The Stalker

Someone was knocking at the door, and it startled her from a sound sleep. Carrie sat bolt upright, eyes wide open. Glancing to her nightstand, she noticed the time in disbelief: 3:00 a.m. She pulled on her robe and moved toward the front door with a sense of urgency overruling her common sense. As she unlocked the deadbolt, she realized that checking the peephole had been dismissed as a subconscious afterthought, but now it was too late. Now, she could only hope that her late-night caller had legitimate intentions. She inched the door open slowly, only to find there was no one on the other side. Looking downward, she saw red roses bundled on her doormat. After shaking her momentary daze, she slammed and locked the door, leaving the floral gift behind.

Trembling, she staggered to the kitchen and reached for the telephone hanging on the wall, pausing to contemplate her next move. The last time she called for help, the police had nonchalantly informed her that solid proof is necessary when making accusations. Proof was something she simply did not have. He was too sly for carelessness. The police also seemed to believe that she had encouraged him. After all, she had been seeking potential suitors via the Internet, which could be viewed as risky, to say the least. She had been careful and intelligent in her pursuits, but in the long run it didn't matter. He was just that good. Furthermore, the police seemed to view his attention as harmless, and she certainly did not share that opinion. Suddenly, she felt very alone and vulnerable.

There was no use in trying to return to a peaceful slumber. Instead, she opted for a shower and an early start to her Monday. By the time she left for work, she had almost leveled out enough to forget the abrupt start to her day, but her car held a fresh reminder. The snubbed roses now lay on her driver's seat. She threw the roses to the ground and hurried to work, crying and feeling defeated. Before today's wake up call, she hadn't heard from him in weeks. She had recently moved to a new apartment, and she had changed her email address. When he tracked her down at work, her boss had moved her to another office. It appeared that these changes threw him off initially, but then he resurfaced, and he still wanted her. She was baffled. They had only shared insignificant, passing conversations and swapped photos online, but it was enough for an overly-determined man to become a diligent stalker.

Carrie's work day went on rather uneventfully. Calls came, paperwork was completed and problems were solved. She was exhausted and more than ready for her lunch break when noon rolled around. Her calm returned to terror in the parking lot. Their eyes met; he casually smiled and waved. She turned and sprinted back into the building. Suddenly, the front door blew open and he ran in behind her. Without a second thought, she ran for her office, locking the door behind her. Huddling under her desk, she heard him pleading, "I only want a chance to talk to you, to get to know you". Eyes squeezed shut, she listened as a chorus of co-workers rushed to handle the hostile visitor. As the sound of wailing sirens approached, the chaos died down and her pursuer took flight. Only when a uniformed officer appeared did she emerge from her sanctuary.

This time, there were witnesses to his obsessive behavior, and the officers were forced to take matters more seriously. A report was filed, a temporary restraining order was issued, and protective surveillance was promised. The next few days were hectic, but she finally felt that she was being taken seriously. While Carrie and the police remained vigilant, her admirer was eerily absent and silent.

Three months went by uneventfully. As he appeared to lose interest, so did the authorities. Even Carrie began to find her comfort zone again and return to a feeling of normalcy. She had even begun to exclusively date a co-worker, having given up on Internet matchmaking sites. After returning home from a dinner date with her new beau, she sat down to check her email before settling into bed for the evening. Her fingers began to shake over the keyboard when she saw an email from an unknown sender. It said only, "I will never give up on us". As she stared at the screen in disbelief, her phone rang. It was her boyfriend. "Carrie, when I got home, I found a picture of you attached to my door with a knife"! It was then that she realized it wasn't over. In fact, it may never be over.