I don’t know how this is going to end. I don’t know why it started in the first place. I don’t even understand what’s happening, but I have a bad feeling about tonight and need to let people know what’s been going on the last few days, so let’s start at the beginning.

 

Night 1

 

On the first night everything seemed normal when I got home from work. It had been a normal day in the office, same old boring paperwork and dull mindless chit chat. I sat down for dinner at the dinning table with the radio playing quietly in the background. Radio 1 and a microwave meal, nothing fancy but that’s the real life of a middle aged bachelor. Next door has a small dog that I could hear barking at something in the garden. It’s some kind of scruffy Jack Russell with small dog syndrome. It isn’t unusual to hear it barking away at something or nothing. The houses back on to a small area of woodland and we frequently get foxes coming into the garden looking for scraps of food setting off every dog in the area. I didn’t think anything of it and continued eating my dinner. Later that evening while I was watching Tv the commotion started again. A lot of banging and the high-pitched bark of next doors dog as it ran down the garden. I would have ignored it again but out of the corner of my eye I saw the security light on the garage flick on, as it shone through the kitchen window. Thinking there must be a fox in the garden I got up to have a look. I knew it wasn’t next doors dog setting the light off because I had already had to move the sensor twice. When I first fitted that light, it was going off every time that stupid dog ran down the garden for a pee. So anyway, I went to the back patio doors and looked down the garden, thought I might see a fox or hedgehog but nothing was there. I figured it must be a cat or if there was a fox it had been scared off already so I went back to sit down. I hadn’t even got back to my sofa when the light flicked on again and there was a loud bang at the kitchen window. Now I was thinking the dumb fox must be trying to get into my dust bins, it wouldn’t be the first time and they make a right mess, so I ran back but this time to the kitchen window. I looked over at the bins just at the edge of the garage but I still couldn’t see anything. Thought I better go check it out, so I unlocked the kitchen door and stepped outside. There was a slight breeze but not enough to start knocking pots and stuff about. I looked over to the back of the garage and the bins were still neat and untouched. I have to admit I was slightly creeped out, waiting for something to go sprinting across the garden and scare me, so when next doors dog started up again it didn’t half make me jump. The dog sounded as scared as I felt. Then as I was looking around the garden, I hear the hedge behind the garage rustling away. I slowly edged my way over still waiting for something to jump out at me. My heart was beating out of my chest. Then the tension was broken by Mrs Fenton from next door stepping out side and shouting Benson to get back in the house. I shook it off and went back inside locking the door behind me, then went to the kitchen window to close the blinds. As I reached across the counter, I took another look down the hedge and for a split second I thought I saw a face staring back at me. It was in the exact spot where I could hear the rustling earlier but when I looked again there was nothing there. I was so sure I saw something there but I couldn’t see how there could be anyone there. It still left me shaken but nothing happened for the rest of the night. Outside was quiet and I reassured myself that it was my eyes playing tricks on me, so I took myself up to bed and the whole thing faded out of my mind.

 

Night 2

 

As I sat down to dinner on the second night the events from the night before were far from my mind. It was a stressful day at work, one of those days where everything seems to go wrong and an argument id had with my boss was playing over in my head. I picked up a pizza on the way home not wanting to worry about cooking dinner and sat down in front of the tv to relax for the night. So I was sat flicking through the channels trying to find something to watch while I was eating my dinner and the noises outside started up again. That night it was louder and sounded like it was right outside my kitchen window in the back garden. The Dog from next door must have been in the house because I didn’t hear it barking. I know I complain about the noise but in reality its quite nice knowing the dogs there to alert to anything going on, so it put me on edge not hearing Benson barking. By that point I was more frustrated than anything else. I wanted to know what was going on out there, so I got up and made my way to the kitchen to have a look. I couldn’t see anything from the window but wasn’t feeling brave enough to go outside so I just checked the door was locked and turned to go back to sit down. That’s when I heard the rattling of the door handle. I turned slowly to look at the door and there was the door handle shaking up and down, rattling away. Well I couldn’t believe it, the lights were on and the car was on the drive and some little sod was still trying to break in. I wasn’t sure what to do at first, didn’t know if I was scared or angry. So, I make my way over to the door and see my flashlight on the shelf next to the window. It’s one of those big heavy metal ones that takes 4D batteries, so I thought that would do nicely. Just in case, you know. Feeling braver with my flashlight, I flicked the lock off the door as quietly as I could and the rattling suddenly stopped. I grabbed hold of the door handle and with my arm raised, holding the light ready for action I swung the door open and charged outside yelling ‘HEY’ in my big man voice. Not sure what I would have done if there had actually been someone standing there but luckily there wasn’t. Yet again I was stood out in the cold looking and feeling stupid. There was no sign of anyone or anything. I hade a good scout around but didn’t even see footprints and started to doubt if I had seen the door handle moving at all. I had only had one beer with dinner and I was already seeing things. As I was going back into the house, I took one last look down the garden. I almost didn’t notice but right at the end of the garden next to the rowan tree there was the defined silhouette of a bloke just stood there. I couldn’t make out exactly what he looked like because it was so dark but he was stood there all right. So, with my big man voice I shouted out again ‘HEY, YOU’. He didn’t move, he didn’t say anything, just stood there looking back at me with his arms at his side.  For a moment I don’t know what came over me and I actually took a few steps towards him, squinting and shouted out again ‘HEY’. I’ve never been in a fight in my life and I was about to approach a creepy guy in my back garden at night.  I came to my senses and turned back to the house, looking over my shoulder at him. As I closed the back door I shouted down the garden, this time with less confidence ‘I’m calling the cops’. I locked the door and rushed into the front room to grab the phone. Jabbed at the buttons 999 then with my finger hovering over the dial button I went back to the window to look if he was still there. He was still there. He hadn’t moved an inch. I think that freaked me out more than the fact he was standing there in the first place. I hit the dial button angrily and stood staring at him and him at me throughout the whole conversation with the emergency operator. I told them the events of the night and they advised me the police were on their way. Then went through the obvious, telling me not to approach the man and make sure my doors were locked. Like I was going to invite him in for a cup of tea. When I heard a knock at the front door, still with the phone to my ear I clicked the lock and peered around to see two officers stood there. A tall one and an overly euphuistically grinning chubby fella, so I ended the call and invited them in. Yet again I replayed the events of the night while trying to guide them to the back of the house to see if he was still there. The tall cop pulled out a small note pad and began making notes while the other questioned me about the night with that continues grin on his face the whole time. Well anyway, I eventually managed to lead them through to the kitchen but surprise, surprise the man was nowhere to be seen. They went outside and had a decent look around but eventually shambled back into the kitchen just to tell me they didn’t see anyone. They tried to reassure me that it was probably kids testing doors for easy entry but I knew it wasn’t a kid. There wasn’t really anything they could do in all fairness. I didn’t get a good look at him so I couldn’t describe what he looked like and there was no evidence of an attempted brake in, so I thanked them for coming and sent them on their way. I was still quite shaken and knew the image of that guy just stood there staring at me would be hard to get out of my head but I was exhausted and after checking the doors and windows another ten times I took myself up to bed and called it a night.

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Night 3

 

The next day I was obviously still concerned about the events of the night before but by that point I had convinced myself it wouldn’t be anything to worry about as long as I kept the doors locked. Still, it troubled me enough to have a look at some home security systems while I was in town that morning. It was a Saturday so I didn’t have to go into work but I guess I wanted to get out of the house for a bit. I thought a bit of unnecessary shopping would take my mind off everything that had been going on but I’m not sure it worked. I grabbed some lunch from a bakery in town and sat on a bench in the middle of the town square to eat it, trying to find some reason or excuse not to go home but couldn’t think of one. So, I went back home. I never actually bought any kind of security system. Looking back now I wish I had, although I’m not sure it would have really done much good. As I was walking into my front yard, I heard the unmistakeable sound of Mrs Fenton’s voice calling out for me, so I went over for a chat. I could tell right away she was all worked up about something and immediately got concerned that the person who tried to brake into my house might had gone next door and caused trouble for poor old Mrs Fenton. She’s all on her own apart from the little dog. Well, she had seen the police stop by and wanted to know what was going on. She looked pretty scared, so I explained what happened but tried to assure her it was some kids trying doors. Then she starts to tell me how earlier that day she had let her Benson out for a toilet brake just to find him lying in the middle of the lawn dead. Apparently, he had been ripped to bits and she had to get her son over to clean up because she couldn’t bare the sight of it. She thought he had been got by a bird of pray or fox but got really worried after seeing the police turn up at mine. I didn’t now what to think at that point and was trying really hard not to let on that I was connecting the two events, so I reassured her the best I could and headed into my house. I just sat down in shock. I really couldn’t believe that someone would do that to a defenceless little dog. Of course there was a chance it could have been another animal but the coincidence seemed to me a little hard to ignore. I spent the whole evening going over it in my head, trying to find rational explanations and telling myself I was getting worked up over nothing. That night I managed to have a rather uneventful dinner. Not a sound from outside and as I sat watching tv I had almost let myself believe it was all over and forgotten when the garage light came on again. I hadn’t heard any bangs or commotion so was hoping this time it really was foxes. I hesitated for a moment but then thought to myself. Don’t be daft, go have a look. I don’t think I have ever wanted to see a fox so badly in my life. As I got up out of my chair, I picked up the phone, just in case. I wanted to be prepared, unlike in those daft films where they run past the phone five times before having the sense to call someone. Of course, by then it’s always too late. I wasn’t prepared though. Nobody could have been prepared for what I saw next. As soon as I got into the hall and had clear sight of the back door, I looked up. That’s when I saw him, or it. He was in my house. Stood in front of the back door, strait and tall, arms to the side. He was stood just like I saw him at the end of the garden, not moving an inch. The light was off but there was enough light to see what he looked like. He was wearing a black suit, looking incredibly grand for a fief. But that face, or lack of it. I thought it was a mask at first. No eyes, just shrunken sockets where the eyes should be. The nose was flat to the face, no nostrils, just skin forming a slight mound in the middle of the face, and the mouth. It wasn’t a mouth. It was a scar that went right across his face, from one side to the other. It was an image that would give anyone nightmares. I was stood there frozen in spot, for what felt like an eternity. He, or it just stood there staring right back at me. I mean by then I knew this was no burglary. I still don’t know what it is, or what he wants. So anyway, eventually I shouted something like ‘Get out’ and ‘what do you want’ and of course he didn’t move. Needless to say I was by then in desperate need of a chance of underpants. I ran to the front door and was tumbling around at the lock trying to slide it across but suddenly came across an inability to use my hands. Fear has that effect you see. So, as I’m stood there making something simple seem all but impossible, I turned back to see if he was coming towards me but he had completely disappeared. I was sure he must have been just around a corner waiting to jump out at me. I was absolutely petrified but knew I needed to check if he was still there. I must have spent a good half hour stalking around the house, debating if I should call the police round again but not only was there no sign of anyone in the house but all the doors and windows were still locked. Well there was only one explanation for it. I was losing my mind. I saw, or thought I saw a person standing in front of the back door clear as day. I checked the whole house, every cupboard, behind the sofa, even looked under the bed. A forty year old man checking for the boogie man under his bed, ridiculous. I was shaken to my core but there was no evidence anything had happened, so after a very late night and two beers later I fell asleep in my chair in front of the tv.

 

Night 4

 

Last night was the worse night of all. All day I spent praying I would never have to see that face again but when the noises outside started and I saw the garage light come on, I was almost expecting it. I knew what I had seen the night before couldn’t have been real. That night I didn’t reach for the phone, or any kind of makeshift weapon. If it wasn’t real it couldn’t hurt me, right. I slowly made my way to the kitchen, looked across at the door and there he was stood in the darkness. I didn’t think it was real. I didn’t think it was really happening. I flicked the light switch on and wholeheartedly expected him to vanish again. He didn’t. Instead it just gave me a better look at the monstrous face that had been in my nightmares. Well, every ounce of bravery left my body and I made a run for the front door again. I didn’t get very far. As soon as I turned and saw another one stood exactly the same in front of the front door. They were blocking my exit and I had no idea how many of them there were or what they wanted with me. For a moment it did cross my mind they could be aliens but I doubt aliens would worry about stopping at the tailors to pick up such fancy suits. So, anyway I legged it right up the stairs and locked myself in my bedroom, back to the wall, frozen in fear. The next thing I hear is footsteps coming up the stairs. Real slow and calm. Every squeak of the staircase stopping my heart for a second. Then just like with the back door I see the handle of the bedroom door rattling away. Then the latch just slides across on its own. It can only be opened from the inside, or so I thought. Then the door flies open with an almighty bang and three of those creeps are stood there in the doorway. I think at that point I started shouting something at them but I don’t remember what I actually said. The whole thing seemed so surreal. Eventually I stopped and just froze in spot again, just waiting for them to do something. Then out of nowhere the middle one was right in front of me. Crossed the room in a second and I found myself face to face with it as it let out the loudest, high pitched scream. Its face ripped open where the scar was creating a cavernous, raw mouth of torn flesh, and the smell. The smell was pure rotten death. I closed my eyes expecting the worst. It went quiet. When I opened my eyes he was gone again, they all were. The smell still lingered slightly and the door was still open but they had gone. I didn’t sleep that night.

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Night 5

 

Tonight will be the fifth night from when this whole thing started. Its Monday but I don’t feel up to going in to work so I called in sick. I’m not sure what’s happening or if it’s going to continue, but every night they get closer and I’m scared what could happen next. I tried to research events on the internet to see if anyone else had gone through something similar. I was hoping I might stumble across a known psychological issue or something but instead all I found was something called the intruders. Apparently other people have seen men described to look like the ones I have been seeing. Stories say the same thing happens to others. Each night they get closer and closer. The scary part is that there aren’t any reports of what happens on the fifth night. I haven’t a clue what to do. I can’t call the police, they’ll just think I’m crazy. Mabey I am. So, this is my story and if nobody hears from me or if something happens, at least you will know. Beware the intruders.