The Man At the Front Door

Hello, my name is Barry, and I am going to tell you about a terrifying event that happened to me when I was 10. I'm 13 now, and I have been trying to forget the day ever since it happened. If it weren't for my parents, I would probably be dead, but you will learn more about that later.

It was a cold winter night, and I was living in Chicago, Illinois. My parents and I moved to the safest part of the town, but we were still careful to lock our doors and close our blinds and curtains. We would have done this even if we lived in Fort Knox, because my Dad and mom have both had bad experiences with break-ins. My dad was robbed when he was 22 because he didn't lock his front door. My mom was nearly killed because a man with a knife entered her house to try and kill her and steal her belongings.

Anyway, more on the story. My parents and I were downstairs, watching a movie on our T.V. "Mom, is it ok if I go outside to Johnny's house to play with him?" It was 7:00 P.M, but it was already pitch-black outside.

 "Sorry Barry, but it's not safe to go outside alone when it's dark," said my mom.  I went ahead and listened, because, after all, parents know best.

Suddenly, a figure walked up to the door and stood there. 

I noticed the figure, and said, "Dad, who is that?" 

"I don't know," he replied. He peeked through the blinds, too cautious to open the door. He looked back at us, all the blood in his face appearing to be gone. Pale as a ghost, he whispered, "Honey, get the kid upstairs and then come back down and help me turn off the lights and T.V. He leaned over to her and whispered something in her ear. My mom's face had an equal look of terror. She ushered me upstairs to my parent's room.

 "What's going on?" I said, confused as to why my mom had to pick me up and take me away. 

"I'll tell you later, honey," she said. She put me in her room, and then told me, " Lock the door, and don't unlock unless we tell you to." I did as I was told.

Two minutes later, someone knocked on my door.

 Fortunately, I heard my dad say, "It's Mom and I, Barry." With relief, I let them in and locked the door again. My dad's tone changed to a very serious one. "Barry, this is a dangerous situation, so I need you to act like a big kid." I knew when being serious was good, and this was one of those times. 

"What's going on?" I asked. 

"A man is outside our house, trying to break in. He has a gun. We just have to wait until they are gone." I now realized why my parents looked so scared.

One minute, we were calming down. The next, we heard a bang!  from downstairs. I had to stifle a scream to make sure the man didn't hear it. Then, we hear the pounding of feet on the stairs. One by one, the man came upstairs. I heard the sounds of doors being opened on our floor. Then, he go to our door. They turned the lock, but it didn't budge. They started banging on the door, screaming more and more after every pound. Then I heard the cocking of a gun. He was going to shoot through the door. Luckily, my dad made a decision that saved our lives.

The mysterious figure at our door said in a deep, gruff voice, "I'm going to count to 3. If you don't open the door, I will break it down myself. 1....2....." Right before 3, my dad opened the door and tackled the man, pushing him down the stairs. He then jumped down the stairs and punched him.

 "Get out and don't ever come back!" he yelled. The man got up and fled. My parents obviously alerted the authorities.

The past 3 years have been fine since that day. We moved to a new house, and that scenario never occurred again. If it wasn't for my parents quick thinking and responsible decisions, this story would have ended in a different way.