I SAW MY NEIGHBOR LOADING A HEAVY BAG INTO HIS CAR TRUNK AT 3 AM
The streetlight cast long shadows across the cul-de-sac as I watched him struggle.
My breath fogged the cold window pane as I pressed closer, trying to see what he was doing. He kept looking around nervously, his movements jerky, the nylon scraping loudly against the asphalt as he dragged the bulky shape closer. Why was he doing this in the dead of night?
He fumbled with the keys, dropping them with a loud jangle before finally getting the trunk open. The air felt frigid through the glass. He shoved the bag inside with a grunt; the dark fabric stretched taut around something stiff and unyielding inside the small space.
My husband stirred beside me. “What are you doing?” he mumbled, voice thick with sleep. “Nothing,” I whispered, heart hammering against my ribs. I watched him slam the trunk shut with finality, the sound echoing across the empty street below.
He paused then, wiping his forehead; sweat gleamed faintly under the streetlamp. He scanned the dark houses, then looked directly up at my window, his eyes meeting mine through the dark glass.
Then he smiled and raised one hand holding something small and shiny.
👇 *Full story continued in the comments…*My breath hitched. Had he really seen me? The smile lingered, not menacing, but almost… apologetic? Or perhaps a little sheepish? He held up the shiny thing again, it glinted under the streetlamp. It looked like… a fish? A large, silver, plastic fish? He gave a small, awkward wave, still smiling slightly, then got into his car quickly. The engine started, and he backed out of the driveway slowly, the car disappearing down the street.
My husband mumbled again, something about the noise, and turned over. I stayed frozen, my mind racing. A fish? In a bag? At 3 am? What on earth was going on? The weight I’d seen him lift seemed too heavy for just a plastic fish. Was it… was it a decoy? Was he hiding something *else* inside the bag?
The next morning felt surreal. I saw him later that day, wrestling something else out of the trunk in broad daylight. It was a large, elaborately decorated float structure – specifically, the head of a giant fish. There were other pieces, all brightly coloured and slightly absurd. He saw me watching again, this time from the front porch, and walked over, looking a little sheepish.
“Morning,” he said, wiping paint off his hands. “Sorry if I woke you last night. Just trying to get this monster ready for the town parade on Saturday.” He gestured to the fish head. “It’s the centrepiece of our neighborhood float. Needed to reinforce the frame inside – that’s what was in the bag, some heavy metal rods and weights to keep it stable in the wind. It was too big to finish in the garage, so I’ve been working on it out back and transporting pieces when they’re done.”
“Why 3 am?” I asked, feeling a little foolish for my earlier suspicions. He laughed. “Well, it’s been a nightmare. I dropped one of the weights yesterday and it dented the garage floor. My wife would kill me if she knew I was moving more heavy stuff inside. So I decided to do the final transport of the heavy frame piece under cover of darkness. Less chance of dropping it again when no one’s around to see, right?” He grinned. “And less chance of the kids seeing the float before the parade – trying to keep it a surprise.”
“And the… fish you held up?” I asked, remembering the bizarre moment. He chuckled, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a smaller, glittery, plastic toy fish. “Oh, that! I found this in the driveway when I dropped my keys last night. Probably fell out of the float materials. My little girl loves fish. I just picked it up and… I guess I saw you watching. Didn’t want you to think I was doing anything weird,” he finished, his grin widening, “even though I guess moving giant fish heads at 3 am is pretty weird.” He shrugged. “Anyway, wish me luck getting this thing assembled!” He gave another sheepish smile and headed back towards his fish head, leaving me blinking on my porch, the night’s mystery solved in the most anticlimactic way possible. Just my neighbor, being weirdly secretive about his parade float.