TWO EYES, TWO FEET
SHORT STORY: HORROR | PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER | MYSTERY | SUSPENSE | UNKNOWN ENCOUNTER
Even now, I can’t explain the footprints I found in the snow that day. They didn’t belong to anything I’ve ever known.
I was in my late teens, renting the bottom floor room of a friend's two-story house. The room had a two-paned window that sat about two feet just above the driveway, which sloped steeply uphill along the side of the house.
The window had those basic, eggshell-white plastic blinds with a pull-string. The landlord insisted that they were always to be kept shut.
Across the driveway sat the neighbor’s house, separated by a thick row of trees. Even without the blinds, you couldn’t see much through them.
One January night, I was setting alarms on my tablet when a small flash of light caught my eye. It came from the bottom corner of the window. I thought it was a reflection, or maybe it was an upstairs tenant in the driveway. But the driveway wasn’t a particularly busy area.
Then I heard something bump the glass. It wasn't loud, but it wasn't exactly quiet either. My skin decided that something was off even before the light flashed again. This time, it definitely came from outside.
I sat motionless, staring at the glass, trying not to overthink it. Maybe it was just my imagination.
Then came another bump. Only this time, I saw something move behind the glass: a round shape with two sunken eyes in the center.
It stayed there for a moment, just looking at me.
My body reacted an instant later. I dropped to the floor on the other side of my bed. I wasn't sure if I was hiding or if I was stuck. My breaths came heavier, and my pulse was the only sound I could hear.
I forced myself to lift my head just enough to see the window. It was still there. I saw it blink, and then it faded slowly out of view.
I stayed in the same spot on the floor, eyes glued to the window. I don't know how long I sat there. I don't even remember falling asleep.
I just remember waking up later that night to a tapping sound. Like knuckles on glass. I opened my eyes, feeling calm in a way that didn’t make sense. I felt like I was watching myself from outside my body. It wasn't me controlling my movements.
All I could do was watch. I saw myself rise from off the floor, grab my tablet, and type out a note that read:
Martha visited me at the window.
11:09 p.m.
I didn't look at the window again. I just lazily got into bed and fell right back to sleep.
The next morning I got a call from work. My shift got canceled due to heavy snowfall. I'd almost forgotten about last night until I looked out the window and saw all the snow.
My roommate and her daughter were already buzzing with excitement. So, we bundled up and went outside through the front door, which was on the opposite side of where my window faced.
The snow was fresh. No footprints anywhere. We played in the yard until my hands got numb. I told them I’d be right back and walked around the side of the house to the bottom door.
Before I made it in, I saw these strange prints in the snow right below my window. They didn't look like any animal I knew. They were too small for a deer and too large for a raccoon. They almost looked like hooves, but with toes. And they appeared to have only two feet.
I followed the trail up the driveway and into the street, where they got lost in the mix of car tire marks. I went back down, following the prints that went through the grass and straight into the trees.
As I was walking along, I noticed there were some inconsistencies in the pattern. At some points, the steps were side by side. Like it had been hopping. Then they spaced out again. Left, right, left. Human-like.
I took a video with my tablet and called my roommate and her daughter over. I told them about the face I’d seen last night, but they were more interested in the tracks than my story.
My roommate's daughter hadn't been this quiet all morning. She was just looking at the footprints with a distant look in her eye.
"What do you think about that?" I joked.
She looked up right away and said, “Oh, that’s just Martha.” She laughed, but her face didn’t match.
Her mom’s eyes shot open and over to mine.
My heart sank as I pulled out my tablet, opened the note, and showed her. She went quiet. I explained to her that I didn’t know why I wrote it, or even how I did, and that I hadn’t told anyone about it.
She looked at her daughter. “How do you know that name?”
The little girl replied, “She told me.”
Her mom crouched down. "Who told you, baby?”
Her daughter turned to the trees. “Martha did. She comes to my window sometimes, too. She doesn’t knock. She just waits for me to wave, then she leaves.”
We both got quiet, not sure what to say.
Her mom asked, “When was this?”
The little girl shrugged. “A couple nights ago. She said she used to live here when she was small.”
Then she looked at me and added, “She said she doesn’t like the new tenant.”
I asked, “What new tenant?”
She smiled, covered her mouth, then looked back at the trees and said, “You’ll see."
Spooky! Now I'm gonna be thinking about Martha before I go to sleep lol
Oooh, good bedtime story! Love the buildup and the surprise at the end....hmm Martha at the windows. You are my 74th story!