LOTTIE LOOKED at the lunch options in the food court, trying to decide what she would like to eat. She looked up at her father, pointing towards a Chinese restaurant on the left.

The man nodded in agreement and the pair started walking towards the restaurant. As her father ordered, she stared through the skylight the mall had. Lottie furrowed her eyebrows when she saw multiple meteor looking things falling from the sky.

She tugged on her father's hand and pointed, looking at his reaction. The man showed concern and looked back to his daughter, trying to conceal the look on his face.

"Dont worry, i'm sure its nothing" The man signed, looking back to the cashier, handing the woman his money and taking the food. Lottie followed her father and turned her head when they passed the tables, looking at her father with confusion. "we are gonna head home for today." He signed, glancing at her before continuing to walk.

Lottie nodded and followed her father as they walked with the small crowd of people walking out the door. The small breeze was nice, and Lottie liked the feeling of fresh air. That was, until people started screaming behind her.

Lottie turned in a panic to see a strange creature she had never seen before attacking people. Her breathing quickened and her eyes were wide, tugging on her fathers hand for him to see.

Tyler's eyes landed on the scene and he quickly grabbed his daughter, holding her as he ran to the car. Lottie, looking over his shoulder, witnessed the scene of people screaming, then getting attacked right after.

After watching the scene for a while—cursing her father for parking so far away—she had realized the pattern. Someone would scream, then the monster would go for them. Lottie wasn't sure of course, but she had then believed that noise had set the creatures off, causing them to attack.

Lottie and her father made it to the car and set her in the backseat before getting in the front, backing out of the parking lot. Lottie flinched when she heard a loud smash, looking out the back window to see the creature not many feet away from them, atop a smashed car.

Lottie turned around quickly and closed her eyes, silently wishing her father could hear so she could urge him to go faster.

For a few moments, she couldn't hear much. There was the momentary screams, but they were silenced after a few seconds. Lottie felt the car stop, looking out the window to see they had arrived home.

She quickly got out of the car, being as careful as possible to he quiet when closing the door. She looked over to see her father about to close the door. She rushed over, stopping him before he could.

Lottie held a finger to her lips, showing him how she gently closed the door. "I think sound attracts them, im not sure though." She signed, breath hitching when she had heard another scream, then a crash, then silence. It was like a never ending cycle and the population was dying down by the minute.

Her father nodded slowly, skepticism in his eyes before the nodded towards the front door, urging her to get inside. Lottie nodded and walked inside, turning the doorknob as she closed it so it would be quiet.

Her father sat on the couch, grabbing his phone to get ahold of his wife. Lottie watched with a small frown as the facetime called had stopped trying, telling the pair that she didnt pick up. Lottie stood quietly as she thought for a minute.

Lottie wasnt sure how loud the noise had to be to trigger them, and even then she wasnt even sure her theory was correct. She heard her father set his phone down, and lottie realized her mother had
not answered the phone at all. She bit her lip, a nervous habit she had, as she sat down on the couch across her father.

"what gave you the noise idea?" Her father had asked, looking at his daughter with curious eyes.

Lottie sighed, replaying the scene from the mall in her head once more. "at the mall, people were screaming, obviously. and then the monster would go straight for them." She explained, setting her hands down on her lap to fiddle with the hem of her shirt when she finished signing.

Her father nodded, deep in thought for a moment. Lottie looked at him, hoping he believed her. He nodded and sat up as if to tell her her explanation had made sense. "go to your room please, its a little safer"

Lottie nodded and stood up, walking up the stairs to her bedroom. She sat on her bed, staring at the ceiling for a minute before changing into something more comfortable.

She put on gray sweatpants—without the scrunched ends of course—and a red top. With her outfit, she put on some fluffy socks. She sat back down on her bed and everything was quiet, until a loud crash sounded downstairs.

cliffhanger ?