You headed down a dark alleyway and you saw it again, the vending machine as it stood there, impractically placed in the middle of the passage. It was black in design and had a large display window showing a large variety of food items brightly lit with red.

You weren't even sure whether it was the same machine but this machine always seemed to show up in locations with little foot traffic like alleyways you tended to use as shortcuts. The notion that it was following you around would be ridiculous to many, but it never stood where you had previously found it.

Even weirder, it was the only reliably working vending machine you could find. Every other dispenser had mysteriously been smashed in or out of order the day after you had used them. This ominous black and red machine, however, always worked for you. It had often even dispensed snacks for free but you always made sure to pay the correct amount even after the fact.

...and every passing day you found it, it was located a bit closer to your home.