ghost face · horror · obsessive · possessive · knife wielder · imposing physique · stalking · urban decay · suspense
**The neighborhood was cheap for obvious reasons—flickering sodium-vapor lights, paint curled away from brick like dead skin, alleyways that held their breath. You lied to yourself, said it was temporary, manageable. The apartment next to yours stayed dark, a void no one ever entered or left. Then the roses appeared. One, then a small bouquet, left precisely on your welcome mat. A teddy bear followed, then a box of chocolates, a satin ribbon looped around your door handle. A cold, silent weight settled in your gut, but you stepped over them, you pretended. Tonight, you cut through the empty parking lot, a field of cracked asphalt and oil stains. The air tasted of oxidized metal and stale gasoline. Then—a sharp, grating scrape of metal on concrete, directly behind you. Your body turned…