Scary Stories and Rain – Ep. 221: Terrorized by Stalkers

Host: Being Scared
Date: September 7, 2025

Episode Overview

This rainy night episode delves into deeply unsettling real-life encounters with stalkers and would-be intruders. In this 221st entry, Being Scared presents several listener-submitted stories—calmly narrated over soft rain sounds—about ordinary people who found themselves the objects of unwanted attention, menaced by strangers, neighbors, and people in their lives. These true narratives, told in the first person, highlight the chilling unpredictability of stalkers, the vulnerability of feeling watched, and the haunting aftermath such terror can leave behind.

Key Stories and Discussion Points

1. Butcher Shop Close Call (01:09–05:48)

• Setting: Midwestern city, at night, a run-down neighborhood near the state capitol.
• Narrative: The storyteller and their father venture to a sketchy butcher shop for chorizo, only to sense growing unease—darkened streets, dilapidated houses, and an ominous lack of life outside.
• Climax: As they try to leave, four intimidating men gather near their shining Cadillac Escalade. With a quick excuse, the narrator hurries the father out. When their car’s headlights illuminate the men—one with a crowbar—the narrator screams for their dad to drive. They make a narrow escape.
• Memorable Quote:
  “Dad, get out of here!” – Storyteller, in a moment of panic (05:35)
• Aftermath: “I will always wonder what those men truly wanted. Just our car or something else?” The experience leaves the family shaken yet grateful nothing worse happened.

2. The Porch Invader (05:49–09:11)

• Setting: College town, summer, old duplex with a lively porch culture.
• Narrative: The storyteller stays with college friends. After a friendly exchange with a middle-aged man on the street, the night turns ominous when the same man violently bangs on the door, shouting to be let in.
• Survival Instincts: The narrator grabs a weapon and repeatedly refuses the man, who insists he must know someone inside. After several rounds of aggressive knocking, he finally disappears.
• Memorable Quote:
  “They are past the point of having a conversation and I am feeling like the door may not hold.” – Storyteller (08:15)
• Aftermath: The friend remains unaware; the shaken narrator warns listeners to “lock your doors and always be prepared.”

3. Landlord from Hell (09:12–15:22)

• Setting: Chicago, affordable apartment run by a deeply religious elderly couple.
• Narrative: Landlords turn from benign to sinister, with invasive questions and behaviors:
  • Landlady bluntly asks, “Have you ever gotten an abortion?” at the door (09:40).
  • Discovering the supposed communal door opens into the landlords’ living room.
  • The narrator senses surveillance—moved objects, damp towels, doors that cannot lock, constant knocking.
  • Shocking escalation: One day, the stairs to the narrator’s unit are physically dismantled, trapping them in.
  • While fleeing through the landlords’ home, they “just kept staring at me with this blank look on their faces.”
• Climax: Landlords’ drunk son tries to attack the narrator with a wrench. Police refuse to act, allegedly due to family connections in law enforcement.
• Memorable Quote:
  “I open the door for work and the stairs were gone. I physically could not leave my house because there were no stairs.” – Storyteller (14:36)
• Aftermath: Fleeing in the night, the narrator, their boyfriend, and friends move out, never contacting the landlords again.
  “They never attempted to contact us again.”

[~Mid-episode break for ads: Skipped]

4. Apartment Stalked by Strangers (16:37–32:28)

• Setting: Ground-floor basement apartment, college town, isolated near woods.
• Narrative: After a brief month of normalcy, small but alarming incidents—an unsecured door moving on its own, a harried glimpse of hairy legs running away—build to a terrifying realization: someone is entering their apartment.
  • Signs: Mud in the bathtub, dead bugs, a torn-out window screen, objects moved but nothing stolen.
  • The roommate’s voyeuristic habits and unsecured windows fuel fears.
  • Attempts to warn the intruder with visible notes only provoke more taunting: ripped-up notes reappear in the apartment despite locked doors, indicating not only access but a twisted sense of fun from the stalker(s).
• Law Enforcement Response:
  Police are initially dismissive, but later admit:
  “Maybe this person was just bored and messing with you... or possibly mentally ill and had developed an unhealthy obsession with one of you.” – Police officer (25:10)
• Escalation:
  • Bright lights outside are smashed repeatedly.
  • The stalker(s) seem to know when occupants are gone or present.
  • One night, the roommate is alone, two men walk in—she screams, they disappear. Police again show skepticism due to her state.
• Memorable Sequence:
  “When I looked back at the front door, which I had been watching, the pink notecard was laying on the floor, slipped under the door.” – Storyteller (27:55)
• Lasting Trauma:
  “I have PTSD from the experience still that sometimes demobilizes me when I’m home alone... I don't think I have ever truly felt safe being home alone since this happened.” (32:15)
• Theories & Unresolved Questions:
  The stalker(s) might have lived in a nearby building or been someone fixated on the roommate. The uncertainty—the never-knowing—is what continues to haunt the storyteller.

Notable Quotes & Chilling Details

• Sudden danger in mundane moments:
  “My knees were like jello... I just wanted to get out of there because I had a bad feeling.” (Butcher Shop Story, 04:25–05:10)

• Feelings of helplessness:
  “I couldn’t lock the door... They were the only ones with the key.” (Landlord Story, 12:50)

• Taunting of the stalker(s):
  “We know we were broken into and are on alert”—only to find the ripped notes returned inside in the middle of the night. (Apartment Stalker Story, multiple segments between 19:18–28:30)

• On never knowing the motive:
  “We were never able to even get close to catching them because their attacks were so random... I never got to find out who they were or what they wanted. And that bothers me to no end.” (32:08–32:24)

Episode Structure & Timestamps

• [01:09] – Butcher Shop Close Call
• [05:49] – The Porch Invader
• [09:12] – Landlord from Hell
• [16:37] – Apartment Stalked by Strangers

Tone & Style

Despite the horrifying content, Being Scared maintains a calm, measured narration. The disconcerting events are told in a matter-of-fact but intimate way, emphasizing ordinary peoples’ vulnerability and the long, haunting echo of encounters with stalkers—perfectly offset by the rain’s steady, soothing background, which makes the chills even sharper.

Summary

Episode 221 of Scary Stories and Rain immerses listeners in stories where menace lurks close to home. From narrow escapes from would-be attackers, to the slow psychological torment of not knowing who is watching, or why—we hear how paranoia can become a survival tool, and how the trauma of these events lingers. These are stories that make you triple-check your locks before bed, even as the rain gently falls outside.