That day I received a package. It was addressed to me, but I didn't know who sent it. There was no name. Only a P.O. Box in a far off town I'd never heard off. It was so strange, and looking back now, I guess I should have stopped myself. Because, if I hadn't opened that box, well never mind. You'll soon see.

It started with the package. You might have been able to guess that, but I can't stress it enough. Everything that happend to me from that moment on, every horrible thing, can be traced back to it. I'm not sure why I opened, maybe curiosity got the best of me. You might have heard the saying: 'Curiosity killed the cat.' I never knew it'd ring so true.

There was only one item in the box among the packing peanuts. A camera. It was seemingly normal, but it had to have been used because there wasn't any packaging with it. It was digital, and the lens could be adjust manually or automatically. I hadn't really taken photographs in the past before, but still, I was intrigued. As I turned on the camera, I checked for old photographs that had been left on it. The memory had been wiped clean. I decided to test the camera, but as I snapped pictures they would never turn out. Everytime, there would be a dark blob somewhere in the picture. I chalked it up to be a defect, but I would soon realize I was wrong.

Later that week I was invited to go to the beach with some friends. I had been ignoring the camera all week, frustrated that it didn't work, but this time I decided to bring it. The day was great. After taking a swim, we posed together, taking various photographs. I didn't bother checking them until I got home that night. As I cycled through the photographs, I noticed discoloration surrounding my two friends. It was in every picture. I felt a little uneasy, but my frustration overpowered that, and I turned off the camera, throwing it into a pile of clothes on the floor. The next day I got a call. My friends were missing.

My stomach flipped and suddenly I felt sick. And very cold. My heart fluttered as I picked up the camera to check the photos again. They had changed. The blob I had seen before blocked both of them out, and I was standing alone. I could feel the blood rush into my head, and dizziness overtake me. I drew in a shaky breath and picked up the camera. Click. Whirr. Click. Whirr. I began to take photos in a frenzy, pausing only to look at them. I don't think I have much time left. The blob, that shape, I saw in the photos is getting closer. I'm writing this now to warn you, if you receive a package similar to mine, don't open it.

I can't stop taking the photographs. I just picked up the camera again, and I'm about snap another. Click. Whirr.

I really like this little story. Though I am a horrible critic, from a creative standpoint I absolutely love it. It leaves me with a lot of questions, and even suspense.

This would be awesome as a short story or a prologue. I can imagine this person, after having disappeared, narrates the story of the next owner of the camera. You could even do it in second person with this with the "I" as the person here and the "you" as the next owner, which is just fantastic. Very difficult perspective to do, but I think you can do it.