Teenagers

"What are those things?!" Damian cried.

"Just keep going!" Grace yelled back.

The two ran down a darkened hall, their breaths billowing out as they dashed looking for safety. Grace saw an opened door coming up to their left, "Look, let's duck into there." she told Damian. She ran inside grabbing hold of the door handle getting ready to shut the door, Damian was closing in on the room but as he was about to enter he lost his footing and slipped, skidding past the door. Grace looked in horror as her friend slid past her, she reached out her hand but just missed with the tips of their fingers barely touching. As she was about to go and help Damian she could hear their pursuer down the hall. The blood drained from her face, she took a look back at her friend, both her and Damian locked eyes and instantly he screamed "NOOOO!!"

As Grace slammed the door and barred it closed leaving her friend outside.

His foot finally found purchase on the floor, running back to where his friend had abandoned him. He slammed his body hard against the door, pounding his fists on the door. "Open this door Grace!" he shouted. As he was slamming his fists on the door, something caught his attention. He slowly looked to his left, everything seemed to go silent, all but some movement down the hall. Damian squinted, straining his eyes to see down the dark hallway. As he looked he could make out the debris that was strewn about the floor being moved. A cold sweat started to run down his back, as he continued to bang on the door, now he began pleading, "Grace please open the door. Please!" he begged as tears started to stream down his face. Grace could hear her friends sobb and crying as he was pleading. She turned back to the door, reaching out her hands to unbriagade the door. She was beginning the move to open the door, Damian could hear her, "Thank you, oh my god thank you so much!" As she was about to turn the knob she heard the loud shuffling from down the hall. Damian heard her stop moving, "Grace, what are you doing?" He asked with a shaky voice.

"I'm sorry Damian, I'm so very sorry." She apologized to her friend.

Shocked, Damian just stared at the door, tears flooding his eyes as he hears Grace blockading the door once more. Damian falls to his knees, eyes staring up at what would have been his salvation. On the other side Grace continues to barred the door, tears falling to the floor and sobs escaping her breath. She finishes and backs away from the door, as the sounds of shuffling grow louder. Back in the hallway Damian is still on his knees slacked jawed, he hears the shuffling but is unable to move, too terrified. The shuffling comes close, his breathing grows heavier and faster as the shuffling comes to a stop behind him. Shaking uncontrollably he hears it crouch down behind him, it's breathing in his ear. He slowly turns his eyes towards the breathing, as he does a low growl escapes its mouth. He turns his eyes back to the door, a whimpering sound comes out of his mouth, finally a single word leaves his lips.

"Grace."

In the room, Grace slowly backs away from the door as she hears it on the other side. She could hear a low growling sound as she heard her friend say her name. After a moment of silence, she took a tentative step forward. As she stepped forward, a loud scream came from the other side of the door. She heard her friend yelling, screaming her name, Grace covered her mouth to stop herself from screaming. She could hear her friends' agonizing cries for help, "No please no, let me go." Grace started crying, hands still covering her mouth trying to muffle her cries as she heard Damian being dragged down the hall, his screams growing softer as he got further away.

Standing there Grace looks at the door, trying to hear if anything is on the other side. She slowly approaches, as she was about to reach for one of the blockades, loud pounding on the door startled her and she let out a scream. She covered her mouth again but it was too late, the pounding on the door grew louder and heavier. She looked around the room for somewhere to hide. All she saw was an old metal bed frame with a dirty mattress on top. She rushed over to it and slid underneath grabbing the mattress to cover the front. As she was trying to cover herself, the banging on the door grew even louder and more forceful.

She finally was able to cover herself with the filthy mattress as the pounding stopped. She tried to calm her breathing as she peeked from behind the mattress. Locking her eyes on the door, she waited to hear the shuffling. She laid there for what seemed forever, she built up the courage to climb out from under the bed. She moved the mattress to the side, as she was reaching to climb out, she saw something out of the corner of her eye. She saw long black nails on each side of her face. She slowly turned her face to one side and saw elongated fingers that could easily wrap around her face. The claw-like hands were attached to long arms that were stretching out of the black shadows under the bed behind her. As she screamed the long fingered hands wrapped around her head and dragged her toward the darkness.

Outside a couple of teenagers were walking by and could hear what seemed like a scream coming from the abandoned building. The girl looks at the boy with scared, the boy smiles and says,

"You know that place is haunted right?"