Locked in.

Ellie's POV

After the guy that died, all of us are on edge and shaken up.

"I need all of the men to help me here." One of the managerial men bark at us. All of the men, including Michael, step forward and grab a limb.

They start to take the body out when i realize they need someone to hold the flashlight.

"Can I come with you guys and hold the flashlight for you?" I ask in a very quiet voice.

"Uh... yeah. Thanks hun." The older man, holding the right arm, says to me.

I take the flashlight that the mom we were talking to earlier is holding out to me and i timidly walk out of the bathroom, my hand shaking at the sight of the dead man.

The four men carrying the body start mumbling to each other.

"What? You can say it louder so i can hear too." I say from behind the group.

"Nothin' El. Just butt out." Michael says in a hushed tone.

"AWH COMMON!" I start to get worked up.

"SHHH! THEY'LL HEAR US!" The four men whisper-yell at me.

'What? Who will hear us?' I think to myself and try to brush it off.

We keep walking and I begin to zone out, trying to keep my mind off of whatever is making these guys so worried.

"El, grab us some chips and drinks while we're in this aisle." Michael says quietly.

"oook." I say, only agreeing because I get to pick out what type of chips.

Then I decide I'm being greedy by picking out my favorites, sour cream and onion, when I know for a fact that Michael hates them. So i grab him a bag of Doritos and grab some paper cups and a jug of apple juice.

Hey, we both have always loved apple juice.

Michael looks back and smiles when he sees the apple juice.

He mouths out 'Thank You.' and then turns around with a grin on his face.

I get butterflies when I see him smile at me. I've never noticed how perfect he is. He may be a douche bag, but he's my douche bag.

What am I thinking?!

I wish I could just accept the fact that we're enemies. Always have been, always will be.

But I can't help my stupid feelings.

I accidentally drop the Doritos and turn around to pick them up.

When I stand up, the flashlight shines to reveal a man wearing a hockey mask is holding a gun to my head.

I want to scream but I'm paralyzed with fear. I close my eyes shut and swallow the lump that's forming in my throat. I hear slow, heavy footsteps and when I open my eyes, he's gone.

"El, you comin'?" Michael calls out.

I burst into tears and run over to him. He drops the man's arm and wraps his arm around me.

"What's wrong? Are you ok?" He whispers in my ear with concern.

I him what i had just seen and he pulls back from me, hands still on my shoulders, and looks me in the eyes.

The rest of our party had reached the end of the isle.

"You guys coming or what?" The manager sounds annoyed.

"um.. Yeah." Michael says. He looks me in the eyes, "Don't tell anyone else about this ok? Maybe it was just your imagination..." He says with uncertainty in his voice.

I nod and we continue walking, him grabbing my hand. Everytime I look over at him, he smiles and squeezes my hand reassuringly and says "It's ok. we're fine."

Finally, we reach a door. The manager takes out his set of keys and jingles them under the light of the flashlight. He finds the correct one, and unlocks the door with ease.

Inside, it's a cleaning supply closet, emptied of the actual supplies, and the smell is unbearable. There are two rotting bodies inside.

My breath hitches in my throat. Michael squeezes my hand hard and stands there with his mouth wide open.

"I know... Just don't talk about it with the others..." The manager says as they toss the man into the small room with ease. He closes and locks the door.

We all stand there looking at each other, unable to process the whole situation.

Just then, we hear blood curdling screams coming from the bathroom.