Tales from the Kreme presents… Grin and Bare It by Kris P. Kreme
It’s Riley’s first night on the job working for Nick’s struggling laser tag arena in an industrial downtown area. And while he and his other two employees handle the concrete labyrinth he calls the concrete wall well down below, Riley is on her computer analyzing profit loss, figuring ways to cut corners and turn things around.
But her work comes with enough downtime that she takes a chance reading a story sent to her by a girlfriend teasing her how well redheads handle challenges. But did she really send a story called Grin and Bare It, about a demon that possesses and corrupts redheads only if they smile reluctantly?
Or is another force at work, helping Riley get to know her new coworkers?
Over 10,000 Words of Kreme!
As the sun goes down over an industrial part of the city, heavyset Nick is happily greeting the newest member of his team, a young woman named Riley who all are hoping can find a way to somehow turn a profit from his struggling laser tag arena. But little could any of his other workers or Nick know, the arrival of a beautiful redhead like Riley may have drawn more interest from a rather dark and sinister demonic force beyond the world of fictional erotica.
HallowKreme revisits once again the world of Tales from the Kreme presents… where readers just like you find their lives turned upside down in often stimulating ways purely by reading an original Tale from the Kreme. And in this case, that original tale is Grin and Bare It, available now!
It’s been twenty-five years since Nick first set up his laser tag arena, complete with what he calls the concrete wall well beneath the small office Riley will be working out of. Within that maze of concrete walls below, families used to love running around enjoying themed laser tag, the current them Halloween of course.
But since demographics and industry have changed over the decades, families no longer come to play laser tag, and the are predominantly just has men who do factory work, those men coming to blow off some steam with laser tag, though more often just using the place to smoke pot.
So something needs to change, which is where Riley comes in. She’s highly educated and qualified to join the team, using her skills and equipment to analyze profit loss and figure out where corners can or should be cut to make Nick’s laser tag a hit again.
It’s just Nick working at the entrance, and younger guy Jimmy who generally handles repairs and all sorts of unexpected odd jobs inside the arena itself. And then of course they have off duty local PD officer, Harrison who works security, mostly watching with binoculars from the catwalk outside the small office Riley is offered to get her started.
But as friendly as they all seem, Riley is nervous about her first night on the job, and finds herself with plenty of extra time since her laptop AI program sorting the profit loss records will take some time to process.
When one of her girlfriends texts to wish her good luck with the new job, Riley is texting back about the challenges it will come with. And surprisingly her friend is pointing out that she’s a redhead, and redheads can handle hellish things. Her friend then encourages her to check out a demon story in case she wants to see how bad it could be… linking her to an original story called Grin and Bare It.
Bored and with time to kill while her program works, Riley decides to read the story, curious about it and amused by the redhead on the cover. But very quickly Riley will discover that this isn’t an ordinary demon story, about some demon without a name only known as the Sinister Smile… capable of possessing and corrupting innocent redheads only if those redheads smile reluctantly at someone else.
When Harrison interrupts her reading to come in for one of the walkies in a desk drawer, the gruff security man offers Riley a forced smile… and strangely she finds herself drawn to that smile, arching her back, pulling her blazer aside, realizing only after he left that she was pretty much begging the man she only just met to look at her chest.
Going back to the story, she’s quickly wondering why her girlfriend would ever send her this… the story depraved and perverse. Even more concerning though may be the fact that whenever Nick, Harrison, or Jimmy happen to stop in the office, interrupting her reading, the subtle smiles they offer her are having an increasingly unsettling effect on Riley and she is doing and saying things she never would do or so… much to their confusion but definite enjoyment.
Just what is happening to Riley as she reads about some fictional demon called the Sinister Smile? Did her girlfriend even send her that story… and if not, who did? Find out as Riley really gets to know her new coworkers and may in the process stumble upon the perfect way to turn a profit from the old laser tag arena.
The next treat is…not coming in clearly…
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