The living room glowed warmly with the twinkle of holiday lights. Darius stood back, hands on his hips, admiring the handiwork that had taken him the better part of the afternoon. The tree sparkled with ornaments collected over the years, garland was strung neatly along the mantle, and even the stockings were hung with perfect symmetry. Satisfied, he flopped onto the couch with a sigh, reaching for his phone to check messages. Among the usual notifications, a text from Heather popped up. It read: "I'm finally on my way home! Traffic's light, so should be there in about 20 minutes. Can't wait to see the house—it’s going to look amazing!"

Darius chuckled, feeling a small swell of pride. “Oh, she’s gonna love it,” he muttered to himself, unlocking his phone. On a whim, he adjusted the camera to selfie mode, tilting it just enough to show the tree in the background. He smirked mischievously, pulling his pants down and snapping a photo. As he tapped send, a faint noise caught his attention—a muffled thud from somewhere down the hall. Frowning, Darius sat up straight, listening intently. It sounded like it had come from the bedroom, maybe the closet. He stood cautiously, his heart beginning to pound despite his attempts to rationalize the sound. “Probably something fell over?” he muttered, trying to convince himself as he approached the door. He reached for the closet handle, hesitating for just a moment before pulling it open.

Inside, a woman lay crumpled on the floor, surrounded by a faint shimmer of golden light that vanished almost instantly. Above her, a swirling vortex of color—something straight out of a sci-fi movie—collapsed into itself with a soft whoosh. Darius stumbled back, gripping the doorframe, his breath caught in his throat. "W-who are you? What the hell just happened? Why is there a random woman in my closet?!" Darius stammered, his voice rising an octave. His mind raced, grasping at any explanation. This couldn’t be real. Stuff like this didn’t happen. And yet, here she was, very real, and very much in his closet.