My father went missing three months ago.
For the last week or so, every night at 2:15 a.m., he stares at me through my bedroom window.
His stare is blank and emotionless. His mouth hangs open.
I miss him so much but I wish he would stop visiting. My mom doesn’t believe me. I beg her to stay up and watch with me, but she dismisses me. I know she’s going through a lot.
The first night he came it startled me. I was almost asleep when I heard a loud bang from my window. I jolted up to a sitting position and was rocked by the sight of someone banging their head against the glass. After a few moments, they stopped and just stared in. That was when I realized it was my father. My blank, emotionless father.
He didn’t move an inch. Just stared.
I ran to get my mom, and by the time we got to my room he was gone. Mom easily shook it off as a bad dream.
The second night, I couldn’t sleep. I laid there staring out my window, hoping he would never show. Then right when I thought I was going to doze off, his face rose into sight from the bottom of the window frame. He was completely still. He didn’t blink. His mouth still hung open. His skin seemed tighter. He looked pale and sick.
Again, my mom blew me off. Told me she knew it was hard to understand that dad had run out. That he didn’t love us. That he would never return.
But he did return. Every night.
The third night, I knew what to expect, but his appearance still startled me. I was ready with a flashlight to get a better view. When he first popped into the window frame, it took a moment to register what I was seeing. My light revealed that he was missing an eye. His right eye socket was deep and dark. His left eye continued his blank stare. His mouth no longer hung open. Instead, his lips were pulled back into a horrific grin. My flashlight fell to the floor.
After begging, I slept in my mom’s room.
The fourth night, I protested and refused to sleep in my room. My mom gave in and I slept in her’s. But that didn’t stop dad. At the same time, 2:15 a.m., he made his routine appearance, but this time it was in mom’s window. We both saw. He didn’t look like dad anymore. Half his face was skull. On the other half, his skin hung from the bone. We both screamed.
Mom called the cops.
They came and found our neighbor hiding in our backyard with a duffle bag. They found the rest of my father’s body at our neighbor’s home. The neighbor was taken away.
My mom apologized for never believing me, but I still hate her for it.
I really miss my dad, but I’m glad he doesn’t visit anymore.