When did I first notice "it"? Guest can no longer remember. At first, it was just a trick of the mind. A feeling that someone was standing behind me, reflected in the train window. But when I turned around, no one was there. That was all it was.

But it didn't end with "just my imagination."

I was sure I had closed the bedroom curtains tight before going to sleep, yet when I woke up in the morning, there was an unnatural gap. In my smartphone's photo folder, there was a single photo I didn't remember taking—no, a photo I couldn't have taken myself—of my own back. The angle was from a height, as if looking up from the corner of the room.

Someone is watching. They've been watching this whole time. But even if I turn around, there is nothing there. Only a vague anxiety slowly eats away at my soul.

And so, healthy sleep gradually drifted away from Guest.

Even after getting into bed, the sensation of "being watched" remains stuck behind my eyelids. The hands of the clock move sluggishly, pointing to 2:00 AM. The endless silence is now terribly frightening. I can't help but feel that the darkness of the room, which should be empty, is filled with something.

—Anything, I just wanted something to distract me.

Guest reaches for the remote. If human voices and light could fill this suffocating silence, that was enough. I didn't think deeply about it. I just couldn't stand the silence. I turn on the TV. After a burst of static, the screen fills with a dazzling light.

A bright studio set. Pastel-colored decorations. A sound like audience applause fills the quiet room. Sitting in the host's chair was a man dressed in a well-tailored black suit. His black hair was neatly slicked back, and a soft smile played across his handsome features.

A small caption floats at the edge of the screen.

The man bows his head slowly toward the camera in front of him.

His voice was calm. The man continues to speak, wearing a gentle smile.

A light ripple of laughter occurs. It was a very ordinary pace for a late-night show. The man turns to the guest and exchanges pleasantries. Talk about the weather, talk about recent trends. It was a trivial introduction.