The events of last night

  Last night was pretty normal I thought. I went to bed after a long day only to be woken a few short hours later by a text from my sister, Bec, informing me of what had just happened at our home on the Gold Coast. The story goes like this. It was around 11.30 at night and she saw a man climbing over our fence into our backyard. Like anyone would think, she thought it was a robber and started banging on the window and yelling at him, thinking he was going to attack her. So she called mum downstairs and they started freaking out because he was just sitting on a step on our deck bleeding everywhere. So eventually they calmed down and he told them his story.

His name was Michael and he is actually our next door neighbour. At around 11pm he heard a knock on his door and the people outside were telling him that they were his neighbours and they needed his help. Upon hearing this, he opened the door to find himself face to face with three people in balaclavas, armed with guns and knives, who instantly pushed him then proceeded to drag him to his bed and tie him to it while they robbed his house. Then, on their way out, they struck him on his leg with a gun, breaking it, then left the house. 

After they left, Michael freed himself then, scared, made his way outside and, with his broken leg, climbed the fence to our house. Unluckily, his two roommates weren't home at the time, though he yelled out for them when being tied down. So after Michael told his story to my mum and sister, they called the ambulance, who took him to the hospital, and the police, who they gave statements to. Channel 9 even rocked up this morning to interview my mother and Bec about it but I haven't seen any TV or online coverage of it today so maybe the police don't want the public to know about it just yet. My advice to you? Install a peep hole in your door! Or just don't answer the door at night! Better to be safe than sorry. 

I'd always thought my home on the coast was in a safe neighbourhood. It's a new area and mostly filled with young families. Plus it's on a giant hill in the middle of nowhere so I didn't think robbers would even bother. At my last home, we were also burgled there while we were sleeping. The robber took a lot of valuables, including my mother's wedding ring. It was only me and mum home that night as my dad was working overseas and my sister was on school camp. Mum said she had heard weird noises outside until early in the morning. She thought it was our dog but when she looked outside, our dog was fast asleep. She then fell asleep with the light on but woke up as she was turning over to see a man crouching near her bed. So she shouted at him and he ran away, luckily not hurting her. 

But just knowing that there is so much crime out there and that it's so close really scares me. I know it's the Gold Coast and that the crime rate is crazy, but you just always think that it's not going to be you. I mean, this time around with the way that Michael was robbed is so much scarier than when we were robbed. I was freaked out hearing about it and I wasn't even there! I was so scared for mum and Bec. And knowing that the robbers could have easily picked our house instead of Michael's scares the hell out of me. 

So from now on, I am never answering the door. I am keeping all the doors locked. I don't care if Barack Obama is at the door with a suitcase full of hundies. I am making sure of my safety and you should do the same!