A/N: As usual, I would recommend putting the video on loop.

(F/n) could easily see Brent hurriedly working on his bonds. The creature didn't stop him this time; his full attention was on her. A smirk tugged at his lips before it stretched into a maddening grin. He took several steps towards her, and she kept her ground. If she put another foot out the door, her decision would've been made. Leaning down to her height, he rested his left index finger under her chin.

His nail just pricked her skin, and a thin trail of blood ran down it. She remained still, but she felt like she might faint. Her whole body urged her to turn around and dash for freedom, but she forced herself to stay put. "Until I finish eating him." Her stomach tightened, and she wished to vomit at the thought. (F/n) could see the dried blood on his teeth, which only made the feeling worse. "I've never had company when I've eaten before ... It would be delightful."

She gulped, and his nail dragged across her skin lightly. He pulled back and glanced to Brent, who had his ankles free. A few giggles parted from the creature's mouth. There was one more question. "Are you going to kill me after you eat him?" His gaze looked back to her, and he appeared thoughtful for a moment.

"Probably ... at some point, but I don't know when. You offered me a bite before you die. That courtesy earns you the spot to die last. I intend to enjoy that flesh of yours." The pit in her stomach grew. Her future wasn't looking too bright, but she did have more time than others. There was a chance to escape this madness still. Brent began to get up from his chair and sneak off in another direction.

"Oh, and one more matter." His eyes traveled down to her lips. Before she could do anything, the tip of his left index nail swiped down the middle of them. A brief cry of pain left her, and her hands flew up to them. Crimson trickled out, and his right hand moved her hands away. The creature's thumb rubbed against them, spreading blood across. Satisfied, he smirked again. "There, that gets rid of that awful smell from before."

By now, Brent stood several feet from the both of them. He wasn't going to sit by and let some girl decide his fate. No, he would escape and reach Nick and Tara. There was a rewarding future ahead of him, and he wasn't going to miss out on it. The creature paid him no mind; his gaze remained fixed on (F/n). His hand drew back. "Now, have you decided?"

Secretly, she hoped that Brent would reach the door so that she wouldn't have to decide, but she figured that the creature knew exactly where he was and what he planned. Most likely, though, she would have to choose an option, and she couldn't find herself staying and listening to the creature eating him. At least if she left, the screams would grow faint, and his death wouldn't be guaranteed. There was also the fact that she desired to put as much distance as she could between the creature and her. She was too close to death.

Her other foot stepped out into the hall. The creature watched her as she backed further into the hallway. Maybe, she was dooming Brent to something worse than death, but she didn't know the exact outcomes of her decision. There was no way to predict what would happen with a hundred percent certainty. Brent's life was in his own hands now. "So that's your decision," the creature giggled out. He tossed the flashlight out into the hall. "Well, so be it. I'll find you later, and we'll enjoy a meal together."

The door slammed shut and locked. She heard Brent yelling, "No! D*mn it! Don't leave me in here! I'm going to kill you, you b*tch!" He continued to yell insults and cries of help. (F/n) had to turn away. After she retrieved the flashlight, she dashed down the path to her right and hoped that she was going towards the center. As she tried to cover her ears, she heard the first scream.

Many more followed, but she kept sprinting. She didn't wish to imagine what was happening to him in that room. Hopefully, she would never have to see the result. Guilt was beginning to eat away at her, but either decision was horrendous. The creature had placed her into a situation where there was no good option, but she kept telling herself that she had her own life to worry about. That kept her sane in all of the present madness.

Licking away at the blood on her lips, she hoped to find a usable bathroom soon. She needed to clean them and tend to her wrists and parched throat. Her legs started to give out, and she had to stop. Her hands rested on her knees while she caught her breath. Steadily, she moved the flashlight. Up ahead, she could see a door. Beyond it, there was only the hallway.

Screams reached her ears, but they were quieter than before. Soon, she probably wouldn't hear them at all. She progressed towards the room and pushed open the door since the doorknob was absent. Her flashlight illuminated a rather empty space, but there were a few plastic crates stacked in the far left corner. Broken furniture was on the right side. There looked to be something in the crates.

Heading over, she shone the light over them. Empty water bottles filled them. Desperate, she crouched and started to sift through them. To her utter dismay, she found not a single one with water. She thought that she saw water droplets in one, but her eyes had been deceiving her. The creature had probably dumped all of the water while he giggled insanely.

Gradually, she got back to her feet. She needed to press on before the creature finished with Brent, or he somehow had managed to escape for that matter. After she left the room, she continued down the dismal hallway. Her steps echoed, and the darkness felt all consuming even with the flashlight. It didn't help that her mind was beginning to play tricks on her. At times, she swore that she heard soft footfalls behind her, but she would check, and nothing would be there. Perhaps, though, the creature was tailing her but at a safe distance from her flashlight.

It was a surprise to receive her source of light back, but she had lost it once, and she could lose it again. The creature was simply making the statement that he controlled the fate of her life. A scowl formed on her lips. She would show him; he had made a mistake in letting her go. There was no way that she was going to let the creature kill her.

To her benefit, the light unveiled two large swinging doors ahead. Did they lead to another kitchen? The tunnels were big enough to house two. As she got closer, she could hear movement on the other side. It didn't sound like the creature. Hopeful, she cautiously pushed the right one open and peered inside. There were metal tables throughout the space like the dining hall from before. This time, though, there were piles of supplies. Even more beneficially, she spotted Nick and Tara digging through them and taking out items of interest.

Nick looked up first and caught sight of her. "(F/n)? You're alive?" He breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness. Hurry up and come in. We probably don't have much time." She nodded and headed over to a pile near the two. Already, they had picked out some full water bottles and food that wasn't expired. Her eyes drifted to the water, and they both caught on. "You can take one. As you can see, there are more in the pile."

Instantly, she grabbed one and practically ripped off the cap. She chugged the liquid down and nearly cried in happiness. Water never tasted so spectacular. When she stopped, more than half the bottle was gone. Her throat sung out in joy, and she took a giant sigh of relief. "Thank you," she breathed out as she capped the bottle.

A small chuckle left his lips. "You're welcome, but let's hurry."

"Yeah, who knows when that thing is coming back. It most likely knows that we're in here." Tara stopped and looked to her. "Look for anything that might pick that gate's lock. We have enough food and water. We even found some working batteries." She was about to go back to her searching, but she paused and glanced back to (f/n). "By the way, did you happen to see Brent on your way here?"

Words refused to come out immediately. She couldn't help but look away. "I saw him, but ..." Both of their countenances bore crestfallen expressions. They noticed her wrists, but they didn't ask.

"I thought so," she muttered before she brushed some lose strands of hair back. "That thing looked intent on killing him. It had been that way ever since the creature first had spotted us. Hopefully, he had a quick death."

Keeping silent, (f/n) felt the salt sink into the wound more. She reassured herself that she had made the right decision for herself. Nick worked more furiously on finding what they needed. "I'm taking a month off before continuing this career," he muttered, and she thought that he would need more than that. (F/n) would probably not be able to look at a corpse for at least several months. Her parents were going to butcher her with a lecture when she returned home if she made it home.

Facing away from them, she picked a pile and went to work. Her (e/c) eyes briefly looked to the doors. If only, they could bar them. Maybe, they could move the tables in front. She stopped what she was doing and grabbed a table. It wouldn't do much, but it would slow the creature down. Nick and Tara stopped what they were doing and went over to help. All of them picked up another table and lifted it onto the first one. With that safety measure in place, they returned to examining the various piles. She shone her flashlight on the piles to look for bandages and something metallic. From the looks of it, she would have to use her shirt to wrap her wrists. More annoyingly so, nothing glinted back. Some piles were too dense to see anything under the first layer of things. The light did catch something a few piles down from her, though. Swiftly, she made her way over.