I (28F) am a teacher. Right now it's summer break and I'm supposed to be in Italy with my parents, but they both passed away in April. I didn't have the money to get my flights back, so I'm still in Italy.

Let me start by saying I'm not stupid. I didn't think by using the phrase "I'm not stupid" I'm guaranteed to not do anything stupid. I was very aware that I was being watched, and I wasn't going to go and investigate by myself.<br><br>I (28F) am a teacher. Right now it's summer break and I'm supposed to be in Italy with my parents, but they both passed away in April. I didn't have the money to get my flights back, so I'm still in Italy.<br><br>My dad had bought plane tickets for all of us to be in Italy for the summer, and I could hardly afford paying rent for my apartment over in Toronto, let alone buying brand new tickets and living by myself in Italy for three months.<br><br>My parents left me some money, but not enough to cover all of these expenses. My mom had asked me to stay in our house in Italy for the time being while I figured things out. I decided to stay in the house and spend the summer in Italy, it was a lot cheaper and it was close to work.<br><br>I work in a school in Italy, teaching English to high school students. I'm not Italian, but I speak the language. I lived in Italy for most of my life, only moving to Canada when I was twenty one. I only moved to Canada because my parents asked me to spend time living abroad, so I moved to Toronto so I could be close to my uncle. However, he passed away two years ago, and my parents asked me to come back to Italy. They said that since they weren't getting any younger, they'd like to have me back and be close to them while they still could.<br><br>That's why I moved back. I got a job as an English teacher and I was planning on settling in Italy. When my parents passed away, I was heartbroken. They were so sweet and loving, both of them. They were my rock, and now they're gone.<br><br>For the past few days, I've been feeling like I'm being watched. It started when I was clearing out my parents' bedroom. The closet was filled with clothes, and I was putting them in boxes so I could donate them to charity. My mom was a very delicate person, always asking if I needed anything, if I was okay, if I was doing fine. I looked at the clothes and remembered her asking me if I needed anything whenever I visited, and I just broke down crying.<br><br>I cried for hours. I cried so much it was like my tears were endless. At one point I was so tired and I decided to go to bed, I didn't have the energy to cry anymore. I stopped crying only because I was exhausted and needed to sleep.<br><br>I went to my bedroom through the hallway. I looked back at the closet and I could have sworn I saw a man standing there, looking right at me. He had a white mask covering his face, and he was wearing a black suit and a top hat. He looked like he was straight out of a carnival. I rubbed my eyes and looked again, and he was gone.<br><br>I thought it was just a hallucination, but after that, I started feeling watched everywhere I went. It's not just a feeling. I would be in a park, and I'd look back and see him standing there, watching me. I'd be in class, and I'd look through the window and see him standing outside. I'd be driving, and I'd see him crossing the street.<br><br>I didn't talk to anyone about it, because even though it wasn't just a feeling, it might not be real. I didn't want people to think I was going crazy, I had already lost my parents, I didn't want to feel like I was losing my mind too.<br><br>One night, I woke up because I heard the sound of breaking glass. It was coming from downstairs, from the kitchen. I froze and looked at the digital clock on my nightstand, it was 4:34. I looked at it for a while, too scared to do anything else. After a while, I slowly got out of bed and walked to the door. I slowly turned the knob and cracked the door open.<br><br>I looked through the crack and I didn't see anyone. I slowly opened the door more and looked out into the hallway. Still no one. I thought maybe I had dreamed about the noise, but I knew I hadn't. Slowly and carefully I walked to the stairs, and then I went down. By this time, my heart was pounding, and my hands were shaking.<br><br>I walked slowly to the kitchen and turned on the light. The window was broken, and there was shattered glass on the floor. Next to the window there was a piece of paper on the tiled floor.<br><br>I walked towards it slowly and picked it up. I unfolded it and it was a drawing of a man wearing a black suit, a top hat, and a white mask. I dropped the paper and screamed, I was so, so scared.<br><br>I ran through the hallway and up the stairs to my room. I locked the door and jumped in bed, hiding under the covers. I cried and cried and cried, I was so scared and sad, I didn't know what to do. I eventually fell asleep because of exhaustion.<br><br>It's 10:00 AM now, and I'm still in bed. I haven't left my room. I haven't checked the house. I'm too scared to do that. I'll eventually call the police, but I'm not leaving my room right now. I'm writing this in bed. I'm hiding under the covers, and I can hear footsteps in the hallway.<br><br>I don't know what to do. The footsteps are getting closer. Oh my god.<br><br>[The next part was written in the form of a note, scribbled on a piece of paper. It had some bloodstains and was dated yesterday]<br><br>I don't know how I'm still alive. Somehow I managed to grab the laptop and bring it with me. I'm hiding in a bush right outside the house. I'm shaking so much and crying so much. I can't stop. I might not survive this. Oh my fucking god, oh my fucking god, oh my fucking god.<br><br>I heard the footsteps getting closer and I grabbed the laptop. I slowly opened the door and I ran. I ran down the stairs and I knew he was behind me. I could hear him. I don't know where I found the strength to do it. I think adrenaline might have kicked in. I ran to the front door, I ran outside, and I hid myself in a bush right in front of the house.<br><br>Right now I can see him looking out the window, and he doesn't see me. Oh my fucking god. I'm going to call the police, I have to call the police right now. I have to.<br><br>[There's a gap of eight hours before the next update]<br><br>I'm in my room. I'm safe. The police came, and they took me to the station to talk to them. They're looking for him. They searched the whole house and didn't find him. They searched the neighborhood and didn't find him. They're still looking for him. I'm staying with a friend right now, and I might stay with them for a while. I'll be okay.<br><br>Thank you guys for all the comments. I didn't have time to respond to anyone, I'm sorry.<br><br>The first update was posted by my friend, she found it on my laptop after the police picked me up from the bush.