42 TRUE Scary Stories From The Internet | Episode 610

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Dinner Table: A Southern Cannibal Podcast – Episode 42: TRUE Scary Stories From The Internet | Episode 610

Release Date: June 23, 2025

Host: The Dinner Table: A Southern Cannibal Podcast

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The Dinner Table Podcast, hosted by Southern Cannibal, delves into true, horrifying experiences shared by people from around the world. In Episode 42, titled "TRUE Scary Stories From The Internet," listeners are treated to a compilation of chilling tales sourced from online submissions. This summary captures the essence of each story, highlighting key moments, notable quotes, and the underlying themes of fear, survival, and human vulnerability.

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1. Persistent Burglary and Family Fear

Narrator: A young individual recounts a prolonged period of bicycle thefts and break-ins by a persistent unknown teenage intruder.

• Key Points:

  • The narrator's family repeatedly falls victim to thefts in their neighborhood, primarily bikes and lawnmowers.
  • An unsettling encounter occurs when the narrator's mother witnesses a teenager attempting a break-in.
  • Despite the father's intimidating presence, the intruder remains undeterred over the years.
  • The situation escalates when a car is stolen, with surveillance footage identifying the suspect as the recurring thief.

• Notable Quote:

  • "He would have torn the dude apart if my mom had woken him up." ([03:15])

• Conclusion: The family's vigilance pays off when they identify the thief through neighbor's camera footage, although the story leaves an open-ended sense of ongoing threat.

2. Harrowing Apartment Encounters

Narrator: A 19-year-old woman describes terrifying nights in her apartment involving a persistent stranger resembling a former abusive boyfriend.

• Key Points:

  • After moving out from a toxic relationship, the narrator experiences repeated attempts by a stranger to break into her new apartment.
  • The intruder's relentless knocking and physical attempts create a climate of fear.
  • With the help of a friend, the narrator confronts the intruder using improvised weapons, leading to the assailant fleeing permanently.
  • The incident underscores themes of empowerment and the importance of confronting fears.

• Notable Quote:

  • "We'll just throw ourselves inside, lock the door, and then run up the stairs to Johnny's room." ([12:45])

• Conclusion: Through courage and solidarity, the narrator successfully deters the persistent intruder, highlighting personal strength and resilience.

3. Stalking and Urban Fear

Narrator: A 21-year-old man from Scotland shares multiple encounters with stalkers while navigating his early adult life.

• Key Points:

  • The narrator experiences several frightening encounters, including stalking near ATMs and late-night threats.
  • Each incident involves the stalker using aggressive tactics, from following to making threatening statements.
  • The narrator emphasizes the importance of trusting one's instincts and taking proactive measures to ensure personal safety.

• Notable Quote:

  • "Tell a friend, watch your back and don't let him know details about you." ([25:50])

• Conclusion: Persistently harassed, the narrator learns to prioritize safety, utilizing support networks and remaining vigilant against unpredictable threats.

4. Domestic Violence and Family Tragedy

Narrator: A 29-year-old man recounts a brutal assault by his ex-boyfriend's father, culminating in a near-fatal encounter.

• Key Points:

  • The narrator details a tumultuous relationship marked by his partner's abusive father.
  • Despite attempts to maintain the relationship, escalating abuse leads to a violent confrontation.
  • The partner intervenes heroically, saving his life, but leaving lasting psychological scars.
  • The father's subsequent diagnosis with schizophrenia provides a complex perspective on the abuse.

• Notable Quote:

  • "I was consumed with fear and tried to scream but nothing came out." ([17:30])

• Conclusion: The story highlights themes of betrayal, survival, and the long-term impact of domestic violence, ultimately leading to healing and new beginnings.

5. Late-Night Bank Terrorism

Narrator: A 34-year-old woman describes a nightmarish encounter at a bank involving suspicious activities and a thwarted carjacking attempt.

• Key Points:

  • Attempting to access cash during a blackout, the narrator notices suspicious behavior mimicking a dog's bark—a potential signal.
  • A large, intimidating man approaches, heightening her fear of a possible robbery.
  • Resourcefully, she avoids the threat by observing the man's rapid departure and subsequent withdrawal from the area.
  • The incident underscores the unpredictability of late-night encounters and the importance of situational awareness.

• Notable Quote:

  • "You have to keep an eye on them, and stay safe out there." ([45:20])

• Conclusion: By staying alert and responding cautiously, the narrator avoids falling victim to potential criminal activity, emphasizing the value of vigilance.

6. Stalker at the Dog Park

Narrator: An individual shares a bold confrontation with a potential mugger at a remote dog park, resulting in an unexpected turning point.

• Key Points:

  • During a solitary moment at a dog park, the narrator spots a suspicious man approaching with potential criminal intent.
  • In a display of defiance, the narrator and a friend brandish improvised weapons, deterring the assailant.
  • The unexpected altercation leads to the perpetrator never returning, showcasing the effectiveness of standing up to threats.

• Notable Quote:

  • "Screw off already. All it took was matching his craziness." ([33:10])

• Conclusion: The narrator's proactive stance successfully dispels the immediate threat, illustrating the power of courage and rapid response in self-defense situations.

7. Menacing Delivery Encounter

Narrator: A 16-year-old describes a frightening encounter with a stranger under the guise of a delivery man seeking entry into her home.

• Key Points:

  • While waiting for a package, the narrator is approached by a suspicious man claiming to deliver items.
  • His aggressive persistence and unwillingness to leave raise red flags, prompting fear and swift action.
  • The narrator escapes safely by adhering to safety protocols, such as keeping doors locked and remaining vigilant.
  • The story serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of unsolicited interactions and the importance of maintaining boundaries.

• Notable Quote:

  • "It was way too dark. I don't see him in the street." ([56:40])

• Conclusion: By staying composed and following safety measures, the narrator avoids a potentially dangerous situation, emphasizing the necessity of caution in unsolicited interactions.

8. Nighttime Dog Park Defense

Narrator: A young individual details a tense encounter with a potential mugger at a dog park, culminating in a humorous yet effective self-defense.

• Key Points:

  • Late-night at the dog park, the narrator experiences repeated attempts by a stranger to gain entry.
  • Teaming up with a friend, they use household items as makeshift weapons to confront the intruder.
  • The unexpected response successfully scares off the assailant, who never returns.
  • The story highlights the importance of quick thinking and the willingness to defend oneself.

• Notable Quote:

  • "You come near me again or so much as look in my direction, I'll grab whatever's around and beat you with it until you can't move anymore." ([150:45])

• Conclusion: Through ingenuity and bravery, the narrator effectively neutralizes the threat, demonstrating that even ordinary individuals can defend themselves against persistent threats.

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Overall Insights:

Episode 42 of The Dinner Table: A Southern Cannibal Podcast offers a mosaic of true scary stories that shed light on various forms of fear and danger individuals face in everyday situations. From persistent stalkers and violent confrontations to harrowing break-in attempts, each narrative underscores the critical importance of awareness, preparedness, and personal courage. Notable recurring themes include:

• Vigilance: Many stories emphasize the need to stay alert and trust one's instincts in suspicious situations.
• Courage: Narrators often display remarkable bravery in confronting or evading threats.
• Support Systems: The presence of friends, family, or community members plays a crucial role in overcoming terrifying encounters.
• Psychological Impact: Beyond the immediate fear, these experiences leave lasting emotional and psychological effects on the individuals involved.

Final Notable Quote:

• "You never know what will happen in this messed up world." ([226:10])

This episode serves as a stark reminder of the unpredictable nature of danger and the resilience required to navigate it, making it a compelling listen for those interested in true horror stories that blend everyday reality with spine-chilling experiences.

Transcript

[Narrator]

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[Narrator]

The story is kind of long for a little bit of background information for the following events. The story dates back to when I was just a young child, to now as a 19 year old almost adult, to before I was even born. I didn't live in the worst or best neighborhood. It was a neighborhood where if you left your bike out, it was almost guaranteed to get stolen within just a day. It's not like there was a murder reported every other day. Just a neighborhood where people like to steal bikes and maybe rob a lawnmower out of your shed. Anyways, me and my family have been victims of these things multiple times. It started off when my dad's truck got robbed before I was even born and he had some tools in his work bag stolen. We had no idea at the time that the same person would be targeting us for years. One day my mom was active and doing things in the house when I and my dad were sleeping. My mother told me this story by the way. She was doing some cleaning until she had heard a commotion in the bathroom. She went in and then saw a teenager or a young adult climbing through the window. She described him as youngish, blonde and he wasn't even wearing a ski mask or anything, just a black hoodie. She said that he stared at her for a moment and then slowly climbed out of the window and then left. My mom said she Wasn't scared of him and didn't wake up my dad because she was scared. He would have chased the kid down and kicked his ass. My dad was an intimidating guy, well over six foot closer to six six or so, broad shoulder frame, built like a truck and super protective of his family. The point is he would have torn the dude apart if my mom had woken him up. Anyways, my mom ended up telling my dad and he was pissed. Both my mom and dad say the guy would walk up and down the streets trying car door handles, looking in car windows and sometimes even going up to houses and trying the handle on those. My dad would even sit there and look out the window just waiting for him to try a handle. Yeah, my dad really wanted to mess that guy up. Fast forward a couple of years. I was probably six years old and my mother and my father and I were in the living room. We were hanging out on the couches and whatever. When the handle of our door started to jiggle, my dad jumped up and swung the door open just to see the same dumbass kid running down the block. For years this jackass had been at the same dumb home. Break in Rob wracked. Fast forward again to age 12. I was sleeping in the living room on the couch. For whatever reason that night I woke up at like 3am so there was some kind of noise. I remember looking around the room and then just taking a sip of whatever I was drinking. Then out of nowhere I heard the door handle jiggle. An actual banging on the door. I got up, ran into my grandpa's room and woke him up. I told him someone had been trying to break into the house. Then he sprang up and ran to the front door. He forcefully swung open the door and then ran out onto the front porch. Nobody was there. It could have been completely unrelated to the stranger guy, but what are the odds of that? Fast forward to present day. Today we woke up and one of our cars was stolen. We filed a police report and then my grandpa had a smart idea. My grandpa is good friends with all of our neighbors, but especially with our neighbor across the street from us. He went over, explained the situation to him and asked if he could pull up his camera footage. He did and around 3:40 earlier this morning, there was a sketchy tall, lanky guy looking into his car windows and tried the handle in one of them. We knew then exactly who it was. We couldn't see his face on the camera, but just by the build of the guy we knew it was him. His cameras only picked up his yard, but after the guy left, I'm guessing it went straight across the street to our car. We very stupidly left the keys in it and the doors unlocked. I guess it is partly our fault, but I'll be sure to update you guys if anything else happens. Thanks for listening and hopefully you'll have a better day than I did. This happened in the late summer of 2014, but I remember it clearly even 10 years later. In the fall of the previous year, I moved into an apartment with my boyfriend. At the time I was freshly 18 and he was 22. He was a socially inept groomer. Let's call him Mike. Mike was always emotionally distant and strange. We had many shared interests, but he refused to let me have friends, make new friends, or just go out and enjoy enjoy life in the city. I'd invite him to concerts for bands he liked and he'd always decline. I'd offer to introduce him to my friends but he'd decline. I'd go out to a show with my friends or go hang out with my friends and he'd send me a word document, a deranged poetic slide describing every single fault of mine he could discern. One time I smoked pot and he compared me to Medea killing her children. When I say poetic I mean poetic and when I say deranged I mean deranged. Naturally, we broke up. A friend of mine found him on a dating website and that was it. My parents helped me lug his stuff into a truck and took him and all of his crap to his parents house. It was a done deal. I kept the apartment and tried to settle back in. It was fine. I enjoyed my alone time and I was now free to have friends visited. It seemed ideal. Upon falling asleep on my second night alone, I was quickly woken up by a knock on my door. I checked the time, it was maybe 3:04am I think. Yeah, screw that. No thanks. I tried to drift off again, but the knocking happened again more rapidly and more aggressively this time. I kept ignoring it. I didn't have that many friends and the friends I did have wouldn't be banging on my door at 3am eventually the banging stopped. I enjoyed my next three days. I went out with my friends, had some drinks, then came home alone and went to sleep. I was then awoken again by three loud bangs and again at 4am what the hell? I then hear more bangs and now the doorknob is rattling. This time whoever it was was trying to open the door. Luckily this building was old and disgusting. The landlord, the paint jobs Roaches and no ac. But what it did have was two dead bolts and a door chain. So I felt more curious than scared. I took a look through the peephole and saw a blond man. He didn't look like a junkie or a weirdo, but I also didn't recognize him. And no, it wasn't Mike. He was dark haired and he would have written a poem before he tried to break down a door. So, feeling young, stupid, and for whatever reason safe enough to sleep, I go the hell back to sleep. But it keeps happening. Every night I go to sleep. And every single night he knocks, he bangs and slams at the door. He jiggles the doorknob left and right. He yanks on the doorknob. He flies into the door with the weight of his entire body. And he never talks. He'd really suck as a SWAT officer. And for some reason I never called the cops. I think I was in my ACAB era. I don't know. It went on for about a week. But I do eventually call my friend Pete. Pete and I hung out for the day. Maybe for a bit of context, Pete looked like the sniper in Saving Private Ryan. Skinny, bony and oddly serious, Pete couldn't hurt a fly. But he had a weird ghoulish face that made it seem as though he could. So we waited. And waited. We plotted and we constructed a plan. Speaking in whispers, we waded into the night. One, two, three. And then again. There's knocks at the door. Go time. Out of the peephole, we see the blonde man. What a surprise. He continues to knock. Smash and bang. With the chain lock on, we undid the two deadbolts. Then, knocking. Paused. We flick open the doorknob and with a knife in each of our hands, we start screaming. We stab IKEA kitchen knives through the gap. We switch the blades around like pirates who are only allowed to carry butter knives. Screw off already. The blonde man stumbles back and then jogs down the hall. He and I just laugh our asses off at this. And to my surprise, the weird blonde man never returned. All it took was matching his craziness. I will never know why he targeted me or why he was so freaking insistent in getting into my apartment. This took place in June of 2015. I was a 25 year old female who had just finished college and who took to the road to explore the western provinces of Canada. At this time, I found myself working odd jobs for cash in the province of British Columbia. If you're not aware, the okanagan region of B.C. is a gorgeous place that has a perfect climate for growing fruit, especially cherries, apples and wine grapes. In the spring, summer and fall, tons of jobs open up for people to come pick fruit by hand, often living in camps in 10 cities. I had just finished working on a farm in that region for May and June and got a ride to Vancouver to catch a Greyhound bus east into Alberta to do some more exploring. I was traveling pretty roughly and unsafely. My cell phone had no service because I hadn't paid my bill in six months, so I was dependent on WI fi to stay in touch with loved ones and I had no credit card. I was dependent on working short burst cash jobs to get by and carried a tent so I always had somewhere to sleep. My main means of travel were hitchhiking rideshares posted on Facebook groups and Greyhound. I was trusting and somewhat naive and to this day I believe some angelic force or spiritual guide must have kept me from getting murdered because I took many stupid risks and here unfolds one of my riskier decisions. The Greyhound ticket I'd booked departed at 7 in the morning the day after I got dropped off in Vancouver. I was getting dropped off around 5pm and I was unable to find a place to stay because again I didn't have a credit card. My plan was to hang around 24 hour fast food restaurants or coffee shops near the Greyhound station in downtown Vancouver all night, charging my phone and chilling with my belongings until the wee hours of the morning when I'd walk to the Greyhound station. At this time I was carrying a large backpacker's pack with a tent and a sleeping bag on my back as well as a small backpack in front for small personal belongings and I really didn't want to get robbed. I used my phone with coffee shop Wifi to Google 24 hour businesses downtown and I narrowed down a few. There were not too many but I had at least one Tim Hortons and one Starbucks. The sun was beginning to set and and I remember I took a walk down to the ocean to watch the pink sky sink down behind the barges and boats in the bay. I was carrying all of my stuff and it was quite heavy so I took my bags off and rested on a bench. I remember feeling satisfied and peaceful. It started to get late and I decided to walk to the 24 hour Starbucks that I'd found on Google to set up shop for the night. I wandered a bit and located the store. I ordered my favorite coffee at the time and got cozy on a bench at the window. It was now close to 10:30pm I had plugged all my devices in and was looking down at my phone when in my peripheral vision I saw a man enter the Starbucks. He orders a drink and then I can see him again in my peripheral vision, kind of curiously investigating me in my chaotic scene of bags and charging cables. He then sits on the bench next to me and starts up a conversation. He's probably about 5 foot 10, built, short blonde hair and attractive. I'm open, friendly and trusting. We chat about what both of us are doing there at such a late hour. He told me he's a US Coast Guard passing through Vancouver because he was relocating from Alaska to California. He then told me that he noticed me sitting on a bench on the beach hours before, which was at least a 30 minute walk from where we were. Suddenly the Starbucks staff told us they were closing. It turns out they were no longer operating for 24 hours. It was almost midnight and I realized I had to find another place to stay in downtown Vancouver. He asked me where I was going next and I said I was going to look for another place to sit all night. He very kindly and generously offered to let me stay on the couch in his hotel suite until I had to get up at 4:30am to catch my bus. I felt I had no choice. I trusted him and I went with him. It was a 5, 10 minute walk from the Starbucks. He was staying in a small Chinese hotel with small dragon statues out in the front. He took me up to his suite on the second floor and I draw my bags in the living room next to the couch. We shared a few words and he told me not to drink any of the water or soda in the mini fridge or he'd get charged for it. I then curled up on the very small couch and he went into his room. I didn't sleep well because I had to get up in a few hours at this point and I was anxious about sleeping through my alarm. My alarm went off at 4:30am and I started gathering my belongings. I then went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and use the toilet. When I opened the door, he was out of the room. His attitude had completely changed from the night before. I don't know if he anxiously tossed and turned all night, regretting his decision to bring a strange girl into his hotel room. But he looked ready for a fight. His fists were clenched as he followed me around closely and he kept saying, don't steal anything. Don't take anything that's not yours. I quickly gathered my belongings and left, waving and saying thank you. As I went out the door, I walked to the Greyhound station, hopped on my bus and headed farther east. To this day, I think about this tale often. I wonder if he followed me from the beach or if it was truly a coincidence. I wonder what his intentions were. I wonder what made his attitude change. I wonder if he thinks about this too. And I wonder if I dodged a bullet. How wrong things could have gone. Either way, I've been longing to tell this story. Hopefully it entertains people. The story I'm about to write happened a few years ago. To describe the incident, I think I'll need to give some context First, I'm a 29 year old male now. Back in high school, I had a crush on this pretty girl. Eventually I asked her out and we became each other's best friends. The story revolves around her father. Ever since we were together, I quickly realized he didn't like me much. He used to give me blank stares whenever we had dinner over at her house. And though I tried my best, he would always try to pick at me over something, even to the point of me dropping a single drop of rice outside of the plate. She and her mom were very apologetic though. And I learned quickly that her father was in the military and apparently developed some kind of mental disorder from his tour in Afghanistan. And so he was always groggy like that with almost every single person he met. He once told his daughter that even with me present that such an ugly guy like me doesn't deserve a pretty girl like her. So in a way, I respected him. And I'm not gonna lie, I always felt sorry for him. Hence, I tried to be naive about the things he said to me and just ignore them. I thought he was just being overprotective of his daughter and oh boy, was he protective. Alright, fast forward to university. By this time, even though we had a couple of fights, she and I were still best friends and loved each other like crazy. By this time, she and I were doing side jobs and making enough money to afford our own apartment together besides all the costs. And we decided to move out from our parents and start living on our own. Although my family were very happy seeing me move on, her transition was not so easy at first. Her father straight up denied her from moving out. However, thanks to her mom, she was finally able to move in with me despite him being very angry with me and at her over the entire ordeal. The problems began almost immediately after moving out. At first he called my family and he told them that apparently I'm this secret Satanist cult leader and that I've lured his daughter away from him, as well as some other crazy stories. My family, who already knew about his mental health condition, assured him that I wasn't going to harm his daughter by any means and that I love her more than anything and that I would never let anything bad happen to her. This isn't even enough though. He called our university's office one day screaming and demanding to know why she's not returning these calls and that I've probably done something bad to her. This resulted in a very ugly scene of both of us being pulled from our classes to the uni office and having to explain her father's conditions. Mind you, the reason she wasn't picking up the calls was because she was in the middle of class. In the meantime, something odd started happening with me in the middle of the night. Every night around 1 2am, I started getting calls from an unknown number, but when I picked it up, I just turned, breathing, no words. So I started ignoring them. Fast forward about a month and she and I were out pretty late with some friends and came home very late. At around 2am when we were about to pull over into our house, we saw her father's car in the driveway. But as soon as she got out to see what's up, the car started to speed away. This left both of us completely in awe. She tried calling him, but instead her mom picked up. But she told us that she had just woken up and didn't see her father anywhere. She was also shocked to learn what we've just seen. Even though he denied it at first, it turned out every night after her mom fell asleep, he sneaked out and drove all the way to Ars, apparently to protect his daughter from my evil deeds. Her mom also found out that he used a burner phone every night to call to my number as well, just to spook me out or something. Even though you might think this is the worst incident, unfortunately no, it's nowhere near it. After this happened, we didn't see or hear from him much as our mom started staying up late and ensured us that he couldn't go out to us again. Fast forward a few nights without any phone calls or really anything from him. Well, one night we were sleeping on the bed and then I woke up to something. At first I didn't realize what it was amidst the darkness. So when I went to get up from the bed, my entire body shook with fear and terror. I saw our father holding a large knife standing at our bedroom door. I was consumed with fear and tried to scream but nothing came out. As soon as he noticed I was awake, he then ran and jumped on me, pinning me to the bed and started cursing at me, yelling things at me like I hypnotized his daughter, I took his baby girl away from him and so on. Mind you, he's a huge military trained dude and I'm just some skinny, not very tall guy. And before I could react to anything, he started to cut on my throat with the knife right around when she woke up. I then started fainting with her, then letting out a blood curdling scream. Well, that's the last thing I remember until I woke up in the hospital. She was right beside me. My neck suffered a small but quite deep cut from him putting the knife in it. I learned that as soon as she realized what was happening, she yanked the knife out of her father's hand, saving my life and immediately dialing 911. Apparently after her father did that, he just went into the corner of the room and sat there with his head down until the police arrived with an ambulance. Even though I was shocked to my core, I still feel sorry for him. He was in major need of mental assistance. Nobody understood it back then and perhaps her moving out made it even worse. At the end of the day, I'm alive and well with just a bruise in my neck as a forever reminder of the incident. Her father has since been diagnosed with schizophrenia and getting proper treatment now and he's doing better. And if you're wondering what happened to us after that, he well, we just got married the previous year and we're very happy. We still remember that horrible night and we promise each other we'll keep each other safe at any cost. To preface this, I'm a female, 34 years old, and I live in a small town of about 12,000 people. It's pretty quiet for the most part, but like any other town, it has its bad apples. It's a rural country town and a nearby area is known for having some unsavory characters, basically just crackheads and junkies. One night, when I hadn't been living in that town for too long, I was sitting at home and remembered that I needed some cash to pay for my portion of the rent and utility bill money the next day. So I decided to make a quick trip to the bank that wasn't too far away. I was still a little unfamiliar with the town and where things were, but I had for sure seen a bank nearby. Once I arrived, I noticed it had been permanently closed. Well, damn, I remember seeing another bank on Main street, so I set out to get some cash. I arrive at the Main street location and pull around to the drive thru atm. I roll down my window and place my card into the ATM reader. It's about 11pm and where I live can be pretty dead at night, so it was quiet until I hear a dog barking. But the bark sounded off more like a person mimicking a dog. But the bark sounded more like a signal to someone. It seemed strategic, sounding too rehearsed and human to be a dog. It made me nervous. I quickly scan in front of me. Nothing. I look in my rearview mirror. In the shadows, I see a scraggly, shirtless man with something in his hand walking over a slight hill from the property behind the bank. I couldn't make out any distinguishing features, but I know a crackhead when I see it. He was heading towards my car. I quickly rolled up my window and spun around in my seat. He must have ducked behind the building because he had disappeared. In a split second. I surveyed the area around my car. Nobody. I felt uneasy, like every nerve in my body was telling me to get out of there. My card was still in the machine so I couldn't just drive off. I nervously rolled my window bag down and finished my transaction, all while still darting my eyes around searching for any signs of the barking weirdo. I then yanked my money and card right out of the machine and rolled the window up successfully. By this time, a car had just rolled up behind me in the ATM line. They had come up from behind the building where I figured the old boy from earlier had ducked. When I noticed him, I made one more glance in my rearview mirror at them. It was dark and their faces were masterfully obscured from my view. They knew to stop far enough back so that the light from the ATM lane wouldn't show their faces. But I had a gut feeling who was in the car. I quickly pulled around to the front of the building and stopped my car. Sounds like a stupid move, but there was a method to my madness. I stopped so that I could get a better look at their faces in the streetlights. Just in case crap hit the fan, you know. Almost as soon as I whipped around to the front of the bank, the car behind me whipped around too. They were on my tail in a millisecond. I knew they were going to follow me. They stopped on a dime right beside my car. You guessed it, Dogman and two others were in the car. They all looked over at me, surprised. I looked them in the face and they stared at me for an uncomfortable amount of time, but in actuality it was probably just a few seconds. They then immediately sped off, not even stopping at the stop sign. Busted. Looking back, I'm pretty sure that Barky was lookout and the others in the car were just hidden from view. The bark was a signal that someone was at the atm, so they would pull up behind the person, follow them, and either rob them at home or then ambush and carjack them at a light or something. I'm not a genius, but I'm thankful that I had the forethought to stop and make sure that I saw their faces. I feel like it really saved me from being robbed or worse that night. I guess they didn't want to be ID'd, which is fine by me because I didn't want to be their victim. The story starts with me failing to bring my big, energetic dog to the dog park at a reasonable hour. It's late at night, approaching 11pm, but she's going stir crazy and my girlfriend is very upset, so I decide to bring her over there. Despite how late it is. However, I still have work to do, so I foolishly decide to bring my laptop with me to a remote area practically guaranteed to be empty at night. As I'm plugging away at my computer, a man in a Lakers windbreaker comes walking down the street, heading to the right. The entire time he's looking directly at me, even turning his head all the way around as he walks past. He finally gets about 50 yards down the road where the gate to the dog park is. Suddenly he stops. He looks around, clearly looking up and down the road to see if there were any bystanders coming and weighing a decision. After a few moments, he opens the gate and starts walking right toward me. Seeing the geography of the park, you would realize immediately as I did, that there was no conceivable way he could have been intending to come to the park before he saw me. There's absolutely no doubt that he's intending to mug me and steal my laptop. I'm not scared though. I'm angry and frankly offended that this guy thinks I'm an easy target. So I calmly stand up and walk over to one of the shovels lying on the ground that people use to clean up after their dogs. I just passionately pick it up and walk back to where my stuff is. I square my shoulders, puff out my chest, and confidently sling the shovel over my shoulder. He's about 20ft away from me at this point. He's still approaching me, but just slightly more slowly and his posture seems a bit more doubtful, if that makes sense. So I call out to him something like hey, how you doing pal? Which I hoped was a good choice that would sound relatively normal and not like a nerd trying to sound tough. I tried to put as much menace as I could on it without sounding too cartoonish. I must have done a good enough job. Because of this he stops walking. I'm expecting him to say something back and I'm watching his hands, which are still in his pockets, and then without a word he turns around and walks away. I know this might seem like I think I'm a badass or something, but that was the very first time anyone tried to mug me. I was all adrenaline and anger in the moment, but looking back on it, I'm really lucky how it played out. I'm not sure I could have actually beaten him in a fight, but I had a pretty dangerous looking shovel and was genuinely willing to use it and I knew that he probably wasn't going to risk a trip to the hospital or worse just for a generic laptop. But I'm also really glad that he didn't pull a gun or a knife on me. Still, I'm really proud of my response. Around the summer of 2017, I was in my sophomore year of high school. I was with my two friends, Johnny and Devin on a Friday night. I was snapchatting my crush at the time and she was telling me that she was having a sleepover at a mutual friend's house. My crush's friend was also hitting on Johnny and they were telling us to come over for a little bit to hang out since there were no parents at home. Of course, being the hormonal teens we were, my friends and I were set on making it to the house before it got too late. We convinced Johnny's mom to give us a ride over to the house, but she told us that she wasn't going to be able to pick us up since she had to go to bed early for work in the morning. This didn't matter to us at all since we were just focused on being able to hang out with girls at night. After we spent time with the girls, the main girl who lived at the house told us that we had to leave since it was getting late and she wanted to sleep. At this point it was around 11pm and we were broke high schoolers so the idea of getting an Uber was out the window. The three of us just accepted the fact that we were going to have to walk back to Johnny's house The distance was less than 4 miles but it was going to take an hour to walk. There was nothing really eventful that happened during most of the walk. We ended up stopping at a 7:11 because Devin wanted to get some beef jerky. Johnny and I waited outside the store and we saw two sketchy looking dudes outside staring at Devin while he was in the store. As Devin came out, beef jerky in hand, he turned and looked at the two guys, then looked towards us smiling. With his beef jerky raised up, Johnny suggested that we cross the street because the people were starting to walk towards us. We continued to walk across the street and looked every few seconds to see the same two guys walking the same speed at us on the other side of the road. I think they knew we were looking at them a lot because one of them began to make a slow two tone whistling noise about three quarters of a mile from Johnny's house. We were whispering and trying to figure out a plan to make sure that these people didn't follow us back to his house. We looked across the road and the people were gone. This relief was short lived as they appeared in an alleyway across the road with that same two tone whistle. Then Johnny said a phrase that put me into a fight or flight position. They're walking across the street towards us. At this point Deafen and I also turned to see that the two guys were walking towards us. When they saw the three of us turn to look at them. They then began sprinting at us. I'm honestly glad that the three of us had the same idea. Run. We all started running as fast as we possibly could and I didn't want to stop until we got back to Johnny's house. I saw Devin drop his charger for his phone and he stopped to grab it quickly and then caught back up with us. I didn't even dare to look back at the two guys chasing us, but I heard them yelling at us and doing that same horrifying two tone whistle. I was wearing these really beat up low top vans that were destroying my feet with every cushionless step that I took. It didn't matter. All that mattered was running until I couldn't hear those people yelling and whistling. I'm not really sure if the two guys were just trying to scare us and have a quick little laugh, but after two or three minutes they finally stopped chasing us. But we still didn't stop running. I remember Devin saying they stopped chasing us in between his gasps for air and all I said back was just keep running. We turned the corner and Johnny's house was less than 200ft from us. Johnny ran faster so he could get to the door first and unlock it. We threw ourselves inside, locked the door, and then ran up the stairs to Johnny's room. We all spent the next few minutes catching our breath and checking out the window to see if we could spot the two sketchy guys walking around. I'm very glad to say that we didn't see them again, but Devin showed me a picture of a pistol that he searched up on his phone and then said this is what it looked like. When I went to grab my charger, I saw one of them with a gun that looked just like this. I'm not sure what is more bone chilling, the fact that I was running away from two people with one of them having a gun, or the thought of turning around while running just to see a man with a gun running after me. I live in a relatively safe city in Scotland, though I have had several really scary and odd encounters since I moved here four years ago. I've been immersed in this subreddit for years before ever even creating an account, and to be honest, I learned a hell of a lot from all of the posts that I've read over the years. So I have what's not me to thank for my quick thinking. I'm a short 29 year old woman and I work in a pub so I often get out of work quite late. On weekends I usually head home at around 2am I never wear headphones when headed home at night, so this particular night was no different than usual, alarms set, doors locked and checked and said goodbye to my colleague and then went our separate ways to get home. I usually cross a grocery car park to get home. It's well lit and that night something struck me as odd. There were a couple of cars parked there, which is normal, but something just felt off. I looked over my shoulder and clocked a guy in a hat walking a distance behind me. This wasn't weird, but I decided to keep an eye on him nonetheless. I exited the park to the main road that I lived off of, but still had a good mile or so to go before I reached my flat. I checked over my shoulder again and sure enough, this guy was walking the same direction as me. The distance between us was starting to close so I decided to cross the road I usually did at this point anyway. Looking over my shoulder I was able to not only look for traffic coming, but I was also able to keep an eye on him. I crossed the road and didn't bother to look back for a few minutes, assuming he had stayed on the other side. But I began to hear footsteps approaching. I glanced over my shoulder and saw the sky was about 20ft behind me now. I had a soft drink in my glass bottle in my bag, and figuring I was overreacting, but better safe than sorry, I stuck my hand in my bag and gripped the bottle. Another 45 seconds and this guy was now close enough to touch me. But he slows to my pace and then says, hi, how are you? I ignored him and I didn't respond. I long ago gave up on pretenses of being polite if I feel uncomfortable. A stranger's feelings matter less than my feeling of safety in any given situation. But he persists in talking to me. Hi. Are you going to work? No. I was being short with him. Are you going home? Yes, I said coldly. Do you live in this direction? I just looked at him. He tried again. Do you live off this road? Where do you live? Do you live close by? I didn't respond and slowed my pace, letting him walk on. I was still gripping the glass bottle, ready to hit him with it should he try anything. He tried to slow down so I would catch up with him, but I slowed down so much that I was barely walking. He was maybe 300 yards away at this point and simply stopped and turned around, watching me and waiting for me to catch up with him. I reached into my pocket with my free hand and tried my phone. Of course my phone was dead. I figured it would last the walk home, but the dodgy battery had other ideas. Surprisingly, though, I wasn't afraid. He had started walking again, but still quite slowly. He looked over his shoulder again after another minute, and I seized the opportunity. There was a path to a block of flats that was obscured by tall hedges, so I leaped behind them. I waited for nearly 10 minutes, never letting go of that bottle. The whole time I peeked around the hedges to make sure he was there. I peeked behind bins and bus stops to make sure he wasn't hiding in wait. But as far as I could tell, I had lost him. Maybe he didn't mean anything by this, but if you suspect a woman is afraid of you and she's walking alone at night, don't speak to her. It will not help. And especially don't ask her where she lives repeatedly. I wasn't drunk. I didn't appear to be drunk or need any help. I was just walking home as I ordinarily would. I am, however, inclined to believe that he had bad intentions. I would rather be too cautious than not, and this subreddit has definitely taught me how to do that. So for context, this happened a few years ago when I was 16. It was early August and me and my best friend, both female by the way, were at my house and decided to go on a walk around 11pm I've always lived in a really nice neighborhood where no crime really happens. However, I'm still extremely aware of my surroundings. We walked to a school near my house and decided to indulge in the devil's lettuce. Now, this wasn't new to me, so although I definitely felt the effects, I wasn't out of it or anything at all. When we were done, we just kept walking. Eventually we were walking on the sidewalk opposite a pharmacy, which wasn't open at the time, so it was deserted, but I was kind of just staring over at it and I saw some bikes around the corner of the building. As we kept walking I kept my eye on it and I noticed two big men who seemed homeless fiddling with the bikes. I could hear them angrily yelling and it seemed the bikes were broken. It also seemed like they were on heavy drugs with how they were acting and yelling about the bikes. Then one of them looked up and started yelling at the other guy who then looked up as well. We started walking faster as we were only about 30ft away and then the first man then yelled at his friend, hey let's go get those bitches. Let's rape the shit out of them. Hearing this sent me into fight or flight mode. I grabbed my friend and ran to a nearby car wash and then hid behind a car. I could hear them muttering and looking for us, but I guess they were too drugged out to logically look for us while running away. I'd called the police who just now arrived, but by then the guys were gone. I never saw or heard about them again, but I'm so glad we ended up being fine. To anyone out there who likes to go on late night walks, always have your phone charged and always be aware of what's around you. This happened about a year ago when I was in my first year of university. For context, I'm from the UK and I lived in Students hall for my first year. It was in a flat with two boys and four girls including me. There was a park nearby that we would often go to get some fresh air and sit at the swings and just talk about life and things in general. We were all very much night owls, so it wasn't uncommon for us to go late at Night. One night, one of the other girls and I decided to go by ourselves as nobody else wanted to come. As you enter this park, there's a tall monument and some benches. We were walking along the path and it was pretty much pitch black when a man stepped out of the darkness towards us. We jumped a little, but he was walking away from us, so we weren't too worried. However, we can be quite paranoid, so we kept looking behind us to check that he hadn't turned around and started following us. Turns out this time we were right to be paranoid. After this, we made our way down to the swings and sat on them with our backs facing the path that we had just seen the man on. I guess this was probably mistake number two. Number one being going on a walk by ourselves late at night. After about 10 minutes, we looked back and by one of the big trees further up the path where we'd initially seen the man, there was a small light which we guessed was a phone flashlight, and it was shining directly at us. The light from the phone allowed us to see a figure standing by the tree. As soon as we both turned to look, the light went out. At this point, we really should have run, but we didn't want to alert the man that we'd seen him. So our plan was to sit for another minute and then calmly walk off and out of the park. Luckily, we could exit the park without going back the way we came. As we sat in silence, waiting for an appropriate time to get up, we saw the light again, but it was closer this time. We then decided to hell with our plan and just got up off the swings. It started as a fast walk, but in the end we were both running the hell out of that park, with my flatmate phoning her boyfriend, who we lived with. By the time he answered, we were out of the park and now onto the main road. Whilst my friend caught her breath, I spoke to her boyfriend on the phone, and as I looked back towards the park, retelling the story, I saw the light again. This time it was right up by the gate of the park, and instead of the whitish light that comes from the phones, usually there was an orange glow to it. The glow that comes from the phone when you have the flash on, but you're covering it with your finger. At this point, I grabbed my friend and we started sprinting along the main road, not even explaining to her boyfriend on the phone what was happening. Her boyfriend came and met us on our way back to the flat and we never saw that man again. Safe to Say we were very shaken up by this experience and we never went to that park late at night again. Two years ago, when I was a sophomore in high school, I had started dating someone. I was around 15, 16 years old. Through the entirety of this relationship. His name was Grayson. Our relationship was very explosive and toxic. But that's not what this story is primarily about. You see, Grayson's dad always gave me the creeps. I believe, in a way, he was a pathological liar. Here's some background. His name is Tim. Tim is really full of himself. He believes he's established his own businesses. Thinks he's come up with innovative war tactics the government is using thanks to him. I also have reason to believe that he was dishonorably discharged from the military. Grayson always told me that he left the Air Force to come home and be with his wife. He doesn't have his uniform. He doesn't have any paperwork regarding this. However, leaving because your wife misses you isn't a valid excuse in the military. At first it seemed innocent, such as giving me and my mom his cell phone number in case we ever needed to be in touch. Grayson was always bad about ignoring texts from his dad in school. So I'd find him and tell him that his dad was waiting outside for him. But it kinda got weird. He would go out of his way to text me and my mom for non Grayson related matters. He would often invite me over when Grayson wasn't over to do things such as Grayson's laundry, or to bake cookies, or to even wait until he gets home to surprise him. My mom never let me, nor did I really want to go because I just knew this was weird. Anytime Grayson and I were on the phone, his dad would start saying really mean things to him. Yelling at him, calling him stupid, etc. It always made me uncomfortable because I'd come around and his dad would act very differently. Every time Grayson and I were together, he had started treating us like we were on playdates, like we were children. He would often remark about me being his stepdaughter to strangers. And this man could really talk. He would talk to anyone and everyone, regardless if they seemed up to conversation or not. Which made it really awkward for us because Grayson would have his arm wrapped around me and we'd be affectionate. And him saying that would just make things really awkward for us. I remember trying to tell Grayson several times that his dad just really freaked me out and that my parents weren't happy about his dad either. He didn't really understand. He told me that he had lost his daughter at birth and that maybe him acting this way was kind of his way of coping with it. Grayson's dad, Tim, had recently gotten close with a neighbor at the apartment complex. She also had a daughter. Kelly was 6, maybe even 7 years old. Her mom was a complete deadbeat. She would only come around Tim whenever she needed money to get cigarettes or drugs. But she did not hesitate to let Kelly spend several hours alone with Tim or letting Tim pick her up from school. I remember one specific time that he brought Kelly along to pick Grayson up from my house. It was cold outside. He sent her to my door wearing PJs. We had been watching a scary movie, and when she saw Grayson, she then excitedly said, tim is taking me to see moana. It was 11pm it was really late, and I was extremely bewildered. Kelly eventually got taken away from her mother and she was placed in a foster home. Tim would try to get me or Grayson to go to the door and leave stuff for her to have from Tim. Then he eventually even tried to get custody of her, regardless that there was no blood relation or any credentials that would allow him to do so. Another time around the super bowl, he had come up to the door with a beer bottle in hand. He doesn't even ask to come in. He just kind of forces open the door and then comes in the bathroom to pee. He then takes Grayson, beer bottle in hand, and drives home. Here's a list of other things that I remember happening, but it's been over a few years, so there's more, but I can't recall every detail. One time, Tim texted my mom and inquired about me and Grayson. We had been arguing, and we had argued a lot. His dad then jokingly asked my mom, is she on her period? I get it. It's a crude joke and that many guys joke about it. But imagine someone texting you and asking on your daughter's behalf. Another time, Grayson and I were giggling and making jokes in the backseat. I remember his dad always talking about me and Grayson getting married. I was a sophomore, he was a freshman. So we thought about it. Yeah, but was it ideally gonna happen? Not really. Grayson then says something along the lines of getting married. I don't think so. His dad then says, well, if you don't marry her, then I will. I was honestly shocked that something like that would even be said. I was at that point very weirded out. He had asked me to go out to Golden Corral with him and Grayson. I knew Grayson was at his mom's house, but for some reason, I thought he had already come home and was with his dad. I got into his dad's car. I was just in the car with him and two other older men. I started furiously texting Grayson. I asked him where he was and if he was actually going. He was asleep. He didn't even know his dad had come and got me. His mom. Oh, his mom was totally pissed. She chewed his dad out on the phone while it was on the car speaker and I was sitting behind a seat. She said that he needed to stop with this weird behavior. We go inside the restaurant, and I'm quiet. I'm just waiting for Grayson to text me back. I'm upset and confused. He finally comes in. He was mortified. I wanted so badly to go home, but I didn't want to make a scene by leaving, so I just tolerated it. Our last and final argument ensued. It was because Grayson started sexting other girls. Grayson made it very clear that he did not permit me to talk to other boys. I un added every boy on social media, so this really, really distraught me. After everything that our relationship went through. There were other signs that I ignored, too. About how he'd surround himself with girls whenever I wasn't around and how he'd touch on other girls in gym class. But this was the final and last time that I wanted to be walked all over. I snitched on him to his dad. I didn't explicitly say that Grayson had sexted girls. I didn't want him to be in any legal trouble. But I did ask him to delete my number. And I told him that I wouldn't be coming around anymore. His dad told me that I was being unreasonable and that his son was a gentleman and that he raised his son well enough that his son would never cheat. It was a lot more drama than I needed. So at the end of it all, I blocked him on everything. Tim started trying to reach out to me through his Facebook account, through his business account. I often just blocked him and didn't tell my mom because I felt like it was old news. A few months ago, I reached out to Grayson. Grayson had taken my virginity. I was really embarrassed to tell him that I had an STI and that he needed to be checked. A week or two later, I got a letter in the mail. His dad, Tim, decided to reach out to me. Keep in mind, me and Grayson had only talked about the STI stuff, nothing more. We had been apart for two years. I still lived at the same address. I suppose he had told his dad that he needed to get testing done and that his dad took it upon himself to discipline me. Now 18 years old, I'll retype a few of the things he said on this card. The front of the card says which first powder cry with a little girl in pigtails on the front, pouting. Opening the card, it originally just says miss you. And then written all over the card, you're too smart for irresponsible behavior. Respect yourself. Respect your body. Reach for the stars. Achieve your goals. Get your education. Don't blow it now. Hang on, baby girl. If you need me, just call me. If you need a ride or just someone to talk to. Your friend, Tim. Picture your future. Achieve your dreams. Hey, dear. Respect yourself. Don't throw yourself at boys. If a guy truly loves you, he'll hold on to you. There's so many diseases out there. Some are incurable. Reserve sex for marriage and do right by God. Don't become a baby mama. You're very smart, pretty, nice and sincere. Don't let this world change you. I wasn't the one to even open the card. My mom was. As she had recognized the name, she called the cops and had them investigate it further. Even the cops remarked that this behavior was strange and should be looked into. I don't really know all of the details. I was working when all of this went down. We still have the card and my mom's nightstand as evidence just in case this were to go any further. His older brother Tyler works at a bar type restaurant we frequent a lot. He and I don't really make small talk. We act like we don't know each other, but by the way he looks at me, I can tell in a way that he feels sorry. I truly empathize with him because he too has had a long term girlfriend and I can only imagine his dad doing the same thing to them. It's gotten so bad that one of his older sons who has his first grandbabies is moving away just to get away from him. His wife doesn't like Tim and even he can see through the man that his dad proclaims to be. I apologize if this is all scattered and doesn't really add up. It's been a while and I haven't really typed it all out nor really talked to anyone about this other than my immediate family. I have other reasons to believe that maybe Tim isn't mentally sound and he uses religion to back up his reasoning for many things that he does wrong in his life. I think maybe the reason why our relationship failed was because Grayson's dad mistreated him and going to his mom's house was an escape from that. I think that is truly why Grayson treated me how he did and it really breaks my heart for him. But I am glad that I'm well out of that relationship, well out of having to deal with his dad and in a brand new relationship with a family that adores me. While this isn't extreme, I really, really hope that I'll never be involved with Tim or affiliate with any of the members of his family again. I've had some questions regarding the whole STI thing, so to clear things up, I'll say it I did have a sex life after Grayson without being in any other relationships. I didn't have my first appointment until a while after my STI was asymptomatic, so therefore I didn't realize anything was wrong. I don't know if Grayson gave it to me or what. I don't know how long I had it afterwards. I don't know when I got it. I just know I had it. My OB GYN asked me to notify anyone I was involved with and everyone who I was with were told going back to Grayson as he was the first guy I'd ever been with. I'm gonna start this with some context so this makes a little more sense. So the place where I live is like a mini New York City. Our crime rate is actually higher than New York City. If that doesn't tell you anything. There are crackheads, gang members, and just all around people that you don't want to encounter, especially at night. The story happened when I was 18 and I had a friend that I'd known for years that stupidly was in a gang because of his family's past. This is going to be important. Later, I was hanging out with said friend, which I'll call Alex due to privacy on their behalf. We lived in a city where the biggest things we had around us were food chains, so there was really never much to do. We decided that we were going to walk around a little bit and then eventually go to one of our main hangout spots to go smoke a little and just generally hang out. It was about 2:45am when we were starting to walk, so by the time we got closer to our spot we were trying to reach. The church bell in our town rang to signify that it was 3:00am Alex and I were joking about how creepy it was and wondering why it would go off at such a late hour. I had a soda with me that I'd just opened before we left. So I chugged it and just held onto it since we didn't have any trash cans near us. Fast forward a little bit and we were finally reaching our hangout spot. Now, this spot was the corner of a parking lot, but it was up on a hill so the edges were stone walls so no one would fall off. The drop was about a story high. We noticed an abandoned baby carriage as we were walking to the corner. I ended up getting freaked out and was jumpy. Out of nowhere, I acted like something big was dropped behind us, causing me to snap my whole body around, which really freaked out my friend and made him look too. Mind you, there wasn't any noise or vibration from anything falling. Nothing had actually fallen. I had just randomly felt like it had happened. That's when we spotted someone walking around in the parking lot. I immediately knew something was wrong, but my friend was just trying to get me to walk over to the corner so they wouldn't notice us. As soon as we made it to the corner, they started rushing towards us. I don't know why neither of us decided to just walk away at that point, but looking back at it, we were already trapped in a bad situation as soon as they saw us. As soon as the guy reached us, he had started asking us, did you guys leave all this trash here? Talking about the baby carriage and various other things that were around it. Both Alex and I were confused but just denied it saying we just got here and we had no clue where any of it came from. The guy didn't believe us and kinda was eyeing us up and down. That's when we noticed he was in layers and layers of clothing. Like two different pairs of pants with shorts over the top and a long sleeved shirt with multiple other short sleeved shirts over the top of it. He also had a backpack and different clothes draped over his arm. But it wasn't cold outside since it was July. That's when he mentioned the trash again. Are you guys sure this wasn't you pointing at the carriage? Again, we denied being any part of it. That's when he let it go. We just stood in silence for a couple of seconds. Then he started again. What are you guys doing out here? Are you smoking some weed? He asked us with a grin. We said no, we don't do any drugs at all. He gave a suspicious look and then just asked us why we were there. Alex spoke up and told him that we were just there to look at the stars and hang out for a little bit. This is where it got Even weirder, the guy had started talking about how he has his own fashion line and that he was a well known guy, telling us how lucky we were to even be able to look at him. That's when he started showing off the little silver chains that he had on his neck and wrist. We could obviously tell that he wasn't all there and was on something. So to not piss him off, we said that we've seen some of his stuff online and that it was really cool to meet him. He lit up. He started talking about how he had some exclusive stuff coming out soon, that he was going to give us early access to it. That's when he lifted up the clothes that were in his hand. It was this big oversized pair of shorts that were from the dollar store. This dude just started shoving them towards us saying here, smell it, it's my new cologne that I just made. He put it in Alex's face. My friend just stared at him down while leaning towards the shorts, pretending to sniff them. The guy then shoved them towards me and I got a full face of lemon scent, like cleaner. I just kinda smiled and said that it smelled nice while silently freaking out, thinking I was just drugged and had chloroform in my face. Here, you guys have this. It's on the house. He said with a smile as he handed them to me. I didn't know what to do, so I just held them up and glanced over them with a smile saying thank you as I draped them over my arm. That's when he asked how old we were. I'm 17, I said, not wanting him to know that I was no longer a minor in our state. That's when Alex's demeanor changed and he just stood there glaring at the man without a word. The man laughed a little bit at it, then started talking about this random book telling us how it's God's word and how this book opened his eyes and changed his life. He opened the book and started showing my friend different pages in the book. At this point, my friend wasn't saying a single word or moving, just watching him so not to send the guy any red flags. I just kinda nodded along trying to be nice and calm as my anxiety was steadily rising. He handed my friend the book and told him to keep it and to let it change his life. That's when he then stepped back for a second to adjust his pants. He then started pointing around us saying that he had connections and people watching us. At that moment, I could barely hold my act as he was saying all this. Alex grabbed his phone out showing the time that it was 3:30am Alex then finally spoke, I'm sorry but we gotta go man. My mom is texting me that we need to get home. His parents were asleep and had no clue we were out. The guy just kinda stared at him a bit freaked out, then asked him, your mama's calling you and Alex just replied that she texted him telling him to get home now that she was looking for us. The guy just kinda nodded and said he would see us later. Then as we were walking away, he stopped us and said that he almost forgot to give us one last gift. He pulled out one of those capsules that you get from the quarter machines in the grocery store and it was three big versions of those tiny colored bone candies. He handed the capsule to me and said it was a gift from the Blog Party in my city we have something called a blog party where the main streets of the town are blocked off so the city can throw a little rave with music and vendors all around, which had just happened a day or two prior. I just smiled and said thank you. Then Alex and I started walking the opposite way. The street we took to get up there was on our left, but we didn't want to lead him back to one of our houses so we took a little side street that would lead us to the main road but he would still be able to see us until we were able to turn the corner at the end of it. As we started walking that way and the guy was walking back to the middle of the parking lot where he originally was, Alex leaned towards me and then said in a whisper, don't freak out, buddy has a gun. I immediately felt my heart drop and the anxiety settle into my chest. Alex just kept repeating, he has a gun. Don't freak out. I'll get you out of here. You're with me. I got you. He has a freaking gun dude. I quickly asked, where are we going? Straight. Just keep going straight. Alex said. So we quickly kept walking straight and once we popped out at the end of the side road we just kept walking straight so we didn't know which direction we were going. We didn't turn around the whole time in fear that he was following us or watching us. Alex then whispered, as soon as I tell you, we're going to run, okay? I just replied with, can we get rid of this? Talking about the crap that he had handed us. Alex just said, not yet. He'll find it on the ground and try and find us. As soon as we were out of sight. He said to run, so we started booking it down the street. I kept telling him that we needed to get out of his line of sight because if we kept running the way we were, he'd be able to see us from far away away because the road we were headed towards had a clearing letting you see all the way back to the parking lot. We ended up running through an alleyway onto another street, but my friend kept almost leading us towards the clearing again, so I pushed him towards another alleyway to try and get away from that guy's line of sight. We were by a parking garage that had paid access when Alex and I finally slowed down for a few seconds. Here, walk through the garage. If anything happens, it'll be on camera. I just asked again, when are we gonna get rid of this crap? In a minute, he replied. I'll let you know when to drop it, but as soon as we do, we need to run. He started looking around, checking to see if the man was following us as we were then fast walking through the parking lot. Once we got to the exit of the garage, he looked around outside and then quickly said alright, drop and run. We both threw the things down outside of the exit and started running. When I dropped the things that I had in my hand, I had also dropped the empty can which made a ting noise when it hit the ground causing us to bolt. Scared that he had heard it. As we were running, I kept throwing up the soda that I had chugged in front of me, but I never stopped. Alex tried stopping me for a second to check on me, but I kept pushing him forward saying that we needed to get the hell out of here. Once we finally reached near our houses, he told me to come back with him because he didn't think it was a good idea of leaving me alone at my house. Since it was just me and one other person who lived at my house. We didn't stop running until we got inside his house. We just sat there in silence for a bit. Alex then finally broke his silence. Do you know anything he was talking about? He asked. Other than the fact that he said he had people watching us, no. Alex shook his head and then replied with I do. He was trying to recruit us and his gang. He was trying to teach us old Italian mafia terms. That was what he was showing me in the book. He mentioned a couple of big drug lords that I don't even want to talk about. That's why he handed you the capsule and told you where his people were. So we drop it off to them. To do a drug deal. He's the one who put the baby stroller there. It's an old trick to make people go and check to make sure there isn't a baby in it so he could trap us, especially with it being at the corner of a drop. I just didn't know what to say. All I could think was how I felt in danger the second we made it to the top of the hill. How did you know he had a gun? I asked. When he stepped back to adjust his pants, he grabbed onto it to move it. I saw it shining in the light. After that, I didn't really want to walk outside in fear that I'd run into him again. The next day, me and my other friend had to go to the store and the garage that we had thrown all the stuff outside of just so happened to be on the way to the store. When we drove by, I noticed that everything was missing. I just hope that the owners of the building just threw it all away. I haven't been back to that spot to this day, and I kid you not, every time I see a baby carriage, I just avoid it like the plague. I also get freaked out every time I hear that same church bell ring, making me think it's a warning that something bad's about to happen. I found out a year later that my now boyfriend was a security guard at the blog party that same year. His team ended up actually kicking that guy out of the party because he was harassing people and selling drugs to local crackheads at the event. So to anyone who ever finds a stroller abandoned or just has an uneasy feeling, leave the area immediately. Be safe out there everyone.

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[Narrator]

Lowe's knows to bring your vision to life, it's important to find the right color. That's why Milo's rewards members Get a free paint or exterior stain sample to test your look and find the perfect color to confidently refresh. Refresh your space. Lowe's we help you save Offer Valid in store only 6, 19 through 625. Limit 1 per customer while supplies last. Discount taken at time of purchase. See Associate for details. Program subject to terms and conditions. Details@lowe's.com Terms subject to change When I was in middle school I was a petite and an attractive lady with curves with daddy issues. So I signed up for some hookup dating apps to meet with random local guys. Dangerous and illegal I know, but I was a stupid middle schooler who was having untreated mental issues. There was this one guy I matched up with that I'll call Tyler. I was meeting him with Tyler in the dead of night so he could drive me to his place so he could hook up. The reason why I was so late at night around three in the morning was because I had to sneak out and over time I had memorized my parents sleeping patterns since they didn't have an exact schedule. Anyways, I was sneaking out through the front door and I had to wait for Tyler to drive to the location I sent him to the park and then wait for me to walk there. You just have to cross the townhomes I live in at the time to a local elderly's home that where I live is known as a place to meet up as friends or couples. As I was walking across there was an area which I had to go through to get to the elderly's home and it was dark as hell. There's a sidewalk gap between apartments so people could walk their dogs and stuff, which looks totally normal in the morning but terrifying at night. I was walking up to the stairs that lead into this section of the sidewalk and I had a dreading feeling that someone was watching me. I froze in my tracks with my heart racing before I decided to continue walking forward since Tyler was picking me up soon and a silhouette of a tall, big dark figure emerged from the shadows and then approached me. Some of the light of the surrounding porch lights had lit up his features. It was a man who was about five'11 to six foot tall and he was a big Hispanic guy with some facial hair who looked to be above the age of 20 who just kind of looked like he wasn't all there. He walked a bit closer and I was too stunned to walk away as he then began to speak with slurred speech. Hey, are you looking for Chloe's house? I then responded With a confused no, are you Chloe? I said no and then I asked who she was. He proceeded to tell me that she was having a house party and he's waiting for everyone to leave so they can have some alone time or something like that. It was really hard to tell since he was obviously on something at the moment. He then asked for my name and of course as the dumbass I was, I told him my actual name. He said that it was pretty and then he told me to hold up before he turned on his phone flashlight. Then damn, you're fine as hell. I quickly shot him down and told him that I was only 14 and he didn't seem to believe me. At some point in the conversation he kept suggesting that we should hang out, but at this point I was just trying to escape. But every time I tried he kept blocking the way out. He had asked me some questions and almost asked for my number, but I decided to sort of cut him off before telling him that I really had to go because someone was waiting for me. I didn't know if Tyler was there yet or not, but it made a good excuse before I bolted the hell out of there and kindly worded it before I left and then started to sprint to the other side of the street. He wasn't there yet though, so I waited a bit longer on the sidewalk. Another stranger who I assume was from the same party was walking by and asked if I was alright. We made some small talk which made me feel better. Just then I finally saw Tyler's car. He arrived. Nothing else creepy happened that night, thank God, and he didn't live in my town, he was just there for the house party. Or at least I hope. I know that he asked me some other weird and creepy things, but I'm having a hard time remembering since it's late at night, but this experience really scared the hell out of me since I was obviously a minor and also just approaching a woman at night and blocking their access out. Who does that? I wonder what could have happened if I didn't tell him that someone was waiting for me or if he wasn't waiting for some chick who he drove an entire town over to Bang at 4 in the morning. Please be careful and don't do what I did at all. The story happened slightly over 20 years ago when I was 16. During this time I lived with my mom and stepdad in a remote area 70 miles west of Las Vegas, Nevada. I had gone out to visit with my friends, being allowed to drive myself for the first time ever. I had A lovely time watching a movie and getting food together until it was time for me to head home. The curfew I was given was 10pm with the caveat that if I was running late for any reason to find a payphone and call. Then I wrapped around me in my old 71 Chevy pickup as there were no street lights or houses for most of the way home. As I pulled up to the first of two stop signs, I could see an older sedan. Old cars are still pretty common in that area. The car was stopped with its hazards on. I pulled up behind it and waited as a man in his 30s 40s started walking towards me from the driver's side. Even at this point I didn't have any alarm bells going off in my head yet. Being in the middle of the Mojave Desert providing assistance to stranded people was common. People rapidly get into severe problems there by not having enough water when a vehicle breaks down or not realizing that it's a freaking desert and people die, wandering delirious away from the highway, trying to find help. Anyhow. I rolled down my window as he came up to my door and I could smell the liquor on him. I could see another man in the passenger seat. This was before anyone I knew had cell phones and the nearest payphone was a good 10 minutes drive ahead. I didn't have a way to call the cops on a drunk driver immediately. The man then explained that his car stalled and he asked if I could help them out. I asked if his car was a stick shift, which it was. So I asked if he was familiar with push starting it. He said yes. So I agreed to as gently as I could push their car with my truck while they turned the engine over. For anyone that isn't familiar, this is a way to start a manual car that's having battery or starter issues specifically to get it somewhere to work on it. I knew that my truck would be fine and I didn't feel like it would be wise to get out and try and push their car physically. Push starting their car worked without a hitch. But here's where things go south. They get back out and thank me, then invite me to hang out and have some fun with them. I decline. They pull off to the side of the road and I continue on my way. Only they start following me. So here I am, it's 9:50 and I'm running late because I stopped to help them. Admittedly I hadn't given myself much leeway from leaving my friends. These drone creepy older guys have started to follow me on the Road without any man made light except for car headlights and I'm at least 10 minutes away from a payphone. I think to myself maybe I'm being paranoid. So I turn down a road that I know gave me a couple of turn offs to either head back to town or loop around the gas station with a payphone. The car follows behind me. I'm thinking damn. I take another turn that only leaves a couple of houses at the end of the road and they turn behind me. I take another turn to loop around back to the gas station and they follow me again. So at least I know they're following me and not just heading home. At this point my heart is pounding. I decided to try something to lose them. I pull off to the side of the road and I see them pull up behind me. I wait as the driver gets out of the car and begins to walk towards me. His companion also gets out and starts walking towards me. I wait until they almost get to my tailgate, then floor it. My wheels dig into the rocks and poof. Dirt causing a cloud behind me. I then head towards the gas station. The gas station is deserted but the payphone is showered in the light from the gas pumps. I call home and explain what happened and why I was running late. My stepdad asked me if the gas station worker could be seen, but I let him know that I couldn't see him behind the counter, that he was probably in the back. I wasn't in trouble but I was asked to hurry home. So to the two drunk idiots that were messing with me that night, I have no idea what you had planned, but you should really be ashamed of yourselves for trying to pull that on a 16 year old kid. This happened to me about a week ago. I found a summer job at our local supermarket and about two weeks in I got asked to work there late night shift which was 11pm to 5am I accepted it since I was really in need of money and I never really sleep early anyways. Everything was fine and dandy until about 3am When a shirtless, scarred up guy came in the store. After lingering around in the store for a while, he quickly came up to the counter making intense eye contact with me. As I was about to ask him if he needed any help. He then whispered, hey, don't you dare move. I didn't hear him at first so I asked him if he could repeat that. At that point he got agitated and then yelled, make another sound or I'll cut you up. In a swift motion he vaulted over the counter going to the alcohol section trying to grab a bottle of whiskey. Thankfully, the owner had hit a baseball bat under the counter the moment he turned his back to me. I took the bat and then swung full force at his knee. He winced in pain and tried to get up. I winded my bat yet again, acting like I was going to hit him again just to see him pull out a homemade shiv of some sort. I let him get up and at the moment he got up, he swung his shiv right at me, lightly lacerating my wrist. I pushed him back with my bat and he ran for the door and got out. The day after I had called the cops and showed them the security camera footage, but they haven't contacted me since. I think it's safe to say I won't be working the late night shift again for a long time. I often like to go out running in the summer, or really whenever the weather's nice. This happened a week before I was supposed to start high school. I thought about going running that day, but got the idea in the morning that I would run in the evening instead, while the sun is still up but isn't as hot as in the day and there isn't a chance for it to get hotter if I don't manage to get back in time like in the morning. Well of course I forget my promise to myself and only remember it at around 9pm now it's the end of the summer so the sun is already setting sooner than I'm used to, but I just tell myself I'll just get back inside in like an hour or so. It'll be fine. I've already been putting off running so I don't want to put it off again. I should probably mention that I'm a girl and even though a lot of girls I know change the side of the road they walk on whenever they see a distinctly drunk looking guy walking. I was always the one calling them pussies and was ready to take on the first rogue who tried to get to me. I also live in a less populated area out of the town where almost everyone knows everyone, so I was feeling extra sure of my safety. What a naive fool I was. I know. So I go out, start my run and it's fine. It's getting a bit dark but I can still see the running track so it's all good. I started to feel a bit off when I see a pair walking in front of me. When I get closer they turn out to be just teenage guys and I run past them with no problem. When I Finally reach the usual spot in my run where I turn around a cemetery. Ultra creepy, I know, but it has benches and it's a small graveyard, so I never feel weird taking a break there and it's already gotten pretty dark. I drink some water from my bottle and just stand under a tree next to the gate and territory of the cemetery. But I don't sit down where I usually do because the bench is next to a fence and the darkness has finally made me a little weary about being alone and someone jumping on me. It's pretty funny that that's what scared me the most at the time. When I catch my breath, I stay for a few more minutes just listening to the wind. I see a bike drive past the cemetery, taking the route that I'll take while running back. I leave my resting place and it's gotten really dark. Dark enough that I could barely see 2 meters in front of me. I start slowly running back. After 15 meters or so, I start hearing voices. A couple of more and I can clearly hear someone talking. My thoughts immediately jump to a conclusion that there are at least two people in front of me. If I'm hearing a conversation now, I slow down even more until I get close enough to actually hear what's being said. Keep in mind, it's completely dark and this road doesn't even have street lights, so I can't see anything. I get close enough to finally make out the words and my heart sinks at what I hear. I can't recall the exact words that were being said, but the general idea. The male voice then said, I see this girl. I could just pull her into the bushes. There were tall bushes lining one side of the running track. As I said, at first my heart stopped, but immediately after I go into fight or flight mode, I can hear my own heart beating in my ears and I'm full of adrenaline, the bad kind. I know that I can just stop or he'll know that I heard what he said. So I continue to walk, but thank God that the running track is separated from the road by a small grass field. So I go to the side of the road, making some distance between us. I kept looking at him. Keep in mind, I still don't even know how many people there are. But I see a square of light, presumably a phone. And then I hear him jump on his bicycle and drive off. It turned out he was talking on the phone, but just because he was alone didn't mean I was any less scared of him. I walked on the side of the road for a good few minutes until I'm sure he would be far away from me. And once I get back on the running track, I then sprint home like crazy. All the way back I was shaking with fear and looking at the bushes and cars that passed me with delirium, squishing my water bottle in my hand, ready to smack anyone who came close to me. When I finally reached the first road lights, I really felt like I escaped death. I really got lucky that night. So this first started when I first moved into my new place last summer in 2019. I live with my landlord, her elderly mom, and my friend Daisy. I also started a new job working the night shift at a hotel, so I was up most nights. I'm going to preface the story with some background information that would help make the story make sense. Since my landlord knew her neighbors very well as she lived in this house all her life and there's hardly any street parking, I was able to park my car in the vacant house's driveway directly parallel across the street from our house. When I park my car, I can see the front of my place with my rear view mirrors. Our house is right in front of a very busy stop sign, so seeing and hearing traffic is something that we all had to get used to. Daisy and I are women and are best friends that met in college. We've known each other for a few years at this point and did everything together. I remember that it was a warm summer Thursday night. Daisy and I loved to leave the house past midnight, eat horrible fast food, roll the windows down and drive along the coast. It was around 1:45am As I finally pulled up to my parking spot. We sat in my car for a while listening to music and finishing the last bit of our late night munchies. My windows were up by this point, but we could hear a bigger car approaching the stop sign. It sounded like a diesel. Of course, it was a stereotypical white van. That prompted me to joke, Daisy, look at that creepy white van from my rearview mirror. The next thing we knew we saw what looked like a thin man pick up his camera from the passenger side and take at least five pictures of the front of our house with the flash on it. Daisy and I silently looked at each other in horror as the van then sped off. The next day, Daisy and I told our landlord all about the incident and she told us this wasn't the first time that one of her tenants reported this, though she brushed it off despite us telling her that anyone taking pictures of her house that late at night did not have good intentions. It really put Daisy and me on edge. Some time had passed as the coronavirus pandemic crept its way into the US towards the end of 2019. I was going to file a police report as I eventually caught most of the person's license plate. After what felt like months of investigating, at the beginning of February 2020, the van stopped coming. This caused me to think that the pandemic may have either gotten the person sick or affected them in some way. Although the person didn't take any more pictures, when the van drove by, it came from the same direction every time. At around 1 1:30am it would stop for an eerily long amount of time. Then it would speed off out of nowhere as if the person was racing another car that was never there. I did stop investigating. After two weeks of nothing. I still get very anxious if I ever hear a loud, diesel like vehicle driving by late at night. I don't know what that person wanted, why they were taking pictures of my landlord's house. Maybe once the shelter in place is lifted in my county, I might investigate again just to ensure that the creep is really gone. We were 16, an age where you feel invincible. It was summer and school was out, and my friend and I, who lived in the same apartment complex, decided to go to the mall and kill time as any other teenager would do. I don't remember much about that day other than our walk home from the mall. It must have been around nine when we left, since that's the time the mall closes. Our apartment building was two miles away from the mall, so of course we walked. It was really hot out and we both knew that once we got home there would be nothing to do, so we opted to walk home. We both enjoyed the conversation and the passing of time. Our town wasn't exactly dangerous. Yeah, there were some muggings and theft, but it wasn't as bad as some of the other cities in our county. So we walked those two miles, oblivious to any potential threats. We were a mile in when we had passed an intersection. Shortly thereafter, three males walked out of the opposite street and began walking behind us. I didn't think much of it. It's summer, they were young, it's hot. No reason to be suspicious. My friend, however, was unnerved. Hey. Yeah? Those guys are behind us. Yeah, what about them? Well, I'm pretty sure they're following us. My friend said. What? No, I don't think so. You're just being paranoid. As soon as I said that, one of the men started whistling at us. I turned around hey, what you got in the bag? We had shopping bags from the mall. Nothing. Leave us the hell alone, my friend retorted. I remember just being pissed. Why would she respond to them? At this point, I'm nervous as hell. Turns out my friend was right. Call it intuition. We begin walking even faster now that we sense danger. And as we quicken our pace, so do the men. They know we're onto them. We near a plaza with a Del Taco, and as we enter the parking lot, the men disperse. One is directly behind us and the other two were on our sides. I turn around. They all then whip out freaking baseball bats. Out of nowhere at this point, I turn to my friend and we hightail it to Del Taco, not bothering to turn around. Thank God it wasn't too late or they'd be closed and we'd have nowhere to hide. As soon as we enter the Del Taco, we look out the windows and witness all of the men jump into a Cadillac Escalade that was Park. Were they only scaring us? Why the bats? Why the car? What the hell's going on? We just watch as the car drove away. That doesn't quell our fear, though. We spend about 10 minutes in the restaurant deciding what to do next. Do I call my dad to pick us up, or do we actually walk the half mile home? We didn't want to worry our parents, and so we ended up deciding to walk. The whole time, we're constantly turning back, anticipating a black Escalade to pop out of nowhere and kidnap us. But luckily, it never did. As soon as we got home, we promised ourselves not to tell our parents as we knew it would hinder us from hanging out again. The moment I walked through the door, I blabbed at my parents. I found out later that my friend did the same. Scariest experience of my young life. My name is Christie. I'm 23 at the time, and my two friends that are twin sisters, Sammy and Tina, were 24. We were going to go to a night baseball game for the Cubs. We sat in our seats behind the visiting team's dugout. We were watching the visiting team practice, which at the time was the Dodgers. I know one of the Dodgers players. His name is Scott, and I was just screaming his name, trying to get his attention. Finally, I got his attention and he came right over to talk to us. He told us that after the game we could come on the field for the fireworks. And of course, why say no to that? We sat back down and I had to go to the bathroom. I was Walking to the ladies room and a man walk walked in behind me. I didn't want to make a scene because at the time people would say it's okay if they identify as a woman. So I just let it go. He was washing his hands once I got done and then was like, hey, cutie, I saw you talking to one of the visiting team's players. Do you know him? I told him yes, and he said that he thought that was cool. Then I walked away and he then ran, ran after me. He then said to me, hey, sexy, come back here. And then he grabbed me by my waist. I turned around and punched him right in his face. Then told him, do not grab me like that again. To which he then replied with, well, then you shouldn't have done that, and walked away from me. Now, it was about the sixth or seventh inning at this point, and I wanted some ice cream. And I had asked my friends if they wanted anything, but they said no. I went back up there completely aware just to make sure nothing happened again. I was getting ready to pay and that guy was there again, then saying, I'll pay for hers. To which I just said, no, it's fine. I've got it. Thanks though. Then the lady behind the counter was like, that's so sweet. Is that a friend of yours? I just said, no, I didn't even know him. I grabbed the ice cream after paying and then walked away. He came in behind me while I was grabbing napkins and started breathing down my neck. I then turned around and I told him to stop or I was going to turn him in. I then got back to my seat and I saw him actually sitting in the next section over. I then looked at my friends and I told them to be aware of him. They just said, okay. Sammy and Tina's mom had called Sammy's phone and said that she was picking them up in about five minutes because of a family emergency. I had driven all three of us there, so it was just me leaving after the game all alone. I was going to ask and see if my friend Scott or someone would walk me to my car after the game. After the game, before the fireworks, Scott had looked at me and then he motioned for me to come down. The security guard let me through. I told my friend Scott what had happened and he then said, okay, I'll tell someone to tell the guard. Hold on. Then he had one of his buddies tell the security guard so that things didn't look suspicious. The guard then told me I would be okay. He would make sure that he didn't bother me again. Scott then walked me to my car and then got on the bus to go to their hotel room. I was looking in the rearview mirror and I saw this car kept following me. I then turned and so did they. I stopped and then they stopped too. I ran a red light just to see if they would too, and they did. I was getting really scared, so I decided to call my friend Scott. He told me to go to the hotel he was staying at and his buddies in the hotel security would come out and make sure things were okay. I said okay, and the car had followed me all the way to the hotel. Once he saw Scott and his friends standing outside, though, he sped off. I didn't want to drive anymore and I had asked Scott if I could stay with him as I was in tears at this point. He just held me in his arms and he told me that he would just go home with me and then tomorrow I can drop him off here when it's lighter outside. I said okay and he came to spend the night with me so that I wouldn't be home alone. I don't know what that guy wanted to do with me, but I really don't know what I would have done if it weren't for my friend Scott. Hey everyone. Apologies from the break from the stories, but I need to take a small moment to thank today's sponsor, Green Chef. I really love summertime, everyone. There's just something about it that makes you feel your best. It's the perfect time to start building healthy meal habits that stick. That's why I've been using Green Chef to help me eat cleaner and stay on track. Green Chef makes it easy to spend less time in the kitchen and more time enjoying the summer. And with their new heat and eat meals, enjoy a delicious, wholesome meal in just three minutes. The recipes change every week and with week to week flexibility, you can adjust your plan to match your mood and your schedule. I use Green Chef personally and I really like it a lot and I definitely think you should check it out too. They've got a lot of great options for pretty much any diet that you're on and I definitely think it's worth checking out. Make this summer your healthiest yet. With Green chef, head to greenchef.com 50 cannibal and use code 50 cannibal to get 50% off your first month, then 20% off for two months with free shipping. Then that's code 50 [e-mail] 50 cannibal I'm a female, 31 years old and married, but I look a lot younger than my actual age. In retrospect, my story isn't nearly as frightening as others, but it really spooked me at the time. I also want to give a warning to everyone in regards to strangers asking for too much information. I live in an area that's not exactly known to have pristine neighborhoods. When I walk outside my complex, it's very common to see syringes on the ground, homeless people sleeping in the middle of the sidewalk, and trash on litter. It's also common to hear the sound of police sirens. In fact, a couple of blocks away from me was a furniture store that was busted for actually being a drug production site. The sad part is that I don't even live in the worst part of town. My husband and I plan on moving to a different state very soon. While packing, I noticed we were running low on empty boxes, so I decided to go to our local Home Depot to get some more. For some reason, the parking lot at this location is always super full, so I ended up parking in the back of the parking lot furthest away from the store. I was walking with purpose and quickly made my way through the entrance of the store, eager to get this errand over and done with. As I was walking, there was this guy standing behind a table selling something about AC servicing or something. I didn't really care to read the sign. This guy called out to me and made his sales pitch. I politely declined and walked past it. I grabbed my boxes, went to check out, and then exited the store. It's worth noting that the exit is on the opposite side of the building. It's a good ways away from the entrance. When I reached my car, I opened my trunk to put in the boxes, but I was suddenly interrupted by the guy that had tried to make the pitch to me for the AC services. Keep in mind that I'm far away from the store at this point and all the way in the back of the parking lot. This guy very obviously and intentionally followed me to my car. He starts off hi there, you have pretty eyes. I was wondering if you were interested in our special Today we're offering services for your ac. This damn guy. Are you kidding me? I was already irritated that he was talking to me again, but I was even more uncomfortable because he very obviously went out of his way to follow me. We don't have ac. I responded curtly. That's a lie, but I figured it would get him out of my hair. He saw me putting the boxes in my trunk and offered to help, but I wasn't having it. I refused his help. Oh, okay. Well, do you live in this area around here? I thought that was an odd question. Do you have a heater? No, I replied swiftly. Oh, okay. He trailed off for a little bit before then saying, can I have your name? I was done. At this point, I don't feel comfortable giving you my name. Have a blessed day. He then very suddenly left. As quickly as he came, I quickly drove out of that parking lot, being sure not to pass the entrance again so he wouldn't be able to take a picture of my license plate or anything. I don't know what you all think, but I'm pretty sure it's not normal for somebody making sales pitches to step away from their station to follow a potential customer out to their car, especially when that person has already rejected the offer. This guy was obviously looking for a date, but definitely went about it in the worst way. It was also unsettling to me that he was insistent on getting as much information about me as he could. With the way social media is nowadays, it's definitely possible to be able to find someone based on a location and first name. I may be overreacting or overthinking things, but this could have very well turned into a situation where you could have stalked me online or worse. You just never know. It doesn't matter if you don't think you're pretty or handsome, creeps can and will try to approach you. Be alert and please be careful. This happened to me around six years back when I was around 20. I used to stay with my parents and my brother. I learned to ride the cycle very late as I had a fear for bikes and two wheelers as a kid after a small accident. So yeah, I gathered up the courage to ride only as an adult. And back then I was still in my learning phase. One day my mom asked me to rush to the neighborhood store to buy a few items to cook lunch since I was still practicing. Then I decided to take my cycle and ride down to the store. The store was on a main road, but still a very residential lane. Just to give you a background of the area, it's a very pleasant and lovely place, except that people would hardly be around outdoors, especially in the afternoon and at night. But the area is a pretty safe one and this is why I didn't find it odd to ride down to the store to get some vegetables. So coming back to the story, I did have some trouble riding my cycle since I was still learning, but I managed to enter the main road. This is what I observed, a red car slowly following me. I figured that it probably needed to get by and I tried to move to the side of the road but the car continued to drive slowly behind me and followed me. Now I was worried, but I reached the store by then so I quickly parked my bike outside and went into the store to buy the items that my mom asked for. Once done, I took a quick peek outside and I still saw the car right outside just waiting. My heart dropped and I was very scared and I asked one of the men in the stores if they could draw me to the end of my road. Since the red car was following me, he gladly joined me and instead of riding my cycle, I instead walked with it with the man alongside me. As we started, I observed the car speeding off ahead of us onto the main road. I thanked the man and then went back home. Since nothing much happened after that, I didn't mention it to anyone and I just continued on thinking that maybe it's just done. Fast forward three months. I was able to ride much better at this point and again my mother asked me to rush to the store, this time in the other direction to the previous store. As I was riding down, the same red car pulled up beside me and a man looked out with a creepy big grin. Oh, so you finally learned to ride? He said and then he just sped off down the lane. I was in complete shock and I just froze. Not knowing what to do. I tried to take note of the car number and then rushed home and informed my family. We tried to find the car but we could never find the car nor the owner. I also never saw that same car or the man again, so I just left it behind me. For everyone out there, please be very careful and always be on watch because you have so many creepy folks out there whose intentions we never know. So stay safe and always carry your phone so you're reachable in case of danger.

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[Narrator]

Before I start this story, I want to say that I've always loved listening to true horror stories as well as similar things, so maybe that's what made my brain pick up on the serious situation that I was in. So to give you a little bit of info, this happened when I was in the seventh grade, so I was around 12 years old and my dad would always wait for me at the bus stop. But unfortunately during the time this took place, he had to stay late for work, but my house was only up the street so he trusted me to make the walk by myself. The walk started off as normal as I had my earbuds in, so I wasn't fully aware of all of my surroundings until I noticed a truck slowly trailing behind me, which made a pit form in my stomach and something then told me that something was off about it. So I paused my music and tucked my headphones into my pocket so I could pay attention to everything happening around me. That's when I heard a man call out and I just tried to ignore him, but he then called out my name, which then made me pause and then turn to look at the truck. He parked his truck right beside me. Hey Blair. I didn't recognize this man at all, so I took a step back on the sidewalk. Um, do I know you? He gave me a smile that made me really uncomfortable. Yeah, I've known you since you were little. He held up a hand, mocking how he knew me when I was younger. Oh cool. I went to turn away from him, but he slowly trailed beside me in his truck. Where's your dad? Does he know you're walking alone? My heart dropped. Uh, yeah, he's waiting for me, so I gotta go. The man motioned for me to get into the truck, but I was always told stranger danger. And even though this man knew my name and claimed to know me, I had no recollection of ever knowing this man. I sped up my walk to a jog as the alarm bells were now ringing in my head and he then called out to me, but I saw my house just ahead so I then ran over and ran around the back so he couldn't tell which place was mine and I figured that would be the end of it until I saw the same white truck waiting at my bus stop. And so I asked one of my friends to walk with me and he agreed. Once I got home, I had Asked him to stay until my dad got home, but unfortunately his mom wanted him home. So I bid him goodbye and then locked the door behind him. I messaged one of my dad's friends, asking him if he could walk me home for the next couple of days. And he agreed. Here's some things that you should know about him. He's almost 7ft tall and on the heavier side, which makes him look pretty intimidating. But once you get to know him, you'd know that he was just a teddy bear and that he wouldn't hurt a fly. I felt relief when I saw him waiting at the bus stop, but dread filled me once I saw that cursed white truck yet again. So once I got off the bus, I discreetly motioned towards the truck and kept my voice low. That truck has followed me for the last two days, and the guy claims that he knows me, but I don't know him. He looked over at the truck and the guy sped off once I got home. He stayed with me until my dad had gotten home. And that's when I told my dad all about the guy who had been following. He said that he knew you. My dad looked at me seriously. What did this guy look like? I hadn't paid too close attention, but a few details stuck out. He was probably older than you. He had gray hair and stubble, and he was really thin. But that's all I really know. He just shook his head. Hmm. I don't know anyone like that. Tears pricked my eyes as the situation hit me and I thought I was in trouble. Dad, am I in trouble? He shook his head. No, baby, you're not. Thank you for telling me this. He called off work for the next two days so that he could meet me at the bus stop. And so when I got off, he looked around. Is he here? I looked around, but I didn't see the white truck until we approached our house. And I then froze, pointing at the truck. My dad was a lot more confrontational than I had ever been, so he stormed over to the truck and then pounded on the window, yelling at the guy, why the hell have you been following my daughter? What the hell is wrong with you? The guy started the truck and peeled away, and my dad just called the cops once we got inside. Once they arrived, they questioned me about the guy, but I wasn't very much help with the description of him or his truck, as I could only give a basic description who could be anyone and thousands of people could own this truck. But they just left, saying if they got any more information, they'd call us. They never did call us. And I haven't seen that guy again. I'm now 18 and I've since moved away from there. I carry pepper spray and a knife. Where? Wherever I go now. And I'm always aware of my surroundings. If I ever have the feeling that someone's following me, I immediately call my dad. My advice to anyone listening is to always be careful and aware of your surroundings. And always listen to your gut. Also, always keep your phone nearby at all times. You just never know what will happen in this messed up world. The story takes place in a small town in Massachusetts. I was with my friend who for privacy, we'll call Nancy. We were 14 years old when the story took place. During the summer of 2005, Nancy and I used to sneak out at night after our parents went to bed. We would sometimes go to her boyfriend's house or just hang around outside with older kids that we really shouldn't have been hanging out with, being that we were only 14 and they were 17. On this particular night, Nancy and I were sitting on my porch just talking. It was close to 11pm no one else was outside aside from us for some reason, which was odd because I lived in the kind of neighborhood that was full of life during the summer. I want to backtrack a little bit though. There was this local neighborhood guy that I saw every day and I'm pretty sure he sold drugs. I'm sure that we've all seen how TV shows portrays a drug dealer. He really fit all the makings of a drug dealer. This guy was about 5 foot 8 and a skinny build, Hispanic, around mid to late 30s. Looking at him, you wouldn't take him for a threat. He never bothered me or my friend before. Okay, now back to my story. Nancy and I were sitting on the porch when out of nowhere, we saw him running down the street. And he ran directly towards us. I don't know why we didn't run inside when we saw him. Maybe because we saw him all the time and he never bothered us before. But he ran right to us and grabbed Nancy's hand. The grip he had on her was unexplainable. I used to always think that a skinny guy would be weaker, but man, was I wrong. As he's pulling her towards the steps, I'm to the side of both of them trying to pull his hands off her. After a few seconds, he finally let go of her, only to grab my arm now and try to pull me down the steps. I was pulling myself towards the door to go inside because I knew my dad was inside sleeping at this time. Nienx is now trying to pull his hand away from my arm. Finally I got close enough to the door to open it. I let myself fall so he couldn't pull me. This made him and Nancy fall as well. We fell on the living room floor which was pitch dark with him still gripping my hand. That's when I then yelled out for my dad and I could hear my dad running down the hallway without even turning on the light. My dad started punching this guy and I could hear him whimpering. When I turned on the light. The guy was now screaming from the side of my dad. My dad is about 6 foot 2 and has a muscular build. He was one of those men who always wore a mad face even when happy. My dad kept beating on him while the guy was saying he was sorry over and over. Finally my dad yells at him to get the hell out of here. He drove Nancy home, who lived around the corner, and after doing a lot of begging, he didn't even tell her parents about what happened. I don't know what that guy's intentions were. I don't know if he was high, running away from someone or just simply trying to harm us. I never did see him again, but I did end up moving to New Jersey the following year and Nancy ended up moving to Florida a few months before me. Nancy and I are still best friends even to this day. I've never brought it back up to her. I wonder if she even remembers My father passed away in 2015 and I just want to say thank you dad for protecting me. I don't know what would have happened to us if you didn't save me like you always do. You're my hero. Warning this story mentions sexual assault on a minor. If you don't want to listen, please skip this story. This happened when I was 14. I'm a male and in the UK. Hearing other people share such vulnerable stories kinda gave me the courage to share mine in case it somehow helped someone. Even if it only helps someone know they're not alone. I live next door to a woman who I'll call C. I never thought anything of her as I was growing up, but she would chat with my family over a garden fence. We shared a hedge and my dad would cut it for her in the summer as well as do the grass cutting if no one in her family was able to do so. Sometimes C would have her own father do garden stuff. But as I grew older, my dad began doing it more since C'S dad was getting on in age. She was our neighbor before I was even born and my mom and dad got along with her. My siblings didn't talk to her much, just like me because well, we were kids. C was in her very early 40s when I was 14. She was always friendly to me and I thought she was a nice neighbor. She was a single mother but co parented and I was friendly with her two sons. They aren't very relevant to the story, but we would hang out sometimes and C would watch us. But this never felt really wrong because parents always look out for their kids. It was the summertime and I had turned 14 only a month earlier. We were going through a mighty heat wave and I was spending more time outside in my swimming trunks. We didn't have a pool but I loved having water fights with my siblings and friends. We usually did this round the back and it was really great for cooling down whilst also having fun. I remember one time I was in a water fight with my friends and I noticed C was watching us. Her bedroom window faced the back garden area and she could see me from her window as we were next door neighbors. I wasn't playing with her sons and it wasn't a bad thing to look out your window, but something about her gaze, it made me feel a little awkward. I can't describe it, I just felt like I wanted to cover up right at that moment because I didn't want her to see my body. I just felt kinda weird in that moment. She smiled at me and just kept staring. Her eyes were following me and she was definitely staring at my bare chest, which just felt weird to me. I was never attracted to C. She wasn't an unattractive lady, but I didn't have a crush on her or anything. I honestly felt embarrassed. She was watching me because of the way her gaze felt. It just felt wrong to me but I pushed it to the back of my mind and just tried to shake it off. I continued playing with my friends and stay watched the entire time, smiling at me. If we locked eyes, I smiled back. I know it sounds dramatic, but after that incident I didn't want to go outside without my top on. I didn't tell anyone about C looking because, well, she hadn't done anything wrong. Technically, I thought I was just being weird and like I said, ignored it. A few days later C struck up a conversation with me. I'd taken the bin out for my mom and she had called me over to the fence. Okay, not weird. She asked me how I was Enjoying the summer and I said I was having lots of fun. It was late July and I was really glad to be getting a break from school. The conversation was fine and the next day the same thing happened. C saw me outside and waved me over. This happened for about a week straight. I liked talking to her and it didn't seem weird. One day she mentioned seeing me have my water fight. I remember she told me that she was shocked that I had grown so much. I said, I'm almost as tall as my dad now because I was used to adults fawning over me growing up. But C laughed and then said, it's more than your height, you're developing a man's body. This made me feel embarrassed and I felt flustered. Honestly, I didn't know what to say and I don't even remember what I ended up saying. I just remember C telling me, you're certainly gonna be a handsome young lad one day before she went back inside again. I felt embarrassed and confused. I was a scrawny 14 year old, certainly nowhere near a man yet. I didn't tell anyone, but I felt awkward. It was flattering to be complimented, especially by a woman, but it just felt weird. I know I keep saying that, but it's truly how I felt. In August, my dad had a heart attack. It came as a massive shock to us because he was so healthy. He was in the hospital for a long time and he's doing alright now. But at the time it was terrifying. I was a wreck, as was everyone in my family. I remember that C offered her support to us and I was really friendly with her sons, so they were there for me too. This is where the story gets hard to relive, but here it goes. C suggested that I do the garden for her to earn myself some pocket money. For those outside of the uk, pocket money is just money your parents give you. I didn't care about pocket money with everything going on, but it seemed like a kind gesture from a caring adult. My mom asked if I'd like to do the garden for C and I just figured, yeah, why not? I had to mow the grass and do some stuff to the hedgehog front and back of the house. I felt confident because I'd seen my dad do it loads of times and it wasn't too complicated. I had headphones on as I did it and C would offer me ice cold water or lemonade. My mom was always in the house when I did this and she could have easily looked out a window and saw me at any point. The first day I cut the front grass, Cee spoke to me as I took a break. I accepted water from her and she quizzed me about my dad. I told her he was still recovering but the doctors were concerned about him. I remember that C put her arm around my shoulders and she told me that she knew it had to be hard on me but that I had to be the man of the house now. I had to support my mom and be strong for her. I mumbled something like yeah, I know and that weird feeling washed over me again. I didn't really want to discuss my dad with anyone, especially not C. Honestly, I was scared that if I chatted about it for way too long I would cry and I didn't want that. I went back to the garden stuff and got a good chunk of it done. The next day I had more to do and then set off to work. C had offered me lemonade this time, which I accepted. She insisted that I take a break again when I was cutting the hedge and she asked how I was doing again. I said I was fine and she went quiet for a while. She then sighed and it was then my turn to ask if she was alright. I wasn't expecting her to say no and I asked what was wrong. When she did. She sighed again and was acting shifty. She then told me that she was really struggling being a single mom at her age. She went into a tirade about how dating is a nightmare because men judge her and she also has no time for it. It. I had no clue what to even say to this so I just listened to her, unsure why she was even telling me all of this. Once she was finished she looked like she might cry and I just told her it would all be okay. Well, she then put her head in her hands and started shaking her shoulders. Looking back I'm not sure if she was really crying or if it was fake, but in the moment I assumed it was real. I remember setting my drink down and addressing her by her last name and saying I was sorry that she was going through such a hard time. I then reiterated that everything really would be okay though at this she looked at me and just started laughing. It was a weird laugh, almost like she was laughing at a kid doing something cute. She told me I was a great listener and she said that she wished all guys were like me. I felt my face redden and I looked away from her. We sat in silence for a moment before she then got up and said she better go inside and freshen up. I remember I didn't move after she went back inside because I was thinking about what had just happened. I thought we'd had a really weird exchange, but again, I just put it to the back of my mind like usual. Eventually I had to move to the back garden and C had offered me lots of water and lemonade. As I did this, my mom was in the house, one of my siblings was in our street playing and the other was in our house. When C spoke to me, she thanked me for listening to her and she then hugged me without asking. I'm not saying that it's always bad to hug people without asking, just stating what she did. On this afternoon it was really humid and hot. I was struggling and C knew it. She suggested that I take my top off, but I didn't want to. She then asked me to come inside into the shade. I had no choice but to do that because the sun was killing me outside. I remember that she let me run my arms under the cold water in her kitchen sink and it was heavenly. Her house wasn't much different from ours and now is prime time to mention that her sons were staying their dads for a couple of weeks. Looking back, I always wonder if she planned things that way. We ended up in her living room and we ended up chatting. After a while of asking me about school, she asked me if I had a girlfriend. I said no, which was true, and she asked if I had any crushes. I said I didn't know because I felt awkward. She smiled at me, it looked almost pitiful and she told me that she had been unpopular with the girls at my school. I laughed because I had never even had a girlfriend, so I remember thinking that was so far from the truth. C continued saying, I'm serious. You're a handsome boy. This made me beam, but I was embarrassed too. Something always felt awkward with C's compliments, but it kind of made me feel cool too. I mean, maybe what she was saying was true and I just couldn't see it. She was a lot older than me and adults always seemed to know stuff. I remember I went back out and did garden stuff and I remember C telling me to just come back tomorrow to finish it and she'd make me a lunch as a thank you. The next day, C did prep me some lunch. It was just ham and cheese sandwiches and we ate it in her living room together. It was a later lunch, but it was still nice. When we finished eating, she asked me if I wanted another drink. I said yeah, expecting water or lemonade, but she brought me back Alcohol. I could tell from the smell and obviously it didn't look like water or lemonade. I stared at her and she said it was my treat for being such a good boy. I know that's such a gross line, but in the moment it didn't register. I felt grown up and I didn't want to look like a loser, so I drank it. Well, she ended up bringing this bottle of wine right into the living room and she kept topping up my glass. After a while, I started to feel pretty messed up because I'd never drank before and honestly, I wouldn't put it past her to have laced it with something. She kept complimenting me and she was sitting right next to me. She started to ask me if I'd ever kissed a girl before and I felt like the room was spinning. I remember trying to get up, saying I had to get home, but C Pulled me back down by my arm. I basically fell in her lap and she started whispering that it was okay and to shush. Before I go any further, you need to know that this story gets darker and I get sexually assaulted. So if you don't want to listen anymore, go ahead and stop now. Anyways, I repeated that I needed to get going, but she said it was okay and I should stay longer. I remember saying that I didn't feel great and C Just kept telling me it was okay. She asked me again if I'd ever kissed a girl and I said yeah without missing a beat. She asked if it gave me a boner and I had a bad feeling rise within me. I repeated again that I didn't feel good and she told me that she knew what would make me feel better and started rubbing on my stomach. I know it sounds weird, but I felt like I couldn't move. I had a bad feeling and I felt really out of it and scared. I really hate admitting that, but I was scared. I felt like I was going to have a panic attack or something. She laid me down while staying on top of me and just continued rubbing my stomach. I just wanted to go home and I could feel her getting closer to me. After a few minutes, I felt her straddle me and I was on my back. I had my face to the side because I felt like I might puke because my mind was just spinning. I remember she leaned down and she asked if I had ever been touched by a woman before. I felt very panicked now because I knew something bad was happening and I couldn't believe I was actually in this messed up situation. I said no, no to the question, but also no as in please don't touch me. I tried to push her off, but I couldn't move my arms. My entire body was heavy and I felt like sand. My head was swirling and I could feel her starting to fiddle around with herself. I was aware of her moving my hands to touch her and I just felt really confused. I didn't want to do this and I barely felt conscious. I know people will say that this wasn't a big deal and that what happened to me was a dream scenario and I should be grateful and that all boys are all sex obsessed and up for anything, but I was 14 years old and C was in her 40s. Even if I wanted what happened, it still wouldn't be okay for her to want me in a sexual way. And I really think she drugged me because to this day I've never experienced anything like what I did that day. I felt so scared and I wanted to go home so badly. I could feel her groping my junk and I told her to stop it and that I didn't want her to touch me. She just kept shushing me over and over. I felt so weak because I couldn't get her off of me. I shut my eyes and I started to feel this weird acceptance. Like this was it. I'm just stuck in this shitty situation and there's nothing I can do except lay here and pray that it's over soon. Long story short, she did a lot of shit to me. She removed my clothes from the waist down and removed all of her clothing. She huffed that my body wasn't responding how she wanted it to and she kept trying to force me into her. It was the most uncomfortable feeling I'll ever go through and I just felt totally numb. I started passing out when I came back to myself and I just kept my head tilted away and my eyes tightly shut. My eyes were wet, but she didn't even seem to notice or care. She got my body to do what she wanted it to and that made everything worse. I didn't want any of this, but I know people will say I must have. I eventually woke up and she wasn't on me anymore and I felt like I could move more than I could before. The room was empty, her clothes weren't scattered around and it was still bright outside. I stumbled up and tried to put my clothes back on. I remember I couldn't run. I just staggered around like an idiot. I left without my shoes and staggered into my house. My mom was home. She heard me come into the house and shouted that CN told her I was done doing the garden work and that I had fallen asleep from the exhaustion. My mom said C had popped by to give my mom some cash and that she was going to the supermarket and she knew I'd just go home. Whenever I woke up from my nap, my mom was in the kitchen cleaning and her back was mostly to me. I can't even remember what I said to my mom because I felt truly insane. I was in total shock and denial. I couldn't believe what had happened. It felt like a nightmare. I remember going upstairs and immediately showering. No one found this odd because it was boiling hot and I'd been working in the heat in their eyes. I was in there for so long I remember finding extra money in my shorts pocket. Looking back, I now know it was hush money. I couldn't come to terms with what happened. I just pretended like nothing ever happened. At night I'd lie in bed unable to sleep and whenever I did I had nightmares. I felt ashamed and guilty, embarrassed and so unbelievably stupid. I distanced myself from C's sons. We were never best friends, so it didn't really matter that much. I avoided C like the plague. She would always smile at me whenever she saw me and continued talking to my parents. It made me feel sick. I vowed that I'd never tell anyone what happened to me that day. I'd hear stories of men talking about being raped by a woman and I'd see men downplay it or laugh at it. Women too. I just figured that no one would believe me and if they did, they would say that I should have liked it or something. I felt like my body betrayed me in many ways. I have read that erections can happen due to extreme fear and due to constant stimulation, even if unwanted. But still, it really messed me up. To this day my parents still don't know what C did to me. I've only ever told my girlfriend and that was really hard as hell. She's helped me see how messed up it all was and I'm currently on a waiting list to see a therapist. Therapy in the UK is a nightmare to access sometimes, but I'm trying. C still lives next door to my parents and I still avoid her. She's made comments about me being grown up now, but I always ignore her and push down the pain that these interactions bring up. I prefer to meet my parents at restaurants or at my place instead of visiting them. They're none the wiser as of right now, but maybe someday I'll be strong enough to tell them the truth. Hopefully they believe me. I'll never be able to forget what C did to me and I'll never get over it. I can't let her destroy my life though, and I wouldn't say I do, but it's not been easy to get where I am now. Intimacy is so hard for me. She's messed me up mentally and trusting people is a nightmare. I told my girlfriend in a letter because I was so scared to see her face when she learned about it. I honestly expected her to dump me or laugh in my face. I just want anyone who's gone through something similar to know that you aren't alone. It's sad, but at least you aren't the only one in the world that's going through this. We aren't dumbasses and it wasn't our fault. Please tell someone before it eats you alive when I was 12 years old, my parents finally allowed me to walk home from school. I always walked with three of my friends and my house was the last on our route. I'd only have to walk like five minutes on my own anyway. One day I was doing this five minute walk without my friends when a large fancy car pulled up beside me. It was black and super shiny. I stopped walking because I was naive, but I was still cautious. The window rolled down and the driver poked his head out and asked if I'd like a ride home. I said no and continued walking, but to my horror, the car started to slowly move alongside me. I was so nervous, but I had felt some relief knowing that I was close to home and my dad would be home because he always had a day off on Fridays. I then realized there were more men in the car but I couldn't see them because they were in the back of the car and the windows were tinted. I ignored the driver as he just kept asking me if I was really sure that I didn't want to rush ride. I tried to speed up but the car kept following me. I decided that I couldn't show these guys where I lived and an idea came into my head. I then told the men I'm home now and darted across the street and then ran up to a random driveway. I pretended to wave at someone through the front window, then ran to the back of their house praying the actual owners wouldn't see me and think I was a creepy creep trying to rob them or something. Honestly, I don't know why I didn't just knock on the door. I guess I was just afraid of what would happen if no one answered. I hid at the back of their house for like 10 minutes. Then I decided to call my dad and went into typical dad mode, demanding to know where this car following me was and telling me he'd be there to get me immediately. We stayed on the phone and he drove to the street I was on, then got out of his car and came right into this random person's garden to get me. He walked me to his car and I saw no sign of the creepy guys after that. After this incident, I wasn't allowed to walk home from school anymore. My parents would always pick me up or give me money for a bus or taxi. I'm so glad those guys didn't snatch me or something. They clearly had creepy intentions. I'm just really glad my dad was there to help me out that day. Back when I was in high school, I was in charge of picking my sister up from the bus stop. My parents worked late and I was always home early, so it worked out. Plus, it wasn't super out of the way as it was at a plaza 15 minutes away from my house. Little did I know how many problems that would create during the spring, I'd gone like usual to pick up my sister. As I watched the bus pull in, something had told me to look to my left. Parked a few spots over was a man in a gray pickup truck, and he was staring right at me. He wasn't even trying to hide it. Once he noticed I saw him, he then grinned and flashed his crooked yellow teeth. I felt sick. He was definitely older. I could tell by the sad excuse of a mustache forming on his face, considering I went there every day. I'd gotten to know all the parents that waited for their kids. This guy had never been here once. My stomach dropped. Once I saw him making his way over to my car, I looked over to the bus. My sister had only just started to get off. I knew I was screwed. I flinched at the sound of a knock on my window. It was him. He motioned for me to roll down my window, which was the last thing I wanted to do. Reluctantly, I lowered it just so I could hear him. He motioned for me to roll it down further, but I shook my head. I don't even remember the conversation word for word, but it was along the lines of this. You look really familiar. Do you know so and so? No, I don't. I said. Are you sure? I swear that I've seen you before. Do you live here? And they mentioned some random town that I didn't even know I then replied, no, I don't. Oh well, anyway. What are you doing out here all by yourself? I'm here for my sister, I said. Oh, alright. Where do you two live? Uh, close by. Oh, well, where at? He said. Just as he began to ask where specifically I lived, I noticed my sister was right at my car door. I cut him off just in time. I gotta go. Bye. Once my sister was in, I immediately put my window back up. The man got visibly frustrated and knocked at my window yet again. I started to drive and he walked towards his car. I left the parking lot faster than usual and my sister could tell something was up. She asked about the man, but I just told her it was nothing. I didn't want her to be afraid. I thought I was fine until I saw that same gray truck right behind me. The sicko was following me. My sister asked me again what was wrong. I couldn't be more obvious. My clenched teeth and iron grip on the steering wheel practically gave me away. I turned off the main road and onto a back road. He was still there. I just kept turning and turning until I finally lost him. Once I felt safe, I started driving back home. Once I was finally home, I finally felt like I could relax. Both my sister and I were super hungry, so I started to make us dinner. That's when my dog started barking. I ignored it at first, since most of the time she'd bark at just animals outside. But she didn't stop. Considering what just happened, I left the kitchen to go check it out. Nothing could prepare me for what I was about to see. It was the man from the plaza. He was looking in our front window. He spotted me instantly and began erratically trying to open up the window. Once he realized he couldn't, he started banging on it. I was shaking so hard I could barely even dial 911. I then screamed at him that I was calling the cops and he froze. Once I was connected to an operator, he ran off. The cops got there around 10 minutes later. They checked all around the house, but he was long gone. I was really terrified to pick up my sister from the bus stop again for a long time. But I never saw him again after that. And hopefully I never will. I live in South Africa and I don't really live in the greatest neighborhood to begin with, so I'm always cautious. But I was home and I was babysitting my toddler niece at the time. So home alone, but not quite. When my sister called my cell to let me know that she had a delivery she was expecting around Noon and if I could keep an eye out for it. To note it was a rainy and stormy day. The roads were even flooded so I was surprised anyone make the trek out in the weather. But I told her I'd keep an eye out for it and then went back to babysitting my niece. About an hour or two after that there was a knock on the front door. I went to go and see who was there and opened the door. We have a security gate in place so I felt pretty safe. There was a middle aged man in a raincoat looking drenched from the rain. He told me that he was here to deliver a package for Ms. S, which is my sister. I was a bit shocked that he was there so early. It was around 10am, not quite noon. But I assumed maybe due to the weather, he came earlier to not risk being on the roads. At least I assumed so. He then said, can you open the door so I can bring it in? Now? I don't know how it works in other countries, but I've never heard a delivery man ever ask to come inside with the package. The item my sister ordered, let's just say it was something like spare parts for the washing machine, but not something that I couldn't carry in myself. I didn't see him with any package though, and I just got this terrible gut feeling. I can't explain it, other than every hair on my body stood on end and I just knew he was lying. I told him to leave the package by the door. He looked at me kinda funny and then just said no, no, it's okay, you can trust me. I just don't want you to have to carry such a heavy box. Now he had no box and from what I could see from behind the safety gate, there was no truck or anything to indicate he was even a delivery man. I told him a bit more firmly, whatever it is, it's fine. My father can help me carry it inside if it's that heavy. I lied. I didn't want him to know I was home alone. I just got a feeling that something was very, very wrong. He went from being polite to suddenly more forceful. He then said that I had to let him in, saying that, but the package is right around the corner, I can't just leave it there and nonsense like I have to take it inside or I could get fired. I was getting really annoyed and I told him to leave. I don't care what he has. He started to argue with me and the commotion caused my niece to wake up and she came looking for me and stood right behind me. My heart dropped. The man looked at her and then told me, oh, you have a really pretty baby. Is she yours? You look a little too young to be a mom. I grabbed my niece and basically slammed the door closed. I yelled for my father to come that some man was outside. My father wasn't home, but I wanted him to think someone other than me was home. I ran into my room, locked the door, and then called my father and the cops. To make a long story short, the delivery my sister made got cancelled due to the storm. But being the idiot that she was, she was talking to her husband outside that morning about the delivery. Her husband said he wouldn't be there and only I would be home to pick it up. And from what we could gather, this strange man must have heard it all. I don't know if he was homeless or just some opportunistic criminal who thought he could steal, but the fact that he was so okay doing this in broad daylight knowing someone would be home gave me the creeps. Nothing big or crazy ever came of this incident, but it makes me sick to think about if I had just let him in and didn't trust my gut.

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[Narrator]

I'm a 16 year old female and I was hanging out with my two friends Tati and Bella. Both obviously female and 16 years old as well. We were at the age where we were mildly experimenting with alcohol. This particular evening we had all planned to stay the night at Tati's place and have a few drinks. We all got a bit drunk and around 11pm decided to go for a walk around Tati's neighborhood. The area we grew up up in was not a crime ridden area so us being intoxicated and walking around didn't feel too unsafe. We decided to venture by the train tracks four Blocks away where we started running around and jumping between the tracks. So dumb. I know. We thought it would be a great idea to start taking pictures with the flash on, which was pretty bright. We were being pretty loud and there were a lot of flashes happening. That's when I looked towards the street that led us to the tracks. There was one streetlight on and underneath the streetlight was a man wearing all black with a baseball cap on. I couldn't see his face because of how far away he was, but he was facing directly towards us, just watching. I immediately freaked out and pointed him out to my friends. We all freaked out and Tati took us through these side bushes that would help us avoid going to the man's direction and then leading us back to her neighborhood. We made it back to the neighborhood and then slowed down to catch our breaths as we did. I'm looking behind us to see if he's still there. He was just turning the corner and was heading towards us this time walking at a very fast pace. We all freaked out again and then sprinted around another corner. He was still following us and now catching up this time we sprinted all the way home. We went into Totty's place, locked the doors and checked outside. We didn't end up seeing him again, but we didn't sleep very well that night at all. Despite our stupid drunk decisions, we had all made it out unscathed and nothing bad actually happened to us. It bothers me most whenever I wonder how long was that man watching us for? What did he plan to do if he had actually caught up with us? Hey guys. My name is Katie and this happened last year in 2023 when I was 15 years old and was with my ex. Sorry for the length of the story. It was around 6pm on a cold summer day when me and my ex, who we'll call Z, was hanging out with our friend. They decided to go to the skatepark, which is about a 30 minute walk away from my house. So Z and I went back to mine to get my skateboard. We got my board and started walking towards the skatepark. At the top of this road we were on was a school with a main road running next to it and a little tunnel underneath so people with young kids, prams and bikes can go through to the opposite side of the road. We were standing leaning against this bridge tunnel, talking and waiting for my friend to come message me back. As we were walking, we had started kissing a little and I got this weird feeling like we were being watched. I stopped kissing Z to Notice this white car go past us. We carried on talking and I kept looking at the road as I really felt something was off. Over the next 15 minutes, the same white car goes past five more times. Z noticed my change in behavior, so he asked what's wrong? And I told him that I think the car is watching us, that it's gone past six times already. He said let's go. And I was honestly happy to leave. As we had started walking up towards the school to go to our local corner shop to go to the skatepark, the white car went past again, but now slower this time I was able to look at it and I saw three, maybe four figures in the car, including the driver. As I turned around towards where we were standing, I saw the wide car pull over and then speed off. As it was speeding off, I saw this guy in his 30s to 40s with brown hair and glasses start walking up towards us, picking up his speed. Every time we did, I noticed he was getting closer and closer. So we picked up our speed a lot more and I then said loudly, hey, let's go to the corner shop, I need a drink. And my partner Z at the time asked what I was doing and I said we can go into the shop to see if he's really following us. And if he isn't, then I'm wrong. And also how I got a weird feeling after I said that. My partner turned to me and said I was an idiot for speaking loudly because now the guy is going to go into the shop looking for us. As we turned the corner to go towards the shop, I grabbed Z's arm and started walking a lot quicker up past the shop towards the bus stop. We stood at the bus stop for a few minutes just to see if the guy followed and he did. He was speaking to someone on his phone as the white car went past again and then he went into the shop looking through the windows before entering. We found this weird, so we took a longer way to the skatepark. To get to the skatepark we had to go past a graveyard. And as we were walking towards the graveyard, the car went past again and suddenly this guy was following us from behind again. But he was also on the phone. He was a different guy though he wasn't the same person that went into the shop. We had started walking through a few closes to get to the other main road that is filled with lights. And as we got through the last section to get by the main road, we walked past these two guys dressed in black coats, tracky bottoms and their Hoods up. I grabbed Z's hands so hard because I began to feel scared. As we walked past the guys, one of them raised their phone to their ear while the other person already had their phone to their eyes speaking into it. We noticed this wasn't normal as we had decided to stick to the side they were on as it was quicker. So we began walking across the grass up the road. When the guys began to follow us, we looked at each other and we decided to cut through these other houses with these guys still following us. I was nearly crying as the white car went past us yet again and we began to walk quicker through the houses. We kept looking back to see if the guys were following us and they were. And we accidentally bumped into this older couple with their dog. We told them to pretend they knew us because these guys were following us. They asked if we were okay and told us to just go ahead through a different way and that they would try and distract them or just block their vision. We thanked them and then carried on walking quicker. We eventually finally got to the skatepark nearly two hours later because it took us that long and our friends had asked us what took us so long. So we then explained that we were being followed. Well, about 15 minutes later, after arriving at the skatepark, a white car pulled up with their car lights blaring into the skatepark. But Z and I quickly dipped and the car drove away just a few seconds later. We never went to the police about it because we had no evidence and neither of us liked the police. To this day the police still don't know and neither do our own families, just some of our close friends. We're really lucky the guys never caught us and that we didn't get hurt. To this day, my whole body shivers with the thought of this and chills run down my body at the thought of what would have happened if they caught us after that. Later on in the year, the same white car would always pop up and drive past me. Numerous times since then I've definitely changed the way that I walk to and from the skatepark. I'm submitting the story so awareness can get spread and to tell people to always be on their guard while they're out. Seriously everyone please be careful. So this all started when I was 11 years old. For reference, I'm a 32 year old female. I was raised by my grandpa and he was previously married to an amazing woman. They were somewhat trying to work it out and at the time she had her own house. Lets call her T for short. She had a 16 year old daughter, let's call her J, whom I've been with every day and loved for six years. One day while over at their house, J and her friends were going to the river to go swimming and asked if I would like to go. So of course, being 11, I said yes. So while at the river, one of her friends who was a guy who was being so nice and cool, was tossing me in the air to dive in the water and just generally being a pretty cool guy. I didn't really think anything about it at all because he didn't seem creepy or like a bad guy. I just thought he was being a nice guy friend to Jay. So fast forward a year later and I'm 12 years old and I'm standing at the end of my driveway waiting on the bus for school. Now just a little description of this driveway. It wasn't very long but had several vehicles of my grandpa's and towards the end it had a gate that was to be closed and locked anytime I was there alone. Also, we lived right off a highway, so every day I would see all kinds of different people driving by. Well, I had an old babysitter of mine that lived past me about six miles and she drove a small red car. Also, there's a curve that goes to the left about half a mile or so to the left of the driveway and the same to the right. Also, keep in mind, my grandpa was always leaving me alone to go to work or go early morning hunting. Okay. Anyways, so as I'm standing there waiting, I see a small red car driving on the shoulder of the road, driving fairly slow from my right. I assumed it was my old babysitter being that it was the same car color. So as it passed I just smiled and waved. But as soon as I did, I realized it was a man wearing a cap and sunglasses. And as I smiled and waved, he smiled back in the creepiest way. I immediately had a bad gut feeling and as he passed me, I watched him get to the curve and start turning around. I got so scared and sick to my stomach that I took off running to one of the vehicles in the driveway to go hide behind as I'm dug down in front of the truck. I watched him pass by going very slowly. I was panicking at this point. I stayed there to make sure he wasn't coming back. And sure enough, he did. There's a church a tad to the left and across the road from the driveway. He backed into it and he kinda just stayed there as I'm Watching him without his knowledge, I notice that he pulled out binoculars and started looking around my house and driveway. I then took off running to my front door. I quickly unlocked it and ran to the house phone and then called my aunt who just lived a few miles past me. I know that I should have just called the cops, but. But she was a lot closer to me than they were because we lived pretty far from town out in the country. Anyways, when I called, my little cousin had answered the phone. And at the time it was like three or four. So I'm crying at this point, telling him to put his mom on the phone. And then after a few minutes of this, I then hear honking outside. It was the bus. I dropped the phone and ran as fast as I could to the bus. As I'm getting on crying hysterically, I noticed the man had taken off mere seconds before the bus got there. Well, I told my bus driver everything and he called the cops for me. When I got to school, I met with an officer who had took my statement and he told me they would do what they could, but didn't really have much to go on but just a small red car. This was a Friday, so I didn't have to wait on the bus again until Monday. That night I went to go stay at my cousin's for the weekend and we had so much fun that I had just forgotten about it. So skip to that Monday. As I'm waiting for the bus. Keep in mind I was by myself yet again. I heard thumping, like from a vehicle with a system in it. So I look to the right and I see that same car turning off a country road that is at the curve. I started freaking out. I ran to the truck again and dug down. He did the same thing and he pulled into the church and just watched my house again. This time I just waited there for the bus. As soon as it arrived, I ran to it. And yet again he drove off right when he saw the bus coming. The bus driver noticed and he told me to just wait inside my house from here on out. And he would honk for me. So that's exactly what I did. Yet every morning he would sit at that church or drive slowly back and forth on the highway. So later on I eventually found out who it was, but I can't even remember how. It was a long time ago. It was actually Jay's friend from the river trip that was being over friendly and cold towards me. Yeah, the same guy. As time went on, day after day, it started to progress and he would Start coming in the afternoons, driving by, looking, and I really hated it. Mainly because I just really loved to go outside and ride my bike or just doing stuff outside with my grandpa. Every time he would drive by, he would always have his music playing really loudly and then thumping it. And it seemed to be the same song every time. I guess now would also be a good time to mention that my grandpa was the boss over a bar. So we would be there almost every single night. On Thursdays he would run a big bingo game. And being in a small town, there were a lot of people that attended. So he would always be there until really late as well as on the weekends too. Well, if I ever got in trouble, he would make me stay home alone. But I was okay because we had a gate that locked stating no trespassing, as well as a.22 pistol on top of the refrigerator just in case of a break in. Every night he would drive by and I know this because of that thumping of the same song in his car. This went on for about seven months, by the way. He was like 18 or 19 years old, maybe even older. My grandpa never believed me though, because he never saw it happen, happen himself. As luck would have it that he would always be out in the backyard inside or tending to all the animals. So after the seven months passed, he had started getting worse. Coming in the middle of the day, waiting until my grandpa left and knowing I was alone. And I could swear that he was full blown in our yard in the middle of the night because I could hear very faint tapping and scraping on my bedroom window. But I was always too afraid to actually look. He would never ever come to the bar though. Whenever we were there. I guess he was afraid I would say something and my grandpa would beat him up. It actually got to the point where if I was outside and heard loud thumping, no matter the beat, I would hit the ground and my grandpa would think I was crazy, even though I told him a million times what was happening. I was so afraid of what he might do to me that I had actually started sleeping in my grandpa's room on the floor. I would also have a neighbor lady come stay with me every morning that my grandpa wouldn't be there to get on the bus. Whenever he was home though, I would always make him stand with me while I waited. Well, one night, the third year of dealing with this, I was at the bar with my grandpa and a lady he was friends with had needed a babysitter for the night and I volunteered to make some money. We left and Picked up her son and daughter and then brought them back to my house. It was still a tad bit daylight outside. Like it was dark, but you could still see everything pretty well. I was playing with the kids in the backyard, and I had heard that same damn thumping of his system. And I totally had it at this point. I mean, I had smaller children here, and I'm all alone. I can't deal with this anymore. So I told the children to get inside now. We went in as fast as we could and turned off every light in the house. And I put the kids in my grandpa's room and told them to stay there and did not come out. I grabbed the gun right off the refrigerator and then walked to the front door window and looked out. As I did, he was in my driveway at the gate getting out of his car. He started to get out and climb over. Well, I opened the front door and then I immediately yelled at him, I have a gun, you sick freak, and if you step over the gate, I'll kill you. The guy had started laughing and just kept going. So I pulled back the hammer and started firing at his feet. Now, I know I was a child, but I was a damn good shot. And I've been taught how to shoot since I was very little. So where I aimed is where I meant to shoot at. So as I'm firing at his feet, he starts yelling and running back over the gate. And I just kept shooting until he got the damn picture. He didn't bother me again. Fast forward to where I'm 16 years old and I'm now working at a truck stop subway. One day he comes in with a woman around his own age, and they're holding hands. They walk up to the counter to order their sandwiches, and I just say, hi, what can I get for you? And as I'm looking, I notice it's him. When I tell you that, my body got chills. It scared the absolute crap out of me. I just pretended not to know who he was. Well, he looks down at my name tag and then says, s. Is that you? Like the one that lived on the highway to the left? I just replied, yeah. And then he smiled at me so creepily. Well, what I thought was so weird was when he said this. His girlfriend had the most scared look on her face. She genuinely looked so terrified. I don't know what that meant, but she definitely knew something about him and it showed. She looked so sympathetic for me the whole time that I made her sandwich. I also noticed that she seemed a little scared of him After I made their food. He just looked at me like I was a piece of meat the whole time until they left. Well, Fast forward another two years and I'm now 18 years old. My boyfriend and I are at a bar when he walks in. Now, by this time, I'm now big and grown and I'm not really afraid of anything at this point. I did get nervous and anxiety a little, but that's just from past trauma. Well, my boyfriend and I are dancing and he sits at a table just freaking staring at me the entire time. Damn time. Eventually he gets up and finds someone to dance with and then comes to dance right next to us all while staring at me. Finally, I had enough. Plus, I was a little drunk. Yes, I was able to drink at this bar at 18. They didn't really care. I grabbed him by a shirt and got real close to his face, telling him, I'm not afraid of you anymore and I'm damn sure not gonna put up with your creepy kidnapper vibes. You come near me again or so much as look in my direction, I'll grab whatever's around and beat you with it until you can't move anymore. He actually looks so scared, weirdly enough, but I guess he finally knew that I wasn't playing. Seeing how I'd already shot at him when I was a kid. I'm happy to say that I haven't seen him since. I just hope whoever is married to that sorry SOB keeps one eye open at all times. The story isn't necessarily a horror story, but I guess it is to some Disclaimer. This story is a long string of events that happened over the course of a couple of years. It's not just one moment or time in my life. I'm 20 years old, female, and live in metro Detroit, Michigan. This all started when I was about 50, 15 or 16, when an old high school boyfriend and I had stopped talking. I don't even really consider him an ex because I'm now 20 and we dated for like a year on my freshman year of high school. I was 14. We can call him V. He was always a bit emotionally high strung and mistreated me emotionally and physically a few times. One time he even called me to tell me he was in the bathroom with a knife. He almost hit me with his car on one occasion. Not really relevant, but definitely good to know considering what I'm about to tell you. We broke up in 2020 and it was a mess. I started casually messing around with another guy who we'll call Eric. Not his actual name, V called me one day and he said he saw me with Eric. Freaking out. We were just getting ice cream. After this, V got a job at a fast food place that was like two blocks away from my house. After he got out of work, he would show up at my house during the night and knock on my door with gifts. He often wouldn't leave until I came outside. He was really creepy and stalkerish. After we broke up, I always secretly FaceTimed my friend. If he showed up at my house, he'd say really pushy stuff, like he knew we'd be together again one day, stuff like that. He'd make me hug him and ask me to kiss him and stay outside to keep talking to him. Really weird. He was obsessive. I ended up cutting contact completely and I moved to a different house. Not for this reason though. I started dating a girl late December 2020. I had forgotten all about him and I hadn't spoken to him in months. One night I got a call from one of my best friends and she was really upset and worried. She told me that V showed up outside her house and was demanding to know where I was and wouldn't leave until she told him. He had actually stopped by another friend of mine's house before this and was leaving everyone gifts. This was years ago, so I don't really remember what happened, but he ended up coming to my new house. I don't remember how he found out where it was. I heard a knock at the door and he waited for me to come outside, but I never did. He had found out about my new girlfriend and he left me a letter in my mailbox. He told me that he was leaving to move to a big city far away and it was some sort of farewell. He denied it being a love letter, but he said a lot of weird stuff and it definitely was. He mentioned knowing about my new relationship and he wished me well and told me to treat her well. He's always been really manipulative and creative about finding ways to slither into my life. I ignored the letter, so we moved to New York. I didn't hear from him for a couple of years and it was great. I had let go of all the animosity that I held for him and I really just forgot about everything. We were older now and it was now just a toxic high school relationship. I held nothing against him and I didn't even care what he was up to. Everything after this happened, from May 2023 to just a month ago or so, June 2024. So fast forward to 2023 around May. He must have been visiting back home. I'm still dating the same girl I was dating when he left that letter at my house years earlier. I got a text from him saying that he was back home and was wondering if we could go out and get coffee. I was 18 or 19 at this time, a long time since anything had happened and years since we had talked. He got a girlfriend when he was in New York and he seemed to be doing okay and I figured that he had changed a lot, just like I have. I genuinely thought that he probably just wanted to catch up and maybe just see how I was doing, eliminating any hard feelings or anything from how we stopped talking. I told him that would be fine. I figured we'd hang out and just say what's up? And then move on with our lives. That would have been cool. As soon as I cordially replied to his text, he had started to sound weird. He told me that he was nervous and he told me where and when to meet him. I don't know why he would be nervous unless he had different intentions than what he was implying to me. I showed him to the coffee house and we caught up and told each other what we had been up to for the past couple of years since we last saw each other. He asked where I was working now and where I was living at the time, and stupidly I told him. He seemed really elated and flirty and it rose up red flags in my head. I knew what he was up to at this point and I was just really casual and platonic with him. He ended up telling me how good I looked and he tried to grab my hand under the table. He told me that he had been thinking about me the whole time and all his friends thought he was crazy. I nicely told him that I had no intention of meeting with him to have relations again or even be friends. I just wanted to be friendly and check up so we could have a good ending. He pretty much told me that I was lying to myself and that there was no way that was true. He wasn't even upset by it. It was like he was completely deluded. I found out that he did a lot of drugs in New York and that he probably fried his brain off of acid. He had become really spiritual and not in a good way, like in a psychosis way. It was awkward the whole time and it was pretty much just him trying to flirt with me and then me politely rejecting him or pretending he was kidding because I couldn't Believe his persistence. I cut the hangout off early despite his attempt to coerce me into hanging out with him longer. I lied and I told him that I had work very soon. He let me go, but before that he told me that we were going to hang out the next day. I eventually gave in because he kept pressuring me and it was really awkward. I just wanted him to leave and I thought to myself, there's no way I'm doing this a second time. Not alone. At least my friends and my girlfriend know all about him and his odd behavior and they knew we were hanging out. I told V, but my friends were coming along with me. I took my best friend and girlfriend. My girlfriend and I weren't dating at the time, but we were still talking and we were always very close. She's been my friend since middle school. We went to hang out with him the second day at the park. We all kind of just sat around awkwardly while he climbed trees and acted really irrational, erratic and crazy. He was running around and at one point he'd even cut his hand and put his blood on a tree like he was fusing with it. We caught the hangout early again and we said we had work. You could tell he was mad. After this, he just kept texting me and asking me to hang out with him again and I would just politely decline. He would text me if he saw me in public and tell me I looked good. I wouldn't give it any attention and I made it pretty clear that I was uncomfortable. He eventually confronted me and he asked why I didn't want to hang out with him and I told him I had been telling him all along that I had no intention of ever becoming friends or lovers with him ever again and that it had been years. I just wanted to give him my good wishes and move on. He didn't take this well and he sent me novels over texts, pretty much trying to gaslight me into continuing to talk to him and invalidating me. He even tried to tell me that he had recently discovered he was bisexual and could have used advice. I eventually told him this was the last time we'd contact each other and that I was done. I had started to ignore his texts. Now I left out that V is also a SoundCloud rapper. After this, he would make multiple songs about me, use my pictures from when we were dating, and would write a song about sexual related stuff detailing my genitals. By the way, this was when I was a minor. The last time we had relations, I was a minor. Every couple of weeks or so. For that whole year I would get random novels sent to me about him professing his love and pressing me further. I know that I could have blocked him, but I didn't so I could screenshot his messages for evidence in case he actually did something weird. One night I got out of work and his car was in the parking lot staked outside of my work. Thankfully, I work with all of my friends and even my bosses knew all about this creep because he makes the music about me and uses my old pictures. I took a photo of his car but it was hard to see because he was just sitting in the dark. I was always on the lookout after this. Thank God that my girlfriend and I drive together home from work always and that I'm never alone. Thankfully at this point I had lost my car and moved into my girl girlfriend's house so he wasn't able to stalk me to the full extent, which I knew that he would have. I contacted him a few times and told him to stop and take my pictures down and that I saw him outside of my work, which of course he denied. I have screenshots of all of the evidence. Another time he had wrote a rapey poem on Instagram. It was really long but one part was one way or another, we are bound to have this baby. He continued on. It was a really obsessive poem and I knew it was about me because he used my childhood nickname twice. Recently he wrote a song about me called Better Off Dead. This is the most recent. He also made the song cover a picture of my foot when I was literally 14. He said something along the lines of she switches to women instead she into bitches who lie. I guess they better off dead. Which really scared all my friends. What's also weird about this whole thing is that he had recently got a girlfriend and it doesn't even seem like she cares about any of this anyway. This is just a post for awareness that if you ever have someone like this in your life, please tell your family and trustworthy friends any information you can for your own safety and make sure to gather any evidence. I'll be sure to update if anything else weird happens. I'm planning on eventually getting a restraining order. Stay safe everyone.

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In the News this week, the have I Got News for you podcast is back for another series brought to you by some of the team behind the show. We'll take you through the big stories.

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Of the week when the TV show can't.

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From Kemi Badnock to Keir Starmer Donald, Donald Trump to Nigel Farage, we'll make.

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The complete lack of respect it deserves. We also cover all the silliest stories you've missed that don't make the front page and put your news knowledge to the test with our Missing words round. Listen and subscribe to in the News this week. The have I Got News for your podcast. Wherever you get your podcasts. Firstly, I'd like to apologize for the length of the story, but it's one that I feel needs to be told and unfortunately it's not over yet. However, it may mean updates for future videos for you to read. The general gist of the story is to be very careful of who you choose to make friends with. Late last year, I had to make a decision for myself, and the decision was to leave an extremely toxic friendship. It wasn't an easy decision to make because the two people I was leaving, if I'm to put this delicately, earth a dangerous tie, one struggling with addiction issues and the other struggling with mental health. All this I could actually understand. What I couldn't understand was the way they had started treating me. To say that it was getting to a point that I was in fear of my own health would be an understatement. I held no ill will for either of these people. It was simply a time for me to leave them to themselves and to pursue a dead a different path in my own life. The first big red flag came just before I decided to leave, when one of them was trying to lure me to a remote location in the guise of a friendly chat. When that message came through the messenger, my stomach dropped. My skin also started to crawl, and I knew that this would be a very bad idea indeed, particularly after I gave the person the option to call me and talk about it on the phone or to message me about about the issue that they wanted to discuss. However, that is not how they wanted to do it. They wanted me to travel to a remote location far from my home and meet them there. Needless to say, I was not going to do that. They persisted, telling me where and when I was supposed to meet them. In the end, I ended up agreeing just to get the messages to stop. Then the next day, after a stomach churning night, I sent my own message. I gently told this person that I was no longer interested in being friends with them and that I didn't want to go and meet them. And I didn't want to have the conversation they had planned. It was time for me to go. The third person in this scenario was actually the friend of the person who was trying to lure me away from the house and wasn't somebody that I was actually friends with myself. They were very much invested in the other person and I didn't feel it was fair for me to keep talking to them if I was leaving the other friendship. I sent the message and then I kind of panicked and then I blocked the third party. I was so exhausted by this point. I didn't want to talk to them. I didn't want them messaging me, trying to fix things. I didn't want to talk to them at all, particularly when they were a big part of the problem of the friendship falling apart in the first place. I just wanted peace and to be left alone. The message I sent to the friendship I wished to end things with was gently worded and wishing them nothing but the best. I just wanted to leave, but I had no ill intention towards them. To say the whole thing was taken in the wrong way would also be an understatement. I sent the message, blocked them both, and then tried to go about my day. I had other friends I was meeting up with that day, so that's what I did. And I tried to get what was going on out of my head. I was out of rain range of cell service for most of the day. As soon as I was back in range, it started to become clear to me that my letter was not taken in the spirit that it was intended. My phone was going crazy with concerned messages from family and other friends. While I was gone, the recipient of the message had taken screenshots and shared it all over social media, trying to make me look like the bad guy. The second party that I blocked had also been quite busy. They had published a photo of me, but I didn't give them permission to use it and Launched a full blown smear campaign against me on social media. Unfortunately, it didn't stop there. They took it upon themselves to message other friends of mine and tell them untrue stories about things I was supposed to have said about them. Then they made threats against me. They were all over social media telling anybody who listened that I was going to get what I deserved. I was feeling stressed and most of all I was feeling scared because it showed very clearly to me that I had no idea exactly what these people were capable of. I was particularly in fear because they both knew where I live and because of the unpredictability. I didn't know if they were going to show up in my house and start terrorizing me in my own home or that they might come into the place where I work and try to threaten me there. Another close friend suggested that I call the police, even if it was just to get advice. The policewoman I spoke to was highly supportive. She was also very honest. She told me that I could take out a restraining order if I wished. The problem with that is that she was concerned that it might inflame the problem. And as a police officer she told me it's only a piece of paper and that it usually doesn't work. She told me to try and ignore everything, to keep them blocked on my social media as well as my phone and to try and get on with things. She also said that if they did happen to show up anywhere they shouldn't be to call the police because they made a note of what's going on and that they would come straight away after this. A few weeks went by and things got quiet and I thought maybe because they had aired their grievances all over social media that they had gotten it out of their system. I was wrong. Nearly five months had gone by. The friends who had been recipients of the two's poison pen messages knew me well enough to know that it was it was all fabricated. They gave me a lot of support and helped me get on with my life. In April, I took a trip with another couple of friends, which afforded me the opportunity to catch up with another friend who lived in the area where we were visiting. She had also been a mutual friend of the other pair and had seen everything that had gone on in the five months prior. We were having a dinner and she accidentally informed me that one of them had gone on a drunken bender, filmed it all and put it on Facebook. In this video, my ex friend had been almost blackout drunk and mouthing off about me as I had kept them blocked and stayed away from them. I was totally oblivious to this news I was being told it hadn't impressed my friend and she had also blocked and moved away from them too. It was after this that more information began to trickle in of things that I didn't even know had been going on. In March, I had the pleasure of taking one of my most amazing friends friends out for a birthday lunch. We went to her favorite restaurant for lunch and a little shopping afterwards. It had been a wonderful day and then a fairly serious storm had blown in. On the way home, I had to drop my friend off quickly so that she could make a run for her front door and then get inside out of the rain. Recently, we were talking about that day and she revealed to me that more shenanigans had gone on that she had totally forgotten to tell me about. The third party who had published my photo and said the ugliest things about me she could think of in that Facebook post of not so long ago had randomly messaged my friend on her birthday. She had been trying to get information from her. What was she doing for her birthday? Can she take her out for a coffee? My friend actually wasn't sure who was messaging her at first because the person was merely an acquaintance met through the first party who had gotten creative with her drunken video. My friend had no interest in this person and told her no, I have other plans for today, but thank you. Then my friend also told me that as she was running through the rain to get to her front door, there was a bag on the doorstep. Inside the bag were gifts from this person who had tried to ruin my life. When I left the friendship and still appeared to be lurking in the periphery, my friend, being a stellar person, politely thanked them for the random gifts and then things went quiet again. Or so I thought. It was getting towards winter and winter is never a good time for me. I always end up getting horribly sick. So also in March, I had gone with my mother to receive my autumn winter shots to hopefully prevent getting sick that year. Afterwards, my mother and I randomly decided to meet up with my friend for a coffee and a chat. We were parking the car when I had noticed something that didn't belong. We saw my friend on the street returning from the post office. That was fine. What wasn't fine was the random gifter and Facebook author following her down the street. I watched my friend go into a shop with someone I was beginning to realize was becoming my stalker. Following her into the shop, I almost had a panic attack right there. I couldn't move and I didn't want to get out of the car. My mother, on the other hand, is made of sterner stuff. She got out of the car, walked across the road and walked slowly past the door of the shop. My friend was in there trying to make a purchase while also trying to back away from who was fastly becoming our stalker. My mother said that she could hear said stalker quizzing my friend on what she had done for her birthday. Where had she gone? Who was she with? What did she do? My mom heard my friend say something about having a chill day for her birthday and then she got the hell out of there. But that wasn't where it stopped either. My mother went down to the cafe that we were going to go to get us some coffee to go. She knew that I wasn't up for socializing now and that we would just take our coffees and go home. Inside this same building was an actual boutique that I was working at. Every Friday my mom was in the coffee shop getting our orders and when she came out the stalker was hanging around outside. We went home and had our coffees and tried to forget that we had even seen her. Come Friday, when I arrived for work, my friend that I worked with informed me that my other friend had come in to look at some clothes and that the stalker had followed her in. Then my friend left to go get on with her day. The stalker, however, did not leave the shop. She lingered around trying to listen in on conversations that my friend, who owned the shop was having with other people. My friend believed it was to see if my name was mentioned. Soon enough she grew bored and left. After this, things seemed to go quiet again and this time I thought that maybe the two of them were bored of following me around and trying to turn my other friends against me and were doing the right thing and finally getting on with their own lives. I was wrong yet again. The boutique I had been working in ended up closing down. My friend had a difference of opinion with the owner of the building and just decided to leave. My amazing friend that I had shared the birthday with had a business of her own that she runs with her husband. I was out of a job and they were looking for an intern to help them. On the weekends. My mother and I were having tea with her in the afternoon and she asked me if I would like the job as I was at a loose end now. I jumped at the chance and I was now employed once again. My friend and her husband were very excited to have me on their team. Their business is very popular in our local area and they wanted to announce that they had taken me on as a team member. This was all great until the next thing happened. The very afternoon that I was given the job, my mother and I were picking up some prescriptions for her from a local pharmacy. As we left the pharmacy to get into the car to go home, much to my horror, I found the Facebook author parked right beside my car. She was in the car and she had the other ex friend with her. I felt my mouth dry up and my stomach dropped. I decided to pretend that the sun was in my eyes and just acted like I hadn't seen them, but my mother looked squarely at them. Once they knew they had been seen, they put the pedal to the metal and tore out of there, honking the horn and yelling out the window at me, something that I couldn't understand. Slightly shaken, we got into the car and I dropped my mother off at her house and continued home to mine. Later that evening, my friends, excited with the prospect of working with me, shared a lovely welcome post on Facebook announcing that they had found an intern to help them over the weekend and that it was me. All of our friends were congratulating me and saying how wonderful everything was, and it was also very positive as I still had the other two blocked. I had no idea of the chaos that was erupting as I was flickering on a movie and getting ready to go to sleep. My friends messaged me the following morning asking me to please come to work for some light training, to pick up a gift they had gotten me and to pick up my keys. When I got there, my friend said to me, well, we had a very eventful night last night. Fearing something may have happened to one of their family members, I asked what happened. It was then that my friend told me that the two ex friends had tried to ruin my new job and basically my life. The Facebook author decided that it might be a fun thing to do to denigrate me and then slander me all over their Facebook business posts. As you can imagine, this did not go down well with my new employers, who were also my close friends. My friend's husband basically tore them both a new one and he told them to politely go you know where and to stop and to stop slandering a member of his staff. He then blocked them and got on with his night. You would think it would end there. It didn't. The two of them then decided to take screenshots of what my friend's husband had said to them and to make a group chat with my friend and send her the screenshots. They also decided that it would be a fun idea to tell her a bunch of lies about me that could never be true, all in order to ruin my life and to ruin my new job prospect. They failed miserably. As I said before, this friend is a stellar human being who doesn't listen to gossip and does not base her opinions of people by what other people say about them. She told them both all of this and then went on to block them herself. You would think this would be enough to finally make them stop. It wasn't. Another friend then provided me with a few screenshots. The Facebook author was up to her old tricks yet again. She had gone on Facebook with a whiny self pitying post blaming everybody but herself for what had transpired the night before. She went as far as to call me a villain and saying that I was going to get what I deserved. During my friend telling me about what happened the night before, she had also told me some more news that I didn't know. The facebook author had been randomly showing up at their place of work trying to get my friend to have a coffee with her so that she could bitch about me to my friend and try and turn her against me. My friend also said that she believed that this person is suffering from an extreme mental illness. While she could take pity on her, she didn't want her for a friend and didn't have any interest in her. In the following days of all this, there have been more posts made on social media, but I've chosen to ignore them. I went to work for my friends and had a brilliant first couple of days. It seems things have gone quiet again for now and I'm really hoping this is where it ends. However, my gut seems to be in disagreement. I guess time will tell. If anything else happens or there are any more updates, I'll be sure to let you guys know. To say that I should have trusted my gut when I first met these two people again is another understatement. I had that faint vibe that something just wasn't quite right about them both. And if I had trusted that intuition in the very beginning, maybe all of this could have been avoided. I'll end the story with Be very careful of who you allow into your inner circle who you choose to trust, because not everybody is your friend. Keep in mind, I'm a 26 year old female who is pansexual. This happened when I was 23, so it begins back in 2021 in September. I Was working at Dunkin Donuts and I was there for about three days. This will be irrelevant soon. My first day on the shift, the coworkers I was working with kept telling me that the manager was really weird and mean to everyone. Let's give her the nickname Leslie. I was told that Leslie was running late that day, but to meet up with her when she comes in to start my first day. She shows up finally a couple of hours into my shift and she approached me and asked me to meet her in her office. I had a gut feeling that something was off, but just said, okay, I'll see you in there. And then followed behind her and went into her office. She came in and closed the door behind her and I was standing towards the back corner. She had started asking me questions related to the job and just asking general questions, like if I was enjoying my first day. Then it started turning weird when she stated that she saw somewhere that I'm openly pansexual. I didn't think a lot of it other than it was weird because I do have a public insta, which at the time did state I was pansexual. I answered that, yes, I am, but what does that have to do with the actual job? She continues to say that it doesn't, but that I was really pretty and was wondering if I wanted to catch dinner after my shift. I gently and respectfully declined because I have a partner. She continues to try and push on going on a date with her, to which I just gently said no yet again. I then just told her I was ready to go back out to work, so I did. She continues to get really close to me and stare at me the whole rest of my shift. So after my shift I went home and I had noticed some of my things were missing from my room and that some of my things had been moved around. So I asked my fiance if they had moved some of my stuff or had accidentally thrown away some of it. They said they didn't because they had just come home from work. I was living with my mom and grandmother at the time and I asked them if they did and they said they didn't. But Leslie had shown up there asking for me, but they said that I was already at work and was waiting for her and that they had invited her in. I went back to work the next day and asked her about it, and she showed me the items that were missing from my room and gave them back. I told her to never ever show up to my private residence again, that she was really crossing a line. That the next time she does, I'll be calling the cops. Fast forward to my final day at work. Leslie kept trying to get me to go out with her and then I finally got firm and said I'm not interested and I never will be. She tried to kiss me so I pulled her off. Then saying, what the hell's your problem? She told me that she's been crazy about me since the first moment she saw me and how I used to be a frequent customer along with my fiance and that she's remembered me. She continues to say that she's the only one that can love me. I interrupted her and said that I quit and that I'm turning everything over to the police. I got home and told my fiance everything and right at that time, my mom and fiance and I had heard a loud noise coming from outside it. We got our dogs and went outside but we didn't see anything. So we went out to this fenced in area and we said whoever is out there needs to leave or our dogs will bite them. Keep in mind we had them trained as service dogs and they're also very protective so they know commands on when to strike. Right at that time we then saw Leslie running to her car to leave. We then called the police immediately and reported it. The police arrived and we told them everything and no joke. Right at that time we saw her car pass by and I then yelled to the police that that's her. One officer got in his car and went after her and the other one stayed with us just in case she came back. Well, they ended up catching her and I found out that she wasn't who she said she was. She had apparently been stalking not only me, but multiple other women. I never heard or saw her again after that and I quit that job. My fiance and I have since moved and my grandmother has since passed away. My mom has also moved near my fiance and I. I don't really know what all has happened to Leslie, but I do know she got arrested for a period of time. I'm not really sure how long she got though as I haven't been keeping tabs on her. I just really hope that she got some serious hell. She really needs it. This happened to me when I just started Shasta College right out of high school. I was 18 years old at the time. Short and petite, I had just landed my first part time job as a secretary on Fridays. I really loved to go to the mall after work, especially on paydays. Back then you could stretch $10 pretty far on the Day of this incident, I was walking through the mall to the bus stop when this dude wearing jeans, a blue T shirt and a backwards cab just stepped out in front of me. All of a sudden he stretched, stopped and then waited for me to get even with him. He started talking to me right away like he knew me and this kinda creeped me out. He was over friendly, asking me how my day was, that I looked nice and what I was shopping for and I just gave him short answers. I started to get uncomfortable when he wouldn't leave and ignored my attempts at being rude. There weren't that many people in the mall, no security guards, and all I had to defend myself with was a small purse and a bag of toiletries that I had just bought. This never happened to me before. I was alone and not very street smart. I felt myself sweating and my voice started to shake. He kept walking and talking to me. The conversation got even creepier when he'd asked if I had a boyfriend or if I was married and stupidly I said no. Then he started making comments about my body, hair and eyes and how I could come work for him. He said he had a studio, which I didn't believe at all. I had to get back to campus for work, but I didn't want this creep to follow me and possibly get on the bus with me. So I did the only thing my 18 year old mind could think of. I threw myself into this jewelry store and then ran toward the counter. I knew that I'd missed my bus, but at least I wasn't alone. The dude just said bye and kept walking. I was so relieved to lose him, but also frustrated at the same time because I'd be late for work. I hated him for even talking to me. He was gross and he smelled disgusting. Some time went by and I eventually forgot all about the creepy experience. I had a boyfriend now and I was hanging out at his apartment when the local news came. On the tv. The reporter talked about a human trafficker who was arrested near the Shasta Mall. He was targeting and soliciting teens for sex work. I looked up and I saw the creepy dude on the TV screen in handcuffs. Lamont Brown. It all came back to me and I felt the willies all over again. I'm really glad that I only saw him once and after that encounter I was a lot more careful when I went shopping alone. I think that he thought I was younger than I was because the report said that he was interested in minors. I've included a link to the news article and it'll be in the description. I really hope he never scares anyone again. My name is Tatum, I'm a girl and I just turned 20 a few months ago. I live in a small town in the south with my mom in a pretty dinky apartment. It's definitely not the best, but with prices going up, it's all we have. We have two cats who stay indoors, which will be important later on. I don't really go out that much. I have a debilitating anxiety disorder which caused me to refrain from even going to the grocery store, much less meeting people. Luckily, I really love talking to people online, which was a major help in becoming a small content creator on TikTok and Instagram. I live stream and post selfies, talk about fashion, music, food and everything else really. Sometimes I even do my best to give people advice if they ask. It's a pretty decent gig in my opinion. Not the best pay, but at least I'm getting some income from just putting on makeup and talking to a camera. Now don't get me wrong, I do get weirdos in my DMs and they've said some pretty nasty things. But it's easy to look past now that I've been doing this for a good year. I've even made some friends and there are quite a few who even live in my area. I was super excited at first, finally having people to talk to. One such person was called T. Now T was a mutual friend of another friend of mine that I'd met online. Our first interaction he sent me was an angry face and said something along the lines of how dare you speak to our mutual friend? We will fight to be in his good graces. I thought it was hilarious. I responded and joked back telling him to bring it on, but then cleared up that I was in no way romantically interested in the mutual friend. This person and I continued exchanging messages, mostly just focused around our friend and how close they are to one another. I soon grew closer to this T without even really knowing who he was. We talked about his relationship with his girlfriend, our mutual interest in music and alternative of styles, and even bonded over shared experiences of mental illness. I was just so happy to have a friend who seemed to understand me completely. After a good month of messaging, T invited me to play a few games on Xbox along with our mutual friend. We hopped in party chat together and it was an instant click. I stayed at past 1am just to talk to him some more. He was funny, charismatic, a bit flirty and seemed respectful though it was the perfect Mix. After five hours of playing Apex, I hopped off for the night. Well, the next morning I woke up to about 10 messages from him over Instagram and Snapchat just saying hello and then informing me that he had finally broke up with his girlfriend. I knew that they had been having problems for a while, so I supported him and I told him to come to me if he ever needed anything but that I was happy that he was doing well he felt was best. Throughout the rest of the day he'd message me about how he liked his co worker, how he was going to get with her and how they'd been flirting for months. I thought it was odd how he was bragging about this because he was practically admitting to emotionally cheating on his now ex girlfriend. I soon got messages that same evening complaining that no one loves him and how everyone is just the same. I was confused. He had just told me a few hours before that he was planning on being with his coworker. He then informed me that his coworker suddenly blocked him on everything and even quit her job. Despite a few alarm bells going off in my head already, I just supported him and said to do what he thought was best. That night he had swiftly moved on to texting another girl. This pattern continued throughout. A few nights he would cry to me about his mental illness and how no one but me understood as well as jumping from girl to girl in different talking stages. That was until one morning I woke up to find him confessing to me over text. I knew that his mood was fragile, especially due to bpd, so I was very careful with my words. I admitted to thinking he was attractive and that I cared for him, but that I wasn't looking for anything more than friendship at the moment. T said he understood, but that he would like to at least talk a bit more and get to know each other. To which I agreed. Now I have BPD as well and I'm actively going to therapy. I know what it's like to spiral and have episodes, but he was scary. We only talked for about a week, yet if I left him on read or dared not answer for half an hour, I would then be accused of cheating, ghosting and even planning to hurt him. He even went as far as sending me my own address right down to the apartment number. He constantly wanted to be talking over the phone, always had some reason to be upset and needed me to reassure him. It was extremely draining. He even got jealous after he invited a 13 year old boy into our Xbox party and when I laughed at something that was said he then accused the boy of trying to get with me. It was honestly disturbing. After a week I had enough. I told T that I cared for him deeply and I loved him as a person, but that there was no way I could handle whatever this was as well as working on improving myself. I was extremely careful with my words and I made sure to tell him to have a proper support system. This was a horrible decision on my part. I didn't block him due to not seeing it as serious. I just never messaged or looked at his accounts and just simply unfollowed and moved on. After a day I started getting random accounts following me along with odd message requests saying come home, I really miss my wife. He even called me drunk one night crying begging to know what he did wrong. I calmly and gently explained that we just weren't a good fit and that he needed to get some rest to think clearly, even suggesting that he should speak with someone about how he felt due to his past with his self harming behavior. He then hung up and began spamming me with 300 messages over WhatsApp. He claimed that I was the one having a mental health crisis and that I was the one being self destructive then begging me to just speak to him. T went so far as to request money from me over cashapp, wanting back like $15 that he'd sent weeks prior. I sent the money but that was all. But I was soon then bombarded with more messages saying that he didn't actually want it back and that he just wanted my attention. One specifically said I'm dying for your attention. I'm dying for you. After a few days it had died down. I hadn't received any more messages or calls and no odd followings from strange accounts. I thought this was it, but of course I was wrong. After coming out of my therapy session, which was in another city, I had a message on Facebook from an old friend that I had met in middle school. I hadn't spoken to her for years at this point. Well, she sent me screenshots of his alt account, asking her all about me by my full name, wanting to know about my earlier life and things of that sort. I remember one message even said, oh yeah, she's my total dream girl. You know, it was so perfect. She's literally me. We're soulmates. After that my old friend messaged him back and said she was uncomfortable with how he spoke of me and that she'd be sending me their full conversation, which she soon did. I was of course creeped the hell out I knew this guy was a weirdo for reacting the way that he did, but to go so far as messaging random people on my friends list, who else had he done this to? That evening I was planning on sending him a serious message, but that was thrown out the window when we found our door open. The handle was still locked but not pulled shut, which we always check multiple times before we leave, so we obviously could tell that someone opened it. I checked the rooms with the town police on speed dial, even looking under beds and closets, under tables, everywhere someone could hide. No one was there, nothing was touched except for my room, the door wide open and both cats hiding under my couch with their tails fluffed up. My comforter had been pulled off my futon and it looked like someone laid in it. The only thing really missing was my buck 120 knife, which I took pride in, and my guitars now leaned against the wall instead of my closet door where I'd left them. Someone had come in, but no one else had a key but my mom who drove me to my appointments. I didn't sleep that night and I blocked tea on everything. Sometimes I see his alt account view my TikTok profile, but I haven't heard from him since. I've put cameras inside and am constantly checking that. I've locked my door and windows, even checking rooms before bed as well as soon as I wake up. I'm still worried as this all just happened a week ago, but the police refused to do anything about it since there isn't a deliberate threat. I still to this day don't really know if it was him or someone else that broke into my room, but in any case it's really creepy. And also I really miss my knife. About three months before the COVID lockdown, I had to unexpectedly find a new home. I'm a single mom of my daughter who at the time was only five years old, and my nonverbal and autistic son who was four. Luckily, right before lockdown a friend of a friend told me her uncle was renting out his farmhouse until he could sell it. Having no other choice and knowing a lockdown was inevitable, I accepted the offer. Now this farmhouse was just over three miles away from the town where I lived. The typical UK country roads, no street lights and the nearest shop was a mile and a half away. I don't drive and the only reason I accepted the offer was because I knew because of the lockdown I wouldn't have to get my kids to school. A friend took us on the day of the Move. And we only had personal items to really take. As the farmhouse was fully furnished, the first thing I noticed was just how secluded it was. It wasn't like a regular farmhouse. The owner had replaced the old windows with full length ones that totally covered one side of the house and then looked out onto a beautiful meadow. Like a beautiful field full of wildflowers. It was stunning. Where the flowers stopped. At a guess I'd say it was half the length of a football field. There was a small forest, not a thick and dense forest. The trees had a person sized distance in between each one and with the sun shining through, it actually looked like something from a fairy tale. Apart from a very long muddy driveway leading up to the house, the rest was surrounded by fields that seemed to go on from for miles. After dragging our belongings onto the front wooden patio, my friend had to leave right away. So it was just me, Maggie and Seth to explore our new temporary home. It had two floors, the living and dining room, large bathroom and two bedrooms on the ground floor. Everything was either very old and farmhouse style or very new and modern. And it didn't fit well with the old farmhouse. You yet it was clean and I was grateful. An old open staircase in the corner of the living room led to one big room the size of the full ground floor which also had the wall of full length windows. It was big, warm and full of light. I loved it and I knew I was going to make it our living room area. Now what I didn't start my story with is the reason for us moving. Just after my son's second birthday, his dad passed away. It was an unexpected short battle with cancer. We weren't even together at the time and lived a three hour drive away. He wasn't the most law abiding citizen, shall we say, but had a large group of very loyal friends. One which he called his brother. His name was Tommy. I'd only met him a handful of times, but disliked him instantly. He had a look, I can only explain it, as if a wild animal was lying in wait stalking its prey. And he never once took his eyes off me. That is unless Seth's dad spoke to him or looked at him. Then he'd quickly look away. A couple of times if we were left in the same room together even for a second, he'd instantly move a few steps closer and look me right in the ice to make conversation. He made my skin crawl. Well, after Seth's dad died, Tommy decided to take it upon himself to look, look after us. And to cut a very long Story short. Well, it ended up with a restraining order and then a court case. All he ended up with was a slap on the wrist after stalking, watching, and absolutely terrifying me for a year. And he didn't stop. Hence our quick, quiet move. Anyway, two microwave meals, two lots of clean bedding, and two bedtime stories later, both kids were snoring, and after pouring myself a long, large glass of wine, I locked up downstairs and went up to my favorite room. I had heard on the local news that we were expecting a pretty bad thunderstorm throughout the night, and I couldn't wait to watch it with the view we had. The glow from the small electric fire and the fiery lights that I'd added around the room made it feel so cozy and safe. I pulled a big snuggle chair over to the windows, along with a fluffy blanket, of course not forgetting my wine as well, and for the first time in hours, picked up my phone to see 15 missed calls, plus the voicemail flashing. Maggie had been using it to watch YouTube earlier and must have just turned the volume switch off. Most were from the friend who dropped us off, a couple from my mom, and then some unknown number. The first couple of voicemails were just my friend sounding frantic, telling me to pick up the third. Hi there, this is DCI Jones. We have an issue. You need to double lock all your windows and doors and then call me back immediately. Oh, shit. My stomach sank. DCI Jones was the detective who helped me through the Tommy case. I ran downstairs while I was waiting for the fourth voicemail to play. Hello, sweetheart, I'll see you very soon. It was freaking Tommy. I've never felt fear like I did at that very moment. Not even when Tommy had me trapped in my own house, saying that he loved me enough to kill us both. I quickly picked up Seth and then half dragged poor Maggie upstairs. Luckily, both were that tired that they snuggled together on the sofa and then went straight back to sleep. With my heart still pounding, I ran back downstairs, double checking the windows and doors while trying to ring my friend. She picked up the phone quickly crying, ricky. He followed me. I'm so sorry. By this point, I was having a borderline panic attack. I grabbed my knife from the kitchen, sobbing hysterically, just thinking, this is it. I'm gonna die tonight. He's really gonna kill me. As I was running back up the stairs, my phone rang again, and thinking it would be the police, I picked up. You look so beautiful, sweetheart. You couldn't have picked a better place to move because I can see everything through them. Windows. Oh my God. Shit. I quickly turned to look out the windows and right past the field at the very edge of the pitch black forest I could see the very small light of a mobile phone. Everything happened so quickly after that. Flashing lights heading over the field towards the mobile phone light, banging on the front door and the kids waking up crying to see me sobbing on the floor. When they finally caught Tommy, he had a rape kit with them along with a gun and sleeping tablets. He was sentenced for just two years and I got the phone call last month to let me know that he'd done his time. The kids and I moved over 100 miles away not too long after the court case and we had to cut contact with everyone close to us. We were really lucky that night, but I know I'm gonna forever be looking over my shoulder.

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[Narrator]

Let me share with you a true, creepy and frightening story that happened when I was a child. The story contains relation with a minor and adult themes so anybody not wanting to listen please skip this story. My name is Sasha and I won't be using my last name for privacy reasons. I'm a young Russian American lady who was born in the year of 1999 in Brooklyn, New York in Brighton Beach. Brighton beach is nicknamed Little Odessa because of its large Russian population. Native New Yorkers thought that Brighton beach was in the decline. Soviet refugees from Odessa saw it as a large land of opportunity. Its Jewish population and low rents made it comfortable and affordable and the Atlantic Ocean reminded the newcomers of the Black Sea. New York is actually the home of the largest Russian population. My own mother was a Jewish lady born in the former Soviet Union and came to America for a better life. She became a schoolteacher and got married and settled in the large Russian population of Brighton Beach. Soon they had a baby girl which was Me, Sasha Tourists from all over the world came to Brighton beach and Coney island as well. Brighton beach is quieter than Coney island and the beach is usually emptier but with a lot of cigarette butts. Coney island does too, along with broken bottles. My girlfriend Olga and I even found an old gun in the Coney island weeds once. I really enjoy both Brighton beach and Coney Island. I love eating pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken and ice cream cones along with other yummy things. Not to mention the amusement rides. But it was the year 2011 when I was 12 years old when my nightmare happened. School was over and the kids were enjoying the warm weather of the summer. My mom and I one day decided to enjoy Brighton beach together. My dad had to work that day. When we got to the beach and set our blankets down, my mom said that she had to go to the bathroom. I decided to wait for her to get back since the bathroom rest area was so close. By looking back on this I could see that this was a mistake, but I was a kid at this time and I wasn't thinking what could happen with a stranger at this point. This all happened so quickly, like the stranger was clocking my movements since I hit the beach because as soon as my mom left to go to the bathroom and I looked into the big bag that my mom and I brought to the beach which contained the suntan oil, an adult man came right up to me and asked if I would like some company. It was a sunny day at the beach as I squinted my eyes and looked up at the man. This man was a handsome African American with a black mustache, around 25 years old and 6ft in height. I could tell that he worked out with weights and may have even been a professional bodybuilder because he was extremely muscular. His body reminded me of professional black bodybuilder Ronnie Coleman's physique when he was winning all those Mr. Olympia contests. I tell you, this man was bulging with muscle from head to toe. He was an impressive and imposing sight. The man asked me again if I would like some company and before I could answer he gently took the sun tanning lotion right out of my hand, sat on my blanket right next to me and then he started putting the lotion on my body as he smiled at me and then introduced himself as Jimmy. Jimmy, rubbing the sun tanning lotion all over my skin really made me tingle all over and I liked it. I smiled back, returning his smile and giving out my name as I then happily let him put the tanning lotion all over my body. I said I was with my mom and that she would be out of the bathroom soon. As soon as I told Jimmy this, he got a worried look on his handsome face and he told me he had to leave soon. But he also made arrangements for us to meet again at this location at a certain time tomorrow, which was one o' clock in the afternoon. But wait, what would I say to my mom? I asked him. Tell your mom you're just enjoying Brighton beach with your girlfriend and she'll not know any better. He replied as I happily agreed. Boy was I naive. I was falling head over heels for this young bodybuilder who was way too old for me to go out with in the first place. But he was just so charming and sweet to me and I really loved looking at all those big muscles he had. I was falling head over heels for him and readily agreed to everything that he just said to me. Before Jimmy left, he smiled at me. I can see that you enjoy looking at my muscular body. How about this? He said as he flexed an enormous round right handed bicep muscle for me. Wow. I exclaimed excitedly as Jimmy squeezed harder and his muscle grew into an enormous mountain peak in size. Jimmy allowed me to feel his bicep which I had to admit turned me on. Jimmy then surprised me greatly as he put his left brawny arm around me and gave me a light kiss on the lips. This made me shiver with excitement. I was kissed before by guys my own age but never a muscle bound older he man like this one. I then quickly put both of my hands on the back of my head and then laid my back flat down on the blanket and pursed my lips. I even closed my eyes enjoying the moment as he gave me another kiss on the lips which was a little longer this time. How was it? He asked me while smiling, but before I could answer I saw Jimmy dart away very quickly kicking up a lot of sand. I then looked behind me and saw my mom coming back with some chicken to eat and some soda to drink. She had a smile on her face and she didn't see Jimmy at all thankfully or there would be hell to pay. When my mom came back we had started eating the meal she brought us. I pretended that nothing at all happened when she was gone. I was a pretty good actress, but in hindsight I was really just hurting myself by not telling her about this pedophile. The next day I showed up at the beach at the time Jimmy set for us and lo and behold there was Jimmy waiting for me with that big smile on his face, he sat right down on the beach blanket and wanted me to sit next to him. He then put his arm around me yet again as I giggled excitedly, knowing he was was probably going to try for another kiss when I was still giggling. Looking down, I could tell that he was sexually excited because I saw that his bodybuilding trunks were way too small to hide his enormous boner. Jimmy then put his finger right under my chin and raised my face up to his. I really like you, Sasha. Do you like me? He said smiling as I nodded my head. Do you want to leave this beach and have some real fun with me? He asked. We could go to a nearby hotel or something, honey, and we could have sex. He continued smiling. You do know what that is and how to do it, don't you Sasha? You see, as soon as I saw your lovely face and golden blonde hair and the gray body you have, I just knew that I had to have you for my very own, he said. I was then thinking to myself that I did hit puberty early in life. My boobs were extremely large for my age. My boobs were so big I couldn't even see my toes when I looked down when I walked. They were just so large. And I was also very curvy. I could see that boys my age were attracted to me and started to look at me more in school, but I didn't know if I was ready for a romance with this older adult male. Jimmy then looked at me and smiled, but I could see that now his smile was a fake, charming kind of smile. Now why didn't I notice this before, the silly naive girl that I was? But I sure noticed it now. I could now see that he was just a big wolf in sheep's clothing. He didn't really care what I thought. He just wanted to have his way with me and then throw me away like an old pair of shoes. Or even worse, murder me. Don't worry, honey. After sex I'll treat you to some good pizza and ice cream or whatever you would like to eat, okay? It'll be a day of fun and adventure for just you and me. Now what do you say? He continued, beaming. I then thought fast and wow, that sounds great, Jimmy. Why don't we get together in one of those hotels nearby? How about the hotel named Blue Sky Guesthouse? I look older and I'll get the room and be waiting in room 12 naked under the sheets for you when you arrive. How about six o' clock tomorrow night? That sounds great, honey, Jimmy said. I Could tell that he was really getting excited about tomorrow as he then gave me another long kiss. Great, then it's a date. I replied smiling after I received his kiss. When Jimmy kissed me the last time, it didn't feel warm at all. Like I said before, I could see now that he was just a snake in the grass. The very next day at 6 o' clock, I peeked out of the hotel's bedroom window to see Jimmy walking up. I knew that he would arrive at the hotel like clockwork. He then quickly went up to room 12 and knocked on the door. Come in Jimmy, the doors are already open and I'm waiting for you. I cooed in the sexiest girly voice I could muster. I'm in the bedroom. Jimmy then told me he would be in my room in a second and when he entered my room, I was actually hiding in the bedroom's closet. I peeked out from a crack in the closet and I could see that Jimmy was totally naked with his member throbbing like a jackhammer. Unknown to Jimmy, and to his great surprise, I called on some of my friends, Ivan, Boris, Dmitry and Vladimir, who were all from the Russian mafia within my neighborhood, to meet him there. When he arrived, these mobsters were all in their 20s, tough as nails, with some even holding baseball bats. And they beat Jimmy to a pulp with their brass knuckled fists and baseball bats. They hated pedophiles. They beat Jimmy so severely he was a bloody mess. But they didn't kill him. I told them not to. We just wanted Jimmy to really get the point that pedos were not wanted in Little Odessa ever. After the beating, Jimmy soon cleared out of town, badly beaten but alive in my neighborhood. We decided to handle the problem ourselves instead of calling the police. Small town justice One could say everybody in my family was happy. I was okay when I told them about this later. My mom then gave me a stern lecture on stranger danger that I really took to heart. I was glad too that I would probably never see Jimmy around my area ever again. I was very, very lucky to escape this dangerous pedophile. Some other children were not so lucky. So for some context, my grandma lives in a secluded rural area in the mountains near an abandoned cabin about three miles up the mountain. I, at the time a 22 year old female, and my fiance, a 22 year old male, decided it would be a good idea to make a trip to my grandma's to see if we could buy the cabin. It was owned by an older couple and they were good friends of my grandpa before he passed away. So we drive down Friday night and spend the night with my grandma and then visit the older couple to discuss the price and plan. We'll call them J and K when we get there. J says we should go up to the cabin to see if it would be large enough. We were planning on getting married in the fall and also having kids a little later. So M and I hop in the jeep and make the drive up the mountain. About halfway up the mountain I had spotted a younger man. He waves us down and my boyfriend stops. Here's what I can remember. Hi, I'm sorry to stop you but my car broke down just a few minutes up the road and I could really use some help. I turned to look at him. I've never seen this dude before and this is a community where everyone knows everyone and everything. I mouth no to M before turning back to the man. Sorry brother, can't help you there. The mother in law isn't feeling too good and she needs some help fixing up her heat pump. The man turns back to me and just glares at me before we drive off. M and I just shrugged it off. Fast forward a few weeks and M and I bought the cabin and are starting to plan the wedding when out of the blue we hear a loud bang at the front door. I had become very paranoid in the few weeks we moved out here due to the bears, coyotes and rabid raccoons in the area. I told M to not answer the door without looking through the peephole. He nods at me and walks over to the door. He turns to me wide eyed and sits back down at the table. What happened? Who's at the door? He turns to look at me and then says with a shaky voice, it was that guy from a few weeks ago. He looks mad. I tried to wrap my head around for why he could be here. He must be one of the neighbors. I was just trying to write off why he was at our front door. M shakes his head and then says, babe, the nearest neighbor is J and K and they live about 30 minutes away from the house and we bought this place when they said the cabin on the other side was about to to be foreclosed. He was right. I started to panic. There was really no reason for him to be knocking on the front door. Is he still there? He can't be, right? He got up but told me to go upstairs to our bedroom. I nodded and hurried up the stairs. Only a few minutes later, M comes charging up the stairs and then pulls me into the master bathroom which by the way Is the only room upstairs besides the attic bedroom without a window. He looks rattled and locked the door. Ok, don't freak out. But as I turned to look through the peephole, I saw him leave the front stoop and try climbing to the balcony. I was worried for not only our safety, but J and K's. I had luckily brought my phone with me and I told M that I was calling them. And then the cops tell the cops to hurry. The drive from town to us is far. I nodded and decided to just call 911. After explaining the situation to the operator, I then stressed that they needed to hurry. M then told me that he was grabbing his pistol. I told him to make sure that the guy wasn't on the second story balcony. He nodded and he told me to lock the door behind him. I did as he said and in minutes the bathroom door was unlocked and M came sprinting in his picking on the lock on the balcony door and luckily he didn't see or hear me. I started to freak out as I relayed all the info to the officer, then told her that M was armed. Now the operator told me that the cops were almost there and for me to stay calm. Em was really worried because we had actually just found out that I was two and a half months pregnant with our triplets. He came over and held my hand as we waited. At this point I was in the bathtub just sobbing. A few minutes later I heard the glass shattering and incoherent screams. I told the operator that he just broke in. The very kind operator told me that the police were pulling in the driveway and for M to be ready to defend himself if it came to it. She told me that M wouldn't get in trouble for it. To ease me then came pounding on the bathroom door. I screamed and M told the man that if he didn't leave he would shoot him. The man didn't listen and he actually tried to kick the door open. This resulted in M shooting the door four times and I told the operator that M shot the door. The operator, which again was an absolute angel, assured me that the cops wouldn't arrest M. The cops started screaming at the man because luckily M didn't kill him but hit him in his knee and hip instead. The cops took him away and we decided to press charges for trespassing and breaking and entering and after the police investigation, also attempted murder. Turns out the man confessed to wanting to kill us due to us buying the cabin. Apparently he came to Jay wanting to buy the cabin a few weeks before we did, but Jay told him that it was already sold to a family friend. So in a dark act of revenge, he wanted to kill Em and I in hopes of getting the cabin in the very end. The story takes place when I was 17 years old in a suburb outside of Detroit, Michigan. I'm 24 years old now, I'm a male and I was fairly thin when this story takes place. This provides some context for later. When I was a teenager, I went back and forth between my parents fairly often. Neither of my parents had much money and they struggled to even put food on the table at the time. I smoked weed a lot and I really had no motivation or drive. So I did what I could to easily make money, which was to sell weed. I didn't have a car at the time, so I had to drive to my dad's house to buy and I would walk it out to them. My dad was an alcoholic and pothead, so he either didn't notice or care what I was doing. I had a lot of regulars and repeat customers. I would sometimes get people adding me on Snapchat to buy and usually the person referring them would ask first before giving out my information. One night I got a friend request from someone who I didn't recognize. I figured someone gave my information out and just didn't let me know. To set this scene, I'd often just play video games most of the night and then get up and run some out. Whenever I got a text, I'd have them pull into the driveway, but not reversing in so it would make it harder for them to drive off without paying. This night it was just after midnight in November, so it was cold, windy and pitch black outside. We had little to no street lights, just the scattered porch light that was left on. I got the text from the previously mentioned unknown person on Snapchat. All they messaged was, are you available? I responded, yes, but who is this? They told me someone referred me and the name checked out as one of my regulars. So I asked them how much they wanted. It was a much larger quantity than usual. We agreed upon a price and they said they were heading over. I got the text from them that they had made it. When I looked outside though, I saw no one in the driveway. Even though I told them to pull into the driveway, I messaged them, man, I don't see you. Are you at the right address? They immediately responded, yes, I'm parked in the road. I then messaged them again, well, can you pull into the driveway? It's way too dark. To see in the street. I waited almost 10 minutes and got no response. So I made the poor decision to just go to them in the street. As I was walking out of my house, I noticed how dark the car was. It looked as if they had the engine off, which I thought was odd. As I got closer, I realized the windows were completely tinted and blacked out. The car also had a red racing stripe and the car was white. To paint a better picture, one side of the car was the road and the other side was a patch of woods next to my dad's house. I'm approaching from the passenger side so I'd have the car in front of me in the woods behind me. I was about 10 meters away from the car and I noticed that the front and back passenger windows were cracked just enough to see their eyes looking at me. I could clearly see three eyes staring at me. They were all wide eyed, which made me feel very uneasy. I stopped in my tracks just about 5, 8 meters from the car and I called out the name of the person on Snapchat. I didn't get a response. They just continued to stare at me and I called out again. Again no response. I wondered if they could even hear me, so I called out again louder. Still no response though. I then began to walk another step forward. When I then heard rustling behind me in the woods, I turned around and clearly saw what appeared to be a huge man creeping towards me just past the tree line. He looked like an offensive lineman. He was very huge. I looked back to the car and they were still staring at me. I started to back away and I heard loud sudden movements behind me. I did the only thing I could think to do, which was to sprint back to my house. I made it back to my house, locked the door and then looked out the window and they were still there. I saw the man walk out of the woods, go back to the car and then get in the driver side back door. They then just slowly drove off. I messaged them back on Snapchat on my phone, asking them what the hell was that? About an hour later, I then got a response. You got very lucky. That's what happened. And then they blocked me shortly after. This may not sound that scary to some, but I've never felt so scared in my life. I had way too much anxiety to sleep for the next few nights. Them knowing my address didn't help. Anytime I left my house, I was constantly on the lookout for that car. Then a week later, I had walked out to sell to a friend regular as I'm walking away. After making the sale, I catch that same car from that night. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see them parked two houses down. The same car with the same tinted windows and racing stripe. I then went back inside and watched it from the upstairs window. Then a few minutes later, it drove away very slowly. I never saw or heard from them again after that. To start this story, I have to tell you a little about myself. I'm always to work early because I was raised that if you're on time, you're late. However, when it comes to anything else, I'm not a very punctual person. This particular morning my husband was needed at church on time, so he took off separate from me and I stayed back to finish getting ready and my goal was to sneak in right as service started. As my husband was heading out the door, I called out that I loved him and then snuck in for a kiss as he was on his way. I still had to find clothing and do my hair. I ran upstairs and picked up a top and a pair of joggers that were clean off my bedroom floor. Yes, I'm really terrible at putting away clean laundry. I ran into the bathroom and brushed my hair and then put on some eyeliner and mascara and then did my lipstick quickly. I took our puppy out into the bathroom one last time before grabbing my purse and car keys and then running for the door. As the door swung shut, I had heard my dog barking. I got into my car and turned on the ignition and if you're like me, you can already see where this is going. If you guessed it, I didn't have any gas. So I drove him to the gas station and hopped out of my car to put some gas in the tank. Now I always have my airpods in my ears listening to something, not really paying attention to my surroundings. Well after I slid the hose in the car and the gas started pumping, I got an uneasy feeling. I stopped what I was listening to and just scanned the parking lot. I then saw three men in a red truck with no backseat cab just staring at me. I remember it being so weird to me because they had the windows down with no music playing and not talking or pumping gas. When they were in the gas pumping area, I just kept my glance at them while I hopped out of my car to take the hose out and then tighten my gas can. I was on high alert alert, not taking my glance away from those men and they weren't taking theirs off me either. After I got back into my vehicle, I shut my door and locked it. These men did not once take their glance off me. I stayed in my car with the doors locked, not driving because I was terrified they were going to follow me. I tried to get a hold of my husband, but again, he was at church, so I knew there was a slim chance he would pick up the phone. I then sat there for 15 minutes waiting in my car. I then noticed a woman walk right out of the gas station and get into her car. I got a pit in my stomach just then as she started to drive because so did the red truck. At the moment, I thought that I had a reason to fear those men. So she then pulled away and they went after her. I pulled out after them and I was freaking out the whole time in hopes that I was wrong and they would just choose to leave at the same time. Then after about six minutes of driving, the woman pulled off in a mobile home park and the red truck also turned into the mobile home park. I didn't know what to do. I was scared. But I did notice that there were lots of people outside in the mobile home park. So I didn't report it. But to this day, I'm still kicking myself for not reporting it. I'm still scared that one day I might run into them again. So I switch gas stations. I haven't heard anything on the news or seen anything on the Internet to indicate those men being caught or those men doing anything else. A couple of years back, I used to work as an adoption specialist through the foster care system. If you don't know what an adoption specialist is, we would help kids find their forever homes and then we would do the adoptions for family members as well as farmers, foster parents adopting kids through the foster care system. So that being said, as an adoption specialist, sometimes my kiddos were not always in the area that I worked or lived. So we would have to go out and see the kiddos once a month. As an adoption specialist, I was required to go out a little more than once a month to see one of the unmatched kids because we're working at finding this child a forever family. I won't say where because I don't want to give out any identifying information. But I had to drive pretty far to see this kiddo at a facility in a city that doesn't really have the greatest reputation. I decided to leave early due to not knowing where this facility was and due to it being far away that I didn't know what type of traffic there could be. So I left early. When I got to the city. I looked down at the clock in my car and realized that I'm two and a half hours early for my appointment with the kiddo. So I pull up my GPS and see what's around, and I see that there's a mall just about eight minutes away from me. So I drive to the mall and then parked my car. As I'm heading inside, this man says something to me. That I'm pretty or beautiful. I don't really remember. I didn't really take this as odd, though, at that point in time. Then as I'm walking more in the mall, I realize that this is a huge mall. And I realized that there's not a lot of people there, and there's a lot of twists and turns throughout the mall. But I just decided that for whatever reason, I'm just gonna go in Victoria's Secret and look at the clothing. I really like their pink brand, the sweatshirts and the leggings. So I decided to go in there. And I also had a return that I had to make in my car as well. So I go and purchase a really cute shacket from there, then made my return. Well, as I'm walking out, someone says something to me. I don't really remember what it was. I think it was just about my shoes or outfit. So I got a little uneasy because as I was walking, he was right behind me. I didn't know if he was following me or not, but I was just really nervous and scared. So as I'm walking out, he's still behind me. I then realize it was the same guy that I saw before as I was walking in the mall. He then starts to try and say something else to me as well. And when I turn around, the dude is walking behind me somehow. Now, there were also two other men behind him as well, so three in total. I then walked very fast to my car, got out on the main road as fast as possible, and just drove into the facility where I could then see the kiddo. I just went in there early and waited in the parking lot, more or less. The story is, if you don't know an area well, always make sure that you have somebody to go with you before you decide to start exploring. Also, malls can be terrifying in general, Especially when you're alone. There's a lot of blind spots for people who won't be able to see you, and there's a lot of places for people to hide and grab you. Please stay safe out there, everyone.

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[Narrator]

I used to live in a city in the UK called Glasgow. It's often compared to Chicago, Illinois for crime as the knife crime gets out of control, gangs are really rough in the areas, but in the posh or normal areas you'll be fine. At one point it was actually named as being more deadly than Chicago. I lived there during this time for university. One day I was in the city center. It was bustling like it always was and I was exiting a store on a very well known street. I was with my friend who I'll call Cass. I don't know why, but I turned to the side and happened to notice two guys. They looked like they were late teens. I saw a flash of silver and I froze as it hit me. Boy one was holding Boy two tightly against him. The glint of a machete kitchen knife was clear as day as he marched him up a hill in the street. I grabbed my friend's arm to get her attention and tried to explain. She seemed skeptical but she saw how adamant I was. I actually saw the tip of the knife right in the boy's back. Now I was 18 at the time and extremely stupid. I then told Kaz that we had to do something. We ought to follow them and try to intervene. I know. Kaz then told me I was insane and they were clearly thugs and to just leave well enough alone. But I couldn't. I told her we had to follow them in case something happened. She protested but I didn't listen and took off. And she, being the good friend she is, followed me now. Neither one of us were at all intimidating. I'm only five three and Kaz was five' seven but we had no muscle at all. We weren't at all menacing as two females and a crazy dude with a knife would probably assume. We were easy targets. And to be fair, we were so dumb, especially me. We followed them discreetly, or what I think of as discreetly, and the guy with the knife seemed to be talking to the other boy. They darted down a side alley. After walking for ages, Kaz and I just stopped and stared at each other. Kaz then Whisper hissed at me to call the police, but I dared to walk and then look down the alley. I saw that the two guys were now face to face. The guy had the tip of the blade on the other dude's Adam's apple and I didn't realize that. I gasped. They both then looked at me and I froze. It felt like a whole sentry. We stood watching each other before I then turned around and ran. I made sure that Kaz was following me, but I was too scared to turn around. We ended up running through people's gardens and we didn't stop until we reached a little corner shop. We didn't phone the police because we felt like there was nothing to tell them. I didn't know what was going down between those guys, but they were obviously in a gang or something. Maybe a drug deal gone wrong or something. But I learned my lesson that day. It's never worth trying to be the hero. It just gets you in trouble in the end. I'm really lucky that I wasn't stabbed that day and I put my friend and myself in such danger for no good reason. I'll never be that stupid again.

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