Alex's Story

Hey, my name is Alex, and honestly I'm not sure what to do anymore, some weird things have been happening to me and it's all my fault. I think it's time I brought this up to someone.

It all started about a week ago, I was messing around with my friends online when I ended up bringing up my latest developments in getting a job, I write for a living, it may not be the best job but it gets food on my table. Terrance thought it would be a great idea for me to start writing horror stories, even if it's a genre I've never touched before. I came up with some pretty cool ideas but turns out people came up with them a long time before me, so I only had a few ideas left that wouldn't immediately get me harassed for stealing, and so I set to work with my favorite idea; The short life of Nova Marcos

The story started much like any other, setting the scene and the mood, a girl by the name of Nova was sat in her room watching videos on her laptop and texting her friends. She had come home after a good day out and needed to chill out, but some creepy stuff started happening in her room, original, I know, I wrote about how her door would creak open even though she was adamant it was locked beforehand, the posters on her room would look distorted from the corner of her eyes, but whenever she looked at them they would be fine. Stuff like that, I never claimed to be a good writer alright?

Here's my problem, after I finished writing that part I called it for the night and closed my notebook, I put it on my desk and went to sleep. The next day I went out with my friends and had a few drinks, I got home and locked my door and flopped on my bed, but I swear instead of Goku's smiling face on my poster there was something, different and just as I noticed this I saw that my door was slightly open, now I was still buzzed after the drinks in the day but I know for a fact I locked that door. Immediately after noticing my door open there was a loud bang downstairs, now I don't live alone but my parents were out all night tonight so this riled me up, I grabbed the thickest book I could and started creeping downstairs but everything was fine, no robbers, no murderers. Heading back upstairs my mind thought back to my little story I was writing, I took my notebook out of my desk and headed to the page I started writing on.

I was shocked to see that everything matched up, the poster, the door, and even the bang... But I didn't write about the bang, it was right in front of me, a whole new paragraph about a bang that when it was looked into nothing was there. Passing this off as just a memory error I decided it was best if I headed to sleep.

Waking up that day was one of the hardest things I had to do, my hangover was impossibly obnoxious and I just wanted to stay in bed all day, fortunately, Sunday is a day I can afford to be lazy on, I put some YouTube on and began texting friends. Terrance asked me about how the story was coming along so I typed it all up and sent it to him, I decided not to mention what happened, and the fact a new paragraph had seemingly just appeared. Somehow he liked it and suggested I continue, just kinda mumbling an agreement to him seemed to suffice. Pulling out my notebook I froze for a second before slowly opening it. No new paragraphs this time.

Starting again I decided not to get into things too fast, I wrote about how Nova had a great day at college but couldn't shake the feeling of being watched off of her all day, she got home did some jobs for her parents and went to bed for the night. Not the most interesting story but a story all the same, about an hour afterward I received a text from my college instructor it said I had to come in the next day to finalize my assignments. Obviously, this made me feel a bit sick but I had been expecting this text for a while, and it was just coincidental timing, not much happened the rest of the day, my parents got back from the trip they went on and I ultimately just went to bed early.

Terrance didn't like my new paragraph, I had sent it to him after I wrote it and he said it needed more tension, I brushed him off and said maybe I'd edit it when I got home. I got showered and dressed, ready for college, standing around for the bus wasn't something I missed doing a lot but I was happy to see one of my old friends on the bus as I got on, we talked for a bit about everything we had missed out on in each other's lives.

When we arrived at college I noticed something incredibly strange, there was a pitch-black car with its windows blacked out, in the far corner of the car park, it was too fancy to ever be a student's and I doubt any of the staff could ever afford something like that, it was just weird. I met with my teacher and got my work handed back to me, the whole time I couldn't get rid of the feeling I was being watched, I pinned it down to the stupid segment in my story giving me the creeps, but all day no matter what I was doing, I was just worried. When it was time to head home I was relieved, no more of this feeling. As I got on the bus I looked for the car again, the same place as before, with the faint outline of someone in the driver's seat, and he was staring right at me.

The car was following my bus. Wasn't even trying to hide it. What did this guy want? When I got off at my stop I saw the car wasn't there, I started running home when I looked back and saw it tailing me I sped up until I eventually hopped into an adjacent field, I ran home and looked back once, I saw a tall figure in sunglasses and a long black trench-coat and a black trilby. Not someone I ever want to see again. I got home covered in sweat and did my usual jobs for my parents before jumping right in bed. A terrifying thought entered my mind, reaching into my desk for my notebook I almost started praying. Before I opened up to my story.

It was *all* there, the old friend, the car, the man in black, everything. I double-checked my text to Terrance, that hadn't changed at all, still a boring paragraph. I slumped back on my bed letting everything sink in. As I was typing up the new version to Terrance I had an idea, if everything bad I wrote about Nova happened to me, what if I wrote something good? I hit send and got to work, I wrote about how she found 5 grand outside her door in the morning and that her parents took her out to her favorite restaurant. Chuckling to myself, somehow believing this was possible, I headed off to sleep.

Terrance absolutely loved the weird ghost paragraph, and I absolutely loved the news from my parents that they were taking me to my favorite place as thanks for everything I had done while they were away, and the grin on my face as I opened the front door to a pile of notes on the floor was probably the biggest in history, this story was going to make me rich and I didn't have to even publish it. I had an incredible time, I went out shopping afterward and just bought whatever the hell I wanted. This is where we get to now.

I received another text from Terrance. He told me he loved the way I ended it, and I had no clue what he was talking about, I brushed him off while I was having fun and didn't think about it again until I got home. And right now, I'm sat at home, my notebook right in front of me, with the events of today all written out. This wouldn't be an issue if it wasn't for the end.


 * Nova noticed there was a knock on her bedroom door, she opened it up and shouted downstairs; "Hey, Ma, why'dya knock on my door?" the shadows of downstairs responded with silence. Creeping downstairs Nova was washed with a feeling of absolute dread. Walking into the kitchen and feeling the cold steel plunge into her back the life drained out of her as she saw him in the mirror, the man in black, a huge grin on his face, as Nova's parents were sprawled on the floor, the world went black.*

I don't see how Terrance loved this. It's so Cliché. I'll get back to you, my mum's just knocked on my door.