A Familiar Stranger
Emma had noticed the man for weeks. He was always there, sitting quietly on the same corner with a distant look in his eyes, as if he were watching the world pass by but not truly part of it. She’d often wondered about him—who he was, how he had ended up there—but had never stopped to ask.
That morning, something felt different. The usual rush of the city felt slower, and the man’s presence seemed heavier, almost like he was waiting for something. Emma hadn’t planned on stopping, but as she passed him, her feet hesitated. Without really thinking, she doubled back, bought a sandwich and coffee from the corner store, and handed it to him.
“Here you go,” she said with a warm smile, her voice softer than she’d expected.
The man’s eyes met hers, and for the first time, she saw something deeper—gratitude, yes, but also something guarded. He took the food without a word, only nodding once. She left, thinking that would be the end of it.
But now, holding the strange note he had given her later that day, Emma wasn’t so sure. “You’re in danger. Don’t trust him,” it read. The words echoed in her mind, mingling with the symbol scribbled on the back of the paper—a triangle with an eye at its center.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t random.
