Nemeses

Ryan meets Jeremy for breakfast at a diner. Ryan complains that he’s sick of living at home, has an mediocre job, but doesn’t have the money to afford an apartment. Jeremy also complains that he can’t find steady work and his parents are about to kick him out. A man leaves a newspaper behind, Ryan grabs it on a whim and notices a cheap house for sale. They grin and decide to buy it.

They meet this the old man selling the house, sign some papers and get the keys.
“I think it’s only fair to warn you boys. This house has a certain timeless quality to it. The last owners, a young man and a young woman, they couldn’t handle it. They left.”
Jeremy and Ryan shrug off this warning.

They spend a night in the house. Watch some TV, have a few beers, Jeremy goes upstairs, Ryan downstairs. Ryan lies down then starts hearing some creaking footsteps, he looks above him, shrugs and goes to sleep. Jeremy upstairs hears the same creaking, sits up and looks around, likewise shrugs and goes back to bed.

Come morning, Ryan is in the shower. He gets out and sees through the mirror the reverse angle of a door creaked open, what looks like a naked Jeremy crouched outside. Startled, he turns around fast and swings the door wide open and no one’s there. He goes into Jeremy’s room, he’s still sleeping. Ryan is suspicious, but merely leaves, puts on a tie, one last check then leaves for work.

Late at night, Ryan comes home, Jeremy is waiting on the couch, lights dim, Ryan comes home, finally. Jeremy jokingly says “Missed you for dinner, hon!” Ryan is still a bit wary, “Hey listen, I’ve got some pretzels in my room I’m just going to munch on, I’ve got to run out again in the morning.”
“Since when do you work all the time?”
“”Oh, I, uh, this doesn’t happen too often, you know. Every other week really, but I’m pretty busy again tomorrow.” Ryan closes the door. Opens it. “Hey this is kind fo weird, but were ah, were you looking at me in the shower this morning, dude?”
“What?! No!”
“Um ok. Goodnight.” Door closes.
Sitting there, Jeremy’s eyes start drooping, his head logs, suddenly mid-dropp he sees Ryan’s face and hands pressed up against the window, making weird faces, it looks bruised and bloody with a giant slash down the middle. Jeremy does a double take and it’s gone. Jeremy is kind of shaken up, shakes his head and goes to bed.

Next day, Ryan is in the kitchen, puts a pot out. He sees Jeremy’s reflection, face cut up, shirt off, behind him in the pot, turns around quick and he isn’t there. He starts getting pissed, wakes Jeremy up.
“What the fuck.”
“Wh-wha? What are you-what are you doing in my room?”
“You were sneaking in on me in the shower yesterday and now you’re in the kitchen creepin on me? What the fuck.”
“Dude go away, I don’t have work today.”
“Right. Well I do have work. Don’t scare the shit out of me like that again.”

Ryan comes back again late at night. Jeremy says nothing.
“You work today?”
“No, I told you that this morning.”
“Well…then what did you do all day?”
“Uh…not much.”
“Well, why don’t you work on finding a fucking job so I don’t have to pay our whole bills this month.”
“Hey dude, what’s up, I’m trying.”
“No, you’re not, you’re not trying, I’m fucking sick of you goofing around all day while I work my ass off all day.”
“Shit dude. Calm down. We talked about this, you knew my situation coming in here.”
“Well, get it done.”
“You working tomorrow?”
“No.” Ryan goes in his room closes the door.

Again, Jeremy is almost asleep, turns off TV, in the screen that’s left is reflecting Ryan looming behind him, covered in blood, face slit down the middle. Jeremy turns around really fast but sees nothing there. He checks behind the couch, nothing. He rushes in Ryan’s room and shakes him up.
“Hey you yell at me messing around, what the fuck was that?”
“What the fuck, why are you still awake?!”
“And you in the bushes last night! Are you kidding me?”
“Listen you rat shit, you stay up all fucking night watching bullshit and then dare fucking say that I’m fucking around? Get the fuck out of my house.”
“what?”
“I’m paying all the bills anyway, get the fuck out.”
Jeremy shoves Ryan. Ryan shoves back. They start throwing punches and wrestle into the kitchen. Ryan grabs a knife.
“What the hell are you?”
“Hey, calm down, man” Jeremy stammers. Ryan lunges, his knife catches Jeremy's shirt and rips it open. Jeremy tears it off then grabs a knife of his own as Ryan comes in again. They push each other over to the couch when Ryan finally connects and rings Jeremy through the gut. With his last bit of strength Jeremy slices Ryan's face down the middle and then slits his throat. They both lie behind the couch, dead.