Let's Not Meet Again

Stalked in Texas

I want to share whats going on in my life currently, because I could really use some advice/ want to know if you think I and my family/coworkers etc are over reacting.

A bit about me: Im still fairly new to my new city (big city in Texas) and have a nice boyfriend, decent job and several nice friends. I don't make enemies easily, I am polite to everyone and am a generally outgoing person.

For several months now I've had THAT feeling...you know the one, where you feel like you're being watched. It had gotten so bad that I got a dog (granted, this is something Ive wanted to do anyways) because as much as I love my cat, he doesn't really provide me with any protection or comfort.

The first major incident happened three weeks ago when my car was broken into at work. This happens sometimes at my work so, while I was upset, I wrote it off as just the normal vandalism. However, the more I went through my car the next day (they smashed my rear-passenger side window so i waited for it to get fixed before sifting through thoroughly ignored to avoid the glass) the weirder it got.

They had pulled my GPS out of the pocket attached to the passenger seat, looked at it, then threw it back on the seat (Its a $200 GPS). I had several very pricey coach purses (my car is like a closet lol) hidden underneath the seat and they pulled them out but didn't take them. In fact, the only thing that was missing was an old red bra that was in a bag with some other random clothes that had been thrown back there ages ago.

Several days later I noticed a long scratch running the length of my passenger car door...originally, I thought I had maybe scratched it somehow. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized somebody must have keyed it because I'm almost never on that side of the car.

A week or so later, I went to check my mail (which I rarely do) and when I opened my mailbox, my rent reminder check I get every month had already been opened. And I don't mean maybe they didn't seal it properly, I mean the top was torn off and the reminder (with my name, phone number, email and apt number) was hanging out of it.

A few nights later, I woke up to someone at my door at 2am. My dog, Nova, was growling and I heard someone trying to turn the handle at my front door and scratching at it. Nova went batshit crazy and started barking, which woke me up even more. I was frozen, but Nova kept barking and that seemed to scare them off. I didn't report it to the complex, stupid I know.

I should also mention that a little bit before this, my complex had sent out an email saying that there was suspicious activity going on around the complex but they were being extra watchful (BS because I just called them and they don't even have security walking around at night)

At this point I was always feeling uneasy when I took Nova out for walks at the trails behind my complex, and never felt really secure when I was at my apartment, so I had been staying with my boyfriend for a week or so. I was still holding out hope that everything was just bad luck and coincidental (someone was drunk and thought my apt was there apt, same with the mailbox, and that my car being broken into was just bad luck).

This all brings me to several days ago. I had to get to work an hour or so early and I was the only car in the parking lot. About an hour later I got a phone call from a coworker (me and all my coworkers park next to each other) saying that my car had been broken into again. Since it had happened before I was able to handle the situation (when it happened the first time I was a crying mess lol) and called the cops, called insurance etc etc.

The cops show up and I go out to meet them. I told them nothing was taken and that this was the second time this had happened in a month. They look at each other and ask if anything was taken the first time so I told them only my red bra was missing. They point out the key marks and I tell them that happened around the same time. Cop #1 points out more key slashes that weren't there before and fully wrapped around the back of the car and over my tail lights to the other side (I hadn't noticed because I was solely focused on the window - my poor car:( ).

They then start asking me questions: "DO you have an angry ex boyfriend?" "Do you know if someone is angry at you?" "These are not normal break and enters" "Has anything else weird happened? Anything at all?"

I'm trying not to freak out and tell them about all the other experiences Ive had over the past few months...at which point they lookout each other again and Cop #2 says, "NorthernLight92, I don't want you to freak out, but I think you should buy mace, a knife or gun for protection. There is someone who is out to hurt you."

They kind of just leave it at that (thanks guys) and leave. I'm freaking out and call my boss, whose also my Uncle's girlfriend, and tell what they said. She said she'd be there in 15 minutes and we'll talk. I filled her in on everything and she tells me that these are all the signs that I have a stalker. A legitimate stalker who is out to get me. She used to be a news anchor and has had stalkers before and tells me these are warning signs that he/she(?-feels like a he to me) is escalating.

I don't want this to get too long, so to wrap up, Im staying with my boyfriend, my boss/aunt has me scheduled to only work when other people are there, I am walked to and from my car by my male coworker every morning/night and I can't leave during the work day and am to call the cops if anything makes me uncomfortable. My parents are freaking out and very very worried and want me to move back home to Boston

Do you guys think we are over reacting or does it actually seem like someone is out for me? Thanks in advance.