundred of these letters sent out, and only three were responded to. So another batch, and another. This continued on until there were fifty people participating in the program, and when the last batch got sent out. Well. Thats when things got interesting.

The letter was placed on each chosen candidates doorstep. Unlike most 'chosen' scams, these candidates were actually hand selected, based on their personality, temper, and web browser history. Essentially, they were stalked.

But this is the story about one man in particular, who, like most of the candidates, was quite lonely in his home life. And was seeking companionship in the form of a pet. An animal pet. And maybe if that letter hadn't landed on this mans doorstep and maybe if he hadn't been so intrigued to actually go to the address, he would have went on to adopt a puppy, maybe even two, and went on a normal life.

But this particular man had his curiosity piqued by the solid black letters on the creme paper. And the next day he had made his way to the building that would change his life forever.

"Hello!" He was greeted by a friendly-looking secretary with maroon-dyed hair. He approached her cautiously,

"Are you here to look?" She asked, and the mans eyes flitted down to her nametag, which was pinned to a much-too-revealing blouse.

"Ah, I... I don't know, honestly, I received this in the mail." He said, apprehensive. He lifted the envelope up so she could see it and he watched as her brown eyes light up.

"Ah, yes, this way Mister!" Sarah said, scrambling from behind her desk to greet him properly. She gave the letter a once-over before leading him past a set of double-doors to a long hallway, narrowly lit by yellow-bulbs that hung ominously.

"What is this, exactly?" He spoke, shattering the silence between them. She paused, turning her head and giving him a curt smile,

"You were looking for a pet, weren't you...?" Sarah laughed and continued, leading him to what seemed like an interrogation room. The mans dark eyes glanced around, it was brighter in here than out in the hallway, although there was only one desk and a chair.

"Sit." Sarah said, and the man gave her a sideway glance before plopping himself down on the metal chair. "Wait here while I go get my supervisor, the coordinator for the pet-owner exchange." He nodded and took the opportunity to look around. Not long after, however, a man slunk into the room, hands clasped behind his back. He had pale skin and black hair, along with piercing green eyes.

"Hello, Sir. I see you made you're way here, hope it wasn't too much trouble. My name is Charlie, I run the program, but before we begin I must ask you to fill out these forms to see if you are a proper owner for one of my pets." Charlie slid a thick packet of papers forward,

"And your name, Mister...?"

"Just call me Meia." The man muttered, glancing down at the extensive paperwork. All this for a pet? He wondered, but took a pen from Charlie's outstretched hand and began filling the forms out.

It took a little over an hour, but he finally finished. The questions were odd, asking about his education and training experience rather than what he would have expected. Charlie came promptly after he finished the paperwork and whisked them away to be evaluated, leaving Meia alone in the room for another half-hour before returning.