I Live in a Small Town… But Someone’s Watching Me Every Night at 2 AM

You can also watch the dramatized version of this story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuaVqlNPu1I

I don’t even know where to begin. I’m freaking out, and I need to know if anyone else has experienced something like this. This isn’t just a scary dream or sleep paralysis—I’m talking about a real 2AM encounter that’s been happening every single night in my quiet, small town.

I’m a 30-year-old server at a local diner, living alone in a two-bedroom house just outside Springfield, Illinois. This is the kind of place where folks say hi to strangers, the gas station clerk remembers your order, and local legends are usually just stories you tell kids around a bonfire.

But now… I think I’m part of one.

It All Started Two Months Ago

Across the street from me is a condemned, boarded-up house. It’s been empty for years—ever since a brutal storm collapsed part of the second floor. Locals say it’s haunted, but I never gave that stuff much thought.

Until I started seeing him—a shadowy figure on the roof.

Every. Single. Night.
Exactly at 2:00 AM.

At first, I assumed it was just tree shadows playing tricks on me. But the figure was always in the same place—tall, unmoving, looking straight up at the sky. Not pacing. Not waving. Just… standing.

I Did My Homework

I checked the house during the day—there’s no way anyone’s climbing up there without a ladder, and I’ve never seen one around. I asked my neighbor Mike, who’s lived here forever. He laughed it off:

“Nobody’s stepped foot in there since old Gary moved out after the storm.”

Old Gary? That name stuck with me.

I talked to my friend at the diner who’s into local legends. He said Gary was a loner who lived in that house in the ‘90s. Some people thought he was into occult stuff—he’d stare at the sky for hours, especially during full moons, claiming “they” were coming back.

I Googled the house. Nothing. No official history, just an urban legend buried in old blog posts and broken links. I even posted in a paranormal sightings group and got responses like “meth head,” “ghost roof guy,” and “Bigfoot’s cousin.”

Nobody was taking it seriously. But I was.

I Set Up a Camera

I pointed my Wyze cam at the roof. It always recorded a blurry black shape at 2AM—but never any motion, never any sound. I upgraded the camera. Same results. One night, I went live on TikTok. People saw the shape, but it glitched right when I zoomed in.

It was like… something didn’t want to be seen.

The Night I Screwed Up

Last Friday, after a long shift and a couple beers, I decided to toss a pebble at the roof—just to see what would happen.

The figure turned its head toward me.

Slow. Mechanical. Broken.

Then I saw his eyes.

They Weren’t Human

Glowing white. Not reflective like animal eyes—just… glowing. Like high-beams in the dark. No blinking. No pupils. Just pure, cold light. My body locked up. I slammed the door, bolted every lock, and hid in my bedroom until sunrise.

He saw me.
And everything changed after that.

He’s Getting Closer

The next night, I looked again.

Not at the house.

At my neighbor’s garage—closer to mine.

He was standing on that roof now.

No longer staring at the sky.
Now staring at me.

I Tried Everything

I called the sheriff’s office. They checked the condemned house—no footprints, no signs of entry, nothing unusual. “Maybe lay off the late-night horror movies,” they said.

But this is real.

I’m hearing scratches on my porch at night. Soft tapping on my windows. Sometimes the lights flicker at 2:00 AM. I haven’t slept more than an hour in days. Every time I close my eyes, I see those white glowing eyes watching me.

A Warning to Anyone Out There

If you’ve ever seen a dark figure on a roof, especially around 2AM, don’t engage.
Don’t wave.
Don’t speak.
Don’t look directly at it.

Because once it sees you… it starts getting closer.

And if you’re in Illinois—or anywhere—and you’ve seen something like this, please let me know.
Leave a comment, message me, anything. I feel like I don’t have much time left.