He Watched Me Before I Ever Knew His Name.

I didn’t notice him the first time.

That’s what scares me the most.

Because when I finally did notice…

I realized he had been there the whole time.

⸻

It started small.

A feeling.

You know that strange, crawling sensation on the back of your neck? Like someone’s eyes are on you—but every time you turn around, there’s nothing there?

I told myself I was being paranoid.

Single mom. New apartment. New city.

Stress does things to your mind.

That’s what I kept telling myself.

⸻

Until the night I saw him.

⸻

I was getting home late. The streetlight outside my building flickered like it always did, casting shadows that stretched too long across the pavement.

That’s when I saw him.

Leaning against the car across the street.

Still.

Watching.

⸻

At first, I thought he was just another neighbor.

Tall. Dressed in black. Hands in his pockets.

But something about the way he stood there…

Like he wasn’t waiting for someone.

Like he was waiting for me.

⸻

I looked away quickly and rushed inside.

Locked the door.

Checked the windows.

Nothing.

No one.

Just me… and my thoughts getting louder.

⸻

The next morning, I convinced myself I imagined it.

Until I opened my phone.

⸻

There was a notification.

From a number I didn’t recognize.

No name. No picture.

Just a message.

“You looked beautiful last night.”

⸻

My stomach dropped.

I hadn’t posted anything.

Hadn’t texted anyone.

Hadn’t told a soul where I was.

So how did someone know?

⸻

I didn’t respond.

I blocked the number.

Told myself it was a wrong number.

A coincidence.

A mistake.

⸻

But deep down?

I knew it wasn’t.

⸻

Because that same night…

He was back.

⸻

This time, closer.

Not across the street.

Not hiding in shadows.

Standing right outside my building.

Looking straight up at my window.

At me.

⸻

My hands started shaking.

I stepped back slowly, my heart pounding so loud I was sure he could hear it through the glass.

And then—

My phone buzzed again.

⸻

A new number.

New message.

“Don’t be afraid. I’d never hurt you.”

⸻

I couldn’t breathe.

I hadn’t moved.

Hadn’t made a sound.

So how did he know I was scared?

⸻

I forced myself to look back outside.

He was still there.

Still watching.

Still completely… calm.

⸻

Then my phone buzzed again.

⸻

“You should lock your bedroom window.”

⸻

I froze.

Every part of me went cold.

Because I hadn’t checked it.

Not tonight.

Not after coming home.

⸻

Slowly… too scared to even blink…

I turned my head toward my bedroom door.

The hallway was dark.

Silent.

Still.

⸻

But for the first time since moving in…

It didn’t feel empty.

⸻

My phone buzzed one last time.

⸻

“I told you… I’ve been watching you.”

⸻

And that’s when I heard it.

A soft sound.

From inside my apartment.

⸻

The creak…

of my bedroom window.

PART Two He Was Already Inside

The window creaked again.

Slow.

Deliberate.

Like whoever was touching it… wasn’t in a rush.

⸻

I couldn’t move.

My body locked up right there in the hallway, phone still in my hand, his last message burning into my screen.

“I told you… I’ve been watching you.”

⸻

Another sound.

This time louder.

The faint scrape of metal against wood.

My bedroom window.

Opening.

⸻

“No…” I whispered.

But it came out broken. Weak.

Useless.

⸻

I should’ve run.

Grabbed my keys. Left. Screamed. Called the police.

But fear doesn’t make you smart.

It makes you still.

⸻

My feet moved before my brain caught up.

One slow step toward the hallway.

Then another.

⸻

The darkness in my bedroom felt… wrong.

Too heavy.

Like it was holding something inside it.

⸻

“Hello?” I called out.

I don’t know why.

Maybe I wanted it to be nothing.

Maybe I wanted to hear my own voice.

⸻

Silence.

⸻

I reached for the light switch.

My fingers hovered over it.

Shaking.

⸻

And then—

My phone buzzed again.

⸻

“Don’t.”

⸻

I gasped and dropped it.

The sound echoed louder than it should’ve.

Too loud.

Like it gave me away.

⸻

My heart slammed against my ribs.

Because that message didn’t come from outside.

It came from inside.

⸻

I didn’t turn on the light.

I couldn’t.

Because if he was in there…

I didn’t want to see him.

⸻

A floorboard creaked.

Right in front of me.

⸻

I stumbled back, my breath catching in my throat.

“Please—” I started, not even knowing what I was begging for.

⸻

And then I heard his voice.

Low.

Calm.

Too close.

⸻

“Don’t be scared.”

⸻

I screamed.

⸻

I turned and ran, slipping on the hardwood, barely catching myself before grabbing the front door handle.

Locked.

Of course it was locked.

My hands fumbled with it, panic making everything harder than it should be.

⸻

Behind me…

Slow footsteps.

Unhurried.

Confident.

⸻

Like he knew I wasn’t going anywhere.

⸻

The lock finally clicked.

I yanked the door open—

⸻

And froze.

⸻

He was already there.

⸻

Standing in the doorway.

Blocking the exit.

⸻

I hadn’t heard him pass me.

Hadn’t felt him move.

But there he was.

Closer than before.

Closer than he had ever been.

⸻

Tall.

Dressed in black.

Just like I remembered.

But now I could see his face.

⸻

Sharp.

Calm.

Beautiful in a way that didn’t feel safe.

⸻

His eyes locked onto mine like I was something he had already claimed.

⸻

“You…” I whispered, backing up.

“How did you—”

⸻

“You left your window unlocked.”

⸻

His voice was soft.

Almost gentle.

Like he was explaining something simple.

Something normal.

⸻

My back hit the wall.

Nowhere left to go.

⸻

“You’ve been watching me,” I said, my voice trembling.

⸻

A small smile touched his lips.

Not amused.

Not kind.

Certain.

⸻

“For a long time.”

⸻

My stomach dropped.

“How long?” I asked.

Even though I didn’t want the answer.

⸻

His eyes darkened slightly.

Like he was remembering something.

Enjoying it.

⸻

“Before you moved here.”

⸻

The world tilted.

“That’s not possible…”

⸻

“It is when you choose someone.”

⸻

The way he said it—

Like it wasn’t strange.

Like it wasn’t wrong.

Like it was inevitable.

⸻

My chest tightened.

“Why me?”

⸻

He stepped closer.

Slow.

Measured.

⸻

I felt it before he touched me.