"You Remember Me"

The rain was pouring down outside. The pieces of cardboard box the man had made a shelter of were drenched and he was shaking from the cold. Matthew wasn't going to let him into the building. Why would he? It was rude anyway of the man on the street to just sit there and stare at him. Matthew had gone about his day but every time he sat down to write on the article that was due tomorrow he would catch the man's eye. He had never seen him before. He wasn't one of the local homeless people he sometimes gave a dollar or a hamburger if he was walking home from a night out. The man sitting on the street looked older than he was, but Matthew guessed if life hadn't worn the man down he'd probably be around the same age as himself. Matthew sat down with a warm cup of coffee in his hands and once again caught the eye of the homeless man. Although they were two floors apart his eyes were piercing. Matthew suddenly heard a young child crying. He flinched. The sound had come from inside his head. Like a memory. His heart started beating a little faster. The memory had seemed so familar and yet so fresh. Matthew shook his head and tried to focus on the article. The man was still just staring at him. He could feel it even when he wasn't looking. "You remember me." a deep voice said inside Matthews head and he jumped back from his desk. His heart was pounding now, his breath had quickened. Where the hell did that come from? He looked down on the street where the man was grinning at him. Matthew looked at the man confused and mad at the same time. He took his computer and went to the sofa to sit there and work instead, away from the gaze of the man on the street. He sighed annoyed when he remembered his coffee was still on his desk. He stood up and the hairs on his neck stood up as he approached the big window facing the street. He told himself he was being silly, that the dark weather was playing tricks with his mind. The man was shaking hard now. He could almost see his teeth chattering. Maybe if he just let him into the hallway? No. What would his neighbors say? He couldn't just let a stranger into the building. Matthew picked up the coffee mug and turned his back to the window and the man. "But I'm not a stranger." the same voice he'd heard earlier said inside his head. He gasped and dropped the coffee mug. This wasn't just tricks. It couldn't be. He walked over to the window. The man was now standing up and looking straight at Matthew. Matthew's breath was quick and his hands were shaking. As they stood there, Matthew seemed to find familiarity in the man's eyes. It couldn't be. It simply couldn't. Matthew stepped back from the window. His palms were starting to get sweaty and his heart was racing again. "Let me in." the voice demanded. Everything inside Matthew told him not to, but curiosity is a powerful thing, so he found himself making his way down the stairs of his building. Slowly, step by step, he made his way down. His heart felt as heavy as his feet and he felt a drop of cold sweat run down his back. He saw a silhouette of a man behind the ground glass window on the front door. He took a deep breath before he placed his hand on the door handle. He pushed it down and opened the door. The man looked up from his feet and looked into Matthew's wild, scared eyes. "Hi brother."