#tannergrayton

I wake up the next morning with sun rays shining through the sides of my curtains. I have these thick, velvet curtains to keep my room dark, good for warding off unwelcome nighttime visitors, but at this time of day, visible streaks of light appear on the wall.

My days are typically filled with something to do, but not entirely busy. I work from home so everything I do is through the computer. I’m a graphic designer. I create visual concepts, mostly for housing layouts and home decoration, and send them to marketers and developers who make it a reality. I also send them to clients who are looking to change things up in the home. When I’m not doing that, I host online auctions for charity or I sell items I don't want any more to make a little extra cash. Those three practices combined; I make quite a bit of money overall. Then, when the sun begins to set, my neighborhood watch duties begin. I make my rounds, get back home by nightfall, and in my free time I watch television.

Back when I was in public school, I used to envy the people who got to wake up to the natural sunlight. I would get up at four o'clock in the morning just to get ready for classes. Now I get to wake up in the afternoon. I pull myself out of bed, do my morning routine, and decide to go to the store. Now that I think about it, the store is really the only reason I leave the house. Even my clothes I order online. Sometimes I consider going out more, but every time I try, a sense of dread overcomes me and I back out. I can barely stand getting groceries. Going to my kitchen, I check to see what I may need.

Everything.

I need everything.

My fridge is bare bones. There's only water, expired plant milk, cabbage I will never touch and a well-used bottle of ketchup. And a box of tampons? So I did have tampons! I bought a new box for nothing? I really need some sleep if I’m so I’m putting sanitary products in the fridge. I should get rid of them all together and switch to those new period panty things. I leave the kitchen and grab my bag.

It’s freeing owning a car now. I used to only take Ubers and Lifts, but Luna convinced me to stop being afraid and get my own car. So I finally bit the bullet and got one. It’s a humble little used car, but it works all the same and gets me to my destination. It’s a weekday so the stores aren’t too crowded. I should have pre-planned my meals before I came to narrow down my grocery list, but I guess I’ll work on staple items and intuition. Rice, potatoes, cheese, veggies and whatever else comes to mind. I quite enjoy grocery shopping when it’s not busy.

I end up returning home with far too many bags. That darn Costco and their love for bulk items. I take the food out of the bags, putting them in their respective places in my kitchen. The purchase I’m most excited for I place proudly on my dining table: the huge triple chocolate cake with delicious chocolate icing presented on the crystal cake stand my mom got me. I'll do my best to cherish it, but it’s so good it may just be gone by the end of the week. Realising I didn’t have breakfast before I left, I make myself two raspberry toaster strudels and head to my home office. 

Every day, before I start work, I check my email for any upcoming projects or job opportunities. I read each assignment to myself under my breath. “Faith Gallagher’s thinking of rearranging her sunroom... Maddox of ‘A Hat’s Home’ wants me to design a mini house for Nathan Sharp... wants to surprise his wife- that's a good commission. Cory Davis and… hmm?”

I click on a message sent from Youngman, Luna. I wasn’t expecting to hear from her. It was an email letting me know I was on my own for Nightwatch tonight. Apparently, the scheduled member is too sick to take the shift with me. I emailed her back, letting her know I don’t mind covering the route by myself, then returned to my other emails.

I’m halfway through my work and hungry again. I know I should consider eating a sandwich or salad, but that cake has been calling my name since I picked it up. Shamelessly, I grab a big piece of the heavenly treat, and as the hours go by, I have my second piece, then my third, then my fourth. Needless to say, half the cake was gone by the time work ended. So long cherishing it. Before I know it, I’m getting ready to do my rounds. Like every night, this one is uneventful. Sometimes I wonder what would happen if someone did come across a criminal. What would they do? I have a registered gun and fight training, courtesy of the many instructors I've paid, but my neighbors might not. The police here have a slow response time and no one in this neighborhood seems to have any sense of self-defense. You’d think living in a neighborhood with recent suspicious activity would at least give someone the sense to invest in security.

It’s good that I joined though. At least I know what to look out for. In addition to the self-defense classes, I took quite a few crime-based classes in college. Did I waste my life? I'm nowhere near old, but considering all the college classes I took and all the degrees I have, shouldn't I be doing something more than designing rooms and cowering in my house? No. This is smart. This is safe.

I’m finally home, so ready to binge watch come TV. But of course, before I start my marathon I get some food. I microwave a bag of theater popcorn and start making my dinner. Once I’m finished with all that, I put them on some TV-trays and head back to the kitchen to get some more cake, but I pause. I keep promising myself I’ll start living healthy. I just got it and already half is gone. Tomorrow. I think to myself, and take a piece of cake. But something’s… off. I could have sworn I only ate half the cake. It looked like another piece had been taken. I should probably check the house to see if someone is here, but come on. What kind of professional criminal takes a slice of their victims' cake?

I shrug it off and take a big slice, then return to my living room TV. I start the marathon, but not even ten minutes in I’m distracted by a feeling. I have all my lights on, but I still want to be certain. I quickly get to my laptop and check my outside cameras. Everything seems okay, but what is that? I swear I saw a glimpse of white in the corner. What in the world?

Not wanting to get myself worked up, I settle on it being a cat or a bag or something. But just to be sure I look around the house. My bathroom light is on. I never keep it on. I must have forgotten to this morning before leaving. I don’t find anyone in the house and the outside looks fine from the windows, so I sit back down in the living room, lay a blanket over my lap, and start eating. I’m up until early morning watching, but the whole time I can’t help but think:

What was that white movement in my camera?

Kidnappings, murders, and trafficking. Recently, there’s been some suspicious activity going on in the neighborhood. Luna, my neighbor a few houses down, decided to start a neighborhood watch to which I joined. I don't do much anyway so why not help out a friend?

     Luna received and sent out a pair of B.O.L.O’s for everyone to review. The B.O.L.Os say there are two men to look out for; the ones responsible for the break-ins that have been going on lately. One man has been suspected to be a sex trafficker, and the other man is a wanted murderer. They like to welcome themselves inside, so we have to keep our outside house lights on. Even though I, of course, do those things already, I still like to make rounds around my house to be sure no one is outside.

I look out my windows, my house lights reflecting off the metal ADT sign stuck in my front lawn. Everything always looks fine, so when I don't see anything suspicious it's not like a weight is lifted off me. It's pretty late in the night and I've already done my nightly watch shift with my scheduled partner, as well as my work assignments, so I crack my back, log off my computer, and walk to the bathroom to do my night routine. Even if I rarely leave the house, it’s still important I take care of myself, especially my curls. So, after brushing my teeth, covering myself in cocoa butter, and putting some leave-in conditioner in my hair, I slide into my covers, put on my bonnet and rest my head on my pillow, letting my eyes fall shut. The only problem is, I can’t sleep. I’ve really been trying to sleep without background noise since the neighborhood crimes have started, but it’s been a difficult habit to break.