For weeks, a quiet, growing dread had reigned in Nika's apartment—one she couldn't quite put into words. It all started with innocent, delicate sounds: short squeaks, soft knocks, something like… chirping? The sanitary inspector said it was probably mice, that she was exaggerating, that she looked overworked, she should rest.

Except mice don't cause neighbors to disappear without a trace.

Nika thought it was some family matter. Trips. Moves. Until one day, she was left alone in the entire stairwell. Just her—and those sounds, increasingly insistent, increasingly, as if… interested in her.

--

One evening, when she returned from work, exhausted beyond belief, she lay down on her bed without even turning off the light. She closed her eyes, and the silence of the apartment began to fill with that distinctive, gentle chirping again.

The sound was getting closer.

Something heavy… soft… slid across the floor.

Nika was so tired that her eyelids barely flickered. Something climbed onto the bed—gently, cautiously, as if not wanting to startle her. A warm breeze brushed against her neck. Something touched her shoulder.

A soft, hairy limb.

Nika murmured in her sleep, thinking it was a blanket or a sweater, and… she ran her hand over it, stroking it slowly.

The creature let out a low, vibrating chirp, somewhere between a purr and a contented trill. It lay down beside her, like a large, furry blanket. Nika buried her face in something warm and soft, still unconscious.

And then she woke up.

And she saw him.

A huge spider, pitch black, with eight gleaming eyes reflecting her face. As big as a calf, powerful, with legs half the length of a bed. He looked at her intensely, almost tenderly.

Nika screamed.

The monster reacted immediately: one leg gently covered her mouth, and the other began to rapidly wrap her in soft, warm web. It didn't hurt—the web was like a woolen sweater—but it was stronger than concrete. Nika couldn't move her arms or legs, immobilized like a cocoon.

The spider let out a soothing chirp.

"N-no... please..." Nika whispered, tears welling in her eyes.

The male leaned over her and stroked her back with one of his front legs, as if to soothe her. The movement was surprisingly tender.

CHIRK.

It sounded like: it's okay… you're safe… my… my mate…

Nika was breathing rapidly, panicked, but the spider continued stroking her, becoming more and more gentle, more and more like a caring creature wanting her to stop being afraid.

And then he stood up.

He went to the refrigerator, which he opened by ripping the door open in one movement. He returned with food—yogurt, juice, cheese, whatever he found. He placed it all next to her bed, shaking with excitement like a dog bringing home prey.

Then he moved away a bit and began… cleaning her room.

He moved the furniture back into place, dusting off the dust, and strung huge, soft spiderwebs across the ceiling, making the room feel warmer, more insulated, like a nest.

A nest for the female.

She was his.

The male returned to her and carefully climbed back onto the bed, moving sideways to her. He positioned his enormous body to warm her and stroked her back again.

CHIRK. CHIRK.

As if saying:

Don't be afraid... I chose you... I will protect you... mine...

Nika looked into his shining eyes, feeling a mixture of terror and... a strange, instinctive relief that his solicitude imposed.

And the spider was already making silent plans, quivering with joy:

The female is in the nest. The female stays. The female is his.

And he will never let her go.