As The Raven Dreams Podcast - Scary Stories For Dark Dreams - Vol 49 | ATRD Podcast

Episode Date: December 22, 2025

Today we have 9 More true scary stories with a late night ambience. Scary Stories For Dark Dreams is a collection of older stories, remastered and put together in a long form episode. This Collection includes the following stories; New Years Eve Stories From Dec 2022, Cryptid Stories from Oct 2023 & Disturbing Horror Stories from Feb 2024. 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. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to like or rate the podcast, and leave me a comment with your thoughts if the platform your own supports it! I upload episodes every 3 days, so there are 2 days between new uploads. The podcast consists of new scary story collections, Glitch in the matrix collections, and also what I call the "Dark Dreams" collections (which are older stories, remastered and layered with rain sounds). If you have a story to submit, would like to find where to listen to the podcast, or want to find me on social media platforms, all of that info can be found at https://www.astheravendreams.com You can also send stories into my subreddit (r/theravensdream) or email them to me at [e-mail] Want to check out some ATRD Podcast Merch? ➤ https://teechip.com/stores/astheravendreams Or for signed merch ➤ https://ko-fi.com/AsTheRavenDreams I wrote a novel, "The Insomniac's Experiment" by Raven Adams! Check it out on amazon (Or you can email me for a signed copy!) Join Patreon to get early access and support the Podcast! ➤ https://www.patreon.com/AsTheRavenDreams Check out my gaming channel with my pal Ghost_Ink ➤ @superNefariousBros On YouTube TIMESTAMPS One Ad After the First Story, No ads after that Story 1: 0:24 Story 2: 12:19 Story 3: 21:03 Story 4: 29:18 Story 5: 37:00 Story 6: 53:32 Story 7: 1:04:59 Story 8: 1:15:14 Story 9: 1:24:14 ----- Disclaimer ➤ Episodes include a content warning for language and sensitive/disturbing content. Listener discretion is always advised. ALL Audio and visuals on this podcast are copyright of AS THE RAVEN DREAMS / RAVEN ADAMS and may not be duplicated, in any format. Bless This Mess. None of my audio is AI Generated, I am a real person reading real stories into a real microphone. Note: The podcast nor the host endorses any advertisements played during the podcast, ads are not chosen by ATRD or Raven Adams, they are chosen automatically by the advertisement systems by the platforms that host the podcast. I do not endorse, support, or promote any opinions or statements made in any adverts played during the show. #ScaryStories #UnexplainedMysteries #trueHorror ➤ And Remember; You are loved, you are important, and you are valid. Never let anyone tell you otherwise. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's never too early to plan your summer story in Europe with WestJet, from rolling countryside to cobblestone streets. Begin your next chapter. Book your seat at westjet.com or call your travel agent. WestJet, where your story takes off. Bien-a-bore-on. Embarked and profite. Embarked and celebrate. Rigolet.

Publied. Savouring. Admirate. And profite. Villaray, the voice that we love that we love. If you have a true scary story you'd like to share with the podcast, go to as-the-ravendreams.com and click the button to send it my way. Also, if the platform you're on has the option to rate the podcast or leave a comment, please consider doing so. And as always, thank you.

This was something that I experienced as a kid. Well, more so. My story is about my grandmother's experience, which in turn did affect me too. My grandparents lived in a cozy little house nestled in a quiet town in West Virginia. They owned a lot of acreage, and I loved spending time there and exploring their vast and open yard. I helped my granddad when he would mow the yard or rake the leaves, but I also loved finding cool-looking rocks or other trinkets in the dirt that were long lost and forgotten. I've even found a very small and ceramic canvas.

hat, perfectly intact. And when I showed it to my grandparents, they didn't recognize it. So, I got to keep it. It still sits on my shelf to this day. One thing I used to love about their house was the woods behind it. They had a well-maintained front and backyard, but the backyard was fenced off and covered with ivy. My granddad hated the idea of fencing because of just how big their yard was, but my grandma convinced him if the fencing was small and maybe inconspicuous. She worked hard to get the vines to grow all over the fence, and she planted her rose bushes along the back of it. It just made it all look more magical and inviting. But there was a reason that she wanted a fenced-off yard, which is also part of this story. As mentioned, there was a

slight incline after the fencing where the trees start. They were tall, and I remember two specific trees that would have been perfect to climb, and create a makeshift treehouse out of them, something I always wanted to do. However, I wasn't allowed to go into those trees, no matter the circumstances, be it with my grandparents or another adult during the day. I was never allowed back there. That's why my grandma wanted the yard fenced off, to keep us grandkids and her little dog in the yard.

When I would ask, she was stern and declining, saying it was dangerous back there. I would ask her how it was dangerous, and she would say that there were things in the trees that were dangerous that we didn't know about. I was still pretty young at that point, so I didn't really understand what they meant by that. As kids do, when told by one adult,

I asked my dad about it, complaining that I really wanted to check out the trees. He just told me that grandma didn't like people going back there and left it at that. I never really got answers as a kid, so I was left to imagining what she could possibly be afraid of, and dreaming of my perfect hideout. It wasn't until I was a bit older, around 16, I believe, that my grandma finally explained it to me.

I went to stay at their house when my parents had to go out of town due to something that happened to my mom's sister. My grandparents in this story were my paternal grandparents. They were going to be gone for about a week, and they didn't want me to say, stay at home all alone that long. At that point, I stayed inside more, watching TV or going to my friends. One night, I was watching a movie with my grandma before bed, and we were actually watching something that involved a large forest. It was satirical, but I made a joke to my grandma about that being the reason she didn't

want me to go into the trees. The person ran through the woods like she was scared, but nothing scary actually happened, or the reason that she was running wasn't scary. I can't recall exactly what it was, but I made a joke with her, asking if that's why I wasn't allowed back there. She looked at me with her brow furrowed, and again sternly said no. It was easy to sense the change of mood in the room, so I asked her, what exactly did you see back there that caused all this? why don't you ever talk about it?

And she reluctantly agreed to tell me. She explained that it wasn't that she was afraid of just some bug or animal back there, but more so afraid of something that she couldn't explain. This was way before I played back there, while I was apparently still an infant. She had taken her little dog, Caesar, out back one more time before they went. to bed. They didn't have the fencing in yet, so she went back there to watch him to make sure he didn't

run off somewhere. After Caesar did his business, he walked around sniffing the ground until he stopped near the edge of the yard, by her rose bushes. She looked into the trees, and, after standing there silently, it backed up slightly and started growling. My grandma has been watching him, and when he started growling, she looked into the trees too. She didn't see anything at first, and assumed that he was just barking at movement of the trees, or maybe there was a small animal like a mouse or a stray cat.

As Caesar kept barking, she again looked down at him, and he now had his tail tucked under him, but was continuing to bark. She was worried that he may run off into the trees to catch what he saw, so she bent down to grab him. As she stood back up, a reflection caught her attention, and she looked back over to the trees. That's when she spotted why he had been barking. There was definitely someone or something standing there. At first, the figure appeared human-shaped. Tall, imposing.

But as she tried to focus on it, she realized that it was something more unnatural. Below what would be the torso, it seemed to flare out like it was wearing a robe. She couldn't distinguish if there were legs because of it, but the torso itself didn't really make sense to her. It seemed like it was being squeezed and had ridges in it, explaining it as looking like an accordion. She thought at first that it must have been some kind of odd belt, and then she looked further up and it only got worse. She could see the long arms resting to its side. The arms were almost as long as its body,

and the fingers were grotesquely elongated, with spindly, twig-like fingers that twitched. They looked eerie and unnatural, if the length of them alone didn't. She thought maybe they were claws, but they still looked threatening. Then she got to look at the head and the face, kind of. Now, the only source of light was the floodlight from the porch, so it didn't do much to illuminate the trees.

But what she described did not sound human, with or without the light helping. The head itself looked big. It was rounded and it seemed to come to a little. a point. She believed that it was some kind of hood at first, which also made sense with the flared out bottom, or robe, of the being. But the only other thing on its head or face that she could make out, were the eyes. She saw by the slight reflection on the eyes, and could tell but that they were massive, and that they had to have made up most of this thing's head. Something about those

eyes immediately made her feel like she needed to leave. Caesar was still barking at this point, and fearing that it might cause this thing to react, she told him to hush as she tried to cradle his face. But as soon as she spoke, the thing's eyes changed to a bright glowing red. It was at that same time that my grandma's head began to pound. She said it felt as if she had been struck with a hammer on the top of her head, and it made her spin around to see who had hit her. But no one was there.

It was still just her, Caesar, and this thing in the woods. At the moment, her unsettling feeling turned to full-blown terror, and she ran as fast as she could to the house, locking all of the doors behind her. My granddad wasn't home at the time, so she had called him in hysterics telling him what had happened. He was at a friend's house, so they both drove over to their home and went and checked out the woods, armed.

Of course, they didn't find anything, and when my grandma went back over with him what she saw, he chalked it up to someone trying to scare her, and maybe when she ran off, she scared them as well. However, my grandma is adamant that whatever that thing was, it was not human. It was abnormally tall, and the overall build of it was not natural. The weirdly long and bony or twig-like fingers? The eyes alone. How do you explain that? And she said the headache really got to her, too.

It came out of nowhere, and it didn't go away until after she went to bed that night. She told my dad about the incident, too, but both him and my granddad didn't believe her. They thought that she was dramatizing it, or was mistaken since it was dark. But I know my grandma. She's not the type to embellish a story just to make it sound better. If she wanted my granddad to come home, all she would have had to have said was that there was someone out in the backyard. Why would she go that far with it?

As she told me this story, I instantly believed her and everything that she said. There are things out there that we do not know of, and that we don't really have a name for, and it's only a matter of time before some average person may spot those things in the trees, underwater, in the sky, wherever. And I think we should be more open-minded to that. But since then, I understood why she feared those woods, and why she didn't want anyone back there. I thought about going out there as an adult

just to see if I might be able to find or see anything but the story spoke to me enough that I don't want to go alone even now that I am much, much older those trees are still unsettling to me and I wonder if that thing is even still around. Lazzang sur-jolet, Pucance Morrow

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But most importantly, that's how TD is making things. I have a story that is probably one of the most disturbing things to have ever happened to my family. I 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 grandparents' 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 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 times. 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 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,

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 to 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 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 he, 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. 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 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 used to work for a decent-sized pizza chain as a delivery driver, and let me tell you, it was probably the craziest time of my life. For the most part, the job was decent. but there were absolutely some nights where things were completely out of hand. Our location was in the middle of a suburb that was just outside of both a nice part of town and a part of the town that was mostly inhabited by students that attended the local college. Obviously, the college part of town made most of the orders to our store,

but they were also the worst tippers, which I understood. I don't expect the students to be swimming in money or anything, so I usually just accepted the dollar tip with a smile and told them to have a nice night. Anyways, considering the season, I wanted to submit one of my experiences from when I was delivering pizza on New Year's Eve. I worked the late night shift, and we closed at midnight, so we usually got out of there at about 1.30 in the morning. and I was always scheduled to work all the way up to the end of the shift. We actually expected a lot of orders because we anticipated a lot of parties or people at home celebrating, so they had scheduled five drivers on the shift that night.

By about 11, we were completely dead, so they told three of the drivers to go home, leaving just myself, and one other driver who I could honestly say, was probably the most worthless employee at that store. Not to go too far into an aside, but she was the store manager's daughter, and she had her dad's passcode for the computer system,

so she constantly assigned deliveries to other drivers and pretty much never took them. And she did this with his account. Obviously, I wasn't a fan of hers, but neither here nor there. So every time a delivery came in, it was assigned to me. Which was nothing short of annoying as hell, but at least most of the people were being good about tips, which was nice.

But then, I got assigned a double with one order that was already 15 minutes late, and one that was just about to be late. She seriously handed it to me as I walked in from another delivery, and when I asked her why she hadn't taken it, her response was that her back was hurting so she couldn't do deliveries that night. I rolled my eyes and took the order and made my way to the first house. This was actually the delivery that turned into the event. I pulled up and noticed that the outside of the house was really dark. The only reason I knew it was the house was because of the mailbox out at the street side. I parked the car and grabbed the order, prepping to apologize to the person that answered the door for being so late.

I knocked, and as I did, the door actually kind of fell open, like it wasn't latched. I just kind of stood there, staring into the room, thinking, yeah, this is how horror movies start. I pushed the door open a bit more and announced who I was, literally saying, Hey, it's my name from Pizza Place. I have a delivery order for a Todd. I just stood there waiting for someone to show up and take it. this pizza, thinking to myself that if no one came to the door after two more minutes, I would just take it back to the store and tell them to call the customer, and basically tell them that we

attempted a delivery, but nobody answered. I announced myself one more time, saying that I would have to take the pizza back to the store if they didn't come to the door within a couple seconds. Within those couple seconds, I saw something that actually scared me more than anything I expected, A little girl, no older than two or three years old, came around the corner and walked straight up to me. I was beyond confused on what exactly I was supposed to do in this case, mostly because this kid, from what I could tell, was unattended. Though I was thinking that there was a possibility that maybe her parents were just asleep or not in this main part of the house. She looked up at me and reached over to my hand,

grabbed it and pulled on it, basically pulling me into the house. Now, when looking back at this situation, it's easy to say something like, oh, you should have left and called the cops, or whatever, but I was standing there, being pulled in by this child to a home that looked empty, holding a pizza for someone named Todd,

and at that moment, I had no time to really think about what exactly I should be doing. I just basically let this little kid pull me into the house. And as terrifying as this situation is, I'm glad that I went with her. She pulled me into the living room and then further into the dining room, where I saw a man unconscious on the floor. As soon as I ran over to the man on the floor, the little girl started audibly crying and watching me as I tried to do whatever I could

think to do to see if this man was even alive. Of course, I'm not a medic. I was just a pizza delivery driver, and I was being driven by adrenaline, and this little girl was just staring at me. At this point, I actually remembered that I had a cell phone, and I pulled it out to call 911. I told the woman who I was,

and that there was an unconscious man in the house that I was delivering to, giving her the address, and she walked me through some of the things to see if he was alive. Thankfully, he was. He was actually breathing, albeit very shallow. They told me that the medics were on the way, and for what felt like forever, I was just sitting there on the phone with the dispatcher waiting

and trying to make small talk with the little girl to keep her calm. I told her that he was going to be okay, and that they were coming in to help him. She just nodded and said, sat there beside me. It was scary, and kind of awkward, to be honest, and I really felt bad for this little girl. I was actually pretty upset that this man and his daughter were having to deal with this on New Year's Eve, when I'm guessing he was just waiting for the pizza to show up. That is, unfortunately, or fortunately, the end of the story for me. The medics were able to take

control of the situation and get everything taken care of. They got a hold of the man's family and got him onto an ambulance and to the hospital. I did have to talk to the police that showed up as well, mostly because it was a bit suspicious that I was in a random person's house and that they were unconscious. But, thankfully, and they decided that I had nothing to do with it and just took my information. I have no idea what happened to him, why he was unconscious or anything like that. I did have to take their order back to the store because I obviously couldn't have left it there, and the ticket was a cash ticket anyways.

I took the other delivery to the next house and went back to the store, and thankfully that was our last batch of deliveries for the night, because I was mentally drained. I really do hope that that man was okay, and that the hospital got him taken care of. That was one of the worst nights working on that job for me, and on New Year's at that. And it was actually pretty close to the time that I left the job,

mostly because I was a bit tired of all the excitement. Hi, Raven. First, I want to thank you for your hard work. 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-20s, 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. and 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 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 ten 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 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 uncontrollable. 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 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 basing. 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. Last year, I finally got the courage to leave a very toxic, long-term relationship that I was in. My ex was very abusive and controlling, so when I came across a great opportunity to move across the country and in with my best friend, I took this as fate telling me to get out while I could, and for good. It is so far been the best decision I've made in a long time, but, Unfortunately, it was followed up by some of my not-so-good decisions. The only person I knew at the time of me moving was my friend, Alex, that I moved in with. She got me a job with her, and I slowly started to regain my confidence and become outgoing again.

It didn't take me long to make friends with the other co-workers and people in the area, but I still found myself a little withdrawn, with not completely knowing the area. very well. I tried my best to keep pushing myself out there as this was my new life. This is where I wanted and where I wanted to be. So that's why I agreed to go to a New Year's party with Alex. It was a friend of hers that used to work at the company that we worked for, and she was hosting it at her house. I figured I would probably run into a few people I knew from work, or if nothing else, free food, drinks, and entertainments, right? When we got there, the party was already in full swing.

There were several people creating their cliques and gathering in different areas of the house. Alex introduced me to her friend, and after chatting for a few, I drifted away to look around and to mingle. I walked out back to enjoy the nice air when I noticed there were a few yard games back there that people were playing. I walked up to the game of Horseshoe and just watched a few people play when one guy asked if I wanted to join.

I shook my head no and told him that I was just watching since I had never played Horseshoe before. He looked surprised and quickly approached me from the side and pushed me on my shoulder towards the line to join in. He handed me his horseshoes and started explaining to me the rules while someone else was throwing theirs. It seemed like a pretty easy concept, but when it was my turn, I did miserably.

The other two people playing were kind and said that I did fine for a first timer, whereas the guy that insisted I play teased me by making a comment that his dog could probably throw better. I took no offense to it, and we all just had a good laugh. After the game, I thanked them for letting me join and decided to walk back inside to grab another drink. While I was making myself a small plate of snacks, the same guy from earlier came up to me and started chatting with me again. He introduced himself as Evan and said that he used to work with the host as well. So, I assumed that he worked at the same place I did at some point. I think at the time that was enough connection my buzzed brain needed at least.

And we ended up finding a place in the living room and talked for most of the night about everything. I ended up telling him that I had moved here just a few months prior from out of state. I explained why I moved so far and even about my ex. Again, I think at this point I was just rambling, as I didn't really have anyone to talk about all of this other than Alex. And, in my opinion, he was very kind and patient as he listened to me go on and on about my sad life, I'm sure. He told me that I did the wrong.

right thing and mentioned how smart I was and how proud he was of me for doing what was best for me. I guess this really stood out to me because this complete stranger talked about how proud they were of me. That wasn't something I had heard from someone in a very long time, so I was quickly in my feels. After some time of talking and choking back tears, and we kind of stuck together and just had a great night. There were a few drinking games that were played, and then it got close to the countdown. I could agree that I probably had too much to drink, but Alex and I had taken an Uber here, so I knew that we wouldn't be driving anyways.

That's probably what also gave me the confidence that night to do what I did. When it struck midnight, I grabbed Evan and kissed him to welcome in the new year and hopefully finally get past the year before. and to move forward. Thankfully, he seemed okay with it, too, and the rest of the night was a blast. Alex and I and a few other people ended up crashing there that night. I woke up on one side of the couch and noticed Alex and another girl on the other part of the couch. I laid there for a while due to being groggy and hung over, until Alex finally woke up too.

After a slow start, we finally got up and arrived. around and headed home. Once home, I got a text from a number saved in my phone as Evan with a heart emoji on it. It just said good morning, so without thinking about it too much, I replied. I was really liking him anyways, and I had no reason not to respond. He admitted to adding himself per my request, and I figured that I probably just didn't remember it because, well, alcohol. We actually ended up texting quite a bit and set up an actual date. I was pretty excited since I had been there for close to a year at this point,

and this would be my first date since leaving my ex. I talked with Alex about this as she saw me with him throughout the night, but she said that she didn't recognize him and just assumed the same. He was a friend of a friend. Later that week, we had our date, and it couldn't have gone better. We had so much in common, and I thought it was really cool whenever he asked me about allergies, because he didn't want to order anything that I could have a reaction to. I have a severe shellfish allergy, so I appreciated that he asked,

and he even made a little joke about how he didn't have to worry about me ordering the lobster and then making him pay for it. Anyways, that night was fantastic, and he even drove me home so that I didn't have to pay, for another Uber. Unfortunately, not long after that is when things started to change. We would go out together, but the conversation started changing. He started saying things that were all too familiar with my ex. It always seemed like it could be construed as sweet at first,

but then it could easily go awry if you're not careful. He started saying things like, I'm so glad that I met you. I don't know what I would do. do without you. You're the only thing that matters. We had only just started dating and he seemed like he was already infatuated with me. I know that I was the one that probably started it with the kiss, but this was also how my ex was. We would get into a fight, me and my ex, him being both physically and verbally abusive, and when it was over, he would say things like that to me. So I started

getting uncomfortable very quickly. I remember at one point he held my hands tightly in the restaurant. I excused myself and went to the restroom to try to stop myself from having a panic attack. Shortly after going in the restroom, he started texting me asking if I was okay. So I cut it short and went back to the table. I felt bad, but I told him I had to go as I really wasn't feeling well, and I insisted that I take an Uber so that he could still enjoy his meal. of course he refused, leaving it all behind,

and followed me outside until my ride arrived and texted me all the way home. I just left them on red until I got home, and he texted me about making it home safe. I told him that I had just gotten home and went to bed for the rest of the night. The next day I talked to Alex about it, and she agreed that he seemed to get attached fairly quickly, and thought that it was probably a good idea, idea to create some distance, and also to see how he would react, and that we should go and have a

day together to try to get it off my mind. I didn't want to cause a fight or anything, so I told him that I was feeling better, but that I was going to run some errands with Alex, and that I would let him know when I was done. He seemed perfectly fine with this. No questions asked. He just said to have a good time. So, that made me think that I was probably just overreacted. acting. When we went out, I left my phone on the table, so I didn't even have it with me. Nonetheless, we had a great day, but I came home to my phone being blown up. I still remember it. There was about 70 missed calls and text messages within four hours, and all from him. That's how long we were out. The messages started as a simple, when are you guys leaving? Do you know what you're going to do?

but they quickly grew into, Why aren't you responding or answering? Where are you? What are you doing? And they were pretty much just repeated over and over, except for the voicemails where he was literally crying, saying he didn't know what he did, but that he was sorry and he couldn't live without me.

I called him, and before I could even explain that I had left my phone at home, he started calling me a liar and asked who I had at the house. house since I never left. I finally got the chance to explain to him that I had forgotten it at home, but that I had been out the whole time. As I was about to mention that I had proof that we were out, it dawned on me. We were now in the same territory that I had been in before, with me having to prove where I had been. So I hung up and again had a bit of a meltdown. Thankfully, Alex was around to keep me calm, though. She was adamant that I call it off with him, as it obviously wasn't healthy

behavior, and I agreed. But she then brought up something that I hadn't even really thought about. How would he have known that my phone never left our place? We thought, maybe he was watching our place and never saw us leave, so he just assumed that I was still home. I didn't have a car, but Alex did, so we were in hers. It is a shared drive. driveway with our neighbors, though, so maybe he thought that it was their car. I'm not sure. Regardless, it was still an unsettling thought that he could be watching. So, after ignoring him the rest of that day, I told him how I felt about his actions and said that we needed to call it off. After several comments and drastic changes in emotion, I ended the call. However, that didn't seem to be

enough to convince him to leave me alone. He just happened to show up to places I was at, such as a grocery store, my work, the salon, and even a doctor's appointment. On one of these occasions, I told him that if he didn't stop, I was going to get a restraining order to which he said something about it just being a coincidence and left. But something that did alarm me was one day when he messaged me and I would ignore it, He texted me telling me to stop playing a certain game and to respond to him. At that point, I had been playing a game on my phone.

It wasn't something I brought up with him in the past, and I knew this because, for one, I'm not a big gaming person, and two, I had just downloaded this app recently, as Alex played it and we could play together. How would he have known that I was playing that at that exact time? I confronted him about it, and that's when he didn't respond for a while, and then finally just said,

I have my ways. This freaked me out. Again, this was my ex territory, and I told Alex about it. She was worried my phone may have had a tracker on it. Unfortunately, in my last relationship, I wasn't even allowed to have a password or lock on my phone. It had to be unlocked at all times,

so he could access it whenever he wanted. I know that it wasn't unhealthy relationship, but some habits are still hard to break, and I still didn't have a lock on my phone at the time. That's when I remembered him adding himself to my phone at the New Year's Eve party, and thought that he could have very easily added something like that at that time. This was new territory for me, so not trusting my phone anymore. I called my mom from Alex's phone and told her that I had to get a new phone, and to, contact me on hers until I did get a new one. And then I kept my phone off. To finish this off, Alex and I actually went and talked to a friend of hers in IT at work,

and he looked at my phone. We did end up finding a GPS slash location tracker, as well as a parental guide or remote watch thing on my phone. I assume that he downloaded these at the party whenever he added himself. The guy said that I could just delete them, or potentially just format my phone if I wanted to, but just to be safe, I took the new clear option. I went and got a new phone and number on Alex's plan, since it was cheaper anyways. My old number was the number that I had while I was with my ex, too, so it was probably just for the best.

And just as expected, the coincidental run-ins stopped, too. He couldn't call or text me anymore, but my Facebook was still there. He would send me message requests with pictures of me that I had taken. I guess he helped himself to my photo gallery too, probably sending them to himself and then deleting the messages. But I just ignored him. Slowly the messages stopped there until he finally left me alone. I don't know if he found someone else to terrorize,

and I hope not, but I'm just thankful that this one ended quickly. I didn't want it to consume me and run my life out here too. Oh, and I also found out more about Evan, in the sense that he had never worked at the same place as us. Alex asked her friend that had the party about him, and she said that he was actually her neighbor. She said that he never seemed weird or creepy to her, but would occasionally make comments about her,

being his girlfriend. But they were never like that with each other. She had only invited him to the party when he basically interjected himself, as she was bringing in the party supplies, and he noticed. She even mentioned that she stopped seeing him outside after the party and thought maybe he finally found himself another half, or a hobby. She apologized to me about it, too, but not like she had anything to do with it, so no ill will towards her at all.

Now she actually avoids going outside if she even sees him. In case anyone asks, no, I'm done being crazy. And spontaneous like that. And I decided it's probably just best to not date anybody for a few years. My father's job had us traveling a lot, all over the world. This event took place while we were living abroad. I was still young, around 12. at the time, but I do consider myself lucky to be able to see such an amazing places so early

in my life. I just wish that I hadn't experienced this. As mentioned, I was pretty young at the time. The town I lived in was pretty small and close to my school, so a group of us boys would often walk home from school. Sometimes we would stop at a local store to window shop, or, one of our favorite things, go hang out by the stream behind our neighborhood. It looked a little like this. Walking home from school, we took the main road. We would then branch off to an alley that came out to the other side

behind a lot of houses and businesses. I was shown this place by one of my friends, who I'm going to call John. Once you get out of the alley, there is a concrete wall lining the business. We would jump to the house. that wall, which is where the drainage pipe was, cross that, and go down a small grassy hill, then there was the stream. We would walk along the stream until we found the larger body of water

that it was connected to. People fish and swim in there all the time. They're just usually on the other side of the lake, so it wasn't really weird for us to do it, too. Our parents did know that we went down there, so they didn't worry about us not coming home directly after school. This was just our normal thing to do. We just had to be careful because we had school uniforms, and we had to make sure to not mess them up. So, this was one of those days, the day when we encountered this thing. John, Kai, and I decided to head out to the lake as the next day was a holiday, so there was no school. We walked through the alley, over the drain, and towards the water, ready for a

couple hours of fun. We started by looking around the nearby trees and rocks for the water, looking for bugs or other things that caught our attention. There were many times where we would find the things and take them home, especially fishing gear. There was a broken rod that we found, and we took it home and fixed it up. We found some bobbers, that were caught in trees or other vegetation, and we untangled them as well. I guess in a way we helped clean up the place, all while putting together our own little fishing rod that we all shared. After we were done exploring, or if we just weren't feeling it, we would take off our uniforms,

toss them over a small light that was nearby, and jump in the water. We would just wade in the water, splash, and coofer. around. But sometimes we would find things in the water, too. Up to that day, it all seemed pretty fearless and lighthearted. We lived in a great neighborhood. There was little to no crime in our area, at least none than I was aware of, so we never had a suspicious thought in our mind that we ever needed to be careful or to keep a lookout. As we enjoyed our time in the water, talking about school and other things, the sun was beginning to set and the sky was now getting that dark orange color.

We knew that we had to get going soon, but tried to use up every last minute a hard time. Until we started to get a whiff of a very strong and pungent fishy odor. It was normal at first. People fished there all the time and we've smelled things similar. But this time the stench was worse, and continued to get stronger. We tried joking about it at first,

but it got so strong that it was making us gag. So we finally decided to get out and leave. If we came home smelling just as bad, our parents would probably be upset. As we went back to our clothes and began dressing, something caught my attention that seemed to be moving near the water's edge, right where we were. John and Kai were already looking before I could motion to them to look too.

What we saw, I still have no real answers for. Right there at the start of the water by the large boulder that we had stood near just moments earlier, we saw a creature. It was standing on its back legs that looked human, but they also looked reptilian. The legs looked to be a pale gray or green. and scaly. They also looked very thin, like there was hardly anything to them. Its back was grotesquely round and warped,

as though it had some kind of malformation on it. It also almost looked severely bloated. The head was small and looked just as scaly and pale as its legs. It had what appeared to be hair, but there was very little. It was thin and stringy. I like to describe it as being similar to Gallum's hair from Lord of the Rings. It was in small patches,

and thin, stringy like that. It seemed to be moving to hide behind the boulder, and when it finally moved, it ran towards the water. But the way that it walked was wholly unnatural. It kind of waddled, but also seemed like it was in pain, or maybe,

didn't know or understand how to walk on two legs. I couldn't even begin to describe what it looked like. There aren't many creatures that I can think of that were in that country that were bipedal, and looked scaly or reptilian like that. It truly seemed otherworldly. We all stood in all as we watched to see what this thing was going to do. After it reached the water and got in, it slowly sank, deeper and deeper into the water, and then turned to face us.

The water was up to where its nose should be, but it didn't have a nose. It was flat, with a small indentation in two holes for nostrils, and the eyes were dark and looked extremely sunken in. It stared right at us, and it was as if time seemed to stop for that moment. None of us seemed to know what to do, so we stood completely motionless until it turned back, and was completely submerged in the water. Once it was out of sight, we all looked at each other with her eyes and said, What the hell was that?

To add to the confusion, the strong fishy smell was even gone entirely. But even after the creature and smell disappeared, disappeared, something no longer felt right about that place. We hurriedly grabbed our backpacks and shoes, as we hadn't put them back on yet, and got as far away from there as we could. When we reached the intersection where we normally split to go home, we said our goodbyes, and I walked in the opposite direction of them. The whole time, I felt that I had to keep looking over my shoulder, wondering if that thing knew where we were. where we were going, or was possibly following one of us. It seems silly now.

Most things just want to be left alone, I'm sure, but at the time, after seeing something that we couldn't possibly identify, it left quite an impression on me, and not in a good way. I got home and took a shower, which left me with my own thoughts even longer. None of us mentioned if we should tell us, someone about it, so I debated telling my parents. Normally, when we saw a bug or caught a snake or

lizard that I couldn't identify, my mom could tell me what it was. But for some reason, I feel like we weren't supposed to see that. I felt like if I told my parents, I could be in trouble, but I was also raised knowing that I could go to them and talk to them about anything, no matter what it was. So, that's what I did. I explained what I saw, describing everything I remembered, and the look on my mom's face told me that I wasn't alone in my thoughts. She had no idea what I saw. I could tell that she was trying to provide a reasonable explanation, while also not being dismissive, something I loved about my mother. When my father got home, she told me to explain it to him. and he said that it definitely sounded bizarre,

but also could not identify it. My mom was concerned about the size of the thing and explained how if our guts were telling us it wasn't safe or that something was wrong, then it must have been true, and asked me to avoid the area until and unless they find out more about this thing. My friends talked about it several times,

and we even told a few of our friends, other friends who wanted to check it out. John and I didn't want to go back there, as I was told not to, and John was creeped out by it. But none of my friends have said they've seen it either, so I think it was just the right day to catch that thing. Over the years, the thought of it slowly moved to the back of our minds until it was no longer something we felt was relevant. But it was still there, always with us. I now live in the U.S., and I've kept in touch with Kai, and we've talked about it on occasion as well. It came up recently as he invited me to his wedding, which would mean that I would be taking another trip overseas.

We've flirted with the idea of going back out to that lake to reminisce, and maybe see if that thing is still there, or possibly reproduced. I'm excited to see Kai and my old home, but I have mixed feelings about seeing that creature again. However, this time, if I do see it, maybe I'll be lucky enough to catch it on camera. This was something a couple of friends and I experienced just a few years ago. My friends, Devin, Sarah Vince, and I, had made a tradition of going on a trip each summer together. It was typically around the end of August, and it was usually something outdoorsy such as camping. That year was no different. We chose a spot that we were fairly familiar with, as we were booking everything pretty last minute due to some personal issues.

We chose a remote spot in the mountains. We loved it out there. The campsite was near a nice lake surrounded by thick forests, and we were pretty secluded, too. probably more likely to run into a bear before another person. We knew our way around the forest, and never really got lost, so we weren't worried about that either. Our plan was to camp for about three nights, and then we would go into the city and enjoy some drinks,

and whatever entertainment they had to offer nearby. Our first night went on without a hitch, too. We got all of our tents set up, Sarah and I shared a tent. That way the guys didn't tease us about needing help setting it up either. I love everything camping, but for the life of me, I can never get my tent set up without help. So after settling in, we swam in the lake and even rented two small boats

just to see more of the water. It was beautiful, as the sun beamed down on it. but I was also glad that I had put on plenty of sunscreen. That night, we started our fire and had a small dinner of brots and chips, as we talked and laughed. I think we all slept pretty soundly that night, too, as we were all awake and ready for another great day. The second day was as great as we expected as well. It was that night that things kind of went downhill. hill. We had our normal dinner and sat around the fire enjoying the night. It had cooled down a bit,

so we became concerned that it might rain. But we were determined to stay up until that happened, if it did. At some point, Devin announced that he was pretty tired and decided to turn in for the night, while the rest of us stayed up a little longer. The conversation started slowing down, and it became more chill when we started hearing what sounded like branches breaking and leave shuffling. It had become a bit windy, so I thought nothing of it. But the ambience of the outdoors was trying to lull me to sleep.

But then the cracking became more frequent. Even when the wind wasn't blowing. I started looking around casually like I was scanning the trees around us. I thought I was being pretty nonchalant about it, but then Sarah asked me, you hearing that too? I looked over at her to see the look of suspicion

as we both looked at Vince, who was obviously thinking the same thing. Vince said it was probably some wildlife nearby, and that we had no reason not to believe that either. So, we continued with our conversation as normal. But the crunching and breaking sounds continued. And unlike other times where I could ignore it, this time I felt the urge to find the source of the sound.

I tried to play it off at first, asking the others what they thought it was. A deer, most likely, possibly a rabbit, and just hopefully not a bear. Mint agreed that it was probably a deer, and, with their nods in agreement, I said I wanted to go check it out. If I saw a deer and possibly spoke it away from our camp, then at least the urge to investigate would be gone.

The other two shrugged and decided to go along with me, and thank God they did. We all grabbed a flashlight and decided on a direction where we were hearing the sounds coming from. As we walked through the trees, watching the shadows jump from a nearby fire, I started to get this uneasy feeling in my stomach. Something wasn't right.

I started to slow my pace as the other two went a few steps ahead of me, but I could tell that they had to be feeling the same way as me. I could hear Vince's breath starting to shake, and Sarah was now holding her flashlight with both hands while tapping the handle. Something she often did when she was nervous or upset. At this point, we were pretty deep in the trees, and we couldn't see anything. I started telling them that we should forget it and just go back, but Vince quickly motioned for me to be quiet.

I stood motionless, sweeping my flashlight low to the ground, expecting to see the legs of a deer that he may have spotted. I didn't see deer legs, but I don't know what I did see. There were four legs, but the fur on them was patchy at best, and very shiny, like it was oily. There were bare spots, like it had been shaven or bitten off. But then the front legs were so far from the back legs, as in its torso, was the longest thing that I've ever seen. If it stood on two legs, this thing would have had to have been eight or nine feet, tall.

The actual body of this thing looked severely bloated and round like it could burst any moment. But the worst part was, I moved my flashlight up more and saw just a pinkish brown skin clinging to the skull. There was no fur around it. It was clean. You could even see the roundness of the top of the skull. But the glowing orange eyes and the snarl is what terrible. terrified me the most.

I know dears. I know what they look like. And I know that deers don't have pointed teeth and don't have a low guttural growl like that thing. I was frozen in fear, not knowing what to do. I didn't know what this thing was and if it would try to attack us if we turned our back to it.

But when the growl became louder, and Vince turned his light to the left, we saw more eyes, and we knew that we needed to get the hell out of there quickly. However, Sarah seemed to be way ahead of us. The one directly in front of us shifted which caused Sarah to scream, throw her flashlight at it, and run. It was as if I was watching in slow motion as it soared through the air, and it smacked that creature straight in the face, scaring it off too. They both stopped growling, and the one to the right ran off.

You could hear the loud stomp as it ran away, and the other one looked over towards it. We took this as our chance to run, so we both ran back through the trees, until we were back at the fire with Sarah. We all stood there to compare what we had seen, and, when it all matched, we knew that we couldn't have been mistaken. That thing was definitely something we had to be. had never seen or heard of before, but we did congratulate Sarah on her throwing skills, as it gave us a good opportunity.

Sarah and I didn't want to stay, and even though he still didn't want to admit it, I'm pretty sure Vince was just as freaked out. We checked to make sure that Devin was fine and Vince stayed in his tent, and Sarah and I stayed in the Jeep, behind metal and locked doors. The next day we checked around our camp and thankfully didn't spot any tracks, so we must have convinced them to stay away. Or maybe they were just never interested in us. We told Devin about it the next day and he thought it was crazy,

but I think he was skeptical too. We didn't really care if he didn't believe us, or what either of the guys thought. We didn't want to stay there another night. night, worried those things that might come back, and maybe there could be more than two of them. We did settle on moving our setup closer to the entrance by a ranger post, so we at least had somewhere to turn. We didn't have any other run-ins on our last night, but it was pretty hard for us to fall asleep. I felt a whole lot better after we left there and stayed in a hotel. We've

been back there once since, but again, I didn't want to be around that same area, and after it gets dark, I refuse to venture around those woods. So, there's the story of my friends and I being scared to death of this unknown creature, and my friend chucking her flashlight at it to save our lives. We do laugh about it now, but at the time, there was nothing funny about seeing those things, out in the middle of nowhere, in the dead of night. Every year, my neighbor, Hugh, throws his New Year's party for the block. I will say that he is adamant that kids are not allowed,

as there is alcohol involved, and something always ends up happening to make the party crazy. It's typically in a good way, though, no injuries, fights, or cops being called, but they can get into some pretty wild things. So, needless to say, and that as always my choice of plans for New Year's and 2018 was no different. I brought wine and a cheeseboard that Hugh always enjoyed and insisted that I make. At some point during the party, I was talking to Hugh and a few others when his wife, Chandra, approached him and whispered in his ear. I watched as his normal smiling face slowly faded into one more of concern. He quickly smiled again and excused himself from our group.

I watched as he walked away and towards the entryway where the door was. I continued to talk with the others for a few before my curiosity got the best of me, and I excused myself as well. I headed to the kitchen island where the drinks are, as you could see the entryway from there, which is where I spotted Hugh talking with a guy that looked exactly like him, as if they could be twins. I was conflicted on if I should approach them because Hugh had more of a crossed look while the guy he was talking to was smiling

and kind of waving back and forth to the music that was playing. Not long after, the guy patted Hugh on the shoulder and walked off. Hugh stood there for a few seconds before we made eye contact and walked over smiling. I tried to pretend that I had just gotten there and didn't see much of what happened, but he could see right through me, so he briefly explained. Apparently, the guy that he was talking to was actually his twin brother, Leo. He hadn't seen his brother in several years as they didn't get along very well, and he had moved away. He said this in good faith, asking to keep an eye out,

because if he did anything remotely wrong or inappropriate, he wanted to know, as to have a reason to make him leave. I told him that I understood and would let him know, but that he should try to have a good time as this was the party of the year for our little block. And he agreed. For the next couple of hours, everything seemed to be fine until Leo finally made his way to me

over by Chandra's plate collection. She had a display of all the state plates and even some countries that they had visited. I was just browsing over them when I heard someone else, ask, have you ever been? I turned to see Leo behind me holding a bottle of something. I asked for clarification, and he started talking about a specific country. I don't want to mention it for Hugh's privacy,

but he said that that's where they were actually born until they moved to the U.S., and that they had dual citizenship with their parents. He talked about some things that he enjoyed there, and how he wished he could go back. I was trying to be friendly and stay optimistic, and I made a comment about how you should always try to do what makes you happy. He seemed to appreciate it, and hugged me with one arm as he continued to drink his liquor.

I could tell by his swaying and slurring that he was definitely intoxicated, but he still hadn't done anything bad, so I let him be on his way. We were getting close to midnight at this point, I think maybe 15 to 30 minutes to go. Shandra was passing out the poppers and talking with everyone, and I saw Leo in the back hallway, heading into the bathroom. Again, I was just keeping tabs on this guy,

but also continuing to have a good time. We gathered around the TV to get ready for the countdown, and altogether, we welcomed in the new year and did some celebratory drinks. At this point, I had actually friends, forgotten about Leo, and was carrying on a conversation with someone in the living room. But that, that's when I started smelling smoke. I asked the guy that I was talking to, and he agreed that there was definitely something burning. I went around to the stove and saw nothing there, but then I saw Hugh quickly

coming down the stairs looking alarmed. I asked him about the smell, and he also had no idea, but he asked me if I had seen Leo. I told him the last time I was. I told him the last time I I saw him was before midnight, and that he had just gone to the bathroom. He then made a mad dash to the bathroom, saying something that I couldn't make out, and was banging on the door and yelling for Leo to open it. I decided to follow him in case anything happened, as I didn't know Leo, and I didn't know what he was capable of. As I stood at the end of the hallway, I saw the bathroom door fly open, and the look on

Hugh's face changed to one of confusion. Leo stepped out and what I assume was one of Chandra's dresses. He had shaved or cut a lot of his hair off and was wearing makeup. I also want to assume that he had lipstick on his arms and head instead of blood, but I'm pretty sure that was wrong. As he swung the door open, he yelled, Happy New Year's, brother! And slammed into Hugh, shoving them both into the door across.

the hallway, which was his office. I then quickly noticed the smoke coming out of the bathroom and was freaking out, trying to decide what to address first. I yelled for Chandra to call 911 and quickly ran to the bathroom to see something in the tub on fire. I quickly looked around and saw nothing else, so I turned on the shower and then ran after the brothers. Leo was on top of Hugh, but I noticed the razor in Leo's hand. and Hugh was trying to hold it back. Thankfully, I was able to pull his arm back, too,

making it easier for Hugh to grab it. Then I dragged Leo backwards to get him off Hugh. Thankfully, we were able to subdue him until the cops showed up. The whole time, he was spouting off different things that made no sense, as well as talking in another language. I apologized to Hugh later about calling the authorities, as I kind of felt that I had overstepped, but he thanked me for it.

After it was all sudden done, they had arrested Leo, and they offered to take Hugh to get him checked out, but he refused, as there were still many people there and he wanted to pick the party back up so that it didn't end like that. I then helped him look over his bathroom,

and noticed that Leo had set his clothes in some of his belongings, like his wallet, on fire. We cleaned it all up, and then tried to get him, get the party back into full swing, and, for the most part, we were able to. It was a few days after the party that I was back over there, helping Hugh shovel his driveway when he explained a bit more about his brother.

Leo apparently had issues with drugs, and he had been bailed out on multiple occasions by their mother. He finally cut ties when he moved back in with his mom, only to rob her shortly after and sell all of her stuff, including many things from their grandparents. in their home country. He was incarcerated at the time and was locked up for several years. And when he showed up to the party,

he had only been out for a couple of months. He definitely was not supposed to be there that night. Unfortunately, he did, and he apparently had plans. He had told him, in their other language, that he needed to die as he was the reason that his life was so miserable. He assumed that he was using again

based on his actions, because he had no other explanation as to why he did what he did with the clothes and his hair. I was shocked to hear all of this because Hugh was always such a gentle giant, that it was hard to believe he had a twin that was literally the complete opposite of him. Thankfully, I never saw or heard about him again, and I just hope that they never had to deal with it either. But it was definitely one of the more memorable New Year's, even if it was terrifying. And while I hope that I never meet Leo again, I do also hope that he got the help that he desperately needed. 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 L.L.L.

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 sense 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 very much. 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. Rani 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 accidents happen, 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 didn't even, I had to be a huge painted blur in my memory. 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 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 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 abuse. 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. Fan of soccer, you could assist at a moment historic. You could get any for the final of the Cup of the World of the FIFA

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