Someone Is Inside

You’re home alone tonight. At least, you’re supposed to be.

11:47 PM. A floorboard creaks upstairs.

Your phone buzzes.

hey wierdo, I am outside.

looks like you have left your lights on

wait what?

I didn’t turn it on.

wait, you're telling me you didn't turn on your bedroom light?

because it's on rn. i can see it from the street

Upstairs, the floorboard creaks again. Softer this time. Closer to the stairs.

also dragana why is your front door light flickering lol

I go check

You cross the living room. The staircase rises out of the dark, carpet swallowing your footsteps.

Halfway up, you stop. The hallway light at the top is off — but a warm glow leaks from under your bedroom door.

hello?? answer me

i swear the light just moved. like a shadow went across it

Im going out to see you and call cops

You back down the stairs, quick and quiet, and make for the front door.

good. get out. i'm calling them rn

wait

WAIT

dragana someone just walked past your bedroom window

there's someone INSIDE. upstairs. don't go back up there

(I hid)

You duck behind the couch, phone clutched to your chest, heart hammering loud enough to hear.

where are you?? answer me please

i can still see the light. it just moved again

dragana please tell me you're not going up there

i'm not hanging up. cops are 3 minutes out. stay where you are

Behind the couch, you press your back to the cushions, trying to make your breathing silent.

whatever you do. promise me

then don’t go upstairs.

For a second, the whole house is silent.

The bedroom light switches off.

For a moment, nothing happens.

Then you hear it.

Creak.

One step.

Another.

The steps reach the bottom of the stairs. Then they stop.

The living room goes quiet. No footsteps. No floorboards. Nothing.

dragana the light just went out. i can't see anything now

he's moving. where are you??? please

Behind the couch, you hear it — a slow breath that isn't yours.

2 minutes. stay quiet. don't move

(I hid inside the couch)

You pull yourself deeper behind the couch, folding into the shadow between it and the wall.

Your phone screen dims against your chest. You hold your breath.

Footsteps again — soft, unhurried — crossing the living room floor.

dragana i can hear something through the window. oh god

The footsteps stop. Right beside the couch.

Then silence. Total silence. He doesn't move. He doesn't breathe.

?? hello

Your phone buzzes. Not Dion's thread. An unknown number.

don't turn around.

i block it

You block the number, thumb shaking. The message vanishes from your screen.

For a moment, nothing. The dark behind the couch is perfectly still.

dragana?? are you seeing these cops pull up?? no wait

no no those aren't cops

The presence beside the couch pulls away. Footsteps retreat — slow, calm — back toward the stairs.

Upstairs, a door closes softly. Like nothing happened.

Then your phone buzzes again. A different unknown number. Typing...

The typing dots flicker. Stop. Flicker again.

dragana someone's at your front door. he's just standing there

Upstairs, the floor creaks once. Then the sound of a doorknob turning.

He’s coming downstairs.

and here we're

To be continued...