WEBVTT 00:00:00.980 --> 00:00:04.219 Welcome back to Internet Frenzy. Welcome back, 00:00:04.360 --> 00:00:07.660 guys. I'm Whitney. And I'm Joe. And this is Internet 00:00:07.660 --> 00:00:10.320 Frenzy. And we're happy to be back. My welcome 00:00:10.320 --> 00:00:12.580 back was actually it was for them, but it was 00:00:12.580 --> 00:00:14.820 also for you. Welcome back to the podcast. Thank 00:00:14.820 --> 00:00:16.699 you so much. Yeah, it's actually really funny 00:00:16.699 --> 00:00:21.539 because Joe had a individual solo epi solo. There 00:00:21.539 --> 00:00:24.820 we go. Solo episode last week. And someone commented, 00:00:25.059 --> 00:00:27.820 one, Joe accidentally posted the raw audio. I 00:00:27.820 --> 00:00:30.649 was going to say this. It was so bad. So he posted 00:00:30.649 --> 00:00:33.490 the raw audio. It was 17 of you that listened 00:00:33.490 --> 00:00:37.049 to it. And I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for whatever 00:00:37.049 --> 00:00:40.250 it said. We corrected it after a little. Yeah, 00:00:40.310 --> 00:00:43.390 only 17 people at that time had heard it because 00:00:43.390 --> 00:00:45.369 we had like uploaded it for probably like an 00:00:45.369 --> 00:00:47.469 hour and a half. And Joe text me and he was like, 00:00:47.469 --> 00:00:50.909 look at this. No, you text me a screenshot of 00:00:50.909 --> 00:00:54.229 a comment. And I love whoever this was. She was 00:00:54.229 --> 00:00:56.710 like, this episode was a mess. We need Morgan 00:00:56.710 --> 00:01:00.880 back. It's welcome back Morgan. I'm Morgan now. 00:01:00.880 --> 00:01:03.479 Yes, my name is Whitney, but thank you. Thank 00:01:03.479 --> 00:01:06.959 you for missing me Yeah, I was like that one 00:01:06.959 --> 00:01:09.879 time one time I do a solo episode and though 00:01:09.879 --> 00:01:14.000 somebody comments and is like go home, bro So 00:01:14.000 --> 00:01:16.780 then he so then he was like, oh man did my episode 00:01:16.780 --> 00:01:19.500 suck and he goes to click and listen to it He 00:01:19.500 --> 00:01:21.620 posted the raw audio. So, of course, it's gonna 00:01:21.620 --> 00:01:24.420 suck The first like two minutes is silence. He 00:01:24.420 --> 00:01:26.540 hasn't even talked yet. It's true. We're guests 00:01:26.540 --> 00:01:29.140 for guys now We're back the way we should be 00:01:29.140 --> 00:01:31.939 and he posted the legit the edited audio now 00:01:31.939 --> 00:01:34.060 So if you want to listen to the episode of last 00:01:34.060 --> 00:01:37.040 week, Joe's soul episode go for it. It's really 00:01:37.040 --> 00:01:41.379 good once it's edited so and just quick recap 00:01:41.379 --> 00:01:44.560 for those of you that did listen to it the fake 00:01:44.560 --> 00:01:48.879 story Was a story about the ring doorbell the 00:01:48.879 --> 00:01:51.909 lady visiting OP in the middle of the night multiple 00:01:51.909 --> 00:01:54.450 times. That one was so creepy, like the way she 00:01:54.450 --> 00:01:58.030 was running. Listen, I had to get it out of my 00:01:58.030 --> 00:02:00.969 brain because I just like had it in there. So 00:02:00.969 --> 00:02:02.769 hope you guys enjoyed that. If you got it right, 00:02:02.829 --> 00:02:05.930 good for you. I knew it was that one because 00:02:05.930 --> 00:02:09.719 we just got a ring camera. So I was like, I could 00:02:09.719 --> 00:02:11.860 tell. I was like, yeah, that's fresh on your 00:02:11.860 --> 00:02:13.819 mind. And I even talked about it in that episode. 00:02:14.099 --> 00:02:16.439 Like we I resisted getting a ring camera for 00:02:16.439 --> 00:02:18.259 the longest time because I didn't want to see 00:02:18.259 --> 00:02:21.000 who was on my porch at any given time. Yeah. 00:02:21.639 --> 00:02:23.740 But it's fine. We got one because we needed to 00:02:23.740 --> 00:02:26.460 get with the times. Yep. Exactly. But we're we're 00:02:26.460 --> 00:02:29.740 going with trick or truth. Volume two, episode 00:02:29.740 --> 00:02:32.479 two, part two, and I'm I'm ready for it. I brought 00:02:32.479 --> 00:02:34.280 a couple of heaters and I know you did, too. 00:02:34.439 --> 00:02:36.000 Guys, what do you think of my hat? Sick, huh? 00:02:36.159 --> 00:02:38.759 Friends of the program. True turf. just had to 00:02:38.759 --> 00:02:40.419 rep the hat because they're launching our company 00:02:40.419 --> 00:02:42.919 this coming week. They will be officially rolling 00:02:42.919 --> 00:02:46.139 out. If you're in the Phoenix metro area anywhere 00:02:46.139 --> 00:02:48.680 and you need turf, turf for your yard, putting 00:02:48.680 --> 00:02:51.159 greens, hit up the homies at True Turf because 00:02:51.159 --> 00:02:53.039 they are friends of the program. Hit them up 00:02:53.039 --> 00:02:55.020 for your turf needs. But let's jump into this 00:02:55.020 --> 00:03:15.740 week's episode, shall we? Both of my stories 00:03:15.740 --> 00:03:18.099 this week are coming from the subreddit creepy 00:03:18.099 --> 00:03:21.819 encounters Buckle up you're gonna crap your pants 00:03:21.819 --> 00:03:26.159 This one is titled creepy babysitting experience. 00:03:27.680 --> 00:03:30.960 Oh Babysitting stories get me. I also have a 00:03:30.960 --> 00:03:34.379 babysitting story. Stop it. Yeah, it's so creepy. 00:03:34.379 --> 00:03:37.090 Okay, I'm ready. All right Honestly, to this 00:03:37.090 --> 00:03:38.930 day, this is one of the creepiest situations 00:03:38.930 --> 00:03:41.590 I think I've ever been in. When I was 15 or 16, 00:03:41.650 --> 00:03:43.909 I used to babysit for a family with two kids. 00:03:44.469 --> 00:03:46.310 They lived in an apartment complex and would 00:03:46.310 --> 00:03:48.729 ride their bikes around in the parking lot. One 00:03:48.729 --> 00:03:50.490 time we were out there playing when one of their 00:03:50.490 --> 00:03:52.469 neighbors started talking to me. I didn't want 00:03:52.469 --> 00:03:54.449 to be rude to the family's neighbor, so I chatted 00:03:54.449 --> 00:03:56.590 with him. He was asking me about school, if I 00:03:56.590 --> 00:03:59.909 was into sports, specifically if I was a runner 00:03:59.909 --> 00:04:03.689 because I had, quote, amazing legs. Oh, wow. 00:04:03.930 --> 00:04:06.270 Looking back, this obviously should have raised 00:04:06.270 --> 00:04:08.770 about a million red flags for me. Unfortunately, 00:04:08.870 --> 00:04:11.330 I was pretty desensitized to being objectified 00:04:11.330 --> 00:04:14.110 by middle -aged men, so I didn't think much of 00:04:14.110 --> 00:04:16.689 it. That's sad. But I was definitely tired of 00:04:16.689 --> 00:04:18.689 talking to this guy while I was trying to wrangle 00:04:18.689 --> 00:04:20.829 two toddlers, so I took them inside for lunch. 00:04:21.490 --> 00:04:26.230 Being a young fool, I didn't lock the door. We 00:04:26.230 --> 00:04:28.230 were sitting at the table eating lunch when the 00:04:28.230 --> 00:04:31.230 door opens, and lo and behold, in walks Mr. Legs. 00:04:31.339 --> 00:04:36.240 He closes and locks the door behind him. Finally, 00:04:37.220 --> 00:04:40.060 I start thinking, hmm, this is weird. I don't 00:04:40.060 --> 00:04:42.160 remember much about our interaction other than 00:04:42.160 --> 00:04:44.240 him saying he was there to get to know me better. 00:04:44.399 --> 00:04:47.300 I knew I had to get him right back out that door. 00:04:47.459 --> 00:04:49.779 I have no idea what I said to him, but it worked. 00:04:50.220 --> 00:04:52.579 He left and I learned from my mistake and locked 00:04:52.579 --> 00:04:54.860 the door behind him. I was deeply unsettled, 00:04:54.860 --> 00:04:57.100 but blamed myself for the whole thing. I was 00:04:57.100 --> 00:04:58.720 so embarrassed that I hadn't locked the door 00:04:58.720 --> 00:05:01.050 when we came inside. Rookie move. The parents 00:05:01.050 --> 00:05:03.189 came home and I left, but I couldn't shake the 00:05:03.189 --> 00:05:06.129 heebie -jeebies. So I told my mom about it. Obviously 00:05:06.129 --> 00:05:08.310 she was immediately like, what the F, we need 00:05:08.310 --> 00:05:10.629 to tell the parents about this. Yeah. So she 00:05:10.629 --> 00:05:13.170 called them and they called the police. Turns 00:05:13.170 --> 00:05:16.189 out this neighbor was on the run and wanted by 00:05:16.189 --> 00:05:20.610 the police. Or for our word, needless to say, 00:05:20.610 --> 00:05:24.269 I am now obsessive about locking my doors. Oh 00:05:24.269 --> 00:05:28.449 my gosh. This girl. And she had two kids with 00:05:28.449 --> 00:05:31.089 her. Two kids. Two little kids. This guy was 00:05:31.089 --> 00:05:34.750 on the run from police at the time and somehow 00:05:34.750 --> 00:05:37.029 she got him to leave. There had to be a million 00:05:37.029 --> 00:05:40.949 things that went right for her to be spared. 00:05:41.350 --> 00:05:44.790 Guys, we've been binge watching the series. We 00:05:44.790 --> 00:05:46.829 watched it on Hulu. It's called I Survived because 00:05:46.829 --> 00:05:50.329 we love true crime. The best show. They do like, 00:05:50.329 --> 00:05:52.889 you know, usually two or three stories in each 00:05:52.889 --> 00:05:55.569 episode, but one of those stories is always about 00:05:55.569 --> 00:05:59.670 a girl. who was not as lucky. Yeah. It's that's 00:05:59.670 --> 00:06:03.129 just devastating the way that it impacts their 00:06:03.129 --> 00:06:05.870 lives, obviously, but like this girl was just 00:06:05.870 --> 00:06:08.410 babysitting what every 15 or 16 year old girl 00:06:08.410 --> 00:06:12.529 does. Oh, runs in to make the kids lunch and 00:06:12.529 --> 00:06:16.430 the dude just walks in thoughts. It's wild to 00:06:16.430 --> 00:06:19.970 me that she was able to keep her composure because 00:06:19.970 --> 00:06:22.970 I feel like if I was 16 and a man's walking in, 00:06:22.970 --> 00:06:28.060 I'm like, what are you doing? run kids like going 00:06:28.060 --> 00:06:31.279 crazy yes I'd be freaking out like if he was 00:06:31.279 --> 00:06:34.100 just being like casual chatting you up outside 00:06:34.100 --> 00:06:36.180 you'd like immediately think that he was up to 00:06:36.180 --> 00:06:39.639 no good if he came inside the house well yeah 00:06:39.639 --> 00:06:43.259 like I mean obviously being outside of a situation 00:06:43.259 --> 00:06:45.199 it's easy to be like well his intentions were 00:06:45.199 --> 00:06:47.079 horrible you know his intentions were bad he 00:06:47.079 --> 00:06:50.699 locked the door but if you had just been talking 00:06:50.699 --> 00:06:52.959 to him he was friendly enough he gave you bad 00:06:52.959 --> 00:06:55.639 vibes but like Put yourself in that situation. 00:06:55.680 --> 00:06:58.279 He walks in. I don't know if you'd like scream. 00:06:58.300 --> 00:07:01.040 I feel like you'd be like, oh crap, I'm in a 00:07:01.040 --> 00:07:05.600 bad situation. Like, how do I? Oh, yeah, I don't 00:07:05.600 --> 00:07:07.399 know. I feel like I would probably scream. So 00:07:07.399 --> 00:07:09.959 let me make this clear. He didn't live in that 00:07:09.959 --> 00:07:12.480 house, right? No, it's apartment complex. So 00:07:12.480 --> 00:07:14.699 he was just a neighbor in the complex is what 00:07:14.699 --> 00:07:17.000 she said. But yeah, so he's not he's literally 00:07:17.000 --> 00:07:19.339 that's where it's I'm freaking out and screaming 00:07:19.339 --> 00:07:22.759 if a guy that's coming into my home that isn't 00:07:22.759 --> 00:07:26.240 his home. I'm freaking out. So kudos to her for 00:07:26.240 --> 00:07:28.980 keeping her composure. Yeah, I'm I just feel 00:07:28.980 --> 00:07:31.120 like maybe the walls would have been down a little 00:07:31.120 --> 00:07:33.139 more just because she's like chatting him up. 00:07:33.160 --> 00:07:35.839 I don't know. I mean, everyone reacts differently 00:07:35.839 --> 00:07:37.879 and I've never been in that situation. Thank 00:07:37.879 --> 00:07:40.779 goodness. But I feel like I would lose my crap. 00:07:40.980 --> 00:07:43.139 I would start throwing shit like I would literally 00:07:43.139 --> 00:07:46.240 go crazy. I would go nuts before before anything 00:07:46.240 --> 00:07:47.800 you would. There wouldn't be like a part of you. 00:07:47.819 --> 00:07:49.620 It's like I'm going to try to navigate this. 00:07:49.899 --> 00:07:52.639 get out of the situation. That's true. Yeah. 00:07:53.180 --> 00:07:55.319 Because it's like, obviously, it's one thing 00:07:55.319 --> 00:07:57.000 if he comes in and starts attacking her, but 00:07:57.000 --> 00:07:59.100 he comes in and I just want to get to know you 00:07:59.100 --> 00:08:03.560 better. Oh, my gosh. Yeah, he's a creep. That's 00:08:03.560 --> 00:08:05.759 so bad. There's got to be something she said 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:08.060 that got him out. Yeah. And that's the weirdest 00:08:08.060 --> 00:08:09.819 thing is she's like, I don't know what I said. 00:08:10.139 --> 00:08:12.160 I have no idea what I said to him, but it worked. 00:08:12.319 --> 00:08:17.220 So scary. Yeah. Oh, dude. Can you imagine like 00:08:17.220 --> 00:08:19.079 if that was like that's something that happened 00:08:19.079 --> 00:08:21.660 to our babysitter and our daughter or like, yeah, 00:08:21.660 --> 00:08:25.079 like I would lose my crap. Yeah, I would be very, 00:08:25.160 --> 00:08:30.600 very upset. I would be so angry. Yeah. Luckily, 00:08:30.620 --> 00:08:32.159 we don't have to deal with that. Our neighbors 00:08:32.159 --> 00:08:34.879 are chill. Our neighbors are cool. Oh, gosh. 00:08:35.519 --> 00:08:38.580 That's so wild. I was going to do my babysitting 00:08:38.580 --> 00:08:41.440 one first, but I'm going to do. The other one. 00:08:41.500 --> 00:08:43.980 This comes from the subreddit NoSleep. My dying 00:08:43.980 --> 00:08:46.519 mother promised her guardian angel would protect 00:08:46.519 --> 00:08:49.580 me. I've seen it now, and I don't think it's 00:08:49.580 --> 00:08:53.039 an angel. My mother died two months ago. It wasn't 00:08:53.039 --> 00:08:55.679 a tragedy in the sudden shocking sense. It was 00:08:55.679 --> 00:08:59.120 a long, slow, quiet, fading cancer. We had years 00:08:59.120 --> 00:09:01.080 to prepare, but you're never really prepared. 00:09:01.299 --> 00:09:04.059 The last week was spent in a sterile beige -colored 00:09:04.059 --> 00:09:06.399 hospice room that smelled of bleach and quiet 00:09:06.399 --> 00:09:09.240 finality. I sat by her bed, holding her thin, 00:09:09.440 --> 00:09:11.740 papery hand, just watching her breathe. She was 00:09:11.740 --> 00:09:13.980 at peace with it. That was the strangest, most 00:09:13.980 --> 00:09:16.820 difficult part. While I was a tangled, screaming 00:09:16.820 --> 00:09:20.659 gnaw of grief at anticipatory loss, she was serene. 00:09:21.080 --> 00:09:23.000 On her last day, when her breathing was shallow 00:09:23.000 --> 00:09:25.720 and her voice was a dry, rustling whisper, she 00:09:25.720 --> 00:09:28.340 pulled me close. Her eyes, which had been cloudy 00:09:28.340 --> 00:09:31.179 and distant, were suddenly crystal clear. Don't 00:09:31.179 --> 00:09:34.340 be sad, my love, she whispered. I'm not afraid. 00:09:34.639 --> 00:09:37.320 I've never been afraid. He's always been with 00:09:37.320 --> 00:09:40.419 me. Who, Mom? I asked, my voice thick with tears. 00:09:41.019 --> 00:09:43.860 My guardian, she said, her gaze shifting to a 00:09:43.860 --> 00:09:47.120 point just over my shoulder. My protector. He 00:09:47.120 --> 00:09:49.679 was a gift from my own mother when she passed. 00:09:50.120 --> 00:09:52.960 He's kept me safe my whole life. He's never let 00:09:52.960 --> 00:09:55.480 any real harm come to me. I didn't know what 00:09:55.480 --> 00:09:58.340 to say. My mother had always been a little spiritual 00:09:58.340 --> 00:10:01.830 in a vague, non -denominational way. I just assumed 00:10:01.830 --> 00:10:04.490 it was the morphine talking. A final comforting 00:10:04.490 --> 00:10:07.309 delusion, I squeezed her hand. When I go, she 00:10:07.309 --> 00:10:09.690 continued, her eyes looking back onto mine with 00:10:09.690 --> 00:10:13.190 a startling intensity. He will pass to you. He 00:10:13.190 --> 00:10:16.029 has to. He needs someone to watch over. You will 00:10:16.029 --> 00:10:19.210 be safe now, always. Mom, don't talk like that, 00:10:19.210 --> 00:10:21.590 I choked out. You won't believe me at first, 00:10:21.629 --> 00:10:24.450 she said, ignoring me. But you'll know. There 00:10:24.450 --> 00:10:27.370 will be ten marks. Ten signs after I'm gone. 00:10:27.690 --> 00:10:29.730 When you've seen the tenth, you'll know he's 00:10:29.730 --> 00:10:33.460 with you. And then, then you will see him. She 00:10:33.460 --> 00:10:36.500 recited the marks to me then, her voice low, 00:10:36.620 --> 00:10:43.539 arithmetic chant. No. A coin returned, a silent 00:10:43.539 --> 00:10:47.320 bell, a path cleared, a saved fall, a warning 00:10:47.320 --> 00:10:50.779 unheard, a fear answered, a scent of the old 00:10:50.779 --> 00:10:54.620 earth, a touch of cold fur, a voice not your 00:10:54.620 --> 00:10:58.840 own, and finally a gaze returned. She finished, 00:10:58.940 --> 00:11:01.919 and a deep, peaceful sigh escaped her lips. She 00:11:01.919 --> 00:11:04.440 closed her eyes, and a few hours later, she was 00:11:04.440 --> 00:11:06.980 gone. The funeral was a blur. The weeks that 00:11:06.980 --> 00:11:09.159 followed were a suffocating fog of grief and 00:11:09.159 --> 00:11:11.340 paperwork. I was just going through the emotions, 00:11:11.480 --> 00:11:14.059 a ghost in my own life. I'd completely forgotten 00:11:14.059 --> 00:11:16.639 her strange final words. They were just the ramblings 00:11:16.639 --> 00:11:19.179 of a dying woman, a final, beautiful, meaningless 00:11:19.179 --> 00:11:22.700 piece of poetry. Then, the first mark appeared. 00:11:23.000 --> 00:11:25.100 I was at the grocery store, fumbling for my keys 00:11:25.100 --> 00:11:26.980 in the parking lot, and a quarter slipped through 00:11:26.980 --> 00:11:29.799 my fingers. clattering onto the dark, wet asphalt. 00:11:30.139 --> 00:11:32.440 It was late, raining. I looked for a minute, 00:11:32.480 --> 00:11:34.700 but it was gone. Probably rolled under the car. 00:11:35.059 --> 00:11:37.659 I sighed, wrote it off, and drove home. When 00:11:37.659 --> 00:11:39.740 I got to my apartment and emptied my pockets 00:11:39.740 --> 00:11:42.679 onto the dresser, there it was. Sitting right 00:11:42.679 --> 00:11:44.860 in the center of the pile of my keys and wallet, 00:11:45.039 --> 00:11:48.259 a single, dry, gleaming quarter, I stared at 00:11:48.259 --> 00:11:51.340 it. It was impossible. My pockets had been empty, 00:11:51.659 --> 00:11:53.840 but my grieving mind immediately supplied a dozen 00:11:53.840 --> 00:11:56.080 rational explanations. I must have had another 00:11:56.080 --> 00:11:58.000 one. I must have picked it up without realizing 00:11:58.000 --> 00:12:01.100 it. I dismissed it, but a tiny cold seed of unease 00:12:01.100 --> 00:12:04.360 had been planted, a coin returned. A week later, 00:12:04.440 --> 00:12:06.399 the second mark. I was walking on from work, 00:12:06.639 --> 00:12:09.320 taking my usual route past an old decommissioned 00:12:09.320 --> 00:12:12.340 church. As I passed its silent stone bell tower, 00:12:12.539 --> 00:12:16.299 I heard it. A single clear resonant bong of a 00:12:16.299 --> 00:12:18.899 great bell. Echoing through the quiet afternoon 00:12:18.899 --> 00:12:21.720 air, I looked up. The tower was still. The great 00:12:21.720 --> 00:12:25.230 bell was motionless. No birds flew out. No one 00:12:25.230 --> 00:12:27.769 else on the street seemed to have noticed. An 00:12:27.769 --> 00:12:30.970 auditory hallucination, I told myself. Stress 00:12:30.970 --> 00:12:33.909 and grief do strange things to your mind. A silent 00:12:33.909 --> 00:12:36.470 bell. The third mark came a few days after that. 00:12:36.710 --> 00:12:38.490 My work building is old and the maintenance staff 00:12:38.490 --> 00:12:40.950 is constantly doing repairs. I was heading to 00:12:40.950 --> 00:12:42.710 the break room, but the hallway was blocked by 00:12:42.710 --> 00:12:45.129 a huge wheeled cart full of tools and equipment. 00:12:45.649 --> 00:12:47.590 Left there by a worker who was nowhere in sight. 00:12:47.990 --> 00:12:50.389 I sighed, annoyed, and turned to go the long 00:12:50.389 --> 00:12:52.580 way around. I got to the end of the hole, turned 00:12:52.580 --> 00:12:54.500 the corner, then realized I'd forgot my wallet 00:12:54.500 --> 00:12:57.399 at my desk. I turned back. The hallway was empty. 00:12:57.580 --> 00:12:59.779 The massive cart was gone. The whole process 00:12:59.779 --> 00:13:02.440 had taken less than 30 seconds. There was no 00:13:02.440 --> 00:13:04.720 way anyone could have moved it that fast. It 00:13:04.720 --> 00:13:08.259 had just vanished. A path cleared. I wasn't just 00:13:08.259 --> 00:13:10.259 uneasy anymore. I was starting to get scared. 00:13:10.539 --> 00:13:13.139 These could not just be coincidences. They were 00:13:13.139 --> 00:13:15.559 too specific, too perfectly aligned with my mother's 00:13:15.559 --> 00:13:17.559 strange prophecy. I started to feel like I was 00:13:17.559 --> 00:13:19.360 a character in a story that someone else was 00:13:19.360 --> 00:13:21.629 writing. and I started to feel like I was being 00:13:21.629 --> 00:13:24.210 watched. It was a constant low -grade prickling 00:13:24.210 --> 00:13:26.570 sensation on the back of my neck. I'd be in my 00:13:26.570 --> 00:13:28.809 apartment and I'd feel a sudden intense pressure 00:13:28.809 --> 00:13:30.690 as if someone had just walked into the room. 00:13:30.909 --> 00:13:33.169 I'd spin around and my heart pounding that there 00:13:33.169 --> 00:13:35.950 was never anyone there. I started seeing things 00:13:35.950 --> 00:13:38.529 too. Flickers of movement at the very edge of 00:13:38.529 --> 00:13:40.750 my vision. A shadow in a doorway that was a little 00:13:40.750 --> 00:13:43.610 too tall, a little too dark. When I turned to 00:13:43.610 --> 00:13:46.080 look, it'd be gone. Mark number four happened 00:13:46.080 --> 00:13:48.580 a week later. I was clumsy with grief, not paying 00:13:48.580 --> 00:13:50.919 attention. I was walking down the stairs to my 00:13:50.919 --> 00:13:53.019 apartment's lobby. I missed a step and I pitched 00:13:53.019 --> 00:13:55.480 forward. I remember the sickening weightless 00:13:55.480 --> 00:13:58.139 lurch, the flash of the hard tile floor rushing 00:13:58.139 --> 00:14:00.759 up to meet me. I braced for the impact, for the 00:14:00.759 --> 00:14:04.340 crack of bone, but it never came. I just stopped. 00:14:04.679 --> 00:14:07.480 A foot from the ground, suspended in mid -air 00:14:07.480 --> 00:14:10.820 for a split second, as if an invincible powerful 00:14:10.820 --> 00:14:13.879 hand had caught me by the chest. Then I was sat 00:14:13.879 --> 00:14:16.779 down gently on my feet. I stood there trembling 00:14:16.779 --> 00:14:20.840 an empty silent stairwell, a saved fall. The 00:14:20.840 --> 00:14:22.919 fifth and sixth marks came in quick succession, 00:14:23.340 --> 00:14:25.360 like a one -two punch from this invisible force 00:14:25.360 --> 00:14:27.879 that was now ordering my life. I was about to 00:14:27.879 --> 00:14:29.879 get in an elevator at a shopping mall when I 00:14:29.879 --> 00:14:33.179 felt a sudden inexplicable wave of pure dread, 00:14:33.379 --> 00:14:36.460 a silent internal scream telling me, do not get 00:14:36.460 --> 00:14:39.899 in. I hesitated and let the doors close without 00:14:39.899 --> 00:14:42.460 me. A moment later, the lights on the floor indicator 00:14:42.460 --> 00:14:45.200 went dark and a loud, grinding screech echoed 00:14:45.200 --> 00:14:47.580 down the elevator shaft, followed by the distant 00:14:47.580 --> 00:14:49.960 sound of the alarm bell ringing, a warning unheard. 00:14:50.419 --> 00:14:52.059 That same evening, I was walking home through 00:14:52.059 --> 00:14:54.539 the park. A large, barking dog off its leash 00:14:54.539 --> 00:14:57.519 came bounding towards me, its teeth bare. I froze, 00:14:57.820 --> 00:14:59.799 a jolt of pure, primal fear shooting through 00:14:59.799 --> 00:15:02.460 me. The dog was a foot away, ready to leap when 00:15:02.460 --> 00:15:05.299 it suddenly stopped. It let out a high -pitched, 00:15:05.539 --> 00:15:08.059 terrified yelp, tucked its tail between its legs 00:15:08.059 --> 00:15:10.320 and fled. as if I had seen something standing 00:15:10.320 --> 00:15:14.039 right beside me, right behind me. A fear answered. 00:15:14.620 --> 00:15:16.720 I was six marks in and my life was no longer 00:15:16.720 --> 00:15:19.179 my own. I was being guided, protected, manipulated 00:15:19.179 --> 00:15:21.779 by an unseen, unknowable force. The feeling of 00:15:21.779 --> 00:15:24.399 being watched was a certainty now. I began to 00:15:24.399 --> 00:15:26.899 see it more clearly though, never directly. In 00:15:26.899 --> 00:15:29.139 the reflection on my dark TV screen, I'd see 00:15:29.139 --> 00:15:31.299 a shape standing in the room behind me. It was 00:15:31.299 --> 00:15:34.460 tall, stooped like an old man with arms that 00:15:34.460 --> 00:15:36.809 were too long. their hands almost touching the 00:15:36.809 --> 00:15:38.990 floor, and the reflection of a shop window as 00:15:38.990 --> 00:15:41.710 I'd walk by I'd see it, a dark, hulking shape 00:15:41.710 --> 00:15:44.389 following a few pieces behind me, always keeping 00:15:44.389 --> 00:15:46.529 to the shadows. The seventh and eighth marks 00:15:46.529 --> 00:15:48.970 brought it closer from a visual presence to a 00:15:48.970 --> 00:15:51.370 physical one. I started to notice a strange smell 00:15:51.370 --> 00:15:52.970 in my apartment, a smell that would come and 00:15:52.970 --> 00:15:55.289 go without reason. It was a heavy, musky animal 00:15:55.289 --> 00:15:58.029 scent, the smell of damp, rich earth and something 00:15:58.029 --> 00:16:01.240 else, something like wet fur. A set of the old 00:16:01.240 --> 00:16:03.419 earth. One night I was lying in bed, the lights 00:16:03.419 --> 00:16:06.000 on, my nerves a raw, jingled mess. I was drifting 00:16:06.000 --> 00:16:08.519 in that gray space before sleep when I felt something 00:16:08.519 --> 00:16:11.159 brush against my outstretched hand. It was a 00:16:11.159 --> 00:16:13.419 coarse, bristly feeling, like touching a thick, 00:16:13.559 --> 00:16:16.139 wiry animal pelt. I snatched my hand back with 00:16:16.139 --> 00:16:18.240 a choked cry, my heart exploding in my chest. 00:16:18.379 --> 00:16:20.259 I was alone in the room, there was nothing there, 00:16:20.379 --> 00:16:23.659 a touch of cold fur. I was nine marks in. The 00:16:23.659 --> 00:16:25.820 terror was a constant companion now. I knew the 00:16:25.820 --> 00:16:27.799 tenth mark was coming, and I knew that with it 00:16:27.799 --> 00:16:30.419 would come the final terrible reveal. I didn't 00:16:30.419 --> 00:16:32.600 know what I was more afraid of, the waiting or 00:16:32.600 --> 00:16:35.100 the seeing. The ninth mark came last night. I 00:16:35.100 --> 00:16:37.759 had finally managed to fall into a fitful, exhausted 00:16:37.759 --> 00:16:41.059 sleep. I was woken up by a voice, a low, guttural, 00:16:41.059 --> 00:16:44.539 wet sound, whispered directly into my ear. It 00:16:44.539 --> 00:16:46.620 wasn't a language I knew, but I felt the meaning 00:16:46.620 --> 00:16:48.899 of the sound in my bones. It was a word that 00:16:48.899 --> 00:16:52.269 meant Mine, a voice, not your own. I spent the 00:16:52.269 --> 00:16:54.129 rest of the night huddled in a corner of my living 00:16:54.129 --> 00:16:55.950 room, clutching a baseball bat, watching the 00:16:55.950 --> 00:16:58.309 shadows waiting for the dawn. Tonight, I knew 00:16:58.309 --> 00:17:00.809 it would end, the final mark. I sat on my couch, 00:17:00.950 --> 00:17:03.289 the TV off, all the lights in my apartment blazing. 00:17:03.769 --> 00:17:06.009 The feeling of the presence in the room was overwhelming. 00:17:06.170 --> 00:17:08.309 It was a physical pressure, a thickness in the 00:17:08.309 --> 00:17:11.009 air. The musky animal scent was overpowering. 00:17:11.210 --> 00:17:13.809 I could feel it just there, in the dark hallway 00:17:13.809 --> 00:17:16.680 that led to my bedroom waiting. I don't know 00:17:16.680 --> 00:17:19.500 what came over me. Maybe it was a year of grief. 00:17:19.619 --> 00:17:21.599 Maybe it was weeks of mounting terror, but I 00:17:21.599 --> 00:17:24.059 was done being scared. I was done being the victim 00:17:24.059 --> 00:17:26.420 in this ghost story. I needed to see it. I needed 00:17:26.420 --> 00:17:29.579 to face it. Okay, I said, my voice, a shaking, 00:17:29.839 --> 00:17:32.079 defiant whisper to the empty air. I know you're 00:17:32.079 --> 00:17:34.559 here. Show yourself. The air in the hallway seemed 00:17:34.559 --> 00:17:37.339 to shimmer, to darken. A shape began to resolve 00:17:37.339 --> 00:17:39.400 itself out of the gloom. At first, it was the 00:17:39.400 --> 00:17:42.019 familiar stoop silhouette of an old man. It was 00:17:42.019 --> 00:17:44.940 tall. maybe seven feet even with his hunched 00:17:44.940 --> 00:17:47.579 posture. Its arms were long. The gnarled three 00:17:47.579 --> 00:17:49.640 joined two fingers of its hands brushing against 00:17:49.640 --> 00:17:52.099 the floorboards. Its body was covered in a thick, 00:17:52.460 --> 00:17:55.099 matted, greasy black fur. And then... It lifted 00:17:55.099 --> 00:17:58.380 its head, and I saw its face. It wasn't a man's 00:17:58.380 --> 00:18:00.839 face. It was the long, narrow, bearded head of 00:18:00.839 --> 00:18:03.240 a goat. Its horns were thick and curved, spiraling 00:18:03.240 --> 00:18:05.539 back from its narrow skull. But the worst part, 00:18:05.559 --> 00:18:07.579 the part that finally completely broke my mind, 00:18:07.700 --> 00:18:09.880 was its eyes. They weren't the dumb, placid eyes 00:18:09.880 --> 00:18:11.940 of a farm animal. They were a pair of intelligent, 00:18:12.039 --> 00:18:15.119 ancient, and malevolent yellow eyes. The pupils' 00:18:15.519 --> 00:18:17.279 horizontal slits, like a serpent's, and they 00:18:17.279 --> 00:18:19.440 were looking directly at me. A gaze returned. 00:18:19.900 --> 00:18:23.259 The tenth mark. The final sign. My mother's guardian 00:18:23.259 --> 00:18:25.789 angel. I didn't scream. The sound was trapped 00:18:25.789 --> 00:18:28.250 in my throat, a solid, immovable ball of pure 00:18:28.250 --> 00:18:30.529 tear. We just stared at each other for an eternity 00:18:30.529 --> 00:18:32.990 across the 20 feet of my brightly lit living 00:18:32.990 --> 00:18:35.750 room. And in its ancient yellow eyes, I saw it, 00:18:35.789 --> 00:18:38.789 the same serene, peaceful, knowing look my mother 00:18:38.789 --> 00:18:41.170 had on her face when she died. It is my protector, 00:18:41.329 --> 00:18:44.670 my guardian. It has been with me, a silent, unseen 00:18:44.670 --> 00:18:46.549 shadow for the past two months. It cleared the 00:18:46.549 --> 00:18:48.349 path for me. It saved me from the fall, frightened 00:18:48.349 --> 00:18:50.170 away the dog. And now that I've seen it, it no 00:18:50.170 --> 00:18:52.170 longer feels the need to hide. I'm writing this 00:18:52.170 --> 00:18:54.720 now from my desk. the sun has come up but it 00:18:54.720 --> 00:18:56.960 has brought no comfort because it's still here 00:18:56.960 --> 00:18:58.759 it's standing in the corner of my room by the 00:18:58.759 --> 00:19:01.500 door it's stooped hairy form a black hole in 00:19:01.500 --> 00:19:04.119 the morning light it hasn't moved it just watches 00:19:04.119 --> 00:19:06.619 my mother's final words echo in my head i've 00:19:06.619 --> 00:19:09.259 never been afraid he's always been with me what 00:19:09.259 --> 00:19:12.279 do i do how do you escape a guardian angel how 00:19:12.279 --> 00:19:14.539 do you run from a protector that will never ever 00:19:14.539 --> 00:19:17.720 let any harm come to you but whose very presence 00:19:17.720 --> 00:19:22.650 is a fate worse than death whoa i know Powerful, 00:19:22.789 --> 00:19:27.329 huh? That is, that's crazy. Honestly, I was not 00:19:27.329 --> 00:19:30.849 expecting a goat. I was fully expecting a werewolf. 00:19:31.250 --> 00:19:34.289 Really? I thought for sure it was going to be 00:19:34.289 --> 00:19:37.710 like scraggly old three jointed hands werewolf. 00:19:37.970 --> 00:19:40.369 No, you didn't. I did. I did. I swear I did not 00:19:40.369 --> 00:19:42.789 expect it to be a goat with serpent eyes. I didn't. 00:19:42.950 --> 00:19:45.190 I really, you're so sarcastic. I really thought 00:19:45.190 --> 00:19:47.569 when I started reading it, I thought it was going 00:19:47.569 --> 00:19:50.750 to be like an evil, like spirit, like man, like 00:19:50.750 --> 00:19:52.900 figure. kind of thing. I didn't think it was 00:19:52.900 --> 00:19:55.759 going to be like an animal. It's definitely like 00:19:55.759 --> 00:19:58.119 that. There's definitely the evil vibe coming 00:19:58.119 --> 00:20:01.059 from the goat. Yeah. But OP, I don't know if 00:20:01.059 --> 00:20:03.779 OP is a boy or girl. I don't know. A fate worse 00:20:03.779 --> 00:20:06.259 than death? I feel like it's pretty creepy. I 00:20:06.259 --> 00:20:09.200 would think I'd rather die than know of a creepy 00:20:09.200 --> 00:20:12.519 goat man presence watching me at all times. And 00:20:12.519 --> 00:20:15.700 I can see it all the time. That's so creepy. 00:20:16.119 --> 00:20:18.980 What's crazy is that the mom passed it on to... 00:20:19.069 --> 00:20:21.549 her daughter and then she's dying she's passing 00:20:21.549 --> 00:20:25.349 it off to her kid yeah that's wild so i mean 00:20:25.349 --> 00:20:27.250 if that's what has to happen that's what has 00:20:27.250 --> 00:20:30.130 to happen has to be passed on i guess maybe it 00:20:30.130 --> 00:20:32.589 was maybe it was preventing the mom from dying 00:20:32.589 --> 00:20:36.069 so she had to pass it on in order to like move 00:20:36.069 --> 00:20:38.509 to the next realm yeah like that was the thing 00:20:38.509 --> 00:20:40.430 is like that she was saying that the guardian 00:20:40.430 --> 00:20:42.930 angel will never let any harm come to her but 00:20:42.930 --> 00:20:47.279 she had cancer so obviously She couldn't die 00:20:47.279 --> 00:20:51.779 until she passed along the 10 omens, the 10 signs, 00:20:51.819 --> 00:20:56.099 the 10 rules of having your goat spirit watch 00:20:56.099 --> 00:20:58.619 over you. I know the 10 marks. That would trip 00:20:58.619 --> 00:21:02.299 me out. Yeah. Can you imagine like your last 00:21:02.299 --> 00:21:06.259 final moments with your mom and it's her chanting 00:21:06.259 --> 00:21:11.240 these like low deep weird shit? Oh my gosh. So 00:21:11.240 --> 00:21:14.990 scary. I'd be freaking pissed. I would. You're 00:21:14.990 --> 00:21:17.109 like mom, don't do that to me. I was just gonna 00:21:17.109 --> 00:21:19.109 say, you took the words right out of my mouth. 00:21:19.190 --> 00:21:22.690 I know. Yeah, I was gonna say, Mom, don't you 00:21:22.690 --> 00:21:27.349 dare. Nope. Like let it just be peaceful. If 00:21:27.349 --> 00:21:31.089 you've got some curse, set it to the other son, 00:21:31.490 --> 00:21:33.589 Frick. Ears to keep or yeah, give it to one of 00:21:33.589 --> 00:21:37.269 your others. Yeah, that's a good idea. It wouldn't 00:21:37.269 --> 00:21:40.369 be me because I'm her favorite. I'm the favorite 00:21:40.369 --> 00:21:44.009 one. Steady as a rock. I feel like my mom would 00:21:44.009 --> 00:21:46.190 give it to me because she would think I'm this 00:21:46.190 --> 00:21:48.490 I wouldn't strong enough to handle it. That's 00:21:48.490 --> 00:21:50.690 literally I would be me. Yeah. She would give 00:21:50.690 --> 00:21:53.490 it to me out of all the kids. That's so messed 00:21:53.490 --> 00:21:55.369 up. You know, I'm going to have a talk with her 00:21:55.369 --> 00:21:57.750 now. I'm kind of kind of like you're going to 00:21:57.750 --> 00:21:59.509 you're going to go be the strong one and go after 00:21:59.509 --> 00:22:01.930 her now and tell her not to do that. Yeah. I'm 00:22:01.930 --> 00:22:04.930 going to say I don't want to give it to one of 00:22:04.930 --> 00:22:07.829 your other kids. Well, she doesn't have it. We 00:22:07.829 --> 00:22:11.660 don't know. This person didn't know. You'd be 00:22:11.660 --> 00:22:14.319 more likely to get it from Grandma Halcombe. 00:22:14.480 --> 00:22:16.980 Anyways, that was my story. I loved it. Wait, 00:22:17.019 --> 00:22:19.319 it's over? Creeped me out. Yeah, that's it. That 00:22:19.319 --> 00:22:22.720 was it? Yeah, it was only 20 minutes. Dang. I 00:22:22.720 --> 00:22:26.619 know. Well, OK, the go. I'll never sleep again, 00:22:26.900 --> 00:22:28.720 but I guess that's why they call it no sleep. 00:22:29.079 --> 00:22:31.039 This comes from the subreddit. I think I said 00:22:31.039 --> 00:22:32.940 that both of mine come from creepy encounters. 00:22:33.000 --> 00:22:34.880 They don't. This one comes from the subreddit 00:22:34.880 --> 00:22:38.819 Paranormal. Okay, I've never heard of this paranormal 00:22:38.819 --> 00:22:42.460 Creepy the title is my daughter's imaginary friend 00:22:42.460 --> 00:22:46.220 new things. She couldn't possibly know Oh this 00:22:46.220 --> 00:22:50.440 Is terrifying I okay this hits extraordinarily 00:22:50.440 --> 00:22:52.859 close to home because we have a daughter about 00:22:52.859 --> 00:22:56.440 the same age Who has an imaginary friend? I don't 00:22:56.440 --> 00:22:58.660 really believe in this stuff or I didn't now 00:22:58.660 --> 00:23:00.819 I'm not sure what I believe my daughter Emma 00:23:00.819 --> 00:23:03.500 just turned five last month Around her fourth 00:23:03.500 --> 00:23:05.440 birthday she started talking about her friend, 00:23:05.740 --> 00:23:08.079 Clara. Typical imaginary friend stuff at first. 00:23:08.299 --> 00:23:10.640 She'd set a place for Clara at dinner, talk to 00:23:10.640 --> 00:23:13.339 her while playing, normal kid things. My wife 00:23:13.339 --> 00:23:15.539 and I thought it was cute, but Clara was weirdly 00:23:15.539 --> 00:23:18.539 specific. Emma said Clara was seven years old, 00:23:18.799 --> 00:23:22.680 had long black hair, and wore an old timey dress 00:23:22.680 --> 00:23:25.839 with flowers on it. She said Clara was sad because 00:23:25.839 --> 00:23:28.259 she missed her mom. About two months ago things 00:23:28.259 --> 00:23:30.660 got strange. We were having breakfast and Emma 00:23:30.660 --> 00:23:32.920 suddenly asked why we took down Clara's picture. 00:23:33.480 --> 00:23:35.920 I had no idea what she meant. She insisted there 00:23:35.920 --> 00:23:37.740 used to be a picture of Clara in the hallway 00:23:37.740 --> 00:23:40.279 upstairs. We've lived in this house for three 00:23:40.279 --> 00:23:43.220 years and never taken down any pictures. Then 00:23:43.220 --> 00:23:45.519 last month my wife was going through some boxes 00:23:45.519 --> 00:23:48.269 in the attic looking for old baby clothes. She 00:23:48.269 --> 00:23:50.390 found a photo album that belonged to the previous 00:23:50.390 --> 00:23:52.410 owners. They'd left it by accident, I guess. 00:23:52.730 --> 00:23:55.750 Inside was a photo from 1982. A little girl, 00:23:55.750 --> 00:23:58.309 maybe six or seven, with long black hair, wearing 00:23:58.309 --> 00:24:01.970 a floral dress. Written on the back, Clara, age 00:24:01.970 --> 00:24:07.529 seven, summer 1982. Whoa. My wife showed me and 00:24:07.529 --> 00:24:09.970 we both just stared at it. There's no way Emma 00:24:09.970 --> 00:24:12.410 had ever seen this photo. It was buried in a 00:24:12.410 --> 00:24:15.250 box under a bunch of other stuff in the far corner 00:24:15.250 --> 00:24:18.420 of the attic. Emma's never been up there. I asked 00:24:18.420 --> 00:24:20.839 Emma to describe Clara again. She described the 00:24:20.839 --> 00:24:23.819 girl in the photo perfectly. The dress, the hair, 00:24:24.079 --> 00:24:26.480 even said Clara had a tooth missing in the front, 00:24:26.900 --> 00:24:28.799 which you can see in the photo if you look close. 00:24:28.920 --> 00:24:32.420 Oh my gosh. We didn't tell Emma about the photo. 00:24:32.519 --> 00:24:34.920 We weren't sure what to say. A week later, Emma 00:24:34.920 --> 00:24:37.059 told us Clara doesn't complain anymore because 00:24:37.059 --> 00:24:40.660 she quote, found her mom. She said it so casually 00:24:40.660 --> 00:24:42.400 like she was talking about a friend who moved 00:24:42.400 --> 00:24:45.410 away. I did some research on the house. found 00:24:45.410 --> 00:24:48.990 an old newspaper article from 1983. A seven -year 00:24:48.990 --> 00:24:51.509 -old girl named Clara Bennett died in a car accident 00:24:51.509 --> 00:24:53.769 about two miles from here. Her family lived in 00:24:53.769 --> 00:24:57.529 our house from 1978 to 1985. The accident was 00:24:57.529 --> 00:25:00.710 in 1982, same year as the photo. Emma hasn't 00:25:00.710 --> 00:25:03.309 mentioned Clara since she said she found her 00:25:03.309 --> 00:25:06.069 mom. I keep trying to rationalize this. Maybe 00:25:06.069 --> 00:25:08.650 Emma saw the photo somehow and we forgot. Maybe 00:25:08.650 --> 00:25:10.809 it's just a weird coincidence, but the timing, 00:25:11.029 --> 00:25:13.460 the details, the way she described everything 00:25:13.460 --> 00:25:16.240 before we ever found that photo. My wife thinks 00:25:16.240 --> 00:25:19.059 Clara was real, that she was here and Emma could 00:25:19.059 --> 00:25:21.359 see her. I want to think there's a logical explanation, 00:25:21.400 --> 00:25:24.180 but I can't find one. Has anyone else experienced 00:25:24.180 --> 00:25:26.299 something like this with their kids? I'm not 00:25:26.299 --> 00:25:29.019 scared exactly, just really unsettled. If Emma 00:25:29.019 --> 00:25:31.299 could see Clara, what else can she see that we 00:25:31.299 --> 00:25:35.000 can't? That's crazy. It gives me so much comfort 00:25:35.000 --> 00:25:37.039 just knowing our daughter's imaginary friend 00:25:37.039 --> 00:25:40.019 is Maui from Moana because it's like no way she's 00:25:40.019 --> 00:25:41.900 seeing Maui because Maui's not a real character, 00:25:41.980 --> 00:25:45.140 you know? Exactly. So that's helpful, but that 00:25:45.140 --> 00:25:49.319 is terrifying. Legitimately terrifying. But it's 00:25:49.319 --> 00:25:51.839 also kind of like, not that it's cool, but kind 00:25:51.839 --> 00:25:54.099 of cool. It's kind of cool. It's kind of cool. 00:25:54.240 --> 00:25:56.759 It helps that they were like friends and not 00:25:56.759 --> 00:25:59.319 like... this Clara was like haunting them you 00:25:59.319 --> 00:26:01.240 know that would yeah that would be terrifying 00:26:01.240 --> 00:26:03.400 well okay that made me think of multiple things 00:26:03.400 --> 00:26:05.940 but the first thing i'm going to say is that 00:26:05.940 --> 00:26:08.559 Theo Von had two guys on this podcast this week 00:26:08.559 --> 00:26:11.799 that are ghost hunters i love that i love that 00:26:11.799 --> 00:26:15.119 so much and they told some of the most just some 00:26:15.119 --> 00:26:18.539 of the gnarliest stories of what they experienced 00:26:18.539 --> 00:26:21.400 going into haunted places and and like trying 00:26:21.400 --> 00:26:25.940 to get spirits to communicate with them that's 00:26:25.930 --> 00:26:28.210 That's a world I've never ventured out into and 00:26:28.210 --> 00:26:30.410 I'm very comfortable not. I remember hearing 00:26:30.410 --> 00:26:33.109 stories about a park that was haunted in Cedar 00:26:33.109 --> 00:26:35.809 Hills, Utah. That's like the neighboring town 00:26:35.809 --> 00:26:38.009 to where I went to high school. So me and my 00:26:38.009 --> 00:26:40.849 friends, you know, would poke around only a fair 00:26:40.849 --> 00:26:43.329 amount. We avoided the places that were verifiably 00:26:43.329 --> 00:26:45.990 haunted, but there was one night we were up there 00:26:45.990 --> 00:26:47.910 and as we're going away, you can only kind of 00:26:47.910 --> 00:26:50.609 see it through this clearing where we had pulled 00:26:50.609 --> 00:26:53.150 over to like see the park, check on the park 00:26:53.150 --> 00:26:55.880 down a little hill between this clearing and 00:26:55.880 --> 00:26:58.259 we saw that there was a little girl on the swings 00:26:58.259 --> 00:27:00.799 and we're this is like middle of the night status 00:27:00.799 --> 00:27:04.180 little girl long dark hair just swinging on the 00:27:04.180 --> 00:27:07.299 swing and it's like in my mind's eye i can still 00:27:07.299 --> 00:27:09.599 see it i just got the chills and this is the 00:27:09.599 --> 00:27:11.920 other thing no wind no nothing the swing was 00:27:11.920 --> 00:27:14.400 absolutely moving because we could hear it squeaking 00:27:14.400 --> 00:27:16.859 oh wow legitimately your windows rolled down 00:27:17.049 --> 00:27:18.869 Yeah, no, we had gotten out of the car. There's 00:27:18.869 --> 00:27:20.789 a little walking path that goes down to the park. 00:27:20.990 --> 00:27:24.609 I didn't explain it very well, because geographically 00:27:24.609 --> 00:27:27.250 it's kind of hard, but it's like down behind. 00:27:27.430 --> 00:27:30.930 So you're outside and you look and you see it. 00:27:30.950 --> 00:27:33.390 And what do you guys do? Could hear the swing, 00:27:33.569 --> 00:27:35.789 could see. And somebody was like, is that a little 00:27:35.789 --> 00:27:39.349 girl? And then we all just lost our shiz, dove 00:27:39.349 --> 00:27:42.410 into the car, eat it out. Oh, that's hilarious. 00:27:42.529 --> 00:27:46.470 That's so creepy. That happened. Yeah. Shoot. 00:27:46.640 --> 00:27:49.420 It might have been Clara, dude. Clara was there. 00:27:49.440 --> 00:27:52.000 She just wanted to say hi. She just was looking 00:27:52.000 --> 00:27:53.960 for her mom. She's like, dude, do you guys know 00:27:53.960 --> 00:27:57.799 where my mom is? No, that's so creepy. So this 00:27:57.799 --> 00:28:00.299 story is off the subreddit true off my chest. 00:28:00.720 --> 00:28:03.519 So this story is called the babysitter's monitor. 00:28:03.700 --> 00:28:05.940 I've babysat for this family for almost a year 00:28:05.940 --> 00:28:07.900 and nothing weird has ever happened until last 00:28:07.900 --> 00:28:09.859 Friday. I can't stop replaying what I saw on 00:28:09.859 --> 00:28:12.539 that monitor or what the dad text me the next 00:28:12.539 --> 00:28:15.400 morning. Two kids, a toddler and a one year old 00:28:15.400 --> 00:28:17.829 baby girl. The parents are kind, the house is 00:28:17.829 --> 00:28:19.890 quiet, and I've never had a single reason to 00:28:19.890 --> 00:28:22.369 feel uneasy there. That night started like any 00:28:22.369 --> 00:28:25.170 other. They left around 7 .30 and by 8 o 'clock 00:28:25.170 --> 00:28:27.390 both kids were asleep. I set the baby monitor 00:28:27.390 --> 00:28:29.529 on the counter and started scrolling my phone 00:28:29.529 --> 00:28:32.750 half watching a movie. At 8 .17 I got a motion 00:28:32.750 --> 00:28:35.769 alert. I looked down and caught a flicker of 00:28:35.769 --> 00:28:38.450 movement on the screen. A dark blur crossing 00:28:38.450 --> 00:28:40.450 the crib. My first thought was that the baby 00:28:40.450 --> 00:28:42.930 rolled over or maybe the blanket moved, but she 00:28:42.930 --> 00:28:46.369 was perfectly still. I waited. Nothing. A few 00:28:46.369 --> 00:28:49.109 minutes later, another alert. This time the movement 00:28:49.109 --> 00:28:51.809 was faster, a shadow cutting across the room. 00:28:52.170 --> 00:28:54.990 I felt my stomach drop. I turned the TV down 00:28:54.990 --> 00:28:57.690 and just listened, but the house was silent. 00:28:58.130 --> 00:29:02.109 No footsteps, no creaks, nothing. Still, every 00:29:02.109 --> 00:29:05.349 part of me screamed to check. I grabbed a kitchen 00:29:05.349 --> 00:29:07.569 knife and crept upstairs. The nursery door was 00:29:07.569 --> 00:29:10.049 cracked open, the monitor's green light flickering 00:29:10.049 --> 00:29:12.769 through. I pushed it open with my foot and flipped 00:29:12.769 --> 00:29:15.890 on the light. Nothing. The baby was still fast 00:29:15.890 --> 00:29:18.250 asleep, the closet was empty, the window was 00:29:18.250 --> 00:29:20.730 locked. I told myself it had to be a weird lighting 00:29:20.730 --> 00:29:23.170 thing. Maybe my mind playing tricks and went 00:29:23.170 --> 00:29:25.529 back downstairs trying to calm down. But a few 00:29:25.529 --> 00:29:28.150 minutes later the monitor flashed again and this 00:29:28.150 --> 00:29:32.069 time I saw it clearly. A figure. Tall broad shoulders 00:29:32.069 --> 00:29:35.390 moved past the crib so fast the image glitched. 00:29:35.390 --> 00:29:38.309 That was it for me. I ran upstairs, heart pounding, 00:29:38.410 --> 00:29:40.329 knife in hand. I flipped on the light again, 00:29:40.329 --> 00:29:43.230 ready to grab the kids and bolt. The room was 00:29:43.230 --> 00:29:46.279 empty. and then I noticed it. The baby monitor 00:29:46.279 --> 00:29:48.980 wasn't pointed at the crib anymore. It had been 00:29:48.980 --> 00:29:51.619 turned toward the mirror across the room. That's 00:29:51.619 --> 00:29:54.039 when everything clicked. The movement I'd been 00:29:54.039 --> 00:29:56.819 seeing wasn't the baby, it was reflection. Someone 00:29:56.819 --> 00:29:58.839 had physically gone into that room and turned 00:29:58.839 --> 00:30:01.799 the camera. I didn't think. I grabbed the baby, 00:30:02.099 --> 00:30:03.920 ran to the toddler's room, scooped him up, still 00:30:03.920 --> 00:30:06.750 half asleep, and sprinted outside. I called 911 00:30:06.750 --> 00:30:09.329 and the parents from the front yard, shaking 00:30:09.329 --> 00:30:11.710 so bad I could barely hold my phone. The police 00:30:11.710 --> 00:30:14.009 showed up within minutes. They searched the whole 00:30:14.009 --> 00:30:16.690 house, no signs of forced entry, no open doors, 00:30:16.950 --> 00:30:19.910 nothing missing. They said maybe I bumped the 00:30:19.910 --> 00:30:23.109 monitor earlier without noticing. I didn't argue. 00:30:23.250 --> 00:30:25.910 I just told them I wouldn't be coming back. The 00:30:25.910 --> 00:30:28.410 next morning, the dad text me. He said they asked 00:30:28.410 --> 00:30:30.670 their neighbor to check their ring camera footage 00:30:30.670 --> 00:30:34.049 from that night at 8 -11 PM, six minutes before 00:30:34.049 --> 00:30:36.519 I saw the first shadow. The neighbor's camera 00:30:36.519 --> 00:30:39.140 caught a man in a dark hoodie hopping their back 00:30:39.140 --> 00:30:41.839 fence and walking toward the house. And a little 00:30:41.839 --> 00:30:44.220 after 10 p .m., right after I ran outside with 00:30:44.220 --> 00:30:46.920 the kids, that same man was caught on camera 00:30:46.920 --> 00:30:49.859 hopping the fence again, heading the other way. 00:30:50.380 --> 00:30:54.839 Are you kidding? No. Babysitting stories scare 00:30:54.839 --> 00:30:58.079 the crap out of me. Don't worry. That chapter's 00:30:58.079 --> 00:31:00.400 close. Not like just babysit for life. That's 00:31:00.400 --> 00:31:05.569 basically my life, but so scary. it like i okay 00:31:05.569 --> 00:31:08.190 so many thoughts i know many thoughts first of 00:31:08.190 --> 00:31:11.710 all i hate police come on guys come on guys do 00:31:11.710 --> 00:31:14.430 your due diligence see the thing through you 00:31:14.430 --> 00:31:16.569 had to know you had to know there was going to 00:31:16.569 --> 00:31:18.950 be somebody else that had something goodness 00:31:18.950 --> 00:31:20.750 we're gonna have to pay for the subscription 00:31:20.750 --> 00:31:24.549 for our doorbell camera so that it records thank 00:31:24.549 --> 00:31:28.190 goodness for the neighbors because Mean they 00:31:28.190 --> 00:31:30.750 the parents even could easily write it off that 00:31:30.750 --> 00:31:32.829 like yeah, maybe she moved it. Maybe it was just 00:31:32.829 --> 00:31:35.450 like a shadow Heck you could even think maybe 00:31:35.450 --> 00:31:38.710 it was a ghost like you just don't know But the 00:31:38.710 --> 00:31:40.869 fact that they were physically able to see a 00:31:40.869 --> 00:31:43.470 man jump over their fence They know that like, 00:31:43.650 --> 00:31:46.009 okay, there's gotta we gotta have better security 00:31:46.009 --> 00:31:49.650 here and turn the video into the cops Let's try 00:31:49.650 --> 00:31:51.869 and catch this guy sucks. They probably never 00:31:51.869 --> 00:31:55.049 will but no unless he comes back Yeah, I mean, 00:31:55.289 --> 00:31:57.990 I don't even know. Could you prove that he committed 00:31:57.990 --> 00:32:02.210 a crime? He entered. All they have evidence of? 00:32:02.210 --> 00:32:04.230 Oh, yeah. The hopping the fence and then coming 00:32:04.230 --> 00:32:06.950 back. Well, he entered into the backyard. I mean, 00:32:07.049 --> 00:32:08.950 yeah, I guess. I don't know what. Trespassing. 00:32:09.210 --> 00:32:11.170 Yeah, you've got to be trespassing if you're 00:32:11.170 --> 00:32:13.890 going into someone's backyard. Like hopping a 00:32:13.890 --> 00:32:16.430 fence. They're probably going to get a dog, I'll 00:32:16.430 --> 00:32:18.910 tell you that much. Well, they should. If they 00:32:18.910 --> 00:32:21.269 haven't considered it, get you a mastiff. Yeah, 00:32:21.269 --> 00:32:23.980 get a little pit bull out there. Man, pit bulls 00:32:23.980 --> 00:32:26.880 are too friendly. The big myth, everyone just 00:32:26.880 --> 00:32:29.500 tell your friends. How do you feel about the 00:32:29.500 --> 00:32:31.079 babysitter? How do you feel like she handled 00:32:31.079 --> 00:32:34.420 it? That's great. What more could you do as a 00:32:34.420 --> 00:32:37.119 babysitter? Exactly. If we hired a babysitter 00:32:37.119 --> 00:32:39.380 and she calls me and she calls 911 and like the 00:32:39.380 --> 00:32:42.759 whole thing, I would be so unsettled for a long 00:32:42.759 --> 00:32:44.920 time. I don't think I would hire a babysitter 00:32:44.920 --> 00:32:48.539 ever again. I am like a huge scaredy cat and 00:32:48.539 --> 00:32:51.519 I babysat and nannied a lot of kids growing up. 00:32:51.619 --> 00:32:53.940 And I always thought like, what would I actually 00:32:53.940 --> 00:32:57.619 do? Like literally, what would I do if that was 00:32:57.619 --> 00:33:00.779 the case? I feel like I'm sure I would do what 00:33:00.779 --> 00:33:02.880 the babysitter did, grab a knife and run upstairs 00:33:02.880 --> 00:33:05.819 and get the kids. But part of me thinks I might 00:33:05.819 --> 00:33:09.720 run outside by myself and call the cops. No, 00:33:09.740 --> 00:33:13.460 you wouldn't. I know that's so scary. You have 00:33:13.460 --> 00:33:16.759 to go upstairs and get the kids when you know, 00:33:16.759 --> 00:33:19.680 there's someone in that room that is so terrifying. 00:33:20.039 --> 00:33:21.779 You don't, you know what? You're not giving yourself 00:33:21.779 --> 00:33:24.099 enough credit. You would definitely run upstairs 00:33:24.099 --> 00:33:26.240 and save the kid's life because that's what you 00:33:26.240 --> 00:33:29.140 do. But I think about like, for example, like 00:33:29.140 --> 00:33:33.839 I was outside with my daughter, my kid, and there 00:33:33.839 --> 00:33:36.700 was a bee. There was a couple of bees that was 00:33:36.700 --> 00:33:40.279 like attacking me and I literally. sprinted away 00:33:40.279 --> 00:33:44.059 like fled and then I was like shit my kid and 00:33:44.059 --> 00:33:45.940 so then I'm like trying to get her to come without 00:33:45.940 --> 00:33:47.779 actually having to like go back over there like 00:33:47.779 --> 00:33:50.720 I was so scared and that's just a bee it was 00:33:50.720 --> 00:33:54.940 a couple bees I got her but still like my first 00:33:54.940 --> 00:33:58.279 thought wasn't like my child it was there's a 00:33:58.279 --> 00:34:02.220 bee on me well I know it's different But that's 00:34:02.220 --> 00:34:05.460 all I can compare it to. But you don't always 00:34:05.460 --> 00:34:07.640 do what's best for you. That's the point that 00:34:07.640 --> 00:34:09.639 I was trying to make. I think you would try to 00:34:09.639 --> 00:34:11.460 save the kids. You would save our own kid if 00:34:11.460 --> 00:34:13.320 it was something that was life threatening. I 00:34:13.320 --> 00:34:15.820 would. We had our friends play a prank on us 00:34:15.820 --> 00:34:17.679 when we were camping one time and they put a 00:34:17.679 --> 00:34:22.039 fake rattlesnake in her tent. It was set up in 00:34:22.039 --> 00:34:24.639 there so that she got in without knowing, turned 00:34:24.639 --> 00:34:27.400 around, and then there's this snake and she thought 00:34:27.400 --> 00:34:30.110 that she was going to get... killed by a rattlesnake 00:34:30.110 --> 00:34:32.369 yeah and she starts freaking out like as soon 00:34:32.369 --> 00:34:33.829 as she sees it she doesn't realize that it's 00:34:33.829 --> 00:34:37.190 fake and like everyone's quietly laughing outside 00:34:37.190 --> 00:34:40.429 that knows what's going on i can't i said something 00:34:40.429 --> 00:34:42.550 like i was gonna like check on you or whatever 00:34:42.550 --> 00:34:46.010 and you were like joe don't don't come in here 00:34:46.010 --> 00:34:49.070 don't come in here it'll kill you it'll get you 00:34:49.070 --> 00:34:52.250 so you were face yourself yeah i could have Because 00:34:52.250 --> 00:34:54.969 it was right at the edge of the when you get 00:34:54.969 --> 00:34:57.250 in so it would have snapped at you if it was 00:34:57.250 --> 00:35:00.110 real Yeah, but don't you in that's just a perfect 00:35:00.110 --> 00:35:03.210 example Would you think you would want somebody 00:35:03.210 --> 00:35:05.369 to just save your life? But you actually were 00:35:05.369 --> 00:35:07.170 more concerned about me than yourself in that 00:35:07.170 --> 00:35:10.010 moment. Oh, that's so yeah, you're right Honestly, 00:35:10.590 --> 00:35:13.349 what a what a grip of stories we we had some 00:35:13.349 --> 00:35:16.300 I'm scared we had some Yeah, we had some good 00:35:16.300 --> 00:35:18.820 ones. Follow us on Instagram. Subscribe to our 00:35:18.820 --> 00:35:21.300 YouTube. Listen to our podcast every freaking 00:35:21.300 --> 00:35:24.219 week, baby. It's so fun. So which one do you 00:35:24.219 --> 00:35:26.380 guys think was the fake story of this week? One 00:35:26.380 --> 00:35:29.340 of them was completely fake, generated by ChatGBT. 00:35:29.440 --> 00:35:32.420 Comment on socials. Let us know. Trick or truth. 00:35:32.739 --> 00:35:35.199 Volume two. We'll see you guys next week. Be 00:35:35.199 --> 00:35:37.579 safe. Take care of yourselves. Lock your doors. 00:35:37.960 --> 00:35:41.719 Internet frenzy on three. One, two, three. Internet 00:35:41.719 --> 00:35:56.940 frenzy. One click no pretending