As The Raven Dreams Podcast - ATRD Ep. 113 - Creepy First Date & Disturbing Horror Stories - 6 True Scary Stories

Episode Date: March 1, 2024

Welcome to the chilling 113th episode of The ATRD Podcast! Today, we will step into the shadowy corners of reality, where everyday life takes an eerie twist & ordinary people experience the extraordinary. Today we will be diving into stories about the horrors that occur When Dating, as well as a collection of truly disturbing stories. So, turn down the lights, tune in, and let the haunting tales of everyday people take you down that dark and creepy road. Remember, these aren't just stories... these are true experiences that remind us that our world can truly be scarier than fiction. Have a Story To Submit? ➤ https://www.astheravendreams.com Or Post to the Subreddit ➤ https://reddit.com/r/TheRavensDream Support the channel for Early Access AND more! Patreon ➤ https://patreon.com/AsTheRavenDreams Join ➤ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkW0ihdMHfBUjQrMKjRto6g/join Or Check out the Merch Store! ➤ https://teechip.com/stores/astheravendreams Thank you to all of the authors that have stories in today's Video... Ashton, MyFirstDate, SkepticAndLonely, MP, and any authors that requested anonymity. 'As The Raven Dreams' is a community where we explore the darker parts of human existence through true and harrowing stories. From sinister encounters with strangers and stalkers, to terrifying experiences that defy explanation and unsettling mysteries that linger in the shadows, I am here to tell you the most haunting narratives ever whispered. Much Love, and Sleep Well... ----- #TrueScaryStories #AsTheRavenDreams #FirstDateStories ➤ Stories include a content warning for language and sensitive/disturbing content. Viewer discretion is always advised. ➤ ALL Audio of this Podcast are copyright of AS THE RAVEN DREAMS / RAVEN ADAMS and may not be duplicated, in any format, without explicit permission ➤ If you like any of the following stories, consider subscribing! - Dark Web horror stories, creepy lets not meet stories, stalker stories, Glitch In The Matrix Stories, Unexplained Horror stories, Paranormal stories, cryptid encounter stories, Crazy ex lover stories, creepy neighbor stories, quantum immortality, true scary stories from reddit, or any other True horror Stories! ➤ And Remember; You are loved, you are important, and you are valid. Never let anyone tell you otherwise. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/astheravendreams/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/astheravendreams/support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you have a story you would like to hear featured on this podcast, please go to ashtherravendreams.com and click the button to submit your story. Also, if the platform you're listening on has the option to rate this podcast, please consider doing so. And thank you. Back in the fall of 2022, I went on a date with a guy named Lewis. We matched, had a lot in common. And after talking for about two weeks, we decided to meet up. We went to a nice restaurant nearby. I was wearing one of my favorite skirts, a flattering top, did my hair and makeup and was just looking forward to a great night.

I spotted him standing near the entrance when I arrived, and he was stunning. He was wearing maroon dress pants and a matching jacket, with a black shirt underneath. With his dark hair and bright green eyes, he looked great standing there. waiting for me. So, when I walked up, I complimented him and he returned it. We got to our seats, our meals shortly after, and really enjoyed the dinner. The night was going great, but I perked up even more when he mentioned an old abandoned building that he knew about.

One thing we had actually bonded over was our love for urbex, or exploring abandoned buildings and places. We talked about places we had explored. and shared pictures, and talked about finding a place that we could explore together. So I instantly had the itch to check this place out that he said he'd found. Now, I know, record scratch right there. Some people would never meet a stranger privately, let alone in some abandoned building, but that's how some of us Urbex people are.

We liked the thrill and the risk. so when he offered to take me there, I was all for it. So when we finished our meals, we then went out to our cars, and I would be following him on my own. I always kept a pair of sneakers and an old pair of pants in my car, so I was a little better dressed for the occasion. However, Lewis opted to remain in his suit. I made a comment about it,

thinking if he was hoping I would agree, why not bring something to change into. That's why I always kept an extra outfit in my car. But, alas, it was his choice. And maybe he'd been here before, so I didn't think too hard about it. So, we approached the door, him leading, and when we got there, he rammed the door with his shoulder, and with a loud thud, it opened. I flinched at first because it was loud, and I didn't want someone to hear us,

and possibly call the cops. The building used to be an old daycare center that had a new strip mall being built nearby. The building was surely going to be torn down soon as it would be an eyesore to the new shops and apartments being built. So it was possible that people would see us and report it. But after looking around and not seeing anyone,

Lewis waved me and shutting the door behind me. It was pretty dark at this point. So Lewis used his cell phone light, and I pulled out my mini flashlight that I had on my keychain, always prepared. I could see the once colorful wallpaper peeling off the walls. There was a front desk covered in dust and a few visitor tags. As we walked through some of the rooms, we could see toys and play sets, but it had all been shoved to one corner of the room. That was for all of the rooms. It was curious to see because I started thinking about what led to this place being left as it was.

Did they move to a different building? If so, why not take your stuff with you? And if they closed for good, why not donate some of the things like the toys? I always felt like it was such a waste to see so much stuff left behind, just to be thrown into the landfill when someone else could have used it. but then I noticed more about the rooms. The chairs in the rooms, be it the small children's chairs or normal folding chairs,

were all in a line facing the blank walls. I thought a whiteboard or something similar used to be there as the color of the wall was slightly different. Seeing it in one room was odd, but by the fourth time, I was curious, so I pointed it out to look. He smirked and also said that it definitely looked odd with no context, and I started agreeing until it finally processed what he said.

What do you mean no context? I asked him suspiciously. He again smiled and took my hand and said that he wanted to show me something. He started leading me towards a hallway that had a sliding glass door that appeared to have some kind of paper taped on it, or maybe to have been painted over. so that you couldn't see through it. It was still pretty dark, and forgive me, for not inspecting the door more. But as we walked towards the door,

I could at least tell that something was covering it, as there was a slight glow to it. Like, the door looked like it was glowing. I stopped a little further back from the door and let go of his hand, which got his attention too. He turned around and asked if I was okay, and I told him that I was getting a bit of, bit spooked.

His comment earlier was suspicious, and now he was leading me to this room, and I was starting to realize my mistakes. Lewis, again, gave me his soft smile and said that everything was okay, and that neither him nor anything else was going to hurt me, and that he would make sure of it. He just wanted to show me what he'd found in the room when he went there alone. Again, I should have said no. I should have tried to run when I had the chance, when he wasn't so close to me. Who knew what would be behind that door?

But for some reason, I felt like I could trust him. He seemed very sincere, never once pushing or forcing me along. For the most part, I led the way. He held my hand on our way to the room, but it wasn't a firm hold. And he let go when I let go. I guess thinking about it now I could see why girls fell from Manson Lewis was very nice on the eyes He was kind very convincing

So I agreed to go with him So we got to the door and he asked if I was ready I gave a shaky reply and he slowly slid open the door What I saw was definitely unexpected Candles and books lined the floor there were about a dozen people sitting on the floor with their legs crossed, both men and women. They all held hands and held their heads up with their eyes closed.

There was one man standing in the center of them facing us, smiling. And they were all wearing the same thing. The men were in maroon suits. The women were in some kind of maroon hooded robe. They all matched the same kind that Lewis was wearing. what the hell did I just get myself into? The man standing in the center welcomed us with a soft voice, which made everyone else slowly look down at us.

Lewis immediately kneeled and greeted the man. I forget what he called him now. Lewis then told him my name and wanted to introduce me to his family, as he put it. The standing man reached his arms out, and not wanting to set someone off, I held my hand out to shake his. He grabbed my hand with both of his, slowly caressing it, and telling me how I was always welcomed there.

He then went on to speak about their mission, I guess. He explained how they were Earth's children, and they found buildings like this, and that they would pray in it to calm the planet, and offer it back to them. Stupid me was curious, and I asked how they, gave it back.

And the man smiled and said, We baptize it, my child. He asked if I would like to join the prayer and experience one for myself, saying once I saw one, I would understand and fall in love. Everyone was staring at me, waiting for my response,

but while nothing was really happening at this moment, I was kind of terrified. He was speaking in clear English, but I felt like everything was cryptic. I started hunching over a bit and said to Lewis that I felt like I was going to be sick and that I needed some air first. He rubbed my back and said that he would help me out and motioned to the others that he would be back soon.

Once we got outside, I made a mad dash to my car, got in, and I locked it immediately. Lewis slowly walked up to my car, not shouting at me, or anything, again, making me feel like maybe I overreacted. So I rolled my window down a bit, allowing him to talk. He only asked if I was okay, to which, now feeling safe in my running car, I asked him what the hell that was all about, and if he thought that that was funny. He again smiled and said that they were his family, his chosen family.

He said that they would never harm me. In fact, everyone there was willingly there, and that they only wanted to offer abandoned and forgotten places back to the earth. He explained how we humans just use whatever piece of land we want, when we want to build what we want, not considering the life we were taking away. Then, when we're done, and the buildings have nothing left and they're no longer of use, we just leave these eyesores. so their job was to pray for forgiveness and offer it back to the earth. I asked how exactly they could give it back, and what he meant by baptizing it. He smiled and explained that it was however the planet chooses to take it back,

giving some examples. Sometimes the building collapses, is overgrown by nature, sometimes they even flood and slowly crumble, or possibly fire. I started asking him if he meant he catches these places on fire, and he laughed and said that they never touched the buildings, claiming it was the work of the prayer and what the planet decides to do. He then made the comment about how I knew of these abandoned places and thought that I would be interested in this, suggesting that I stay to witness a prayer. I told him that I would think about it, but that I had to go. He smiled again and waved at me goodbye without a hint of anger or disappointment in his voice. I don't know if that freaked me out more or if it made it better.

I got home and immediately called my friends to tell her the crazy-ass date that I had just experienced. She thought that it sounded just as crazy, and suggested we look into abandoned places nearby that were destroyed to see what we could find. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious. After we looked, there was one building almost two months prior to this event, where it had been sitting empty for nearly a year. Someone had recently bought it, hoping to fix it up and turn it into an indoor water park. And then, for some reason, and completely random,

a pipe burst in the building, flooding it, rendering it completely damaged. It would have cost more to repair it, so what was left was demolished. Then we found a building in a state over from us that had been empty even longer. I had actually once been in that building, and structurally it seemed completely fine. However, one whole side of the building collapsed, so the city voted or something to have it torn down as well. As we continued looking at these places, comparing ones that we'd previously explored, we kept finding all these places with similar outcomes. And while I can't prove anything, I wonder if they were related.

I'm not religious, nor do I really believe in the paranormal, but this really had me thinking. Were they doing something that could cause the earth to take over these buildings? Or am I sounding just as crazy as they are? Or was this all just a big coincidence? And before anyone asks, yes, I really did contemplate and consider contacting the police. But then I just thought about what I would even tell them. Yeah, I broke into an abandoned building and there were people in there that prayed to the earth. And those natural seeming things that happened to the buildings may not have been so natural.

They may have just locked me up instead. So, no, I did not report it. And when Lewis asked me about another date, I just told him that I wasn't interested and then never heard from him again. But sometimes I get paranoid when my friends and I go urbexing and even more suspicious when something happens to the buildings. Lasagne surgelley, puissance-moyance-moyant for 15 minutes. We'd say that's their dojo. Pre-to-joo? Vive the pleasure with the Ojo.

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I'd been single for quite a while when this took place. It didn't bother me any, either. I was enjoying the Bachelor life.

I went on dates with some women that I met through apps, as well as some that I had mutual friends set me up with. That's actually how I met Cora. She worked with a friend of mine, Leslie. I met Cora at a business party that Leslie took me to as her plus one at the time. We'd been friends for a very long time. We tried dating, but we just didn't vibe that way. But we've always remained good friends. So, she took notice when I was looking at Cora.

Cora was very attractive. Long, blonde, curly hair, bright blue eyes, and very tall. Even better, she was very outgoing. She introduced herself and said that everyone called her Barbie because of how she looked, too. We joked about it, and later on in the date, Leslie called me out on my glances and there was no denying it. So, she said that she would play Matchmaker and ask Cora about it the next day they worked. Lucky for me, Cora was also interested in me, and Leslie gave her my number. She messaged me immediately, and the conversation was easy for both of us.

We talked about work and life and set up a date for the following weekend. The night of our date started out great. We actually met at a restaurant slash entertainment, place, as in we had dinner and then they had the whole arcade and bowling alley that we enjoyed together. She looked stunning in these shiny black pants and atop, and then she was wearing sneakers. She joked about not looking at her feet, but she wanted to be comfortable when we bowled. That night was fantastic, and while we both had a few drinks, her a little more than me,

she became very flirtatious and suggestive. and I was all for it. After a few hours there, she invited me back to her place, and I didn't decline. She had taken an Uber, but I drove, so I offered to take us there. I knew that I had to drive, so I didn't drink that much. When we got there, before she opened the door, she reminded me of her nickname at the office, and I confirmed that I remembered it. Then she said her looks were only part.

of the reason she liked being called Barbie, and that she was excited to show me. I was curious, but I was thinking, so she liked to collect dolls? Okay, no big deal. Everyone has their collection or hobbies, right? My sister still has a bunch of dolls that she's collected. My brother and I still have boxes of baseball cards. Nothing to be worried about. But no.

This was a little more than just a collection. She turned on the light, and her walls and shelves were filled with dolls, Barbies and other similar dolls, as well as a few porcelain dolls. I was surprised. She giggled and said that she loved them. She loved to collect them, and she even sometimes bought broken ones and repaired them, saying that she had her own doctor's office, workshop in her spare bedroom for them.

She even talked about how she's made decent money repairing other people's dolls. Yeah, I wasn't expecting this, but I mean, it wasn't that bad. It was one hell of a hobby and, I guess, a side gig for her, but it's not a deal breaker. Far from it for Cora. But then she said that the ones that were truly special to her were in her workshop, and to make sure that they aren't hurt. She took me to the room, and again, shelves lined the top of the walls, and they were all filled with porcelain dolls.

She called these her family. She started naming them off. Dolls named after her parents, her grandparents, her sister, her old teacher, and even two of her exes. She even showed me a picture that was hanging on the wall of her sister. sister, comparing it to the doll, and it was uncanny how much they matched. Shoulder-length hair, curly, light brown. She had blue eyes and a mole above her left eye, and had on the same dress her sister

was wearing in the photo. She said that her sister had thrown out the dress, so she snagged it and made the dress for the doll out of it. She explained how she still cared for her exes, so she made them into dolls, too. Then she giggled and mentioned how she couldn't wait to make a doll for me. I'm sure that she meant that to be light-hearted, and maybe even funny. It was obviously something she did, but it was actually kind of creepy to me. It was like someone admitting to wanting a voodoo doll of you.

I don't know how else to explain it, so I just let out a nervous laugh, and she led me out of the room and went back to the cora that I knew for her. from our date. She kissed me and said that her bedroom was the best place in the house, and then led me to the other room with the closed door. I just prayed that it didn't have any dolls in it. She opened the door, and to my surprise, there were no dolls in the walls,

sitting on the dressers or the shelves, so I felt that I could finally relax. I remember telling myself that I was just kind of being an ass about it, and while it may seem weird to me it was something that she enjoyed, and ultimately, I could live with that. Until I tried to lay on her bed, and then felt something under the blanket. As a person's normal reaction, I moved quickly,

not wanting to hurt or damage whatever it was. Cora giggled, and leaned over me to pull the blanket back, and revealed a nearly life-sized, doll, laying in her bed, smiling. I'm a little over six feet, and that thing had to be about four or five feet easily. Cora began telling me who the doll was. She told me his name, some of his history, and then told me why he was in her bed in the first place.

I'll let you fill in the blanks there. She even suggested that we could include it in our, night's activities. I tried to remain as polite as possible, and told her that I just wasn't quite into that. However, instead of being a little understanding, she became upset, saying that those dolls were her babies, her life, and if I wanted to be with her, that I had to be with her dolls, too. So, I left the room. I grabbed my stuff and walked out of her apartment, trying to be. to figure out what the hell I had just experienced.

She messaged me the next day, with a picture of herself and her bedroom doll, I guess, and said that I was welcome back if I ever changed my mind. I just couldn't picture doing literally anything in that place with a thousand eyes staring at me, watching every move I made. I didn't check the bathroom, but I wouldn't doubt if she had some in there to. Thankfully, Cora at least made the conversation with Leslie easy. Cora told her that we just didn't click, so I didn't have to share my experience either,

and I don't think I will past telling you, a random person on the internet. So I hope you enjoyed my slightly creepy and very uncomfortable first date. I have a story that is probably one of the most disturbing things, things to have ever happened to my family. I'd say my family because it was more so my grandparents, but it's something that has been kind of held close to all of us since it happened.

All of this happened on my grandparent's property, and my grandpa was even looked at as a suspect for a moment, but it was eventually cleared for the whole thing. Even still, this whole event was devastating for my grandfather, for reasons, that will be obvious in a little while. I do need to give a small bit of context, so bear with me while I detail a few things. This happened quite a long time ago. My dad was still in his teens when this took place, so it was way before my time. My grandparents lived in the northwestern part of the U.S., and they owned a decent amount of land there.

It all belonged to my great-great-grandfather and had been passed. down twice at this point to my grandfather, Ronald. On the land that they owned, in the southern corner, complete opposite of my grandparents' actual house, was a small cabin that, way back, was where the hired help on the land lived. By the time my grandfather got the land, the cabin was empty, and was used more for storage than anything. Still, they kept it up, and made sure that if anyone, ever wanted or needed to stay in the cabin they could. My grandfather kept the land around it tidy and kept it up on the maintenance of the building.

It is important to mention that this cabin, being on the opposite end of the property, was nowhere near the house. In order to get to the cabin, you would have to get on the road, circle around the property until you hit the south end, and then pull up the driveway to get to it. In the fall of 1965, my grandfather's cousin, Walter, a man that helped raise my grandfather because they were separated by about 12 years,

came to visit my grandpa, and asked him if he could stay in the cabin for a little while. Apparently, Walter had, in his words, fallen on hard times, and needed somewhere to stay for a couple of months. My grandfather didn't ask him any questions about what had happened, because Walter was family, and he said that Walter was welcome to stay for as long as he needed.

Obviously, my grandpa was suspicious that something was going on, that Walter had done something illegal or questionable, because he'd been in with some questionable people in the past, but again, he was family, and my grandpa never questioned family or left them in the cold. He was a man that didn't say much, but he was very loyal to those that he knew and loved, because that's how he was raised.

A few weeks passed, and Walter had set up his home in the cabin. My grandfather went over to visit with him a few times over the first week to see how he was doing. Walter seemed a bit nervous at first, but as the first month came and went, he seemed a lot more comfortable and less on edge. Again, red flags I know, but my granddad. grandfather was confident that Walter would be able to handle whatever it was. He did ask him if he should be worried for himself and his wife at one point, but Walter told him that everything was fine, and that he would just be there a few months

until things settled down, and then he would be out of his hair. Again, questionable comments being made there, but in the end, my grandpa just said that Walter was free to stay as long as he needed, told him where the ammo for the hunting rifle in the cabin was, then went back home to my grandmother and my father. A couple more weeks passed, and my grandpa hadn't heard much from Walter. And that Saturday, he decided he would take the trip around to see how he was, and ask if he wanted to help with some work that he needed to do. He pulled his truck up to the cabin, and immediately felt like something was off.

Walter's car wasn't in the driveway, but the door to the car was the car. The cabin was wide open. My grandpa thought initially that Walter had to take off in a hurry and left the door open. Obviously, this bothered him, but it would have been the better alternative to what did end up happening. My grandpa walked up to the cabin and called out for his cousin, but there was no response. Then he walked in. He knew immediately that something horrible had happened. My grandfather always described what he saw as a scene straight out of his worst nightmares.

The furniture in the cabin was overturned and destroyed. One of the windows was shattered, with the glass on the inside of the cabin, meaning it had been broken in, and the air was thick with that coppery scent of blood. There was a massive dark stain on the carpet in the living room, and a trail that led from there out the back door of the cabin. like the person that was bleeding had been dragged out of the cabin. Then he noticed the large, bloody knife that was stabbed into the cabinet, pinning a piece of paper to it, and my grandfather's blood turned cold as ice when he read it.

Sorry about your cabin, Ronald. This wasn't personal, and we have no beef with you. Don't bother trying to find him. We were told to take care of him and to make him disappear. appear. So he did. My grandpa said that those words were like a cold hand around his heart, that they made him feel sick to his stomach when he read them. He panicked and started shouting for Walter, but he knew deep down that there wasn't going to be a response. Whoever Walter had messed with had taken

care of business, and that was the end of it. Grandpa raced back home and called the authorities, telling the cops that he thought that someone had been murdered in the cabin. Their investigation ended up yielding more questions than answers. Of course, back then, forensics wasn't exactly a super complex thing. The only clue was the blood, the knife, and the note. And Walter was never found, dead nor alive, a fact that hovered over my grandfather for probably the rest of his life. The cabin was a crime scene for a while, the officers and investigators coming through every once in a while to try to find clues, or to ask my grandfather questions, but after a little while it was released back to him to do with as he pleased.

My grandpa ended up moving all of his tools and everything he needed out of the cabin. It burned everything else in it, and then boarded up the husk that he left behind. He wanted to demolish it, but he never did. I think that it haunted him too much to do so. Like he wanted to, but then kept telling himself that maybe Walter would come back. The only time that I went out to that side of the property as a kid, my father told me the story of what happened, and I saw that the building had pretty much been destroyed by nature,

overgrown, wood rotting out, and so forth. My uncle ended up taking over the land, as my father had moved out of state, so he offered it to him instead, when both my grandparents had passed away. My uncle did end up demolishing the old cabin, so there's nothing left there now but the memories of what happened. As of today, Walter's case is obviously on ice. No evidence, no new leads, and everyone involved is probably gone by now. But whatever ended up happening to Walter, based on the state of that cabin, I have to imagine that it wasn't quick, nor painless. I wanted to share a weird and kind of unexplained situation that I was involved in

that I really feel like could have saved my life. Back in 2014, I was pretty heavily into online dating. I'd been single for about eight months after my ex decided to. to break it off, and move across the country with no warning. I was gutted, and yeah, pretty lonely since he had moved in with me, so I was ready to spend my time with someone again. So I started with dating memberships and apps, wherever I could go that was free or didn't cost a whole paycheck. That's where I met this guy, Jackson. Jackson messaged me first with a pretty normal greeting.

"'Hello, stranger. I'd love to get to know you more.' I remembered it because it wasn't the desperate pleas that you normally see there. You know the ones, where they call you beautiful and beg you to talk to them, and if you're lucky, maybe some kind of raunchy comment. I looked at his profile, and he was definitely easy on the eyes. In fact, he looked like my ex. Shaved head, normal build, wearing sunglasses and holding his dog. Maybe that's my toxic trait, looking for someone that reminded me of my ex, right?

So I responded to him, and we began talking, and there was a lot of it. He asked a lot of questions about me and who I was. He was more than willing to share about himself, too, and even sent me a few more pictures of himself and his pup. He asked about meeting up, but I wasn't quite ready yet. I also didn't want him to think that I was just looking for a one-night stand, which was also common on these sights. He was understanding, and didn't push it, which was another win for me. But then one night I was having a particularly grumpy night.

He texted me and was talking about a local carnival that was going on. I joked about how I hadn't been in years, and he sounded appalled. He said this one in particular, was the best one held in the state, and said that I had to go. And then he offered to take me. This time I agreed. Going to a carnival as a first date was definitely unconventional, but I liked that. I could even dress comfortably, and we could just have fun and maybe even skip the awkward silent moments.

We met that Saturday night at the carnival, and he looked just like his pictures, so that was a good its start. He hugged me when we first met, and it felt so nice. I was already in a fantastic mood, and was excited to see where the night would take us. We took a few rides, played a few games, and joked about how many were still rigged, and even tried to figure out how they did it. We also sampled tons of different food, which was all fantastic. We were walking around, waiting for a show to start, and made our way to the part of the carnival that they referred to as oddities and curiosities,

or something to that effect. That's where we saw a guy playing a musical instrument with his toes. There was a lady juggling swords, and then there was also a tent for a fortune teller. Yeah, call me what you want, but I'm all for that kind of stuff. I liked tarot, crystal work, all of it. I even had a friend that I became really close to that read my tarot and my tea leaves quite often. I won't say that I necessarily believed all of it.

I was a skeptic, but some things I couldn't explain away, so I felt there had to be some kind of truth to it. So when I saw her sign, I absolutely wanted to check her out and see what she might say. And even if she had any thoughts or compatibility, ideas with us. Jackson didn't have a problem with it, and he liked the idea too, so we went in. She greeted us, said that her name was Madam Joe, and asked what we were looking for. Jackson shrugged, smiling, and asked what I or Joe would suggest. She guessed that we were on our first date, and I confirmed smiling too. Off to a good start, right? She said that she could do palm reading and get some compatibility, and even maybe some future readings, so that's what we agreed to.

We both sat in the chair across from her, and she started reading our individual palms. She started on mine, and she mentioned how she could sense that I was still recovering, or had sadness from a previous loss. She was right, too, as I was still dealing with losing my ex. Then she read Jackson's, and that's when I started to do that. sensing a change in her. She quickly opened her eyes and basically told him that he was holding in a lot of anger

and that he needed to confront it before he hurt somebody else that he loved. Jackson looked confused, didn't say another word, but Joe seemed uncomfortable. Then she grabbed both of our hands and

immediately her face soured. No, this will never work. She said like a disapproving parent. We both looked at her confused, and she continued. You, sir, are a very dangerous man. You hurt everyone you've loved, and this will be no different. Jackson quickly pulled his hand back, his face a mix of confusion and anger.

I, however, did not move, curious what she meant by this. She continued talking about how he would hurt me, and I was running out of time to leave him. She said that she saw black and blue, all over bare skin. She held my hand with both of herds, and with fear in her eyes, she looked at me and said, Do not let this continue. Please, before it's too late.

And then let go of my hand. Jackson started going off. He asked who she was, and accused her of being in some kind of scheme set up by some other person, trying to sabotage his date. I don't remember the name, but it was a female. Maybe an ex. I never found out.

But she said that she wasn't, and claimed that he told her all she needed to know. He called her crazy and said that he never believed in this crap and then grabbed my hands to pull me out. I was so confused and startled by this. He pulled me out of the tent and again tried to talk about how those people were always full of hot air, and just after your money. He tried laughing and lightening the mood, but it was a little harder for me to just forget it.

We went to the show, but I was so distracted by the psychic, and Jackson had to ask me several times if I was okay. After the show, he asked about doing something else there, but I told him that I was just ready to go home. He seemed to be pretty offended by this. We had seen most of the carnival already, so unless he wanted to go somewhere else, I don't know what he was expecting. He then asked, this doesn't have anything to do with that psychic, does it? You don't really believe in that crap, do you?

He sounded very angry and accusatory even, and it honestly made me uncomfortable. So I just laughed and told him no, and that I was just honestly tired. It was after 10 p.m., and I joked that I wasn't used to being out so late, and that that was all. He calmed down and then hugged me saying that he would talk soon, and we parted ways. The whole drive home, my heart was racing. Fortune tellers can't really see the future, right? Was she jealous? Could she have been in on something?

But his reaction to it, and his reaction to me, that was all really alarming. I knew that I was really going to have to be careful if I continued to see him. He messaged me the next day, asking how I was, and asking if I wanted to go get dinner that night. I thought that I should give him another chance. Being we would be in public again, maybe I could see him from a different perspective and let his actions make a decision for me, not Adam Joe's. So, I agreed. We went to a local restaurant and everything was going as normal. Our conversation was fine.

His attitude was fine. It was just a normal date. It really made me loosen up, and I was starting to think that I was really being crazy, freaking out over what some stranger told me. So, by the end, I'd been very cheerful, laughing and just having a great night. By the end of the dinner, we started walking. out and he followed me to my car, thinking he was just being kind and walking me to it. But then, he got uncomfortably close to me.

I think under other circumstances it may have been romantic, but something was making me nervous again. So when the conversation didn't continue, I thanked him for dinner and moved to try to unlock my car. Apparently this was the wrong decision. He once again became unglued. and said, So that's it. I looked at him confused.

He started making remarks about me getting a free meal and him getting nothing in return. I asked him what he meant because I definitely offered to pay, but he wouldn't let me. He then made a comment about coming back to my place, and I declined. I told him as I did before, we even met the first time, that I wasn't here for that, and that he was not going to get anything from me after two dates. He became furious. He started yelling, demanding that I tell him why and what was wrong with him. As he backed up to literally scream, I jumped into my car, locking the door instantly.

He ran up to my car and kicked it hard enough to shake it. He'd now gotten the attention of some people nearby, so I took the opportunity and left. I drove around for about ten minutes before going home to make sure that he didn't find me and follow me home. And from there, I ran inside, locking the door behind me. He tried calling several times, but I ignored them all. That didn't stop him from sending mixed messages via voicemails and texts. I just turned off my phone and went to sleep. The next day, I actually called my friend who did taro and asked her.

to read a little bit about Jackson and what our future looked like together. Now, mind you, I did not tell her about Madam Joe. At this point, I had told one person, and that was my mom, that was it. So when she told me something similar to Joe, I was pretty freaked out. I explained to her what happened at the carnival,

and she agreed that I needed to end it with him, and that something dangerous was going to happen. so I did just that. I messaged him that day and told him that I didn't think it was going to work out, and just ended it there. He sent more conflicting messages between begging me for another chance and calling me some unsavory names. Then he finished it off with a threat.

I told him that I would be reporting him to the police, and he didn't respond. I didn't hear from him again, though, thankfully. but he still had me paranoid for a little while. He lived in the next county over, so while he didn't live too close, he also didn't live that far away. I feared that I may run into him at a store, somewhere or at a restaurant. I tried to avoid the place that we had gone to for dinner unless I was with company,

in case he showed up too. I feel like I got very lucky in this situation. I don't know about his past or what he may have done, but sometimes I did think about it. I considered looking for an ex, but I feared what I may find, so I just left it alone. All I know is that I feel like going to that carnival

was one of the best and worst dates I have ever had, and I thank Madam Joe for possibly saving my life. Before I fully tell this story that I want to tell, I would like to get a few things out of the way. The first thing I want to mention is that the story is disturbing, and it should probably have some sort of trigger warning on it, so I do ask that you mention this in your narration. The story does involve child abuse to some extent, specifically an abusive drunk father, and I know that topic could very well be sensitive to a lot of people. The only reason that I've decided to submit this story is because of how disturbing it can be. I know you read stories for people's entertainment, and I fully understand that this submission will be seen as that by a lot of people, but I feel it's important to get this out there.

If not for me, then for the person that had happened to. All right, that out of the way, I also feel that this story needs to be set up a little bit. The story is about a person that I would say was my best friend from the start. his name was Ronnie, and Ronnie lived a few houses down from me, just around the corner, on an intersecting street to the one that I grew up on. We had the same teacher in kindergarten, which is where we met, and we were put in the same class through all of elementary school. Ronnie and I shared everything, from hobbies to secrets.

He knew everything about me, all there was to know about a kid that age, I guess, and I knew everything about him. Except there was one thing about him that was always strange to me. When we played, he was always at my house, or another friend's house on the block. I never went to his house. Even when I was that age, I always sensed there was something wrong with that scenario. If one of us mentioned going to his house, he would do a complete 180 and get quiet or try to make an excuse or change the subject.

Ronnie was a good kid. He was outgoing and exceptionally bright, which made it strange that he would practically shrink if anyone mentioned his house. In hindsight, his reaction should have been a clue as to what was happening, but as a kid it was just a thing that was weird and mysterious. As we grew up a bit and transitioned into middle school, we stayed good friends.

But some of that veil over Ronnie's home life started to lift. Around that time, Ronnie started to be a bit more reclusive, and he would flinch at sudden movements. He would become unnaturally quiet when someone got mad at him for anything. There was one day when one of our teachers in middle school got mad at the class and yelled at us, and he basically went into a panic attack. After class, I was able to catch up with him and talk him down some, trying to figure out what was going on.

That was when he told me about his home life. To say that Ronnie's father was strict was an understatement. I would later learn that Ronnie's dad was a towering figure, in both stature and presence, and that he expected Ronnie to be perfect in literally every aspect. Worse yet, Ronnie's father was far from perfect. He was an alcoholic. and when he drank, he would get angry and very aggressive about pretty much everything.

When he was a kid, it was just verbal abuse. But as Ronnie hit his early teen years, his father graduated to a more physical approach to parenting. This was why Ronnie was always so involved in class. He was a straight-A student, and he always applied himself 100% in everything he did. However, there were times when this wasn't quite enough for his father, and the threats of the consequences were starting to inch closer and closer to him following through. By the time we reached high school, the pressure on Ronnie had visibly intensified. He was juggling extracurricular activities, was put in the gifted program, and advanced classes because of how well he always did. and by the second quarter of our freshman year,

I could see that it was physically taking its toll on him. I know that this was a long setup, but this is actually where everything happened, our freshman year. Ronnie was in the same biology class as myself. It was the only advanced class that I was ever in, and we had the same period. The teacher, Mr. Henson,

had given us a research project that was pretty, intense, but it was expected in an advanced class. Part of the project required us to properly cite all of our references in our final printed documentation, and he made it very clear that citations were 50% of the grade. So, if you didn't do it, you would fail the project. Unfortunately, Ronnie apparently stumbled on this project, something that practically never happened. In the whirlwind of everything going on in his life, he had apparently turned in a printed draft of his project, one that didn't have the citations on it, and as such he got an F. I stuck around

after class. It was our last period for the day, and we always went to the bus together, and I witnessed what had happened. He pleaded with Mr. Henson after class, and I could tell that he was on the verge of tears the whole time. He begged him to let him fix it, that he had the final draft and that he had just printed the wrong one. Mr. Henson was, unfortunately, one of those teachers that refused to bend the rules at all. He told Ronnie that it was too late, and that it was just that one report, that it wasn't the end of the world. I heard Ronnie tell him in no uncertain words that his father was going to kill him. Mr. Henson shrugged it off and said that he was sure his father would understand,

that accident happened, and that he would just have to do better in the future. We walked to the bus after that, and I could tell that the fear in Ronnie's eyes was very real. I think that was really the first time that the burden that he carried was truly visible. I knew things were hard, but I don't think it actually hit me how bad it was, or, could be for him until that moment. I offered to come over and explain that the teacher was a jerk to his dad. I know that it wouldn't have helped, but I was trying to think of anything that would give him a fighting chance. I told him to just come over to my place, and that we would talk to my parents and figure something out.

But Ronnie told me that if I got involved, it would just make things worse. I sat by him on the bus, and we were both silent the whole way home. I didn't even try to make a comment because I knew that it wouldn't matter. The rest of that evening remains a huge painted blur in my memory. I knew that it was bad, but again, I guess part of my brain wouldn't let me believe that it was as bad as it was. I did mention it to my mom. I struggled to get the words out, but I told her that I thought Ronnie was in trouble, that he'd gotten an F

and that he was terrified that his father was going to kill him. She talked to me about the situation, but ultimately there wasn't much that we could do. She could call the cops and have them check on him, but then what? That'd probably make it worse for Ronnie

and his dad may actually kill him. I could go over and try to see if he was okay, but Ronnie had specifically said that he was worried that that would make his dad angrier. Eventually, we both, settled on me calling after dinner to check on him, and that I would make some excuse about not remembering what homework was due or something. Something believable that wouldn't be likely to raise any alarms. But even with that, I was still worried that his dad would freak out on him.

But I never got to make that call. Around 6 p.m., while we were eating dinner, we heard sirens racing down the street, then more sirens, then more. My mind immediately went to Ronnie, and I thought that his dad had actually done it, that the cops were going to arrest his father for murdering his only son. That's not quite how things went down, though. Most of the details are still unknown to me, but here's what I know happened. Ronnie went home to face his father, to try and explain the situation, and to try to tell him that it was a mistake like Mr. Henson had said.

I guess he figured that things were going to be bad either way, so maybe he could do what another adult had recommended and it could work. Well, it didn't. By the time Ronnie got home, his dad was already a few knuckles deep, and was already at that point that he was agitated. Ronnie tried to avoid him, but at some point he had gone through Ronnie's backpack, found the report, and lost it. This wasn't the first time he had physically assaulted Ronnie,

but it was the most violent he had ever been. The injuries that Ronnie ended up with were pretty intense, including several broken bones, and he was going to need to go to the hospital with how badly he'd been beaten, which then set his father off even more. And it escalated to the point that Ronnie said he honestly thought, He was going to die. In the heat of everything that was happening,

the other victim of Ronnie's father, his mother, had hit a point of no return. She watched her husband beat her son several times, at this point until he was bloodied and beaten, and she knew that she had to do something. It was at this point that she made a decision that was desperate, but she knew that if she didn't do it, Ronnie wasn't going to make it.

She grabbed the handgun that Ronnie had kept hidden in the bedroom, ran back into the living room, and she pulled the trigger. She ended up shooting him until there was nothing left in the gun, including several shots after he was lying on the ground. I stepped outside from the table, and I watched the police cars, fire rescue, and ambulances pull up as quickly as they could to the house. There was so much chaos in those moments that night.

I watched as the door to the house that I never visited opened up, and the paramedics rushed the stretcher with Ronnie on it into the back of the ambulance. I watched his mother get brought out in cuffs, and watched as the officers blocked the entrance and yard with crime scene tape. Obviously, all of the neighbors saw the aftermath, and there was a lot of confusion and turmoil. My mind was just on really. Ronnie, and whether or not he was going to get through it.

By the end of everything, Ronnie's home life was laid bare for all to see. The information about the abuse, his father's drinking, all of it was thrown out for the nosy vultures to eat up. Ronnie was placed in the care of his aunt while his mother went through the legal proceedings. In the end, somehow, his mother was acquitted on the grounds of self-defense, and the protection of her child, despite the fact that she pulled the trigger more times than was necessary. I do not personally blame her for doing that. It's just the one detail that could have easily landed her in prison for the rest of her life. A few months later, Ronnie and his aunt came over

to our house for a while so that Ronnie and I could hang out. It was nice to see him, but the trauma of that night had changed him. He was withdrawn. an absolute shadow of the kid that he once was. He was still my best friend, and I loved him as much as a best friend could, but he wasn't himself anymore, and I didn't blame him for that either. Years have passed since this all happened,

but the lessons that it taught me remained. I learned about the masks that people wear, hiding their pain and fear behind a facade of normalcy. I learned about how resilient that kid down the street. street can be, how he could be an absolute genius, and a great friend in spite of the fact that his home life was traumatic. I wish that I could have done more for him. But back then, I had no idea what I was supposed to do other than just be there for him if he needed

me. What ended up happening was, unfortunately, an event that was more or less written in stone. Someone in that family was bound to end up dead because of his father's appearance. and in this case, it just happened to be the abuser himself. Ronnie ended up moving out of state, and I haven't spoken to him in almost a decade. I hope that he found peace, and I hope that he knows, despite everything, he was never alone. Our friendship, though forever altered by that night, formed the best days of my life, and I would welcome him back into my life.

in a heartbeat. Hi, Raven. First, I want to thank you for your heartwork. I appreciate that you give a voice to so many stories. Thank you. I would like to share a very personal story that took place nearly four years ago on Halloween night. During that time, the world was under lockdown due to the pandemic, and Halloween celebrations were non-existent.

Only trick-or-treating was permitted. I was feeling depressed and anxious, as I was in my mid-twenties, and still unsure about my life's direction. That night, I was chatting with a guy I had dated named Leo, who shared many interests with me, such as our love for art and the macabre. Conversations with him were effortless. However, our relationship didn't work out because I had personal issues and saw too much of myself in him, which made me feel vulnerable. I made the difficult decision to end our relationship,

which surprised and saddened him, and as a result, we lost contact. On that Halloween night, my roommate was out of town, and I wanted to make the most of the occasion. I suggested to Leo that we take a walk to discuss the brief time we had spent together now that enough time had passed for us to reflect with a calm mindset.

He agreed. So after meeting at our meeting spot at around 9.30 p.m., we decided to walk through the old part of town where we lived. This area used to be bustling with tourists, restaurants, and bars, even during nighttime. However, on that night, it was eerily empty. We encountered only a few scattered individuals as we strolled along. Both of us were fast walkers. and before we knew it, we found ourselves deep in the old town, near the castle, a prominent symbol of our city. We faced a choice.

Either retrace our steps and follow the same path back, or continue alongside the castle, walking along the cliff's edge on a narrow boardwalk covered in foliage, eventually leading to a large park. The second option seemed more unsure as it was dark and desolate at that time of night. However, we were so lost in our conversation, and we chose to proceed without even thinking about it. As we ventured down the dimly lit path, unease began to settle in. Since it was Halloween night, I started joking about shadows and sharing spooky stories, as one would do around a bonfire. The path was illuminated by lampposts, and one particular light was flickering, which sent a shiver down my soul. spine. We paused there, and I remarked on how creepy the area felt, like the perfect setting

for a scene in a slasher movie. Although we laughed, I couldn't shake off the underlying fear of being alone and far from help. Strangely, despite our brief and complicated dating history, and his affinity for the dark and macabre, I felt safe with Leo. After approximately 10 minutes of walking along the eerie path, we finally reached the park and began making our way back to our meeting point. Along the way, we passed the entrance to the old town, where we noticed police cars entering amid a commotion. Curiosity led us to inquire about the situation with a bystander. He informed us that there was a man roaming around with a knife, scaring people. I felt perplexed, trying to recall if we had encountered anyone suspicious during our walk.

But I couldn't remember. Brushing it off as a Halloween prank taken too far by an intoxicated man, I thought nothing more of it. Oh, how mistaken I was. The bystander suggested that we go home and lock ourselves in. I escorted Leo to his place and then hurried back to mine, feeling a sense of unease. It was only upon her.

returning home, that the gravity of the situation truly sank in. I came across numerous posts detailing the event that had unfolded, and as I pieced everything together, I began trembling uncontrollably. I realized that choosing the Erie Boardwalk may have saved both mine and Leo's lives. This is what happened. On Halloween night in 2020, around 10.30 p.m., a man dressed at a man dressed in, in medieval attire carried out a mass stabbing near the provincial legislature, the National Assembly of Quebec, in Quebec City. Armed with a katana-style saber, he randomly attacked innocent people.

Tragically, two individuals lost their lives, and five others were injured. Understanding what happened with the information I had at that time, I couldn't stop shaking. Even now, the memory sends shivers down my spine. A mentally ill man slashing people on the night of Halloween seems like something straight out of a horror movie, but all of it was real.

When I pieced back the events of the night, I realized that the attack must have started right behind us, at the foot of the castle, when we decided to walk on the dark path ahead of us. It hit me that if we had chosen to retrace

our steps, we would have almost certainly crossed paths with the assailant. It was surreal to think that a seemingly insignificant and eerie decision like walking forward had saved our lives. Furthermore, I discovered that a friend of mine had also been walking alone that very night, not far from us. Unfortunately, he wasn't as lucky as Leo and me. He was attacked and left for dead, barely surviving.

As a result of the attack, he still bears scars and lost one of his fingers. However, I am amazed by his resilience, and I can confidently say that he is thriving today. Reflecting on that Halloween night, I realized how unpredictable life can be, and how seemingly inconsequential decisions can have profound impacts. This event truly shook me to the core. serving as a wake-up call. Shortly after, I made the decision to seek the help I needed for my mental health, and it completely transformed my life.

As a result of this sequence of events, I discovered my path and purpose. Today, I'm actively involved in the field of mental health, and I see a bright future ahead of me. When I reflect on that fateful night, I'm filled with gratitude for being alive, and for choosing to walk, on the dark path. It's a reminder that sometimes

the safest path may not be the safest at all. Life is unpredictable, and we truly never know what lies ahead. Hey there, friends. I hope that you enjoyed this collection of scary stories on this episode of the As the Raven Dreams podcast. If you did, make sure that you follow the podcast on whatever platform that you're utilizing.

And if the platform you are on has a rate the podcast option, please consider doing so. Those ratings push the podcast into the algorithm, and we all know how the algorithm controls everything, so, yeah. I also do have a Patreon if you go to patreon.com slash as the Raven Dreams. You can support the channel further. For as little as a dollar a month, you can get early access to all of my content in audio format. The content's a little different, as it's based on what I upload to my YouTube side,

but it's the same stories, just in different collections of stories than how they're presented here. Speaking of stories, if you have one you would like to submit to me, please go to as the ravendreams.com and click the button in the middle of the screen that says submit your story. These stories are mostly sourced by listeners, so let's keep the podcast alive. If you've got one, I'd love to read it. Anyways, friends, I hope you're all having a beautiful day and a lovely week. And I hope I see you again very soon. But until then, remember you're loved, you're valid, you're important.

You're the best you that you can be, never forget it. And until next time, much love and sleep well. Fan of soccer, you could assist a moment historic. for the final of the Cup of the World of the FIFA 2006 with Visa. It's just to have a card of credit Visa BMO for participate. Inscribe you at BMO.com

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