Have you ever walked somewhere at night? The darkness you rarely find yourself in, mixed with the eerie and unnatural silence. You feel uneasy, as if you're in a dream. Perhaps you're alone, perhaps you're with some friends. Either way, you can't shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen.
The shadows of the trees, cast by the ominous full moon, filled me with unease. The way they swayed in the winter breeze left me feeling that I was all but alone tonight. It was incredibly late, not a single car in sight, as I walked home. It was a late shift at work and I was exhausted.
I wrapped my jacketed arms tighter around myself as another strong gust of cold wind blew past me. If it was going to be this cold, why could there not even be a hint of snow falling to the ground? It was nearly Christmas, after all.
I continued my way down the familiar neighborhoods, not glancing up as much, as the wind would otherwise blow down my jacket and make me freeze even more. I could feel the leaves crunching beneath my feet as I trudged onward. It shouldn't be too much longer now, I thought. Just one more block and I would be home.
Just as I had turned, it seemed the rows of houses had somehow blocked the wind. No longer was there the sound of wind whistling through my hair. Now, it was silent. Deafeningly silent. Quiet enough that I could hear my heavy footsteps over the pavement as I walked. It made me feel uneasy, as if something was walking behind me, waiting in the shadows to jump out and grab me.
What was it about this neighborhood that calmed the wind, yet filled me with great anxiety? I looked around at all the houses, standing even to each other, like a nice, well-kept neighborhood. It was strange, why had I never really noticed these houses? I guess I always walked the route with my head down, rarely ever did I admire my surroundings.
Few houses were decorated with Christmas lights, the interchanging red, green, then blue lights were mesmerizing. It was something I loved most about Christmas, seeing the effort people put into it.
I looked away from the house to look at another when something caught my eye, a porch light flashed on. Then another. Then another, until every house's porch was illuminated. Was it some kind of proximity sensor the houses were equipped with? It couldn't be, the lights were flashing on the houses I wasn't even close to yet. What was going on?
Almost as a direct reply to my internal question, I heard heavy footsteps behind me, ones that weren't there before. I spun around to see who it was and couldn't believe what I was seeing. It was me. Everything from the matted, dark hair to the work uniform I was wearing. All exactly the same. All, walking toward me without pause.
I spun back around and began to run. I could hear the quickening pace of the footsteps behind me. I didn't have time to think, I ran to one of the houses and charged up the porch. I banged on their door, shouting and begging for someone to let me in. I turned and staggered back to the door, back pressed tightly against it, as the doppelganger approached. It took one step toward the porch, then stopped. Why was it not coming to me?
Suddenly, the front door swung open and I was greeted by a terrified looking, middle-aged woman. She took one look at me before glancing at the thing behind me.
"Come inside, quick!" the woman shouted. I stumbled inside and she quickly shut the door behind me. I had but a second to catch my breath before asking what was going on out there.
"That thing out there, chasing you, that was a doppelganger," she explained. "We don't know where it came from. We just know that, a few nights ago, one of the fellow neighbors was being chased by it. We saw her frantically running toward her home. We were too afraid and too confused by the situation to go out and help her. Can you imagine, someone running away from themselves? I guess you don't have to imagine. Anyways, when she made it into her house, she flicked on her porch light and the thing ran away. We could only assume it was the light that scared them off, so at midnight every night, we all keep our porch lights on, just in case it returns."
I was at a loss for words, a random monster popping up and chasing people on this street? It didn't make much sense. If I hadn't been a part of it myself I wouldn't have believed it.
She offered me a ride home that night. I didn't speak much, but I thanked her for saving my life. I had no idea what would have happened if it had caught me. Would it have tried to take over my life after it got rid of me? It was something I rather not think about. However, as I made my way into my home, it was the only thing on my mind.
I flicked on the porch light and never turned it off. I didn't dare think what would happen if I did.
The shadows of the trees, cast by the ominous full moon, filled me with unease. The way they swayed in the winter breeze left me feeling that I was all but alone tonight. It was incredibly late, not a single car in sight, as I walked home. It was a late shift at work and I was exhausted.
I wrapped my jacketed arms tighter around myself as another strong gust of cold wind blew past me. If it was going to be this cold, why could there not even be a hint of snow falling to the ground? It was nearly Christmas, after all.
I continued my way down the familiar neighborhoods, not glancing up as much, as the wind would otherwise blow down my jacket and make me freeze even more. I could feel the leaves crunching beneath my feet as I trudged onward. It shouldn't be too much longer now, I thought. Just one more block and I would be home.
Just as I had turned, it seemed the rows of houses had somehow blocked the wind. No longer was there the sound of wind whistling through my hair. Now, it was silent. Deafeningly silent. Quiet enough that I could hear my heavy footsteps over the pavement as I walked. It made me feel uneasy, as if something was walking behind me, waiting in the shadows to jump out and grab me.
What was it about this neighborhood that calmed the wind, yet filled me with great anxiety? I looked around at all the houses, standing even to each other, like a nice, well-kept neighborhood. It was strange, why had I never really noticed these houses? I guess I always walked the route with my head down, rarely ever did I admire my surroundings.
Few houses were decorated with Christmas lights, the interchanging red, green, then blue lights were mesmerizing. It was something I loved most about Christmas, seeing the effort people put into it.
I looked away from the house to look at another when something caught my eye, a porch light flashed on. Then another. Then another, until every house's porch was illuminated. Was it some kind of proximity sensor the houses were equipped with? It couldn't be, the lights were flashing on the houses I wasn't even close to yet. What was going on?
Almost as a direct reply to my internal question, I heard heavy footsteps behind me, ones that weren't there before. I spun around to see who it was and couldn't believe what I was seeing. It was me. Everything from the matted, dark hair to the work uniform I was wearing. All exactly the same. All, walking toward me without pause.
I spun back around and began to run. I could hear the quickening pace of the footsteps behind me. I didn't have time to think, I ran to one of the houses and charged up the porch. I banged on their door, shouting and begging for someone to let me in. I turned and staggered back to the door, back pressed tightly against it, as the doppelganger approached. It took one step toward the porch, then stopped. Why was it not coming to me?
Suddenly, the front door swung open and I was greeted by a terrified looking, middle-aged woman. She took one look at me before glancing at the thing behind me.
"Come inside, quick!" the woman shouted. I stumbled inside and she quickly shut the door behind me. I had but a second to catch my breath before asking what was going on out there.
"That thing out there, chasing you, that was a doppelganger," she explained. "We don't know where it came from. We just know that, a few nights ago, one of the fellow neighbors was being chased by it. We saw her frantically running toward her home. We were too afraid and too confused by the situation to go out and help her. Can you imagine, someone running away from themselves? I guess you don't have to imagine. Anyways, when she made it into her house, she flicked on her porch light and the thing ran away. We could only assume it was the light that scared them off, so at midnight every night, we all keep our porch lights on, just in case it returns."
I was at a loss for words, a random monster popping up and chasing people on this street? It didn't make much sense. If I hadn't been a part of it myself I wouldn't have believed it.
She offered me a ride home that night. I didn't speak much, but I thanked her for saving my life. I had no idea what would have happened if it had caught me. Would it have tried to take over my life after it got rid of me? It was something I rather not think about. However, as I made my way into my home, it was the only thing on my mind.
I flicked on the porch light and never turned it off. I didn't dare think what would happen if I did.
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