When I moved into my new place, I was just looking for a fresh start. I won't get into the details but let's just say I had a bad situation with an ex that made staying in my old city impossible. I ran out of some money early in life and made some bad decisions about a woman I surrounded by myself with lesson learnt.
The neighbourhood I moved to nice, though living quite mostly families. The houses here are rarely spaced out, which was partially would drew me there, but for some reason, the property next mine is much closer in proximity than most of the other properties are to each other and by the way that houses next door is huge. When I first saw it, I thought I could easily fit a family of 10, that's honestly what I assumed at first that a big family lifted their grandparents and everything, but I couldn't have been more wrong even though I tried to be low, I wasn't going to be rude, never I took it upon myself.
To introduce myself to everyone in the neighbourhood, for whatever reason, I decided to introduce myself to my next door neighbours. Last I couldn't tell you why everyone else, I might seem really sweet. And genuine, I had say, 90% of them were parents of young childrens. They were all slightly intimidating, purely based on how successful they seemed to be. I wasn't sure how a younger guy liked myself would easily blend into a community like that, but that was more of a personal concern.
When I got around to meeting my next door neighbour, my social battery was mostly drained from having spent the day making small talk with strangers I knew if I just went back home, I was never going to be as motivated to meet them, so I just sucked it up and walked up there.
Driveway, I had gotten a custom to being greeted by someone middle-aged, so when a young looking dude, in a mullet opened the door I was a little taken a hell, he looked even younger than me, which was definitely a shock. I recovered quickly and went ahead with my new to the neighbourhood, as I went on, he flashed me with his massive smile and actually cut me off before I could even finish talking. He said something along the lines of "oh, wow, someone who was born in my decade, what a nice surprise," I laughed and told him the same thing, venting to him about how out of place.
I felt as a single guy in his late 20s. Among so many families with kids, he told me not to worry about that. And most of the people who lived here kept to themselves, which was kind of a relief for me introduced himself as Damon and told me, I should come by for a drink sometime, shrugged my shoulders and said, "hell, why not right now?" To which I expected him to laugh and invite me in instead. Though he looked over his shoulder, like he was scanning his living room, and then turn back to me saying ,he wished he could, but he was busy working and I asked him what he did for work because it just seems like a normal follower question to what he said and dropped his smile a bit after a weird stare, he laughed and just said finance, but he didn't elaborate any more than that which I thought was a bit strange, I told him fair enough and asked him if he had any roommates to my surprise, he told me he lived there alone, which was absolutely insane.
To me given how big the house was, we chit for a few more minutes, and he gave me his number before going back inside, I was excited that someone my age live here, especially because he seemed like a really chill, but I couldn't get over how odd it was for someone like that to live all alone and yeah, I know I was essentially doing the same thing, but you have to keep in mind my house wasn't even half the size of his anyway.
I went back home and got on with my life that was about six months ago. For a few weeks after that , nothing eventfull really happened. I texted Damon; a few days after he gave his number to try and set something up, but he had always complained about how busy he was and how sorry he was that we couldn't hang out. Eventually I gave up with him not in a hostile way, just you do your work kind of way. I am definitely not the type of person to bend over backwards for someone who seems disinterested.
I never saw anyone coming or going from demon's place. No visitors, no parties, no girls, nothing. He never even bought take out delivered, which was strange to me because his car was always in the driveway and genuinely don't know what he ate because I literally never saw him leave the house, the guy live like a ghost.
I work from home and the office in my house is on the 3rd floor which was overlooks Damon's property. If you are wondering how I knew so much about his living habits, I know it sounds obsessive and a little creepy, but his house was also just a glance away from my monitor so I couldn't have but look over from time to time.
One night, it was a Wednesday night. I remember that distinctly, I woke up around 2 AM to the sound of loud music, I sleep with my windows open, so that's probably how I wake up easily. At first, I thought I was imagining it or it was part of a really vivid dream I was having, but I was wrong. I got out of bed and peaked out my window and there were 7 or so, cars lined up in Damon's driveway, there was no mistaking it. He was having a party now, don't get me wrong. I am not the type to complain about some noise. I have been to my fair share of house parties, but it was the middle of the week and the volume was insane, I figured I had just go over and ask him to turn it down, I wore a hoodie and walked over.
It was a full-blown party that much was clear from outside, I knocked on the door but no one answered. I pulled out my phone to text Damon but I decided against it knowing he had probably ignore me and give me some excuse. The following morning, hit on the door again harder this time, still nothing. I reached for the handle half, expecting it to be locked, but to my surprise, the door swung open inside.
The first thing I saw was a pile of shoes in the foyer, at least 10 pairs, but there was something off. There was literally no one in there. I moved further and expecting to see people in the living room, maybe the kitchen, but it was completely empty. There weren't even any drinks left out. I could hear people over the music that I was playing in the background though which I didn't understand but then I'll listen to it. And everything hit me all at once. It wasn't even music, really, it was a recording, a literal recording of people laughing, yelling, clinking glasses. The whole party was fake all of it but it didn't make sense to me. It still didn't explain the shoes, the cars. There were people in that house. That much was certain I should have turned around right then, but I needed to know what was going on, I moved discreetly around the house until I saw a door that was slightly a jar, I gently pushed it down, and it led to the basement. I'm not sure how I knew here something told me what I was looking for was downstairs.
It was dark down those stairs, with the except of a very faint light coming from somewhere. I couldn't say there was no reason to go down there. I knew that, but I did it anyway, I got to the bottom of the stairs and looked around, the light was coming from another door somewhere deeper in the basement. I crept towards it, and as I got closer, I started to pick up on another noise I hadn't been able to hear earlier over the music. It sounded almost mechanical, it was this heavy rhythmic grinding, like heavy machinery or something. I got a little closer close enough to see through the crack, there were 3 people standing in there, looking across the room at something that was out of view.
They were all older looking guys. Seems older than them, they were wearing heavy duty work clothes and had on these protective goggles and thick rubber gloves, also realised they were wearing what looked like work boots even though I had seen all those other shows upstairs under different circumstances, I would have assumed that they were construction workers, I really wanted to see what they were looking at. But it was too far out of view.
After a few seconds of me, just standing there, I started to pick some on this awful bleach smell or some kinds of cleaning solution, that's what did it for me, I started to feel this awful puke in my stomach, like my life was in danger. I can't explain it, I turned to leave trying to be as quiet as possible as I was finding my way back to the stairs, the light from behind me suddenly dived like someone had shut the door. Behind me, I didn't actually hear the door over the music, but I felt it, I sprinted up the stairs as fast as I could I ran through the house and burst out the front door.
I didn't eandirectly to my house, I jumped my own fence and made it to the backyard. And slipped in through my side door, locking it behind me. My chest was pounding, but under no circumstances, could I let Damon, or any of those other guys know it was me who had been snooping around, I gathered myself and went up to my office, making sure all the lights up there were off. I crouched down below the window and make peek over at Damon's house. There was no one there. But then a few minutes later, the front door flew open and like 8 guys peaked out scanning the yard, the driveway, the street, but Damon wasn't with them, I could tell, because everyone looked older, like those first guys I had seen a few of them looked like they were arguing about something, but I couldn't make out what they were saying.
One of the men actually shoved one of the other ones and I thought they were about to start fighting in the street , but they didn't eventually, they all went back inside and the music stopped soon after that , I stood at the window, trying to make sense of what had just happened I thought about calling the cops, but what would even say the music wasn't playing anymore. And there were no real crime. I could actually report the thing I couldn't understand was how none of my neighbours had a problem with the loud music, especially since most of them had children. It was me and I had no idea what that was about either the people I had seen were wearing boots. So did they bring extra pairs of shoes just to leave in the foyer. I had too many questions and I didn't know what to do so I just went to the bed.
The next morning, I woke up and looked out of my bedroom window. Every single car was gone, including Damons. I went upstairs to try and get some work done. But I couldn't concentrate and found myself looking over at the Damon's house every 5 seconds, after a few hours of his car not being there, I decided to go for a walk partly to clear my head. But mostly to take some low key glances throw his windows, nothing though days passed and Damon still didn't return all his car didn't. At least I was baffed with every passing days I still couldn't figure out. I went straight up as to them, I went to a few houses and asked them if they had heard loud musics a few nights ago, no one knew what I was talking about even after I told them which house it was coming from, and how late it was, I thought I was going crazy.
That was a few months ago. Now, the crazy thing is, Damon still hasn't returned and It's clear no one is maintaining his house as the grass is starting to get really long and there is an untouched pile of packages leaning against his front door I don't know what to make of this, it could be nothing but I feel like no one would go to such lengths to discuss. What they were doing with the party unless it was something illegal, but would people going to such lengths really forget something as important as locking the front door, maybe that's what those guys had been arguing about. I really have no idea and the fact that none of my other neighbours seemed bothered, why it makes me think I'm involved in such huge conspiracy or something I know I'm just being paranoid, but I know I just have so many unanswered questions when Damon returns, if he ever does, I'm debating whether or not I should just go and straight up ask him.