The Stranger Outside

Hi, my name John Lockean and what I am about to tell you changed my life forever. I still think about it today and even have numerous therapy sessions throughout the week to help cope with my lingering fear. I am not really sure how to begin to tell you what exactly happened to me over these frightening weeks, but I will try my best. It first started when I was sitting at home watching TV. It was a usual day and I had nothing going on since it was Saturday and I had gotten off from working over-time at my manufacturing job on Friday. Since I had the day to myself, i decided to kick back, relax, and catch up on my favorite show that I watched on Netflix. It was about 6:00, when I got up to clean my dishes that I looked out my window to see a man standing there, staring at my window. I couldn't see his face as it was covered with a large hood and was wearing a heavy winter jacket, which was completely understandable as it was the middle of February and it didn't get any warmer than 35 degrees Fahrenheit.

Even with the coat on and the hood up, I still felt like he was staring directly at me. As long as I stood there, he didn't move and there were no tracks in the snow previous to where I assumed he came from. I thought that was the weirdest thing of all. Now I know the typical crazy person when I see them, and this guy was almost border-line crazy on my list. For hours on end I would come back and he would still be there. Waiting. Watching. Observing. I got scared by this so I decided to call the police. I went over to the phone and dialed 911. I looked over to the window only to find the man gone. No trace of him ever being there, not even indents in the plush white snow marking each and every foot print somebody made. The snow was as flat as it was before i saw him there and in the exact same condition when he left.

A few days past and my paranoia grew exponentially. I would check out my window day after day but the man didn't show. The first week past without any sign of this hooded stranger, and I questioned what he might have wanted from me. It was now Wednesday into week 2 and after I get home from work, I begin my usual checkup. Looking out all of the windows for a sign of this man. Checking the upstairs windows and even the bathroom ones. I finally end back to the kitchen and he has returned.

I immediately run out of my house to the spot where I saw him but sure enough, he wasn't there. This enraged me and I eventually called the police to report a stalker in the neighborhood. A cop car then patrols the streets but ends up with nothing involving such an incident. It was so strange I thought, I can look at him for hours but the moment i turn away and look back again, he is gone. Scraped from existence only to be thrown back into the exact same spot I found him in a week later.

The next time I saw the man, it was only 3 days after the last sighting. Still in his black coat with his dark hood up. This time though, i noticed he was closer than the other times. I was sure of it because he was originally standing right where the side walk would be but now he was part way on the grass. Still no sign of walking there as there were no footprint marks in the snow. I was slowly losing my mind and eventually carried on my day without even looking to see if he was there.

I finally decided that the next time I saw him i was going to kill him. I went to the gun store and bought a nice sized rifle. I bought a case of ammo to supply myself with enough shots in case i miss a few times, as this was my first experience with a gun in my life. Day after day passed and I waited anxiously for the man to appear again. Looking out my window ever now-and-then and keeping my rifle with me at all times. I took a week off from work to make sure I didn't miss him the next time he decided to show up again. I was started to go insane waiting for this man that I knew nothing about and why he was even here in the first place, it started getting to me and I couldn't sleep at night. Having nightmares and strange day-dreams.

3 weeks after the very first sighting off the man, he appeared again. I was so excited that I actually tripped running to get my gun. I grabbed it and quickly put it up against the glass window. I wasn't too worried at shooting the glass because getting rid of this man was way more important than a cheap glass pane. I loaded my gun and started aiming down sights. It took me a few seconds to get steady and make sure I was close enough to at least hit his arm or leg. I took a deep breath and pulled the trigger. A loud BANG filled the room and the sound of shattering glass pierced my ears. I quickly looked outside and was shocked to see that nobody was there. Again no footprints and not even a sound was heard of a fleeing man.

This is when I came to the horrible conclusion. I pieced all of the evidence together. Disappearing after I look away, no snow tracks, and nobody else not seeing this man but me. All of this proved the fact that the man wasn't looking at my house at all, in fact he wasn't even outside my house. The man outside in the black coat and dark hood was just a reflection. A reflection of the man, inside my house. Staring at me. Waiting for me to turn around just to bolt into his hiding spot, maddening me and driving me insane. I slowly turned around to discover a very tall man, in a black coat and dark hood, walking closer to me and wielding a sharp knife ready to use it to his pleasing. All this time, he was inside the house. Waiting. Watching. observing. Killing.