It's late, 2:16 a.m. to be exact and Ryan, Shaniqua, and Julius are gathered outside of Sam's Club. Shaniqua swings her large purse off her shoulder and withdraws the expensive, online ordered 17 and a half inch steel-toed boot. The glass doors shine from the moon's light before Shaniqua raises the boot and lets out a battle cry, swinging with all her might, the glass door shattering into millions of pieces on the ground.
"Bingo," Shaniqua says cockily, turning her head to wink at her Mexican and Asian transgender friends. She slips the boot back into her purse, and the gang of three step inside the large store.
"Gimme the goldfish," Ryan squeals like a piglet, scurrying off down a random aisle.
"We have to be quick and quiet, Ryan!" Julius hisses at his often annoying friend, chasing him down the aisle.
Shaniqua stays near the entrance of the store, warily eyeing the sidewalk and parking lot. If any cars or police show up, it's up to her to alert the others and make a fast escape. They don't steal often, but desperate times call for desperate measures.
A sound from outside that ruins the silence attracts Shaniqua's attention. She turns her head to look out at the parking lot, eyes landing on the source of the noise instantly. Across the lot, walking barefoot towards the entrance of Sam's Club, Shaniqua sees a man wearing a dirty white hospital gown. His feet are slapping the pavement roughly, and Shaniqua takes notice of the bewildered look in his eyes.
Turning quickly, Shaniqua darts off down the aisle where she hears Ryan and Julius bickering over something stupid most likely.
"Somebody's coming," she wheezes, trying to keep her voice low. Ryan and Julius's heads snap in her direction, eyes widening.
"Who? Police?" Ryan asks, Japanese accent shining through. He's got his hand stuffed down a bag of Goldfish, crumbs around his mouth.
"I don't know who," Shaniqua says quickly. "But they're coming in as we speak. He was wearing a hospital gown, I don't know if he's okay."
"Shiz," Julius grumbles. "Let's find somewhere to hide until we know he won't catch us."
"The toilet paper!" Ryan points out, his finger aimed at the stacks on the shelf. "We can get behind them."
Shuffling quickly, the three cram behind the stacks of toilet paper, huddling together and peeking out from above them. Their breaths are almost silent to try and keep from being discovered, and only seconds later, the sound of bare feet hitting the linoleum floors is audible. He's in the same aisle as them. A ton of items hit the ground and roll when he suddenly falls into a shelf opposite the hiding teens.
"Aw, balls!" he yells, grabbing his head and releasing a frustrated scream. As much as they don't want to and try not to, the kids begin to snicker quietly at the man's idiocy.
In only an instant, their little laugh changes to silence and dread as they watch the man begin to sprint, full out sprint, towards their positions and tackle the toilet paper to the ground. Ryan lands under him with an 'oof' sound leaving his mouth.
The man begins to hysterically laugh and try to choke Ryan, planting his fingers around his neck and squeezing until Julius shoves him off and onto the floor. Pulling Ryan up and bolting randomly through the store, the three find themselves outside the meat locker, and without giving it second thought, they rush inside and lock the door behind them. Shaniqua is hysterically crying and shaking while the other two catch their breath, all of them praying they ditched the psychotic man outside.
Meanwhile, the man is already back on his feet and searching for them wildly, small laughs leaving his mouth as his yellow teeth shine from the barely visible light from the moon. Staying silent for a minute, his ears pick up on quiet talking in a room close by. Following the noise, he ends up outside the meat locker and bangs on the door.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
They lose count until finally, the door flies open and the kids take their last few breaths.
~Breaking News Message~
"Beth!" Lily, Ryan's mother, calls her friend into the room. "Come see this!"
Beth, Shaniqua's mom, is in the room a second later, sitting beside Lily to watch the news broadcast. Julius's mother, Shalontane, is sat in an arm chair, eyes glued to the screen already.
"As of 5 o'clock this morning, three young teenage bodies were found hung in the meat freezer at our local Sam's Club," the announcer speaks, microphone held up to her mouth. "The murderer has not yet been identified or caught, so we advise being very safe with your daily plans as they are still on the loose. The families are to be contacted as soon as the bodies are identified."
"How heartbreaking!" Lily says sadly, looking down to the carpet beneath her feet.
"Good thing our babies were safe at the church lock in," Shalontane exhales, her nerves in a wreck.
"Those poor families," Beth throws in. "That must be the worst feeling."
As if on cue, all three mothers' phones ring, the police contacting them. And in that moment, they know that their babies are not at a lock in, they're strung up to freeze in a Sam's Club meat locker.
~The end~
