I saw something on the evening news that I can't explain

I watched it live on our local news station. It wasn't pre-dawn, it wasn't twilight. It was full-on night, and the only light came from the studio and the cars passing by on the street. A man in a suit walked out of the studio doors and stood by a black sedan. He stood next to it, arms crossed, and waited while the anchor handed the broadcast over to him. I had never seen him before. I watched local news every night, so I was sure that I would have seen him at some point in the past. But he seemed... ordinary. He had short brown hair and a plain white shirt. No tie. He looked uncomfortable. He looked up at the camera and began to speak, and I couldn't understand a word he said. The news is always closed captioned, and his words flashed on the bottom of the television, but none of it made any sense. I tried to watch, to see what the man on TV was saying. The broadcast opened on an ordinary suburban street, lined on both sides with houses and trees. The street was empty, except for one man who stood on the sidewalk. The man on TV spoke, and the words flashed on the screen. "I am... a citizen... of... Oakmont." I knew exactly what street the camera was showing. My parents and I lived on it, in one of the houses. The camera panned across the empty street. I saw a woman standing in front of our house. It was my mom, and I could tell that something was wrong. The man on TV spoke again, and the words flashed across the television. "We... have... proof... that... Oakmont... is... under attack. The government... and... military... have... failed... to respond. It is up to us... to protect... ourselves." The camera cut back to the man standing next to his car. He spoke again, his lips moving in time with the words flashing on the screen. "Everyone... outside... come inside. Lock your doors. Stay safe." The camera cut back to the empty street. I watched, waiting for my mom to move, or for my dad to come outside. I watched for what felt like minutes, and then I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. I turned and saw my dad standing in our front door. The television didn't show him, but I knew what he looked like. He stood tall and still, his arms crossed over his chest. He looked frightened. I turned back to the TV, and the camera was back on the man in the suit. The news was going to break up, I could tell, as the man was looking down at the ground. He seemed to be talking to himself, and I couldn't understand the words flashing on the screen. The broadcast cut to black and stayed that way. I waited. I waited for the news to come back on, or for my parents to come into the living room. I waited until I couldn't wait anymore. I got up and walked into the kitchen. My mom was there, standing in front of the sink. She was looking out of the window, toward our front yard. I followed her gaze, but I couldn't see anything out of light. "Mom?" I said. She turned and smiled at me. "Hi honey," she said. "Do you have any idea what's going on?" I shook my head. "I think it's on the news," I said. My dad came into the kitchen. He was still looking scared. "We need to talk," he said. "We need to lock the door." He locked the kitchen door, and then we walked into the dining room. My dad locked the door to the living room as well, and we all sat down at the dining room table. The table was old and scratched, but it had always felt safe to me. I guess my parents felt the same way, because they smiled at each other. "Okay," my dad said. "I don't know what's going on. I didn't go outside tonight because... because something's wrong." My mom looked at him. "Something's wrong?" He shook his head. "I don't know what it is, but... I think it's been building for weeks. Ever since the weather got weird." The three of us looked at each other, and I think we all knew exactly what my dad was talking about. We live in California, so we're used to sunshine and warm weather. But lately it had rained every single day, and the clouds stayed gray even when the sun was supposed to be out. My dad went on. "I didn't want to scare you, but... I didn't sleep last night." I looked at my mom, and she was looking at him. I could tell that neither of them wanted to tell me what had happened, so I didn't ask. Instead I asked, "What should we do?" My dad looked at my mom. "I don't know. I'm going to call the police." I watched him walk to the phone in the corner of the dining room. It was an old white phone with a cord and a receiver. He picked it up and dialed, but after a minute he hung it up. "What?" I asked. He looked at me. "I couldn't get an answer." My mom spoke. "I'll try." She picked up the phone and dialed, but after a minute she hung it up too. "What now?" I asked. My dad looked at my mom again. "I don't know," he said. My mom stood up. "I'll go check the front door." My dad and I stood up, but my mom waved us back into our seats. She walked to the front door of the house and pulled it open. I couldn't see her from where I was sitting, but I heard her say, "What the...?" I looked at my dad. He was looking at the door too. "Go back inside," he said. My mom closed the door and walked back to the dining room table. "You guys won't believe what's outside." My dad and I looked at each other, and then he asked, "Try us." My mom smiled weakly. "There's a man on our front lawn." I opened my mouth to ask a question, but my dad beat me to it. "Is it...?" My mom nodded. "Yes. He's the same man who was on television." I had so many questions. How did he get here? What was going on? Why? I didn't get a chance to ask any of them. Before I could speak my dad stood up. "I'm going outside to talk to him." I stood up too. "Dad, no." He looked at me. "I need to know what's going on." I pulled on his arm, but he shook me off. He walked to the front door and unlocked it. "Wait!" my mom cried. But my dad was already outside. I followed him. I know it doesn't make sense, but I followed him. The front door was open, and my dad was already standing in the entryway. I walked past him and outside. The man on the lawn was exactly as my mom had described. He was standing in our front yard, his arms crossed and looking nervous. He looked up when I came outside. "Hello," he said. My dad came outside and stood next to me. "Who are you?" he asked. The man swallowed. "My name is... um... John Givens." My dad looked at me. "I don't think his name is really John Givens," he whispered to me. I nodded, even though I wasn't sure what he meant. The man on our lawn swallowed again. "My real name... I can't tell you. My family... I can't tell you about that either." My dad looked at the man. "Then tell us what's going on." The man swallowed again. "It... has... happened." "What has happened?" my dad asked. The man looked around at the houses. "It has happened everywhere." I looked at my house. Everything was the way I had left it. The curtains were closed, the door was locked, the blinds were drawn. "What has happened to our houses?" I asked the man. The man swallowed again. "They... are... safe." I looked at my house again. "How do you know?" The man swallowed. "I know because... I made them that way." I looked back at the man. "You did?" The man nodded. "Yes." I looked at my dad. "What does that mean?" I asked. My dad looked at the man. "What do you mean you made our house that way?" The man looked around at the houses again. "I... am... you." I blinked. "What?" The man looked at me. "I am you." I looked at my dad again. "What is he talking about?" My dad looked at the man again. "I don't know." The man swallowed again. "Please... listen... to me." My dad waved his hand. "Okay," he said. The man took a deep breath. "I am not... a person. I am a dream." I blinked again. A dream? The man

I saw something on the evening news that I can't explain

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