I'm so tired. If only I could sleep. Every time I close my eyes shadows move and I can hear scraping noises. I toss and turn, too warm under the blankets, too cold without. Eventually exhaustion takes me for an hour or two. Then the knocking begins. A gentle tap on the windows and harsh pounding at the doors. I don't even look anymore. There's no one there, only the figure no one else ever notices by the streetlight. He's watching, waiting, for me. Why did I take that blasted page?
I've tried everything to get away and hide. I've dyed and cut my hair, I've broken my phone and moved, I even faked my own death but this figure is like a blood hound. No matter where I go or what I do he's there waiting. I can't take it anymore! What does he want from me? I stand up, blankets tumbling to the floor. My head is in a fog. I'm just so tired.
The only light in this damn place is the computer and most of the windows are boarded up. Somehow he still sees me no matter how dark it is or where I hide but never gets any closer. I gave up screaming at him long ago. He never responds but I hear this loud static filling the air until it feels like my ear drums are going to burst.
I yawn, jaw popping loudly. My heart starts to race and I can barely breathe. I know if I could just sleep through the night I would feel much better. I could figure out a way to escape. Somewhere I could go that he wouldn't follow. But I can't sleep. He won't let me. I jump when my shaking hands drop the glass of water I'd been drinking from earlier. I race back to bed and burrow into the covers. My thirst can wait. He definitely heard that and might come investigate. Maybe this time I can block out the noise and sleep.
I don't. I sit up in a panic to the sound of breaking glass. It's been two hours. Fuck. He is in my shelter. It's gotta be him. No one would try to rob this shithole. I run out to the living room scanning each window I pass. None of them are broken. I scramble through each room panting. Where is he? I would have seen him by now. I swing the bathroom door open and flick on the light. Blinking through tears and agony I realize that both the window and mirror have been shattered. I thought the power for this place was off?
There he is, right outside like usual. Howling I turn on my heel and snatch up the cursed paper. I thrust it into the garbage and set it on fire. I return to bed. I bundle up in the blankets again, bury my head in the pillows, and manage to go to sleep. I wake up feeling a little saner. The daylight is streaming through the boards on the windows. I use it to survey the damage in the bathroom. All of the other doors are locked tight. All of the windows and shut, intact, and heavily barricaded. The bathroom door is shut. I don't remember shutting it. Maybe the wind came in through the window and pushed it? I grab my dwindling supplies and some nails and throw them into the bathtub. All that glass would definitely hurt going into my skin if I don't clean it up.
I slip on my ratty sneakers and grab an old broom and dustpan. I start to sweep up the glass when something in the mirror catches my eye. What is that? I turn and stare at the back of the door. My heart stops beating and sinks into my shoes. My blood runs cold and I start shaking. Carved into the door is exactly what that paper said. "Can't run." No no no. I slowly sink to the ground, covering my face as cold tears blur my vision. What do I do? What can I do? He was here in my shelter. The building is almost completely boarded and he still got in. All I wanted was some fucking sleep. I finally think I can have a good night and this shit fucking happens. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. I haven't spoken to or seen anyone in weeks. I started sleeping whenever I could, wherever I could just so I could get some sleep. However any sudden noise would jolt me awake and I became too paranoid to sleep.
I hammered the last of the cupboard doors into place across the bathroom window. I had ripped apart almost everything else in order to make myself feel safe. Even the old heating and cooling vents have at least a tarp and garbage bags over them. Just in case. I step out of the bathroom door and slide the remains of a couch in front of it. If nothing else it should be heavy enough to slow him down if he tries to get in through the bathroom.
I lift a floorboard and flick on the power. When I first ran into this abandoned hotel or apartment building or something I was so happy the place was mostly boarded up. I took the top floor and blocked the stairs to the ground outside so that way nobody else could follow me up and cause trouble. I walked into the first unlocked door I found. It must have been the owner's room because a floorboard was loose and underneath it was the power box to the whole building. Weird. Most buildings aren't built like this. Must be why it closed down. I was just thankful I had a place where I could have something like my old life.