The Light under my Door

I used to think the worst thing about staying home alone was hearing the house make noises.

Then one night, I heard someone whisper my name from the hallway.

I was 17 when this happened.

My parents had gone away for the weekend and I was supposed to be alone until Sunday.

Around 1:30 in the morning, I was lying in bed watching videos when I noticed a thin line of light underneath my bedroom door.

I assumed I'd left the hallway light on.

Then I remembered I hadn't.

I always slept with the entire house dark.

I got out of bed and walked toward the door.

Before I could touch the handle, I heard footsteps.

Someone was walking slowly down the hallway.

I froze.

The footsteps stopped directly outside my room.

Then someone whispered my name.

I didn't answer.

A few seconds passed.

Then it happened again.

My name.

Quietly.

Right outside the door.

I grabbed my phone and called my dad.

He answered half asleep.

I asked him if anyone had come back to the house.

He said no.

Then he asked me why.

I told him someone was outside my bedroom.

He immediately told me to lock the door and stay inside.

I did.

For almost twenty minutes, nothing happened.

Then the door handle moved.

Slowly.

Someone tried opening it.

I could hear the metal clicking against the lock.

I stopped breathing.

The handle moved again.

Then whoever was outside walked away.

I stayed in bed until morning.

When the sun came up, I finally opened the door.

There was nobody there.

But the hallway light was on.

I checked the front door.

Still locked.

Every window was locked too.

I searched the entire house and found nothing.

I eventually convinced myself someone had gotten in somehow and left before I noticed.

Then I checked the security camera.

There was only one camera inside the house.

It pointed toward the hallway.

I opened the footage from that night.

At 1:37 AM, the hallway light switched on.

At 1:38, I walked toward my bedroom door.

Then I stopped.

Because I saw something I hadn't seen from inside the room.

There was someone standing at the end of the hallway.

I watched the footage again.

The person didn't move.

They just stood there watching me.

Then, at 1:41, they slowly walked toward my bedroom.

The video cut out.

The next recording started at 1:58.

The hallway was empty.

I thought maybe the camera had glitched.

Then I noticed something worse.

The person in the footage wasn't walking toward my bedroom.

They were walking out of it.

I replayed the footage over and over.

There was no moment where the person entered my room.

No door opening.

Nothing.

They simply appeared inside my bedroom and walked out.

I never figured out how.

But I still have that recording.

And sometimes I watch it just to remind myself of one thing.

Whatever was standing outside my door that night...

was already inside.