The night was different in Ren's house. It wasn't an ordinary day, but his ninth birthday. The room was dark, and the old toys scattered in the corner increased the sense of loneliness. All that filled the house was the echo of the clock's hands, ticking monotonously on the wall as moonlight seeped through the closed window.

On the table beside the bed was a small cake his mother had prepared in the morning, decorated with strawberry pieces scattered on its surface. That cake was the only hope Ren had on this night. Although he hated the fact that his mother wasn't present. His father was downstairs, preparing himself for another noisy night of arguments and tension.

Ren sat on the edge of the bed, trying to hold back his tears. His hands were shaking as he looked at the clock. Heavy seconds passed, then minutes, and his mother still hadn't returned. He had gotten used to her absence at important times, but tonight was different. His ninth birthday was different; this night was more painful than usual.

Suddenly, he heard a faint sound in the hallway outside his room. The ghostliness of those sounds crept into his heart, and he felt as if something heavy was sitting on his chest. "Is that my mom?" he wondered innocently, but worry began to grow inside him. He called out in a trembling voice: "Mom? Are you back?"

No one answered him, and all he heard was a new sound, lighter and stranger, as if scratching on wood. Ren stood up slowly, taking heavy steps towards the door. When he opened it, he saw something stranger than fiction: small footprints, drawn in bright red, heading towards the hallway leading to the lower floor.

Ren remembered the story his mother used to tell him before bed, the scary story about the Red Face Man. This mythical creature would appear to children who were neglected by their parents. As he recalled the details, he felt that the story was no longer just a bedtime tale to scare children; but a terrifying reality creeping into his world.

"Could it be? Could he be here for me?"

He couldn't bear the feeling of fear, but his curiosity was stronger. He followed the red traces through the hallway until he reached the bottom of the stairs, where the sound became clearer. The footprints ended in front of the back door of the kitchen, which was half open, and the wind was blowing gently. There, on the doorstep, stood his father with his long, gloomy shadow, his eyes grim and angry as usual.

"What are you doing outside at this time? Didn't I tell you to go to bed?!" his father shouted angrily while his voice trembled under the influence of alcohol.

"I want my mom, she promised me!" Ren cried out, trying to hold back his tears.

But his father paid no attention to him. He turned away angrily and entered the kitchen, leaving the door open behind him. Ren felt things were getting worse. Those traces, that door, and the silence surrounding everything; all of this made terror creep into his depths.

Ren entered the kitchen to inspect the place. Everything seemed normal at first, but a strange smell was permeating the air, a mixture of burnt perfume and the smell of something rotten. The lights began to dim slowly, as if shadows were devouring the room around him.

Suddenly, he felt something behind him. He turned slowly, his eyes catching the reflection of a strange face on the window surface. That face was red, with wide eyes staring at him without clear features. A feeling of freezing swept through his body as he felt his heart would stop beating.

"I'm here, Ren..."

The voice rang in his ear, but it wasn't a human voice. It was a voice full of pain and mystery, as if the Red-Faced Man had finally found his target.

Long minutes passed as if they were hours after the appearance of that strange face on the window surface. Ren felt the air around him become thick, he could barely breathe. Fear was running through his veins, but he couldn't move. He stood still, shocked, waiting. Everything around him seemed to be melting into darkness.

"I'm here, Ren..."

The voice was faint at first, but it quickly became clear, as if it was coming from inside his head. There was no escape. Ren tried to comprehend what was happening. This couldn't be real, could it? The Red-Faced Man was just a myth... just a story his mother used to tell him, nothing more. But now, seeing his face clearly on the window, there was no room for doubt.

Shadows began to creep on the walls around him. The dim lights faded, leaving him in complete darkness. Suddenly, the face disappeared from the window. The mysterious voice he had been hearing was no longer there, but the feeling of fear didn't leave him.

Ren ran towards the back kitchen door, where he had seen the red footprints heading outside. But when he opened the door, there was nothing. The yard was quiet, the cold wind was blowing gently, and the night was eerily still.

"Mom... where are you?"

His voice was barely audible, choked with tears. He looked up at the dark sky, where there was no moon, just distant stars twinkling faintly. For just a moment, he heard footsteps behind him. He turned quickly, his heart nearly jumping out of his chest.

There was someone standing in the shadows, tall and with a strange face. It was the Red Face Man. His features were unclear, but his eyes were glowing blood-red. Slowly, he began to approach Ren, and something deep inside told him he wouldn't be able to run away.

"I've been waiting for you, Ren..."

Ren froze in place, watching the Red-Faced Man come closer and closer. The steps were heavy, as if the ground itself was shaking beneath his feet. Everything around him began to lose its color, the trees, the sky, and even the house behind him. The world seemed to shrink in the presence of this strange entity.

As soon as the Red-Faced Man got close enough, he suddenly stopped. He didn't speak, but he pointed his long finger at Ren. He was pointing inside, to the house. Then, Ren understood the message. He had to go back inside, but why? What was waiting for him there?

Despite the fear that paralyzed him, Ren slowly began to move towards the house. He couldn't understand what was happening, but he felt that resisting wasn't an option. And when he entered the house again, things were even stranger.

"What's happening?"

The kitchen that had been teeming with shadows minutes ago was now a completely different place. There were old things thrown here and there, as if time had jumped back to the past. Toys that had been missing suddenly appeared on the floor, and the room he knew looked oddly old.

Ren stood in the middle of the kitchen, trying to comprehend everything around him, until he heard the voice again. This time it wasn't the voice of the Red-Faced Man, but a more familiar voice: his mother's voice.

As soon as Ren heard his mother's voice echoing in the air, he froze in place. Could it be that his mother had returned? Or was it just another illusion like what he had seen before? He turned slowly, trying to trace the source of the sound. There was something strange about the way she called, a tone filled with sadness and longing.

"Ren... come to me, I'm here..."

The voice rang out from the adjacent room, and his steps were heavy as he headed towards it. He kept staring at the closed door, feeling as if something terrifying was waiting for him behind it, but he couldn't resist the urge to discover the truth. He pushed the door slowly, his heart pounding strongly in his chest.

When he opened the door, the room was lit with a dim, unnatural light. In the middle of this strange light, he saw his mother standing by the window, wearing her familiar dress. But she didn't turn to him. She was looking outside, as if waiting for something or someone.

"Mom? Is that you?"

She didn't answer. Ren stood in place for a moment, wondering if what he was seeing was real or just another of his frightening illusions. He slowly moved towards her, but he felt something cold running through his body. There was a strange feeling enveloping him, as if the room itself was hiding a buried secret.

When he got close enough to reach her, his mother slowly turned towards him. Her facial features were normal, but she wasn't smiling. Her eyes were empty, like someone who no longer belonged to this world.

"Why did you leave me, Ren?"

Her words were strange, as if she was blaming him for something he didn't understand. He tried to speak, to explain what was happening, but his voice choked in his throat. He felt something was terribly wrong, as if the truth he had always ignored was about to emerge.

"What do you mean? I didn't leave you..."

His mother didn't answer, but she pointed her hand to the ground. There was something buried under the wooden floor, something that wasn't there before. Ren approached cautiously, looking at the spot she pointed to. There was a small line between the wooden boards, as if they had been recently lifted.

Ren began to feel that there was a buried secret his mother was trying to reveal. He started looking for something to help him lift the boards, until he found a small shovel lying in the corner of the room. Carefully, he began to lift the wooden boards one after another, until he uncovered a small dark hole.

"What is this?"

Ren was shocked when he saw what was buried under the floor. There was a small bag, old and dirty. He opened the bag with trembling hands to find inside a collection of old pictures and letters. Each picture told a story, but what caught his attention most was a picture of the Red-Faced Man, standing next to his mother and holding her hand.

Ren felt the ground slipping from under his feet, as if the world around him was no longer as it was.