Since he was a young child Blake noticed the shadows. Whether they accompanied someone or swallowed someone.
It was his first glimpse into the unnatural. A stranger stepping into an unaccompanied shadow disappeared into the shadow and he was running out of time.
Blake began to see these shadows at the age of 7, when his mom died. At her funeral he noticed a shadow beside a tree overlooking the funeral. When he became noticed by it it darted out of his periphery.
So he did the only logical thing he could do: he isolated. He isolated from his friends and from his family slowly more and more until he was an adult and stayed within his room. Now at the age of 21 his dad had gone missing and he was sure it was the shadows.
Something creepy accompanied them. They blended in too naturally but had malicious intent. When he had to drive to the doctors they would dart in front of his car. He never swerved and he could tell that aggravated them because they timed their appearance for the exact moment he let his guard down.
Huge hulking creatures as big as a moose would run out into the street. Sometimes they would lie in the middle of the street appearing as roadkill. What did they want? Did they want to take him too?
He did not know but it had made him increasingly agoraphobic. He went only to the doctors and told them his dad had gone missing that they had taken his dad. The doctor increased his medicine and ensured he was not suicidal. Then he let him go home. Before he left he turned back and even his doctor was gone.
An empty room accompanied that conversation with the lights still on and a shadow creeping out the window.
He was panicked. He had to get home. This was getting too bad. It was getting too close to him. He was losing his mind. He was losing his sanity and the damn shadows became increasingly aware of all of this. Were they intelligent? Had they planned this? He didn't know or notice the world he sped passed on his way home slowly becoming swallowed by shadows. In their place an empty scenery.
He got home locked the door his back facing the entry and breathed.
"Welcome home." Said the home and his heart froze. It was his mother's voice. "Join us son. We can be together forever." said his father. But something was off. His mother was dead his father missing. He hadn't been confirmed dead or swallowed by the shadows but then he had never seen that to confirm it either.
Two shadow people stood in the living room their eyes glowing silver. "It's time." they said and moved for an embrace.
He turned to run to the door but it was covered in shadow. He was trapped. He felt their hands against his skin and blacked out.
He awoke some time later in bed, his mother making breakfast and his father listening to the sports cast.
"Good morning, son." said his mother.
"Mom?" Blake asked.
"Yes son?" said his mother.
"But you're dead. You died." Said Blake.
"Oh boy." Said his father. "This always happens the first time." he continued.
"The first time, what?" Asked Blake.
"The first time you cross over." Said his father.
"Am I dead?" Asked Blake.
"No. None of us are. But that world we belonged to is dying and to protect us it hid us in our shadow." said his father.
"That's right son. Even if I was supposed to die, I didn't actually die. I was swallowed by the shadow." said his mother. "This has been happening for some time."
She set down a plate of eggs and bacon and toast for them all and they sat down and had breakfast.
Blake would look, but he would see no more shadows.
