Tufts of dark hair blew around my head as I turned, arms snaking through the sheets to reach its targets. The space next to me was cold. He was on hospital duty, after all, his absence shouldn't have been a surprise. As I often did. A deft finger swiped over the iPhone to check the time, as well as check for security. My sister's flight was cancelled, she asked for Matty. I went to bring it back. I love you. Well, I wasn't going to complain about having extra hours of sleep without having to listen to my potential grandchild cry all night. It was all very new, living permanently with a man. Integrating into something that remotely resembled a family. The red sun was still rising from its slumber, the sky streaked with violent shades of orange and purple. A stupid flagpole rose from the patriot house across the street, reaching straight up, as if a dagger released blood from the sky. Blood soaked the rustling bushes, my beloved Maserati, and… the person standing outside my window. I blinked. He squinted. Sure enough, a figure stood with their nose pressed against the window, their breath misting the window to hide their face. For a split second, I thought about rushing to the office just to be safe. But surely such an action could only arouse suspicion. The light came on and my neighbor obediently responded with a casual tap of the window. Tall, not dark and handsome, I had seen him walking a few times, but I had never spoken to him. It's accompanied by a casual smirk and mischievously wandering eyes. I wrapped a robe tightly around me as I opened the lock on the window, inhaling the fresh mint scent that wafted through. “I think you might have left the radio on upstairs.” The blond scratched his nose absentmindedly. “I have... half the paper... matter of seconds. Without any source of splash, yet with a warm body, only one question rang furiously in my mind. How much time had passed? I didn't know that man. Whether it was friend or foe. This would have mattered little if the cycle began again. A flash of metal protruded from his ribs. The blade still fresh. My arms trembled as they struggled to grip the knife, the screeching noises making my ears sick as it was successfully unsheathed. The ghosts of revenge dragged through my frenetic mind. My fingers trembled as they turned the handle, examining the unmistakable, familiar engravings. The adrenaline was slowly wearing off. I felt like I was drowning in a sea of ​​fear. The phone vibrated in the man's pants pocket. I paused the Vivaldi soundtrack, even though I didn't need to read the message to know what it said. Kind regards, ME the lights went out.