Window Shoppers [2098 Words]

First time putting any sort of idea on paper. Would any feedback, from general impressions to quality assessment.I never did like where I lived. It’s not that it was a horrible place to live, but it was never where I wanted to end up. My parents had moved to Henderson, North Carolina when I was only 10 years old. They ended up buying a house here when I was 17 years old. Over the years my siblings grew up and moved away. Brothers moved to different states. My sister got married and now has her own family, her own place. I moved away for college but ended up returning to take care of my mother after graduating. Now I’m 27 and I’m still here, alone.Henderson is a small town with not much to do. Our downtown is made up of one main street. Half of the businesses down the street are closed. The other half are either boarded up empty buildings or local government offices. It has never been the type of place you want to grow up in thinking “Gee, I sure do want to spend the rest of my life here.” Maybe it is. It was never mine.The point is, I never wanted to be here.It was in late November when it started. I had run downtown to drop off a couple of packages at our only post office. That is when I saw it. Once where there had stood a fishing shop and a gun shop had now been combined into something new.“Grand opening this weekend!” read the sign on the outside of the door. “We hope to see you soon at Cassie’s Coffee House.”A coffee house in Henderson. That was the last thing I would have imagined to be opening up here. Yet, there it was. As I stepped into my car I began to daydream about possibly going there. It was getting cold after all. Perhaps once I got home from work I could go out for an evening coffee and pastry. It really would break up the monotony of my routine. Maybe Henderson wasn’t so bad after all.I ended up going a few weeks later. Work was especially tiresome. Working 10 hours a day only to drive an hour home was getting to me. I remembered the coffee shop and decided to treat myself for once.The coffee shop was small but nicely decorated. They had redone the inside to give it a rustic brick look against all the walls. The seating was charming with wooden tables and chairs, each seating no more than three. The side facing the street, from where I had come in, had large windows all down the side, allowing a perfect view of the outside. The lighting was bright and offered a welcoming feel from the growing cold outside.“A medium coffee, please,” I said to the cashier as I began to unzip my jacket.“Coming right up!” she said with a cheerful smile “Would you also like to try one of our New York bagels? They come in fresh every morning.”“Yes, I’d love to. Just a plain one.”I began to step to the side to allow the person behind me room to order when I noticed it. It was for a brief moment but I thought I saw something pink dart in front of the window. I stared outside for a moment wondering what it could have been.“Sir,” the cashier called out to me “Your coffee and bagel are ready.”I thanked her and made my way to a small table for two. I sat there for a while drinking my coffee. As I let my mind wander I had the thought “Maybe this town isn’t so bad after all.” It was during this daydream that I noticed it again. Something pink standing in front of the store window. I focused on it and realized it was a little girl bright pink parka. She couldn’t have been more than 8 years old. As I focused on her something seemed familiar. I recognized this little girl. It was Lyla, my niece. What in the world was she doing out here on her own? My sister lived at least a half-hour away. Even then she would let my niece wander alone, not in downtown and not at night.I was getting ready to get out of my seat when it started. She began to knock her head against the window. Slowly at first. It was more of a gentle tapping. This caught me off-guard and I sat there watching her for a moment. Then she started going harder and faster. Once I pulled myself from my stupor I screamed,“No!”I bolted from my seat to the front door. As I barged into the cold I looked for my niece at the window and she was, not there. There was nobody there. That’s when I felt the cold bite of the wind. I turned around to look back into the shop and noticed everyone staring. Back at my seat, my coffee was spilled on the floor. I went back inside and apologized to the staff, got my coat, and left.It was well into December when I decided to go back to the coffee shop. I still thought about what I saw but I chalked it up to burnt out from work. I had even called my sister that evening and she said everything was fine. My nieces and nephew were all in bed at that point. It had to have been my exhaustion.It was the weekend so I had come in the early afternoon. When I entered the shop I noticed the cashier that had tended to me before raised her eyebrow. I must admit it made me feel rather embarrassed. I ordered my coffee and sat down.I was browsing through my phone when movement caught my eye from the window. Well, more like a lack of movement. Someone had stopped in front of the shop and was looking in. It took no time at all to recognize them. It was my mother.Once again I was caught in a stupor. She shouldn’t be here. My mother had retired back to her home country after a few years back. She was standing there, gently tapping on the glass. It was as if she wanted to get my attention. And then it happened. She raised her hand to her face and she bit down. She bit into her fingers. Blood slowly began to drop from her mouth. I could see her pull back and forth like a ravaged animal.“Stop!” I cried out. “Stop! Stop! Stop!”“Sir!” I heard from beside me.I spun around to see one of the staff. A short woman with light brown hair.“Sir, are you okay?” She said in a concerned voice.“My mother, she’s,” I began as I turned back to the window, and like before, she was gone.I stood there completely dumbfounded. I tried to explain myself but found it difficult to produce any words.“Sir, are you okay?” repeated the woman in a quieter voice.“I’m sorry. I’m f-fine. I-i just need to go.” I stammered out as I grabbed my coat and quickly made my way to the door.As I stepped outside I turned to the spot where I had seen my mother standing. For a moment I thought I saw blood on the window.I got a phone call that evening. My mother had just gotten home from the hospital. She had accidentally sliced two of her while preparing lunch. One of the cuts even hit bone.It was just a coincidence, right? There’s no way that what I saw had anything to with my mother hurting herself. It was just an accident.I decided to steer clear of the coffee shop since that day.It must have been late February when I decided to return to the coffee shop. It was around 7 pm and I needed some caffeine bad. I had a report due the next morning for work so I was in for a long night. “Just in and out.” I thought to myself. I just wanted some coffee. I ordered and grab my coffee. I was on my way out when I realized how terrified I was of the place. What for? I had two odd hallucinations there, but that must have been on me right? It was like this coffee shop was some sort of dark and evil thing.I decided I was in for a long night and needed a mental break. I sat down with my back to the windows this time. I just wanted a little peace and quiet for 15 minutes before returning to work.It hadn’t been more than a few minutes when I heard it. A quiet thudding noise.Thud. Thud. Thud.Someone is just sitting next to the window and knocking against it. I do it to the wall all the time. It’s totally normal.Thud. Thud. Thud.It was slowly getting louder, but it kept its pace.THUD. THUD. THUD.I had enough. I turned around and for a moment everything was quiet.There at the window was my sister. A large smile across her face. In one arm she was holding my nephew. With the other, she was slamming her head against the window. Blood smeared the glass. With every slam, a few droplets splashed onto my sister’s face.“Sir! Calm down, sir!” I heard someone scream faintly in the distance. Then I was being shaken. That’s when I realized I was screaming. Someone was shaking me. Someone was screaming at me to calm down. And my sister was in the window.I pushed whoever had a hold of me aside and ran to the door. If I get to the door the nightmare would be over. It’s this place, it had to be. Something was wrong with this place and it was messing with me. Maybe they put something in the coffee.I burst through the door and fell to the ground. I was panting. Everything was spinning. I looked up towards the shop’s windows. My sister would be gone and everything would be okay. My sister would be, standing right there.To my horror, she was still there. My nephew, though, was gone. Blood still smeared the window. She just stood there waving at me, the smile never leaving her face.I ran.I don’t know how long I ran for before I realized it. I knew where I was but how I got there felt fuzzy. I sat on the side of the road attempting to collect myself. Why did I see that? Why was it only in that place? What were they doing to me?My phone rang. It was… my sister.“H-hello?” I answered in a shaky voice.The other end was an indistinguishable cacophony of screaming and crying. I couldn’t understand anything. After a minute someone took over the phone. It was my brother-in-law. Although he was clearly shaken he explained what had happened. My nephew had been playing upstairs in his room as my sister did laundry in the next room. He had gotten past the baby gate and fell down the stairs. All they had been told was that he had severe trauma to his head. My sister was inconsolable.During this time I began to walk back into downtown to get my car. As he continued to explain the situation I noticed something in the window of an old building. It was closed at this point but there was a dim light illuminating the front. I could barely make out the features but I noticed it was someone holding a child. They held the child out in front of them and let it drop to the ground.My sister’s cries over the phone intensified. My brother-in-law broke down. I knew what had just happened.I looked back at the figure. I knew what it had just done. I didn’t know what it wanted next.It’s been six months since that night. She’s still following me. It’s still following me. If I look out a window for too long I notice it. Usually, as someone close to me. Sometimes even as me. As long as I keep moving it can’t do anything. As long as I keep blinds drawn it can’t seem to find me. Sometimes I can hear it knocking on the window but I’ve found out as long as it can’t see me it can’t do much.I never liked Henderson, but at least there aren’t a lot of windows here. via /r/WritersGroup https://ift.tt/34zCl1R