I stood at the front door of my house and reached for the door knob. When my hand fell through it I was reminded of my state. I had spent so many hours at Carter's just touching anything I wanted that I had forgotten about the things I couldn't touch.

I walked in the front door, the house was still pretty dark except for the light from the windows. I walked further into the house and looked in each room.

In the room downstairs, I saw my mom lying in bed peacefully with John. I smiled and my heart soared to see that even if Lizzie and I were gone, they had one another.

I slowly walked out of the room and gracefully walked up the wooden stairs. When I made it to the second floor I saw two doors closed.

One door had a sign on it that said 'Don't Come In. Don't Even Knock'. I laughed softly at the message and shook my head. As I stared at the red sign more another head ache came my way.

I leaned against a nearby wall for support and prepared for a memory.

I heard a continuous thud outside my bedroom door and against my better judgement decided to go see what it was. If I was watching my actions right now on TV I would've yelled at myself to just lock my door and call the police.

Yet here we are.

I opened my bedroom door slowly and saw Lizzie banging a hammer against her door.

"What the hell are you doing?" I hissed.

"Putting up a sign." She said as if it were obvious.

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms as I looked at the red sign.

"Isn't that a bit harsh, Liz?"

"I don't think so. I actually think it's perfect. So everyone can just 'fuck off'." She said as she dramatically gestured towards it.

"Why not just get a lock to your room?" I asked.

She twisted the knob on her door dramatically and tilted her head at me. "I clearly have one, as you can see."

"I didn't know." I said honestly.

"Yeah, right. You're the reason I got this sign. Don't you think I notice that my clothes are missing Liyah? I just didn't think you'd actually start taking my underwear and bras." She said with a disgusted scoff.

"What are you talking about? We don't even wear the same size!" I yelled in disbelief. I couldn't believe she was accusing me off this. Not only was it offensive but it was gross.

"Oh so they're just disappearing into thin air?" She asked with a smirk. "Are you going to say some bullshit about how you saw a man in black in my room again?"

"It wasn't a lie, I swear!" I yelled. "He was going through your clothes Liz."

"Aaliyah stop!" She snapped. "If any of us actually believed that, we would have called the police."

How could she not believe me? I wasn't lying. There was no way I could've imagined that entire night. But no one believed me. I told my mom but she took me to a psychiatrist.

"But-"

"But nothing. We talked about this with Dr. Jacobs remember? If you want something, there is no reason to lie. Just be honest with us."

I stood up straight and felt tears stream down my face. Yesterday wasn't the first encounter I had with the hooded man.

A few months ago I came home early from volleyball practice and thought no one was home. I walked up to my room and took a shower and began hearing drawers slamming.

Thinking it was Lizzie throwing another tantrum, I finished my shower and got dressed. When I continued hearing the slamming I opened my door and marched to her room.

When I burst through the doors I saw the man and screamed but before I could run I was knocked out. I woke up in my bed with no signs of harm done to me but I remembered everything.

I told my mom and Lizzie what happened but they took me to a doctor and they in short called me a liar.

I scoffed as I looked at our situations now. A side of me wondered if they ever regretted never believing me.

Maybe I'd still be alive.

I shook that thought from my head immediately. I honestly hoped they would never think about it. Even if they could have stopped it, I didn't want them stuck wondering about the what if's leading up to my demise.

I turned away from Lizzie's door to mine. I took a few steps into it but screamed in pain when my face connected with the door.

"Shit!" I yelled as I touched my face.

Lizzie's door immediately opened and she peeked out the door. I froze as she looked around.

"Is anyone there?" She called out.

After a few moments of silence she moved from the door and slammed it back shut, making sure to lock it.

Good. She's learning.

I wiggled my nose in an effort to get rid of the remaining pain. I hadn't expected that I could actually touch the door, so I just walked straight into it.

I rubbed my face to ease my pain and brought my other hand down to twist open the door. The door opened with a loud creak and a sharp cool breeze passed my face as I pushed it open.

Quickly walking in, I closed the door as quietly as I could. I glanced around the place I used to call my room and smiled at the familiarity. It looked exactly the same as I had remembered it.

As though nothing was moved or made to look organized. Everything was exactly as it usually was. It was comforting, yet eerily strange.

The room was dimly lit by the outside light, making it look like a peaceful yet mysterious haven. The beige walls were still decorated with pictures and my white bed still remained with its same pink comforter and fluffy pink pillows.

I walked over to the lamp near the window and turned it on. I glanced out the window for a second but I paused when I saw Carter standing at his window.

Looking directly at me.