Chelsea knocked on the door and a tall, handsome boy opened it.
"Hi!" Chelsea chirped. "I'm Chelsea, the housesitter you hired."
"Uh-huh?" He raked his eyes up and down Chelsea's body, a devilish grin on his face.
"Can I get your name?"
"Name's Xander. Come." Chelsea stepped into the apartment and Xander shut the door behind her. "Make yourself comfortable while you're here. Go wherever you like, eat whatever you want from the kitchen."
"Oh, I- I won't do that. I'll probably only be here for an hour a day or so." Xander shrugged. "But thank you."
"And of course, you'll have to take care of Kaa."
"Sorry?"
"My snake."
"Snake?" Chelsea squeaked.
"Oh, it's completely harmless. Here, its room is this one." Xander tapped one of the doors in the hallway. "All you'll need to do is feed it--its food is in the pantry--and spend a little time playing with it each day."
"Play with a snake?"
"And that's all there is to it." Xander smiled. "Not a very difficult job, I assure you."
"You-You said you're going to be gone for a week?"
"Yeah... Work trip." He rolled his eyes and Chelsea nervously laughed. "Now, I need to finish packing and then I'll leave. Make yourself at home."
"Sure."
•••
Chelsea took a deep breath and opened the door to the snake room. A large, brown snake was curled up in the center of the room. As soon as the door shut, it lifted its head and looked at her.
"H-Hello," Chelsea squeaked. She internally kicked herself for talking to it. "I'm just going to feed you and then leave, okay?"
Kaa stayed where it was, watching as she dropped the food in the corner. She went to the door and turned the handle, but it wouldn't open. She pulled harder, but the door wouldn't budge.
"Play..." a voice whispered. She gasped as she felt something sliding around her ankles. She looked down to see Kaa winding around her feet. She screamed and jumped away, scrambling to the other side of the room. She tripped and fell to the ground, and Kaa lunged.
"No!" she screamed. But it died in her throat. Kaa had met her gaze and she was now entranced by its swirling, vivid, yellow eyes. She couldn't stop staring at its eyes that were filled with spiraling complex patterns that sucked away her mind power.
"Play..." Kaa hissed. Soft music had begun to play, filling Chelsea's ears and mind. Kaa broke its gaze and Chelsea snapped out of her trance. She screamed and tried to run away, but Kaa had wrapped its body around her like a cocoon and she was trapped.