In Carly’s family gift giving was an ordinary thing. With her dad being away in the military and her older sister being away at college, sending each other little packages now and then was how they shared their affection from a distance. Mostly, these packages are just small knick-knacks that Carly’s sister, Katie finds in downtown thrift shops in her college town. Since her dad is away and out of the country, Carly receives heartfelt letters or post cards from him every now and then.

On a Friday, Carly came home from school to find a small cardboard package sitting on the doorstep. Thinking nothing of it, she walked over to pick it up. That is when her eyes met the large print across the top that read, “CARLY. KEEP SHUT.” Puzzled, she brought it inside with her and placed it on the kitchen island. Although her curiosity was screaming for her to open the package, the message on the top prevented her from doing so. Carly decided to wait until her mother got home to ask if she knew anything about the mysterious package. It had been almost a month since Carly had gotten a package from her sister so she assumed Katie had sent it. Why Katie would put “KEEP SHUT” on the top was beyond Carly’s reasoning. She had never done that with any other packages that she had sent before. The message made Carly uneasy. What if the contents of the box was something serious?
Ten minutes later Carly’s mom walked through the door. Thank god!
“Hey mom. How was your day?” Carly asked while trying to settle her thoughts.
“Full of paperwork and meetings.” her mother groaned while trudging up the stairs.
“Wait! Has Katie mentioned anything to you about sending me something this month?”
“She sent you something? She’s barely making payments this semester. I told her to not worry about presents this month.”
Carly thought about it for a minute before remembering Katie telling her that she had been trying to save money. “Weird. Nevermind then.” Carly finally responded.
Her mom shot her a concerning look before turning on her three inch heels and heading back up the stairs. Carly couldn't think of who would have sent the package now that she knows her sister didn’t. Her dad wasn’t an option considering that he is in a completely different country. She didn’t touch the box for the rest of the night after carrying it up to her room. That night Carly tossed and turned while thinking of the mystery package. What made this whole situation so odd is the message on top of the box. Should she open it? What would happen if she did?
Carly woke the next morning determined to figure out what was in the box and why it was sent to her. Picking it up, she was shocked that it was surprisingly light as a feather. It just didn’t make sense. What the hell is going on…
Carly paced her room. Utterly confused about the whole mystery package. She contemplated all the possibilities of what could be inside the box, still reading “KEEP SHUT.” Right as she built up the courage to break open the seal her mother called up to her from downstairs, “Carly! I made pancakes! Come down and eat something.”
Carly was undeniably hungry so she abandoned the slightly opened package and headed downstairs.
“Morning. Thanks for breakfast, Mom.”
“How’d you sleep, Carls?” her mother asked.
“Good.” Carly lied. “I’ve got quite a bit of homework to get started on today, I’ll be in my room if you need anything.”
Carly stood and walked swiftly to the stairs. When she approached her room she immediately noticed that something was off. Her door was open wider than it had been when she left and the box was missing from her dresser. She pushed past the door and immediately felt a presence in the room. Her eyes fell to the spot on the floor where the package laid completely torn apart. Her heart pounded in her chest as she trailed her eyes up to the door of her bathroom which was opening slowly.
Carly finally found it in her to choke out, “H...hello?
“Hello Carly. Nice to finally meet you.” a voice called from the bathroom.
“Who the hell are you?” Carly called back in a whisper.
Stepping out from the bathroom, a women dressed in all black with short blond hair and eyes that could kill a man with a single look appeared. She eyed Carly up and down with a giddy smirk on her face before speaking. “Shouldn’t have broke the seal, Carly. Your perfect little life just took a nasty turn...”