After a long day I could use some rest and walking home would also take a lot of time from my already short personal hours.
The meeting sucked up a lot my time and I ended up missing the last bus by a lot. I ruefully decided to walk. The path was empty as far as I could see except for a group of homeless people huddling around a dumpster fire. It was 1 in the morning and nobody wanted to be out there in the cold street.
I sucked in the cold air and continued down the road, a little cautious as I passed the group. I was taught by my father to always watch my back as I usually came home late. All sorts of situations passed through my head but all for naught. The group were harmless and quiet asleep.
I walked past stores that I never noticed when I rode the bus. It was like discovering the place all over again. Most of the buildings were closely packed, because of the rising property prices.
The long lane of stores were a brief respite from the surronding darkness. The neon lights shaded the roads in a cacophony of colours. The only thing that remained unchanged was the lack of people. The stores were locked except for a convenience store that was still open.
" Might as well grab something to eat."
The door opened and announced my presence with a chime. At the counter I saw a teenager browsing through his phone. The guy gave me a glance before shifting his attention back to his phone.
I picked up some of my favorite late night snacks and paid the disinterested teen in cash.
After a long walk in silence, I reached my doorstep. I have been living in this house for an year now but due to the daily travel I have started thinking about moving somewhere closer to the office. I checked my pockets and after finding the keys, unlocked the door.
Normally, I would shower before eating but today I just changed my clothes and went into my blankets. I swiped through my college friends' group chat to keep up with them. As I was getting drowsy, I recieved a message from an unknown number.
[ Did you check the door lock?]
The message was followed by several smileys.
My heart raced and all of my tiredness vanished. I picked up a steel flask and carefully made my way towards the door and tried locking the door only to find it locked already. I peered through the peephole and found no one. I wouldn't go out even if I saw someone.
' I'm definitely reporting this fucker tommorow.'
I walked back to my bed and picked up my phone to check the number. I recieved another text which sent a chill up my spine.
[Did you check under the bed?]
' Could someone be watching me?'
I crouched down and found nothing under the bed.
Before I could scream in frustation, I recieved yet another notification.
[ Look who's behind you.]