The animation was crude, vibrating with a hyper-detailed realism that made Kenji’s skin prickle. It featured a man sitting exactly where Kenji was sitting, in a room that mirrored his own, right down to the half-eaten ramen cup on the desk. On the screen-within-the-screen, the animated man leaned closer to his monitor, his eyes widening until the whites were mapped with bursting capillaries.

"Looking for Junji Ito Maniac Episode 11?" a pop-up hissed. "Watch for free here."

Kenji didn't turn around. He didn't have to. He saw the reflection in his own darkened monitor: a pair of pale, multi-jointed hands reaching out from the shadows of his own closet, matching the movements on the screen perfectly.

"It’s a loop," Kenji whispered, trying to laugh. But his hand, gripped tight around the mouse, wouldn't move.