Dead Inside the Mall

The glass front of Sunridge Galleria sparkled in the warm afternoon sun, making the building look very tall. People always thought of the mall as a busy place, but for Alexis "Lex" Carter and her friends, it was just another place to hang out on a Saturday.

Lex looked at her younger brother Damien as she fixed her backpack. As usual, he was walking ahead with a spring in his step, eager to get into the next sports shop. Others walked behind them more casually. Maya Torres was quiet as usual, her eyes darting nervously among the people around her; Brandon Lee was tapping away on his phone, probably figuring out something that none of them cared about; and Sophie Bennett was following behind and looking around with a light sense of interest.

"Okay, where should we start?" When they stopped in front of the huge mall directory, Damien asked, his voice full of anger.

Lex smiled and rolled her eyes. "First the food court, then the supplies."

Brandon said, "Sensible," but he didn't look up from his phone. "After that, we can go our separate ways."

Damien moaned, but he gave in. "Okay. But I'm going to Ace Hardware next. I need to check to see if they have any cool camping gear.

Lex looked at Sophie, who hadn't said much since they got there. She saw Sophie's worried face and asked, "Are you okay?"

Sophie said "yes," but her voice was soft. "Yes, just... big places like this," she said. Makes me nervous all the time.

Lex smiled to reassure her. "Be with us. In shops, bad things never happen.

Many smells filled the food hall, including greasy burgers, sweet donuts, and coffee that was too expensive. Lex sat on the edge of a table and watched the people who were nearby. Kids ran from store to store, teens hung out in groups, and tired parents sipped coffee.

While she quietly ate a salad next to her, Maya kept a close eye on Damien, who was about halfway through his second burger. She said in a soft voice, "He always eats like it's his last meal."

"You already know how he is. "Always planning his next adventure," Lex said, but she couldn't help but feel like something wasn't right about the mall. Something didn't feel right. It could have been Sophie's nerves making her feel that way.

The group split up when they were done eating. Damien dragged Maya to the store that sells sports equipment, while Sophie and Brandon went off to look at electronics. Lex took a deep breath and planned to go to the store to get some basic first-aid supplies in case Damien hurt himself again like she always does.

But as she walked through the busy mall, something changed.

The air felt tense in a strange way. A few security guards ran by quickly, their radios buzzing with static and frantic calls. Lex stopped and watched as one of them spoke quickly into his radio. He looked worried as he did this.

Lex's phone rang.

There's a strange vibe in the sporting goods shop, Damien. People are going crazy. The mall's guards told me to calm down. [WTF?]

Lex's heart beat faster. Everything went wrong as she turned around to go back to the food court. The lights went on and off. Once. Two times.

After that, everything got dark.

The mall was filled with the sound of alarms and the voice of someone talking on the intercom: "Attention all shoppers." The mall is now safe to go to. Keep your cool. Someone from security will help you soon.

There was panic. Many people screamed and ran for the doors, but Lex knew better than to join them. The other people had to be found. Quickly.

But something caught her attention: a man walking down the hall, pale and with bloodshot eyes. He fell down near the pharmacy's door and was shaking so badly that foam came out of his mouth.

Before she could say anything, the man let out a deep growl, and everything around her turned into a nightmare. He slowly stood up, and his body jerked in a way that didn't make sense. His yellow eyes locked on hers.

When Lex understood this wasn't just a lockdown, her heart raced.

END