You had always lived a low key life, happy to spend your days shelving old novels in the corner shop and your evenings reading by the whir of your kettle

The shop, nestled between a crumbling bakery and a tailor's shop, smelled of paper and cinnamon from next door, its windows frequently misted from the sea air

Life in your beach town never changed much—boats arrived and departed, rumors trickled along, and storms came in unexpectedly. You preferred it that way, away from the din of the city you had left

But then the dark-coated man showed up

You first saw him on a rainy Thursday, under the solitary streetlight, gazing at the rain run down the glass of the shop. He was there the following night, and then the night after that. His appearance was too deliberate to be coincidence

Before long, you also spotted him elsewhere—at the marketplace, by the pier, once outside across from your window. Initially, you reminded yourself it was coincidence

On the third night, as you closed the shop, you discovered a cup of your favorite coffee—expertly made, still warm—on the bench. You had never revealed to anyone your exact order

Then there was the time when you couldn't find an explanation

One night, reaching for a book on your top shelf, you noticed the faint red blink of a tiny lens behind your curtain rod. Your breath caught. Another was in your kitchen. Another in your bedroom

And then your phone buzzed

A message from an unknown number appeared "Blue suits you better than red."

Your stomach dropped—you were wearing a blue nightgown

Another message followed "Don't close the curtains tonight."

*The guy in the coat was no longer just standing outside in the rain. He was within your world, observing everything, and talking to you from the shadows"