Someone keeps knocking on my back door at exactly 2:15am

My house has two doors that lead into the back yard, one in the dining room, and one in the master bedroom. The backyard itself would be medium sized I would say. Some would call it large, but I had a difficult time with that seeing as the backyard I grew up with was four times as big. I was even calling it small when I first moved in. I had to have someone point out to me that we held a whole wedding procession back there.

Now keep in mind, this was a very small wedding, my daughter and her now ex-husband wanted to elope. She knew however that this would break her mother's heart. Ever since Sheila was born, my wife dreamed of the day she would be told of the engagement so that she could plan the wedding. A compromise was made, so we had a small ceremony in our backyard.

My wife was disappointed that there wasn't a beautiful chapel involved that was located in a dream destination. Boy did she knock it out of the park though. Our back yard started out as simply just a lawn and a porch. Now there's a water feature, several small statues that she commissioned, a cobblestone walkway that leads to an arbor that was used as the wedding arch, and a garden that my wife tended until the day she died last year from cancer.

Now of course I would support my baby girl in whatever she wanted to do, but I was so proud of her for giving her precious mother that gift. It's too bad the marriage didn't work out, they split soon after my first grand daughter was born. The memory of that wedding though, that will last forever.

I still tend to the garden when I can, but I'm getting old, and the joints just aren't what they used to be. It's difficult getting on my knees to prune and pull weeds. It's still flourishing, but I fear that won't last much longer.

There used to be a picket fence that ran along the perimeter. It had an archway that contained a beautiful gate that my son personally built out of hand carved wood. The whole family carved our names into it, including the ex-husband. After my daughter got remarried, we decided to keep his name on the gate, since he was still the father of my granddaughter, and thus part of the family. My son ripped the fence out several months ago due to it falling into disrepair. The plan was to rebuild it, and refurbish the gate. However, my son got a job offer in another state and moved away.

The untouched gate stayed in the shed until my son moved away. My daughter lived in another town a few hours away, my son a whole state away, and my wife, well you know where she is. I was alone now. I brought the gate inside and put it in my room. I know that this is a strange thing to do, but with all my family's names on it, it felt like I had them all right there with me.

A guilt began to fill me up. The garden was becoming overgrown and no longer had its fence. The vines on the arbor had become unruly. The water feature no longer worked, and the statues were starting to look very dirty. My wife's yard was losing its shine.

The first time it happened, I barely registered what was going on. I was deep asleep, and barely registered the knocking. I woke up and looked at the clock, it was 2:15 in the morning. Was that real? Or did I dream it? I fell back to sleep and completely forgot about it.

I'm retired now, and am always trying to find things to fill my time. I was able to make it work for quite a while. Tending to the garden, doing yard work, and just taking care of general maintenance throughout the house. I'm starting to get tired more easily, my joints are giving me issues, and now there's just a general ache throughout my body. With less and less I am able to do, I'm finding myself sitting in front of the TV more and more. I never imagined that this was going to be how I spent my golden years.

I woke up in my arm chair one night around 2. The TV was still on. I could swear I heard a knocking coming from my room, so I turned off the TV to be able to hear it better. It was silent. I figured it was nothing, though I was a little unnerved. I turned on the hallway light that led to my room. I could see down the hall through my open door. With my room slightly illuminated, I didn't see anything out of the ordinary. I made my way down the hall, reached my arm through the doorway and flipped the light switch to the left. My room now flooded with light revealed nothing to be afraid of. Relieved, I lied down on my bed, and went back to sleep.

I have been cooking meals less and less lately. Before my wife passed, cooking was the highlight of my day. It was my way of showing her how much I loved her. She would always gush about how good it was, even after thirty years of marriage. Now that she's gone, it feels like such a waste of time. It just feels like there's no reason to cook anymore, so I eat mostly frozen meals nowadays. I feel ashamed at the amount of trash I've been producing, but I'm just too tired to be putting effort into something I don't care about anymore.

This time I woke up while the knocking was still occurring. It was loud, it sounded like someone was banging on my door, and then it stopped. I was frozen, paralyzed with fear. There was no doubt that someone was in my back yard. After about twenty minutes of lying completely still, I finally found the nerve to get up and out of bed. I made my way into the dining room and turned on the porch light. I parted the curtain ever so slightly and peaked outside. The backyard was completely empty. There was no one there.

How would someone even get into my back yard? The perimeter was surrounded by other private yards, and it was nearly impossible to get through on the sides of the house. There were big heavy gates in the front and the back with bolted locks that haven't been opened in years. Those areas were mostly used for storage: car parts, pieces from old construction projects, and other miscellaneous junk that would make it extremely difficult to traverse. It was pretty much impossible to get into the backyard without going through the house, unless you were climbing over the wall from someone else's yard.

I couldn't fall back to sleep.

I spent the next day in a state of panic. Why was someone in my backyard, and how did they not only get in, but how did they get out? I called the police and they sent over a car to investigate. I told them my story, and they took a look around. They agreed how difficult it would be to get into the yard. There wasn't a whole lot they could do, so they just told me to call 911 next time it happened.

I wasn't planning on going to sleep that night, I was too scared. However, I only got a few hours of shut eye the night before. I woke up in the arm chair around dawn. I got through the night without any knocking. A few more nights went by without a hitch, and I started believing that it was either a fluke, or that it was all in my head.

I was in desperate need of a hobby. It felt like the TV was sucking all the life out of me. I needed something that didn't require a lot of physical effort, yet still worked my mind enough to combat dementia. Both my father and grandfather succumbed to Alzheimer's disease. I remember drawing a lot as a child, and that I really enjoyed it, so I went to the local art supply store to pick up some supplies.

“Hi sir, can I help you find anything?”

“Um, I'm not sure.”

She looked back at me with a puzzled look on her face.

“Well, what brings you in today?”

“I'm retired, and I can't attend to the hobbies I used to, so I'm looking for something that I'm not going to break my back over.”

“Ahh, I see. Do you have anything specific in mind? We have a wide variety of crafting supplies to choose from. There's modeling clay, paint, yarn, and so much more.”

“Yarn?”

“Yeah, for crocheting or knitting.”

“That's more of a hobby for women isn't it?”

“You would be surprised, lots of men have gotten into crochet, even my boyfriend.”

“You don't say?”

“Absolutely!”

“Personally, no judgement, but I don't think that's for me.”

“Of course! Everyone has different interests. Anything else that might call out to you?”

“I used to enjoy drawing when I was young.”

“Perfect!”

She then showed me around the store, easels, canvas, sketch pads, charcoal sticks, paint, and so many other options to choose from. I ended up with a couple of sketch pads, a set of color pencils, and even charcoal sticks. I opted against an easel, I was worried that might not be good for my back. I already had a TV tray at home that I used to eat my frozen meals off of while watching TV. It would slide under my chair so that I could still use it without leaning forward. The tray was even adjustable so that I can tilt it at an angle, making drawing easier. It had a lip at the bottom edge to hold up a sketch pad.

I took to the hobby immediately. I got so invested that I never even looked at the clock. I ended up drawing long into the night. While I was deep in concentration with a drawing I was almost finished with, I suddenly heard a loud banging coming from my room. I was so startled I jerked my arm, dragging the pencil across the page ruining my drawing.

I was frozen again, staring in the direction the banging was coming from. I then remembered what the police told me, so I called 911. It stopped shortly after I started the call. The police arrived, investigated both inside and outside the house and again found nothing. They stayed in the car right out front so I could have some peace of mind and get some sleep.

The next morning while making coffee, there was a knock at the front door that startled me. I was still very much on edge. I went up and looked through the peep hole. It was my daughter's ex-husband. I felt a wave of relief wash over me, so I opened the door with a smile on my face.

“Scott, what brings you around here? You know that Shelly isn't around right?”

“Oh I know, in fact I just saw her last week.”

“Oh okay, how is my grand baby doing?”

“Perfect, just as always! No, Sheila asked if I could swing by and check on you.”

“What an angel she is, but she could have just given me a call. Is there any particular reason?”

“Oh don't worry about it, I'm not put out at all. Remember, I only live about five minutes away. But yeah, she just wanted to know everything was okay.”

“Where the hell are my manners, come on in, make yourself at home. I just brewed a whole pot, would you like a cup?”

“I would love one, thank you!” He said as he walked in.

I closed the door behind him and headed into the kitchen while he took a seat on the couch. Something about this visit was odd. Sheila never hesitates to call me, and it was such a strange coincidence that she's worried about me while this is happening. I haven't spoken to anyone about this other than the police.

“How do you take it?” I called from the kitchen.

“It doesn't matter, just make it how you make yours.”

“Okay, but I'm warning you, I like it extra sweet.”

“That's fine.”

I walked back into the living room with both cups in my hands, handing one of them to him. I sat down in my armchair and took a sip.

“So, there's nothing out of the ordinary? Everything is fine?” he started.

“Forgive me if I come off as rude, but I'm struggling to believe Sheila wouldn't just call me if she was worried.”

He took a sip from his coffee and then looked directly into my eyes. After a moment he sighed.

“Okay, she doesn't know I'm here. I'm the one worried about you. There's a cop car sitting right outside your house Doug. What's going on?”

There was still something bothering me about this whole thing, but I lifted my guard a little.

“For the last month or so, someone has been getting into my backyard.”

“Oh my god, have you been robbed?”

“No no, it's nothing like that. It feels almost like they have no intention aside from just scaring the shit out of me.”

“So they just sneak into your backyard and leave again? Are they wearing a mask?”

“They don't have to, they come in the dead of night and pound on my back door.”

“My god, that's terrifying. There must be something I can do to help.”

“Thank you, but I don't know how you can, the police are already involved.”

“Have you considered putting a doorbell camera in your backyard?”

“A what?”

“A doorbell camera. They're meant to be put by your front door, so you get a notification on your phone when someone visits. You could also check the live feed to see who it is. Pretend you're not home if it's not someone you want to see.”

“So I just put it somewhere where my back door is in frame, and just monitor it?”

“Exactly, but you don't have to monitor it. If it senses movement you will get a notification, and not only can you see who's there, but you can also record it, and show it to the police.”

“I mean, I don't necessarily need a notification. I think the knocking is enough to notify me of someone's presence.”

“That's fair.” He pondered for a moment. “How often does this happen, is it every night, or sporadic?”

“Now that you mention it, it seems to happen every week on the same day. I hadn't even thought about it before.”

“I have an idea, we can install the camera this weekend, and you can come stay at my place next Thursday. I have Shelly next week, and you can spend some time with your granddaughter.”

I didn't like the idea of spending the night at his house, but thinking of spending that time with Shelly filled my heart with joy.

“Okay, yeah, let's do it.”

“Sounds good, I can pick you up on Sunday, and we'll head to the hardware store.”

“They sell cameras?”

“Security cameras, yes. We could also go to the electronic store. It doesn't really matter. They'll cost about the same.”

“Okay, sounds like a plan.”

After Scott left, I was still feeling uneasy about the visit. Sure he knew something was wrong when he saw the police car outside my house, but he still never told me why he stopped by in the first place. Though I was elated to see my granddaughter, so I tried to set that anxiety aside.

A week went by and it looked like I was right, the knocking only happened on specific nights. The camera was set up now, and I would check the app late at night every now and then. Scott had sat me down and taught me how to use the app. It was difficult at first, I'm not the most tech savvy guy, but I figured it out.

The day came, and he arrived to pick me up. I turned to see the back seat empty.

“Where's Shelly, you didn't leave her at home alone did you?”

“Oh yeah, I completely forgot. Sheila and I traded weeks, they're at Disney World right now. Starting next week, I'll have her for two weeks in a row.”

My heart dropped. I was so excited to see her. I felt like a little boy being told his puppy ran away.

“Hey, chin up,” He continued, “we're going to catch this asshole tonight.”

I tried to keep my spirits up, but it was difficult. At least I didn't have to spend the night in the house when it happened.

“Hey Doug, wake up, it's 2am.”

I had fallen asleep on his bed. It was actually the best sleep I had gotten in a few weeks. I sat up. I was super groggy.

“I need a glass of water.”

“Yes, of course. Come on into the front room, and I'll get that for you.”

I followed him to the couch and sat down. He went into the kitchen, and came out with a glass of water. After handing it to me, he pulled out his phone and opened the doorbell app. I took a gulp of water and set the glass on his side table.

“You're logged into my camera?”

“Yeah, I want to help you, so I'm going to keep an eye on it as well.”

Something about that made me uncomfortable. I'm not sure why. I pulled out my phone and opened the app. It was about 2:08. It seemed like the knocking always happened at 2:15 exactly. My heart rate increased with every minute that passed. I was now wide awake. Sweat dripped down my face. Why was I so nervous, I wasn't actually there, I was in no danger. 2:15 came and went. We never saw anybody. Around 3 Scott woke me up and had me go lie back down on his bed. He slept on the couch.

The next morning I woke up to the smell of bacon and coffee. I wandered into the front room and sat back down on the couch. Scott poked his head out from the kitchen, and then pulled it back in.

“I forget, do you have any food allergies?”

“No.”

“Religious restrictions on eating pork?”

“No”

After a few minutes he walked out holding two plates of food.

“Wait, let me get you a TV tray.”

After putting the food back down, and setting up a couple of TV trays, he went back into the kitchen to retrieve the food.

“Oh, I have orange juice, would you like some?”

“Sure.”

Scott turned the TV on to the news while we ate. After we finished he turned it back off.

“Well that was depressing.” He said referring to the segment we just watched.

“So they know when I'm not home.”

“Yeah, I suppose so.”

“Well, what now?”

“I guess you have to catch them in the act while you're still there.”

I shivered. I didn't want to go back home. I was terrified. I also didn't want to continue staying with Scott. Something was bothering me. Why is it that the only time the person didn't show up to knock, was when I was sitting right next to him.

“You know, when we were watching the live feed, I didn't hear anything. You would think you'd hear something, wind blowing through the trees, the neighborhood dog barking, anything.”

“Oh, the feed is muted by default, you could unmute it any time though. It also always picks up the sound when you record.”

“Oh, so we'll just have to remember to record it next week.”

“I already took today off from work, I can't take next Friday off as well.”

What am I going to do next week? Maybe he'll let me stay over any way. We don't have to stay up all night if we record it. I would also have another chance to see my granddaughter.

“And besides,” He continued, “I did record the feed last night.”

“Oh, can I see it?”

“Yeah,” He took his phone out and pulled up the video. “Knock yourself out.” He said as he handed me the phone.

He already had it paused at 2:14. I pressed play. I watched for almost a whole minute before I heard something subtle. I rewound it about 20 seconds and turned the volume up as loud as it could go. What I heard made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I could hear a muffled banging, almost like it was coming from inside my house.

After showing it to Scott, he offered to let me stay at his house for as long as I wanted. I was about to take him up on his offer, but I needed to get something straight first.

“Be honest with me, I need the truth. Why did you come to check on me last week?”

This clearly made him uncomfortable, which confirmed to me that he wasn't telling me the truth.

“Fuck!” He said putting his forearm up to his forehead and walking away from me. He turned back to face me. “Promise not to tell anyone.”

That's a rather odd thing to say at this moment. I didn't want to make any promises like that, but I needed to know the answer.

“Fine.”

He dropped his arm to his side.

“I have a friend that works at the precinct, he knows about our relationship. So when he found out about your 911 call, he told me. Naturally I got worried and came to check on you. But he can get in a lot of trouble for releasing information to me. So please I beg you, don't tell anyone.”

I dropped my guard instantly. He was starting to cry. The father of my grand baby was just genuinely worried about me. I walked over and hugged him, he hugged me back.

Over the next week we started moving some essentials from my house to his. We weren't going to move everything, I was just going to stay there until we figured out what was going on. He bought a cheap mattress to put in his room. He offered to sleep on it while I took his bed. I refused at first but he was right. I would be unable to get up from that mattress if it was just sitting on the floor.

We were in my room back at the house getting a few last things when I had to ask him a question.

“Can I make a really strange request?”

“Um, sure?” He said hesitantly.

“Would you mind if I brought this to your house?” I pointed at the old gate with our names carved into it.

“Uh.”

“I feel like I sleep better with it around. I can't explain it, but I feel like she's close to me when I'm near it.”

He looked over at it, and it seemed like he knew exactly what I meant and smiled.

“For you? Anything.”

It's like life completely flipped on its head. I went from being fearful every day, to having my heart filled up with love. I got to see Shelly pretty much every day, and I even had a whole other week to spend with her.

“Grandpa?” She asked as she snuggled with me on the bed.

“Yes sweetheart?”

“What's that?” She asked, pointing at the gate leaning against the wall.

“You're uncle Tommy made that for your mom. It's meant to symbolize the love between your mom and dad.”

She got quiet, and I realized what I just said. That was rather insensitive of me.

“And the love the whole family shares.” I got out of bed and walked her up to the gate. “See? There's your mom's name, your dad's name, my name, Tommy's name. Hey, even your step dad's name. He carved his name into it a lot later though. He's part of the family just as much as the rest of us, especially since he's the father of your brother and sister. And last but not least, your grandmother's name.”

I reached out and stroked the carving of her name. I don't remember it looking brighter than the rest of the names. Did Tommy come by and add some paint or something?

“I miss her very much.”

“I miss her too, grandpa.”

We embraced in a hug.

That night I woke up out of nowhere around 2am. I looked over to see Shelly clinging to her dad on the other mattress. You know, he could just bring her bed in here from the other room, instead of pretty much sleeping on the floor. I lied on my back, staring at the ceiling. The minutes ticked by, and I just wasn't sleepy. I thought about getting up to get a glass of water. Just then the banging started. It was louder than it had ever been before. Shelly woke up screaming. Scott held her close as he sat with his back against the wall.

“Daddy, what's happening?

“I don't know sweetheart.”

The pounding was coming from the gate. It sat there against the wall, with no one around to touch it, and yet the banging continued. I was just staring at it. I started crying. Scott and Shelly were also crying, but for a different reason. Theirs was out of fear. I got up and walked over to the gate as the pounding seemed to get louder and louder. I fell to my knees and put my hand up on my wife's name.

“Is that you?”

Shelly was fully screaming in fear at this point and her dad was holding her tightly.

“Rose?”

The pounding stopped suddenly.

We put the gate into a storage container for a short time. I didn't like it, but it needed to be done. The facility was closed after 9pm, so no one could just randomly walk by at 2:15. It hurt like crazy, imprisoning her like that.

A month went by, and I was finally able to sleep. The whole family was over except for Tommy. Children playing in the yard. The adults chatting on the brand new patio furniture. Scott agreed to come by weekly to tend to the garden. Tommy took some time off work to fix up the fence and repair the water fixture. He would come by every now and then to make sure everything was properly maintained. The yard was absolutely beautiful, it was just missing one thing.

“Guess who's here?” Tommy walked through the back door holding the gate.

“Tommy boy!” Scott shouted as he walked up to give him a hug. Tommy set down the gate so they could embrace.

“It still needs a fresh coat, so it can match the rest of the fence.” Scott said as he let go of Tommy and looked down at the yet to be refurbished gate.

“Not yet, it's going to need another name carved into it.” Tommy said as his girlfriend walked up from behind him. They both put their arms behind each other's backs. “Brandy and I have an announcement to make.” His girlfriend then raised her hand to show off her brand new engagement ring. Sheila screamed with joy. With that same hand, Brandy reached down to rub her belly. “Oh, I mean two announcements.”

Sheila screamed again and ran up to hug Brandy. Tommy turned and walked over to me.

“Hey dad.”

“Congratulations! No, double congratulations!” I said as we embraced for a hug.

“Hey, I got a favor to ask.” He said as we let go.

“Anything.”

He turned and looked at the now cleaned up arbor.

“That's a question for your sister.” We both looked at Sheila.

“But it's mine.” She whined sarcastically.

“I was hoping maybe Brandy carving her name could be part of the ceremony. And then we would paint it.”

Sheila walked over to Tommy. She was very obviously faking being upset.

“Ugh, Fine!” She said right before going in for a hug. “I've missed you bro.”

“Ditto,” Tommy responded “I just wish mom could be here to see it.”

I looked over at the gate leaning against the wall.

“Oh she will be.”

Tommy then looked over at it.

“Oh yeah, I should get it put back on for now.”

After he installed the gate, I could swear I felt a change in the air. Now every time I'm in her garden, I can feel her presence. I only ever really spend most of my time back there any more. There's an easel that's almost permanently sitting under the arbor. Charcoal sprinkling over the cobblestone when I'm out there. Although she doesn't respond, I talk to her all the time. I even bought a grill so I don't have to go inside to cook.

Scott tries to bring Shelly over as much as he can now. Tommy makes an effort to visit more often. He's been talking about moving back to town so his kid can have a baby sitter. I still don't see Sheila and my other grandkids as much as I'd like, but I think this is the struggle of every grandparent. She's a busy woman, what's she gonna do? Honestly they could all move across the country if they needed to. It would stink, but I will always have my Rose.

Sometimes when I've found myself spending a little too much time inside, I'll hear a gentle knocking.