For the past few days, I've been getting direct messages from somebody I don't know on twitter. They're all videos. In them, this woman keeps murmuring that she loves me.
"I love you," she coos, "I love you."
It was kind of weird but I dismissed it; maybe it was some viral ASMR campaign or something. Last night, though, as I got home from work, I realized something.
I rushed to pull my phone out and check the videos, looking over some key details in the background.
All the while, the girl crooned softly, "I love you," with a blush on her face. She had short black hair and looked really plain.
The realization was a stark one. I looked all around and, comparing my apartment to the backgrounds in the video—I realized that this mysterious woman had been recording these from my apartment.
From my own home.
***
I was still awake when dawn came. Yesterday was Friday, so today I don't really have much better to do. Knowing that this woman could break into my house at any time made it impossible to sleep.
Really, I just waited. I didn't know what I was waiting for, but I came out into my living room and sat on the couch there. The sun was up now, and it was a little brighter outside. It felt like summer was coming to an end.
As I watched the birds flitting about in the sky, I thought back to the videos I'd seen of her. She had a cute voice. I couldn't help but think she was pretty, in a plain kind of way.
I play the video again, listening to her quiet words.
"I love you," she whispered, "I love you."
She's so shy, I thought. She looks like she's never said anything like that before.
"I love you," she murmured, "I love you." Over and over.
I didn't even recognize her. I had no idea how she even could have known me.
Mustering my courage, I sent a reply to the twitter account that the videos were from. I wrote, "Who are you?"
I waited. I checked my phone every few minutes, hoping that she would reply.
Nothing.
At around noon, I started getting nervous. My mind was racing. What if she was dangerous? What if she was a crazy person? Maybe she was going to come and hurt me!
I couldn't get rid of the feeling that I needed to stay home. I didn't want to go anywhere. I wanted to sit here in my apartment and wait for her to show up.
Eventually, I decided to head to the store. I didn't feel like doing much else. I got some things I needed, stuff like bread, a frozen pizza, milk, a few cans of beer. I also bought a large box of cereal.
I was worried about leaving the door unlocked, but I figured that wouldn't be a problem. If she wanted to get inside, she'd already done it repeatedly.
When I got back, the apartment was empty.
I was relieved, but a little disappointed too. I guess I really wanted to know what she was thinking.
I ate a can of beer and opened up the TV, then flipped through the channels. There wasn't much on. I tried watching some anime, but I kept thinking about her. I knew that I should just relax, but I couldn't stop thinking.
I messaged that mysterious account again.
"I'm not angry," I wrote. "I don't want to cause trouble. I just want to know who you are."
I expected nothing, but I was still surprised when I got a reply.
"I am sorry," the message read, "but I cannot tell you my name."
It was a simple sentence, but it caught me off guard.
"Why?" I asked.
There was a long pause. I was about to give up when the message finally came.
"I will explain everything to you," she wrote, "if you let me come over."
I felt a chill seize my heart at that. It shouldn't be so scary—but for some reason it was!
I thought about the woman in the videos. She...looked harmless. Cute, even. She didn't seem violent or aggressive at all.
I hesitated, but I was curious.
"Okay," I typed. "Come over."
I didn't expect to hear back from her right away, but I was still shocked when I heard a knock on my door a few minutes later.
I opened the door, and she stood there. She was wearing a plain, white t-shirt, with jeans. Her chin-length hair was loose around her face, her bangs nearly covering her eyes.
She was petite, maybe 5'3". I couldn't tell her age, but I guessed she was probably somewhere between 18 and 25.
"Hi," I said, feeling a little frozen to the spot. I looked around nervously for a moment, then stepped back, holding the door open. "Come in."