Chapter 1

“Toilet roll” he murmured.

“No no, try again.”

 Nails screamed inside. She. Does. Not. Stop.

“Fine,” he took a deep coffee-stained breath, “is it a ‘t’ for, er, ‘tail’?”

“Nooo…”

 F*cking hell. She HAS to be one of the human tests. But they don’t normally do them in here, and the Handlers haven’t given out any extra treats...

Something didn’t add up.

“Nails, why are you always so miserable?” chirped his neighbour.

“I’m not miserable. I just prefer my own company. I don’t want to make small talk or play your childish games. I just want to lie here, eat food and watch their TV.”

“Oh ok, fair enough” she sighed, “the answer was tomato sauce, by the way. You have some stuck just there in your fur...” Nails saw a glimmer fade from the eye of his not-so-new neighbour and his heart felt heavy. As much as he hated this annoying little creature, he also kind of, liked her.

He’d lived in this lab his whole life, he’d seen family and friends come and go. He’d learned not to get attached. He stiffened and resolved to not let it happen again.

Over the next few weeks and months his guard held strong. But still, he sensed a growing and unnerving desire to be around her. She’d somehow gotten under his skin. She’d started to infiltrate his every thought. 

Then, she crossed a line.

It was just a normal night in the lab - painfully quiet and eerily reflective  - and she just did it. 

She shared her food. 

She said something about not having the same calorific expenditure as him and just handed it over...no bribes, no trades. Nothing. Just an unassuming smile.

Sh*t. He was in trouble. 

Everything felt different. He felt different. He was overwhelmed by a need to be around her. She made him feel at peace. Was this what real friendship was? 

He fought himself for weeks. He tried to ignore her. He focussed on rebuilding his defences.

And then she was gone. Just. Like. That. 

There had been nothing unusual about that day. The experiments had happened like normal. Everyone had been returned to their cages, just like normal. 

Everyone that is, except for her.

He’d watched the human door obsessively, willing it with all his might, to open. 

Finally the lights went out, and a familiar red hue settled on him. 

He stared at that door for 5 days and nights. He didn’t sleep, he didn’t even eat. Food started to pile up outside his cage, the Handlers ran extra tests to check for illness. No one knew what was wrong with him. 

It’s pretty hard to diagnose a broken heart.

A new darkness began to cloud his soul. The depths of love reconfigured into the depths of despair.

The Handlers will pay for this.