I ran back on the bed and cowered under the sheets once again. “It’s just a dream. It’s just a dream.” I kept on repeating this line inside my head to convince myself that what I saw wasn’t true. Even though I cannot make out what this person looked like from afar, those glowing red eyes was more than enough to terrify me for years. The sequence between the hoots gradually grew longer, but every single one drew closer and closer. I could swear that the last hoot I heard came right from outside the window. And all of a sudden, it stopped.

I wanted to think that this thing just decided to go back to wherever he came from. I tried very hard to convince myself that it was just another dream. It suddenly got eerily silent. I could no longer hear the rustling of the leaves nor the breeze of the wind. I tried to remain patient. I tried not to look. Because, aside from those optimistic possibilities, there was another one that I was avoiding to consider. Unfortunately, it was that particular one that occurred next.

I slowly pulled down the sheets and took a peek, and my heart almost broke out of my chest as I was profoundly horrified by what I saw. This thing that was hiding behind the tree was standing right next to my bed with a piercing stare. His red, glowing eyes were like spheres of glowing torches that was staring right at me. He did not have a face nor any distinguishable features. I wasn’t even sure if he’s actually a "she". All I knew was he was not human. This horror of a creature was nothing but a silhouette of an unnaturally tall man. He was but a shadow made of complete darkness. A humanoid void that made the dark skies of the night appear just as bright as day. 

Every inch of my body was shaking. I wanted to scream, but I was choking out of fear and couldn’t even properly breathe. This thing was trying to reach me with its hand, but something was stopping him from doing so. I tried to force myself to move as much as I could. I wanted to get up and run out of the room, but all I could do was to drag the sheet back up against my face and close my eyes. 

“It’s just a dream. It’s just a dream!” I repeated this line inside my head as I tried to calm myself down.