Sun Goes Down

There was that car on the road again. Black as night and idle, staking claim to the neighborhood yet no one seemed to know where it came from. A few weeks ago, the car appeared in someone’s driveway, sat idle for the day, and when night fell and morning came it was in another parking spot. No one in the neighborhood could remember ever seeing or hearing a driver operating it.
The car was an old model, possibly late ‘70’s by the looks of it, spotlessly clean and apparently silent- didn’t cars back then make a lot of noise? If that was the case, then why did no one ever hear it when it moved at night? Who was driving it? Its model certainly didn’t belong in the modern age.
The residents of the small suburb at first weren’t sure what to make of it, but as the days wore on, it became more and more unnerving to witness; thus far, there were no bad omens associated with the car- or if there were no one was saying- but the mere presences of it’s shiny black carapace caused residents to shudder, something so menacing should not be plaguing such a quiet street.
“This is getting ridiculous. That THING has been out there for three weeks and no one knows why,” Jeff says angrily, staring out his window at the offending vehicle parked in his neighbor’s driveway, “I wish whoever is doing this would just fess up.”
His wife Tawny sighed, “Don’t look at it, dear, you’ll only stress yourself out more,” she hadn’t left the home in over a week because of this seemingly phantom vehicle, saying that she sensed a ‘bad vibe’ emanating from it.
“I can’t just sit here and watch everyone panic about this,” Jeff said, “Someone’s gotta be doing this, and if you ask me, it’s long past funny.”
“Was it ever intended to be?” Tawny asked, tapping her fingers on her coffee cup, “Because this has gone on far too long to just be some prank.”
Jeff hesitated for a moment before making up his mind. He turned to Tawny, and with a sort of crooked smile, he declared, “I’m going to confront it.”
Tawny stared, open-mouthed.
“Are you nuts? What if something happens to you?”
“It’s just a car, Tawn. Maybe I can talk to the guy that moves it and end this craziness.”
“Nobody drives it, it never makes noise, it can’t have a driver,” Tawny replies, starting to wonder about the implications of her words.
“It sure doesn’t move by itself!” Jeff snapped. Thus ended the conversation.
Later that night, Jeff dressed in a dark hoodie, hoping to sneak up on the creepy vehicle and wait in darkness for the owner to arrive, hopefully put some fear into him and get him to leave. Tawny waited nervously by the door with a flashlight in hand.
“I don’t like this, something doesn’t feel right,” she fretted.
“Tawn, relax,” he kissed her cheek, “It’s just a car driven by some loon, nothing’s going to happen,” he took the flashlight from her hands and crossed the silent street into the adjacent yard.
He sat there motionless for what felt like hours before a feeling that something was not quite right overtook him. He peered over the bushes to observe, but still, the car sat there, motionless, mocking. Annoyed, Jeff sighed to himself, “Look at me, I’m staking out a car! The moron who owns it probably saw me watching, too…what a waste of time.”
But yet, as soon as he turned his back to the car, tired and sore from hiding in the bushes, a slight ‘click’ was heard, stopping him in his tracks. A chill rippled down his spine, fear began to build in his chest; was someone getting in the car? He hadn’t heard any footsteps.
Slowly, nervously, Jeff turned.
The headlights flashed on, transfixing him in their glow.
After that night, the car was never seen again. Jeff, to this day, won’t speak about what happened to him that fateful night, and the locals think it better that way. Let’s just say that, if a car appears in your town seemingly of it’s own accord, just leave it alone; who knows what unspeakable things can happen when the sun goes down.
END.