The flashlight beam hit its face, and suddenly the creature’s skin started to burn slowly as it let out a loud scream. I didn’t understand what just happened, but I took the chance — picked up the girl and threw her over my shoulder.

  For someone like me, she’s pretty heavy, but I had no choice but to carry her.

  I rushed out of the room as fast as I could. I was out of breath, and my knees were shaking. No more than five minutes had passed when I couldn’t go any farther. I collapsed to the floor, gasping for air. I still hadn’t reached the end of the hallway. I sat down, leaning against the wall, and placed the girl beside me on the ground.

  I looked at her face and thought to myself:

  "You're lucky you stayed asleep this whole time."

  While I was lost in thought, her head gently fell onto my shoulder. Her long, dark hair spread across my face and blocked my vision. I flinched for a moment, but quickly calmed myself down.

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  My eyes caught something black sticking out of her pocket. I pointed the flashlight at it and reached with my free hand to grab it — but she suddenly opened her eyes, sat up quickly, and said:

  "Who are you? What am I doing here?"

  I tried to calm her down, motioning with my hand for her to sit, and answered:

  "I don’t know either… but it seems like we’re trapped here and we’re alone."

  She sat down cautiously, keeping some distance, and said:

  "Why did I wake up next to you?"

  In the dark, with her eyes still half-closed, it was clear she was confused and scared. When I heard her voice, I wanted to tell her:

  "Relax… I promise I’ll protect you."

  But it probably wasn’t the right time for that.

  I said,

  "You might not believe me, but there was a—"

  A loud sound of a child crying came from somewhere close by.

  I stood up quickly and grabbed the handle of one of the doors. To my surprise, it opened. I was about to go in when I noticed the girl moving toward the sound.

  I shouted:

  "Don’t go there!"

  She replied:

  "Can’t you hear that? There’s a child in there!"

  — "It’s not what you think. You need to get in here, now!"

  She stared at me with deep doubt and said:

  "But… maybe they need our help…"

  Without giving her time to think, I grabbed her hand tightly. Her eyes were full of confusion, but there was no time to explain. I pulled her inside the room by force and shut the door behind us.