I was looking for my baby picture when I found it. I had just gotten back from the baby’s photo shoot for her 6 month milestone session. I remembered I had a photo of myself in a similar pose that she had put my daughter in.

As soon as I opened the box, I saw it. Not the photo, but the phone. I forgot it was even in there, honestly. I tried turning it on, just out of curiosity. Of course, it was cold and dead. Checking the charger port, I noticed that it was the same charger my diffuser uses. I plugged it up and went on with my day.

I found the photo I was looking for, and posted a side by side comparison on my socials. Later that evening, I was reading the comments on the post from an old high school friend when I suddenly remembered I had plugged my old phone up.

I just laid the baby down to sleep so i was able to grab my old phone. I curled up in bed to see what all was on it. Even though the screen was thoroughly shattered, I could just see the screen well enough to log in to everything.

I instantly went to the text messages and found my best friend’s texts. I screenshotted a conversation that made me laugh out loud from 2011 and went to the photo gallery to send them to my current phone. Opening my photo gallery was overwhelming at first, seeing photos of myself and an abusive ex-boyfriend of mine. I took a deep breath, and reminded myself how lucky I am to have made it out of that relationship.

I sent the photos to her, and she laughed, immediately remembering that conversation. I scrolled through more photos to find something else to reminisce with her about. Looking through the gallery, I found several pictures I took of myself. I couldn’t believe how different i looked. I almost didn’t recognize myself.

Then I saw it. There was no way I could have taken it myself. Yes, in a few of my pictures I guess I used a self-timer feature on my phone. But this one I know I didn’t take. How could I have taken it if I was asleep?

I keep running scenarios through my head, trying to think of a rational reason those pictures are in my camera roll. Could it have been a sleepover I’ve forgotten about? No, I’ve gone back to that date in my phones calendar and it was very much a school night. My parents were extremely strict.

Could it have been my parents? Or my sister? Could I have actually taken it and posed to be asleep? No, there’s no way i took them. There are several pictures, different nights even, of me sleeping alone in my bed.

I immediately send them to my best friend and tell her I am shaking. I ask her if she remembers taking them. She swears she didn’t. I had a full body mirror leaning in the corner of my room at the time the photos were taken, and my best friend points out that there’s a slight reflection in some of the pictures.

We try enhancing them the best we can, and holy shit, I KNOW WHO IT IS. In the mirror reflection I can see my fat old landlord with his hand in his pants. Aside from the total shock and horror of it all, I want to know why he took the pictures on my phone instead of his own. Was it a kink? Did he think he deleted them? Did he want me to know he was there? I don’t fucking know but he passed away a few years ago according to social media so it’s not like the police would do anything. Needless to say I will never sleep again. My baby is waking up, I hope she didn’t see or hear something from her window..