THE ERROR IN THE PATTERN

The sun streamed through the curtains as the alarm blared, signaling the start of another busy day in the life of John Smith.

“Time to get ready for work.” he said to himself as he stood up from the bed to get ready for the day.

He got up and took a shower, shaved, and got ready to get dressed in his usual crisp suit and tie. As he walked to the closet to get his suit, he noticed that his favorite tie was missing. It is the one he always wore on important days, and its absence was jarring. He went on to check the rest of the closet, but it was nowhere to be found. A sinking feeling came over me, and he felt like his whole world was shifting…slowly.

To an outside observer, a missing tie might seem insignificant. But for John, it was a sign that something was deeply wrong. He took pride in the order of his life, and every detail was meticulously organized. So when something was out of place, it sent up a red flag. Even the smallest deviation from his routine was cause for concern. So, he will always know, even when a pin has been moved. All assets of his are of great importance.

On his way downstairs for his normal routine of morning coffee before heading out, he started to have a sense of unease again, as if something was not quite right, but he couldn't put his finger on what it was.

As John walked into the kitchen, he noticed that the mug on the counter was not his usual one. It was a different color, and it was sitting in the wrong spot. He reached for the coffee pot, only to find that it was empty. His heart started to race as he wondered what was going on. Everything in the kitchen seemed slightly off, as if someone had been there without him knowing. A sense of unease crept over him, and he suddenly felt like he was being watched.

“What is going on?” He questioned out loud to himself as the feeling of anxiety slowly descended on him.

He decided to shove the thought aside and get on with his daily life. He took his coffee in the living room, sparing some precious time of his to watch the headlines of the morning news. Once he was done, he headed for the exit.

As John made his way to the garage, he noticed that the lights were off. It was unusual, as he always left them on for security. He paused for a moment, debating whether to go back inside. But then he heard a noise from the back of the garage. It sounded like someone was rummaging through the storage boxes. John's heart started to pound as he realized that he was not alone. Someone was in his house!

John's curiosity started to build up, fully engulfed with fear. He wanted to know who was rummaging through his storage boxes but his heart felt otherwise. He could feel the sweat dripping down his back and his palm clasping onto his briefcase were clammy with fear. He could hear his own ragged breathing and he had to force himself to take slow, steady breaths. Today has not been going the way it was supposed to and it made him feel disorganized. But John's curiosity was a beast, getting the better part of him. He decided to move forward to see who was there even though his heart was pounding with fear. It was the only way that he could get to work on time!

John walked towards the back of the garage door which led to his storage room, his hand trembling as he reached for the handle. He paused for a moment, not sure if he should continue. But then his curiosity won out, and he pulled the door open. As he stepped into the garage, filled with storage boxes, the first thing he saw was a shadow in the corner, a dark figure hunched over one of the boxes. He hurriedly turned on the lights to get a better view but as soon as he did, the figure was gone! He saw nothing more than just his storage boxes. This left him feeling even more perturbed at heart as he began to question his own sanity.

“What the fuck is going on?!” He yelled out loud in fear and fury, in the middle of the room, his pupils shifting rapidly from left to right.

He walked over to where he saw the figure standing earlier on, hoping to see some trail but there was nothing there and he began to freak out.

“Am I seeing things?” John questioned himself with his eyes downwardly.

“Get a grip of yourself and go to work, John!” He muttered to himself as he cleaned his face, running his hand through his hair and let out a deep sigh.

John headed back for his garage but nothing without throwing one last glance at the dark storage room before he locked it up, hoping to see the figure again. John arrives at his car, kick starts the engine and drives out of his garage. Heading for the gate, another calamity befell John.

As John heads for the gate he notices that the morning weather was not as bliss as it was earlier on, it felt like it was about to rain.

“Looks like it's going to be one heavy downpour.” He muttered in his car whilst driving, his eyes staring at the sky.

He focused his gaze back on the road when suddenly, John hears a loud hiss from one of his tires, followed by a thump. He feels the car swerving as it loses air pressure, and he has to fight to keep it on the road. Just as he regains control, another tire starts to hiss and lose air. He begins to panic. He knows he needs to do something quickly, or the car will be in danger of crashing. He quickly and skillfully maneuvers the car to a side and pulls it to a stop, letting out a deep sigh of relief afterwards. John gets down to examine the damage done to his car tyres. His interest is piqued up by what he sees on the ground.

With his soft tone eyes widened in shock, he muttered the word “Nails” under his breath. He knelt down and saw dozens of nails scattered across the ground leading to his gate. He picked one up, turning it over in his hand, before he noticed the silhouette of a woman in the window of his car. Her eyes were menacing, and she was pointing a gun directly at him.

As John sees the woman pointing the gun at him, he freezes, unsure of what to do. He drops the nail to ground in panic while raising his hands up before the woman utters

“I am Maya Redfield and I have been hired to execute you!”

John is completely shocked and terrified, not sure of what to do or say.