INT. ART STUDIO - 13 YEARS AGO - EVENING

Full of blank canvases, clean paintbrushes, and iridescent artwork. YOUNG GRACE (4), mixed Latino and White, a wide-eyed, bubbly little girl, sits on the floor, finger-painting.

Her fingers glide along the paper, her tan skin glowing as she paints with joy.

Her scruffy, paint-smudged father, DONNIE (25), Latino, watches, lost in the moment with his daughter. Dark curls fall over his tired eyes, but they burn with warmth as he bends down to whisper in her ear.

                                DONNIE
                    See the glow, Gracie?

She looks up at him with her big, bright eyes, and it melts his heart.

                                YOUNG GRACE
                    (giggling)
                    No, Daddy. I don’t see it.

Donnie reaches down, pressing his finger into the yellow paint. He pretends to start painting his own picture, then smears the paint across her cheek. She laughs.

She lunges over to get him back. He dodges, and she falls onto Donnie’s canvas. Her yellow handprint splatters across his canvas.

But, she gets right back up and gives Donnie a great, big hug, smearing paint all across his back.

He hugs her right back and picks her up, swinging her around.

After a brief moment, they share a moment of silence, melting into each other. Grace lays her head on her dad’s shoulder. Her eyes begin to flutter.

                                YOUNG GRACE (CONT’D)
                    Can I sleep with you and mommy tonight?

Donnie smiles.

INT. BEDROOM - MOMENTS LATER

A sole lamp lights the room as EVELYN (26, White) lies asleep on the bed.

Donnie shushes Grace as they sneak into the room. They get underneath the covers, snug as a bug.

Evelyn turns over and gives Grace a kiss on the forehead, but gives Donnie an annoyed look. There’s something sharp behind her tired eyes. Donnie smiles back at her.

The family drifts away to sleep.

LATER IN THE NIGHT

Donnie rubs his eyes and sneaks out of bed as to not wake up his wife and daughter.

INT. BATHROOM - NIGHT - MOMENTS LATER

Donnie shields his eyes from the dimly lit bathroom.

Through the window above the sink, a dark figure stands in the distance. Donnie doesn’t notice at first as his eyes adjust to the light.

He uses the toilet as the figure slowly approaches. As he washes his hands, he spots the movement.

The figure is about 10 feet away from the window. Its face is like abyss absorbing the moonlight, shadows enshrouding its entire body. A void darker than night.

Donnie panics, he splashes water on his face, rubs his eyes again. He looks back up.

The figure is taunting him now, outstretching its arms. Its blade-like fingers extend as it makes a slicing motion across its neck.

Donnie has lost it. He flips the blinds closed in a flash and sprints back into the—

BEDROOM

He rushes in the room, flips on the lamp.

                                DONNIE
                    Up, up. Get up. Now!

Grace wakes up, in a daze. Evelyn rubs her eyes. Donnie tears the covers off them.

                                DONNIE (CONT’D)
                    No time, we need to leave.