13x09: Stalked by a Cop

[00:00:00] This podcast contains adult language and content. Listener discretion is advised. If you have a story to share, send it to letsnotmeetstories at gmail.com. Enjoy the show.

[00:00:41] This all started when I was probably around 9 years old. My family and I lived in a small town in the Midwest where my mom worked at a Pizza King until 9pm every weeknight.

[00:00:52] My dad worked until midnight at the electronics store called Johnson Controls. My brother was a year younger than me, which left our older sister, a 13-year-old, to supervise. But she was always doing God knows what.

[00:01:09] Because of these circumstances, I realized later my brother and I were perfect targets.

[00:01:16] We had predictable schedules and a lack of supervision. We were comfortable in our tight-knit Midwestern neighborhood.

[00:01:25] One day, during the summertime, my brother convinced me to go look for some kittens that he had seen.

[00:01:32] So, I put my shoes on and I followed my little brother out the door.

[00:01:36] We walked the streets in search of the kittens, completely unsupervised.

[00:01:41] My brother led me about six blocks away from our house, when someone called out to us.

[00:01:47] I turned my head to find four young men leaning up against an old, gray, two-door car.

[00:01:54] They were standing outside of a known drug house, smoking cigarettes, seemingly minding their own business.

[00:02:02] The guy who called out to us was closest to the passenger side door, and he asked,

[00:02:08] Do you guys want some gum?

[00:02:10] I stopped dead in my tracks, and my brother looked confused.

[00:02:15] They're offering us gum, I thought.

[00:02:18] It was eerily reminiscent of our early stranger danger assemblies in the school auditorium.

[00:02:25] My brother and I looked at them for a second, but then turned around and started walking back the way that we came without saying anything.

[00:02:33] They yelled at us to stop, and we turned our heads and saw the driver getting into the car,

[00:02:38] while the guy in the passenger side of the car pulled the seat up to let the other two men into the backseat.

[00:02:45] As we heard their car engine start, we ran.

[00:02:49] We ran through the yard of a man whose lawn was always overgrown.

[00:02:53] We tried to crouch low in the grass so that we could lose them, but the loud engine of that old car was getting closer.

[00:03:01] It didn't occur to either of us that they could see the grass moving as we crawled.

[00:03:07] When we realized this, we sprang up and we ran full speed.

[00:03:12] We weaved in and out of people's yards to try and buy us some time, but they followed.

[00:03:18] There was no outrunning their car, so we made a beeline to one of our neighbors' houses and started banging on their back door.

[00:03:27] The car sped from around the corner and stopped abruptly in their driveway,

[00:03:32] so we abandoned that idea and hopped over the fence instead.

[00:03:36] We eventually made it back to our house and thought that we had lost them.

[00:03:41] As we were collecting ourselves, my mom's voice startled me from behind.

[00:03:46] Where have you been? Where is your sister?

[00:03:50] I think my mom had come home since she was on deliveries that day.

[00:03:55] Sometimes, when someone messed up making a pizza, the owners would let my mom take it home to us if she was on a delivery,

[00:04:01] so that we would have something to eat while we were home alone.

[00:04:05] I started to tell my mom about what happened.

[00:04:08] She didn't look like she was too keen on buying the story.

[00:04:12] That is until I stopped mid-sentence at the sound of a sputtering engine.

[00:04:18] I looked outside, and the four men drove past our house slowly,

[00:04:23] looking in our windows, making eye contact, and giving us a menacing look.

[00:04:29] My mom saw the men, so she tried to close the blinds, but failed since the track was broken.

[00:04:35] She had to leave and get back to work after that, so she told us to stay inside for the rest of the day.

[00:04:42] Later that night, there was still no sign of our sister.

[00:04:46] My brother and I were hungry, so we made some mac and cheese and put on Hannah Montana to get our minds off of things.

[00:04:53] We were trying to relax, so I remember that we were laughing at scenes that weren't even funny,

[00:05:00] which made my nerves start to settle a bit.

[00:05:03] However, I kept seeing this tiny red light out of the corner of my eye.

[00:05:09] It was coming from the window.

[00:05:12] I just kept brushing it off since I figured it couldn't be anything, right?

[00:05:18] After some time, curiosity got the best of me, so I finally stood up and went over to the window to investigate.

[00:05:25] I saw that the tiny red light was a light from a video camera.

[00:05:31] There was a guy standing there, trying to record us through the window.

[00:05:35] I gasped at the sight of this, and he ran away immediately,

[00:05:39] towards another man illuminated by a street lamp down the road.

[00:05:44] Naturally, I panicked and cried.

[00:05:47] I ran outside, screamed my sister's name as loud as I could, and ran back inside.

[00:05:52] I then called 911 and my mom,

[00:05:55] and I told them that there were two men with a video camera outside on the street.

[00:06:00] The police showed up, and after circling the area,

[00:06:04] they said that they would stake out the house for a couple of hours,

[00:06:07] even though the men were probably gone.

[00:06:10] They never found either of the men that night,

[00:06:13] but the man with the video camera continued to find us.

[00:06:16] They were just over and over again.

[00:06:19] A couple of years later, my brother had a neighborhood kid over for a sleepover.

[00:06:24] The three of us hung out in his room until late at night,

[00:06:28] laughing loudly and shooting BB guns at the ceiling.

[00:06:32] And each other.

[00:06:34] I left the room, and when I came back,

[00:06:37] my brother told me that a hand had slapped the window and slid down,

[00:06:41] just like a horror movie.

[00:06:44] I thought that he was just trying to scare me,

[00:06:47] and I was in the middle of telling him he was full of shit

[00:06:50] when I saw that little red dot again.

[00:06:54] We all happened to catch it at the same time,

[00:06:57] and it silenced all of us instantly.

[00:07:00] We dropped to the floor at first,

[00:07:03] trying to remain calm and silent, unbreathing,

[00:07:06] and then my brother crawled over and turned off the light in the room.

[00:07:11] We stayed there for a long time until we decided to wake our parents up.

[00:07:16] When they took a look outside, they didn't find anything,

[00:07:20] so I passed it off as a prank.

[00:07:23] Another couple of years later,

[00:07:25] during an insomniac-induced all-nighter,

[00:07:28] I was sitting in our sunroom reading a book.

[00:07:30] It was about three in the morning,

[00:07:33] and the whole house was asleep.

[00:07:35] I had my headphones in listening to my MP3 player

[00:07:38] when I thought I heard a sound.

[00:07:40] It was a loud noise coming in over the music.

[00:07:44] I looked up, startled,

[00:07:46] and I saw a man at the door watching me

[00:07:49] at three in the morning.

[00:07:51] This instance was the closest I had ever been to him.

[00:07:56] I froze and stared at him.

[00:07:58] He was about six feet tall,

[00:08:00] his hair was long and wavy over his eyebrows.

[00:08:04] It kind of looked like he had bangs or a comb-over

[00:08:08] without enough gel.

[00:08:10] He was wearing a white hoodie

[00:08:13] and long blue pants that nearly covered his shoes.

[00:08:17] He had a blue digital camera in his hand,

[00:08:20] and he was holding it at his side.

[00:08:22] While maintaining eye contact,

[00:08:25] he walked away casually,

[00:08:27] without fear or haste.

[00:08:28] I followed him with my eyes past the window

[00:08:32] until he was out of my line of sight.

[00:08:34] Then I ran back inside the main house

[00:08:37] and didn't tell anyone.

[00:08:40] I passed it off as a sleep-deprived hallucination for months,

[00:08:44] denying the nightmares and the cold chills.

[00:08:47] And then I remembered something.

[00:08:50] The lock on the door to the sunroom to outside

[00:08:53] was broken.

[00:08:56] Sightings of this man continued to happen for years.

[00:09:00] It just became an odd fact of life

[00:09:02] that he seemed to be less interested as I got older.

[00:09:07] I'll always wonder

[00:09:08] what kinds of pictures and videos he captured.

[00:09:12] The whole thing

[00:09:13] just seems like an odd revenge

[00:09:15] for outrunning him years later.

[00:09:18] To the creepy cameraman,

[00:09:21] if you're somehow hearing this,

[00:09:23] you are the reason that I keep my blinds closed

[00:09:26] and can never own a house with a sunroom.

[00:09:29] Let's not meet.

[00:09:30] This is a true story from about 20 years ago.

[00:09:47] I was originally from the East Coast,

[00:09:50] but I had been living in the San Francisco Bay Area.

[00:09:54] My then-girlfriend was from California

[00:09:56] and I had never been truly camping,

[00:09:59] but she was used to it.

[00:10:01] So, I went with her a few times.

[00:10:03] This was our first time camping together.

[00:10:06] We decided to go to Big Sur

[00:10:08] and her young, five-year-old son came with us.

[00:10:12] The weather was cooler out there

[00:10:14] and it had been rainy,

[00:10:15] but on this night, in particular,

[00:10:18] it was misty and cold.

[00:10:20] We drove to one of those campsites

[00:10:22] that had a small parking lot,

[00:10:24] which was empty except for us.

[00:10:26] So, we set up the tent

[00:10:28] a little ways away from the car

[00:10:29] and proceeded to try and get a fire started.

[00:10:33] My girlfriend was frustrated

[00:10:35] since she had asked me to get the fire started,

[00:10:37] but I had no idea what to do.

[00:10:39] We eventually got it started,

[00:10:42] even though it was cold and wet.

[00:10:45] After we were done eating,

[00:10:47] the three of us crammed into a two-person tent.

[00:10:50] Neither she nor I were gun owners,

[00:10:52] but I had brought a small knife

[00:10:55] and a mini baseball bat just in case.

[00:10:57] I figured it would be good

[00:10:58] to have something to protect us

[00:11:00] since I wasn't sure

[00:11:01] what we would encounter out there

[00:11:03] and I wasn't comfortable camping.

[00:11:06] Sometime in the middle of the night,

[00:11:07] I was awoken by something

[00:11:09] walking slowly around the tent.

[00:11:11] I was so scared

[00:11:13] since I couldn't figure out

[00:11:14] if it was two- or four-legged.

[00:11:17] I couldn't hear any other sound

[00:11:19] except for what sounded like something

[00:11:21] trying not to sound too loud.

[00:11:25] This went on for about 10 to 15 minutes.

[00:11:28] I was terrified.

[00:11:30] I didn't move,

[00:11:31] but kept my hand on the bat next to me.

[00:11:33] I remember assuming that

[00:11:35] it was a bear or a mountain lion,

[00:11:38] which I had no experience in dealing with.

[00:11:42] It sounded like it started to walk away slowly

[00:11:45] and even after it was gone,

[00:11:47] I wasn't able to get too much sleep.

[00:11:51] At the first sign of sunlight,

[00:11:53] I slowly got out of the tent

[00:11:55] and sat on a park bench that was near us.

[00:11:58] After a while,

[00:12:00] I saw somebody walking through the woods towards me,

[00:12:03] which again scared me

[00:12:05] as we had seen no one since we got there.

[00:12:08] Eventually,

[00:12:09] I saw that it was a park ranger

[00:12:11] or a police officer,

[00:12:12] I don't remember which,

[00:12:14] and he seemed to have his hand

[00:12:16] hovering near his holster.

[00:12:18] I was wearing camo pants

[00:12:20] and I have a beard

[00:12:21] and look pretty scruffy in general.

[00:12:24] Plus,

[00:12:25] I was a bit worried

[00:12:26] since I had some weed on me

[00:12:28] and the knife and bat.

[00:12:30] The ranger or officer

[00:12:32] asked me for my name

[00:12:34] and what I was doing there.

[00:12:36] I explained that I was with my girlfriend

[00:12:38] and her son

[00:12:38] who were still in the tent.

[00:12:41] After checking my ID

[00:12:42] and seeing them,

[00:12:43] he told us

[00:12:44] that there had been reports of a guy

[00:12:46] going around

[00:12:47] and attacking campers in the area.

[00:12:49] He told us to be careful

[00:12:51] and think about leaving the area

[00:12:53] which we did

[00:12:54] because the weather sucked anyways.

[00:12:57] Since it had been raining,

[00:12:59] there were no footprints

[00:13:00] or any other signs

[00:13:02] indicating that he had walked around our tent.

[00:13:05] It was scary for me

[00:13:07] being more of a city guy

[00:13:08] and I was very hesitant

[00:13:10] about going camping

[00:13:11] after that.

[00:13:29] This happened exactly two years ago.

[00:13:31] I know this

[00:13:32] because of Facebook memories.

[00:13:35] I was living in a ground floor apartment

[00:13:37] in a very heavy foot trafficked area.

[00:13:40] It used to be a corner storefront

[00:13:42] so the living room windows were huge

[00:13:45] and only one small part

[00:13:47] of the windows could be opened.

[00:13:49] I had a very angry upstairs neighbor

[00:13:52] and even angrier dealers

[00:13:54] living across the street.

[00:13:57] I've had to make multiple calls

[00:13:59] to the police

[00:13:59] and give statements

[00:14:00] due to a few different incidents

[00:14:02] that occurred.

[00:14:04] Aside from them,

[00:14:05] the neighborhood was pretty lovely

[00:14:07] and I got along well

[00:14:08] with all of my sane neighbors.

[00:14:11] One of my cats

[00:14:12] even became

[00:14:13] a bit of a local celebrity

[00:14:15] thanks to a haunted Halloween tour

[00:14:17] that would stop at my corner

[00:14:19] every night

[00:14:20] to tell stories.

[00:14:21] The second my cat

[00:14:23] heard the tour outside,

[00:14:24] she sprinted from wherever she was

[00:14:26] to jump up

[00:14:27] on the open windowsill

[00:14:29] and listen

[00:14:29] while the crowd

[00:14:30] would coo at him.

[00:14:32] Anyway,

[00:14:33] because of the large windows,

[00:14:35] I didn't have any privacy

[00:14:36] in my living room.

[00:14:37] Usually,

[00:14:38] I didn't mind

[00:14:39] since I'm a people watcher

[00:14:41] and my cats loved the view.

[00:14:43] I had blinds

[00:14:44] and a sheer curtain

[00:14:45] but

[00:14:46] anyone who was outside

[00:14:48] could always still see

[00:14:49] straight into the apartment.

[00:14:52] Thankfully,

[00:14:52] I had plenty of privacy

[00:14:54] in the bathroom

[00:14:55] and bedroom.

[00:14:56] One night,

[00:14:57] I was sitting

[00:14:58] at my computer desk

[00:14:59] in the living room

[00:15:00] just watching YouTube

[00:15:01] and sipping a beer

[00:15:02] when I heard

[00:15:03] a group of people

[00:15:04] talking outside.

[00:15:06] It was normal

[00:15:07] to hear street noise

[00:15:08] due to the area

[00:15:09] and I honestly

[00:15:10] would have ignored it

[00:15:11] completely

[00:15:11] if I hadn't heard

[00:15:13] one of them speaking

[00:15:14] directly

[00:15:14] into the window fan

[00:15:16] in the open window.

[00:15:19] Oh,

[00:15:19] she's drinking a beer.

[00:15:21] Doesn't she usually

[00:15:22] drink whiskey?

[00:15:23] I heard.

[00:15:26] I spun around

[00:15:27] in my chair instantly

[00:15:28] and then heard,

[00:15:29] oh shit,

[00:15:30] she saw us

[00:15:30] followed by scuffling

[00:15:32] as they ran away.

[00:15:34] I couldn't see

[00:15:35] whoever it was

[00:15:36] that was out there

[00:15:37] because

[00:15:37] it was dark

[00:15:39] but it sounded

[00:15:40] like it was

[00:15:40] a little group

[00:15:41] of at least

[00:15:42] two women

[00:15:42] and two men.

[00:15:45] After that happened,

[00:15:47] I was frozen in place

[00:15:48] just listening

[00:15:49] for anything else.

[00:15:51] I was particularly

[00:15:52] listening out

[00:15:53] for footsteps

[00:15:54] or their voices

[00:15:55] again.

[00:15:56] As I listened out,

[00:15:58] I pondered

[00:15:59] what I had just heard.

[00:16:01] Now,

[00:16:02] while I do typically

[00:16:03] prefer to sip on whiskey

[00:16:04] at night,

[00:16:05] that day

[00:16:06] I wanted to try

[00:16:07] a new beer

[00:16:07] that I saw

[00:16:08] at the store.

[00:16:09] These people

[00:16:10] knew my habits

[00:16:11] well enough

[00:16:11] to know that

[00:16:12] drinking a beer

[00:16:13] is slightly

[00:16:14] out of the ordinary

[00:16:15] for me.

[00:16:16] I was also

[00:16:17] deeply concerned

[00:16:18] that they knew

[00:16:18] it was whiskey

[00:16:19] since I would drink

[00:16:20] out of a set

[00:16:21] of patterned glasses

[00:16:22] and there was no way

[00:16:24] to tell what was in them.

[00:16:26] The kitchen

[00:16:27] could be seen

[00:16:28] from the living room windows.

[00:16:29] I often kept my whiskey

[00:16:30] in the freezer.

[00:16:32] They would have to see me

[00:16:34] at specific moments

[00:16:35] when I was pouring

[00:16:36] myself a glass

[00:16:37] to know what I was drinking.

[00:16:39] Needless to say,

[00:16:41] I didn't sleep that night

[00:16:42] and as I lay

[00:16:43] in bed awake,

[00:16:44] I remembered

[00:16:45] another incident

[00:16:46] that happened

[00:16:46] a few nights prior.

[00:16:48] I keep my bedroom

[00:16:49] window open at night

[00:16:50] because I sleep

[00:16:51] right under it

[00:16:52] and I like to feel

[00:16:53] the breeze at night.

[00:16:56] There's a bright

[00:16:57] security light

[00:16:58] directly across

[00:16:59] the street

[00:16:59] so even with

[00:17:01] the blinds down,

[00:17:02] I still have quite

[00:17:02] a bit of light

[00:17:03] hitting the opposite wall.

[00:17:05] One night,

[00:17:06] I woke up

[00:17:06] at around 3 or 4 a.m.,

[00:17:08] which isn't

[00:17:09] unusual for me.

[00:17:11] I turned on Netflix

[00:17:12] and watched a movie

[00:17:14] then fell back

[00:17:15] and I fell back

[00:17:15] to sleep.

[00:17:16] As I lay in bed,

[00:17:17] I saw the shadow

[00:17:19] of a head

[00:17:20] and shoulders

[00:17:20] appear on the wall

[00:17:22] and it stayed there

[00:17:23] for a long while.

[00:17:26] It was there

[00:17:27] for about 15-20 minutes.

[00:17:30] Now,

[00:17:30] this isn't very uncommon.

[00:17:32] People have stopped

[00:17:32] to smoke a cigarette

[00:17:33] right outside

[00:17:34] my window before.

[00:17:35] The smell gives me

[00:17:36] an instant headache

[00:17:37] but this time

[00:17:39] there was no smoke

[00:17:40] or smell

[00:17:41] of any kind.

[00:17:41] It was just

[00:17:43] somebody standing there.

[00:17:45] I couldn't tell

[00:17:46] which way

[00:17:47] they were facing

[00:17:48] but after overhearing

[00:17:50] the people

[00:17:50] who were watching

[00:17:51] me outside,

[00:17:52] I wondered

[00:17:53] if someone

[00:17:53] was looking in

[00:17:54] while they thought

[00:17:55] I was sleeping.

[00:17:56] I told my coworkers

[00:17:58] about both incidents

[00:17:59] and they were terrified

[00:18:01] for me.

[00:18:02] I was planning

[00:18:03] on moving

[00:18:03] at the end

[00:18:04] of that month

[00:18:04] and I was slowly

[00:18:05] bringing boxes

[00:18:06] and furniture

[00:18:07] over to my new place

[00:18:08] over the course

[00:18:09] of the month.

[00:18:11] Once my coworkers

[00:18:12] heard about what happened,

[00:18:14] they all came together

[00:18:15] and helped me

[00:18:15] get most of my things

[00:18:17] over to my new place

[00:18:18] in one day.

[00:18:19] I told them

[00:18:20] all I cared about

[00:18:21] was my animals

[00:18:23] and my bed

[00:18:24] so they got everything

[00:18:25] out of there

[00:18:26] except for the larger furniture

[00:18:27] and whatever

[00:18:28] couldn't be boxed up.

[00:18:30] I loved them all

[00:18:31] and appreciate them

[00:18:32] for this.

[00:18:33] I had a couple

[00:18:34] of anxiety attacks

[00:18:35] over this

[00:18:36] especially when

[00:18:37] I had to go back

[00:18:38] for the last

[00:18:38] of my stuff

[00:18:39] but thankfully

[00:18:40] I felt completely

[00:18:41] safe in my new place.

[00:18:43] I also got

[00:18:44] a full-blown

[00:18:45] security system

[00:18:46] with sensors

[00:18:46] and cameras

[00:18:47] and everything.

[00:18:58] This encounter

[00:18:59] happened to my mother

[00:19:01] in 1987.

[00:19:03] She had just

[00:19:04] started her career

[00:19:05] as a high school teacher

[00:19:06] in a fairly large

[00:19:08] developing city

[00:19:09] and she loved it.

[00:19:11] She was newly

[00:19:12] assigned to work

[00:19:13] at this particular school.

[00:19:14] It was far

[00:19:16] from her hometown

[00:19:17] but she was

[00:19:18] willing to relocate

[00:19:19] since this also

[00:19:20] meant she would

[00:19:21] be closer

[00:19:21] to her aging parents.

[00:19:23] At that time

[00:19:24] the main way

[00:19:25] to relocate

[00:19:26] was to post

[00:19:27] a small announcement

[00:19:28] in a professional

[00:19:29] journal

[00:19:29] offering to trade

[00:19:31] her teaching location

[00:19:32] with someone

[00:19:33] assigned to her

[00:19:34] hometown.

[00:19:35] Among the various

[00:19:37] creeps who answered

[00:19:38] her ad with

[00:19:39] love letters

[00:19:40] one stood

[00:19:41] above the rest.

[00:19:42] this guy showed

[00:19:44] up to her high

[00:19:44] school one day

[00:19:45] in an attempt

[00:19:46] to meet her.

[00:19:47] When the school

[00:19:48] custodian told him

[00:19:49] that she had just

[00:19:50] left on the bus

[00:19:51] with the co-worker

[00:19:51] he decided to

[00:19:53] follow this bus

[00:19:54] in his own car.

[00:19:56] He failed to

[00:19:57] track the bus

[00:19:58] closely enough

[00:19:59] and she got off

[00:20:00] the bus at some

[00:20:01] point without him

[00:20:02] realizing it.

[00:20:03] The next day

[00:20:04] he went back

[00:20:05] to school

[00:20:06] and was able

[00:20:07] to meet her

[00:20:07] face to face

[00:20:08] and exchange

[00:20:09] a few words

[00:20:09] with her.

[00:20:11] The man

[00:20:11] had never

[00:20:12] met her

[00:20:12] before that

[00:20:13] moment

[00:20:13] but he told

[00:20:14] her that

[00:20:15] he was in

[00:20:15] love with

[00:20:16] her

[00:20:16] and was

[00:20:16] willing

[00:20:17] to marry

[00:20:17] her.

[00:20:18] She brushed

[00:20:19] it off

[00:20:19] and said

[00:20:20] that they

[00:20:20] didn't know

[00:20:21] each other

[00:20:21] and that

[00:20:22] she wanted

[00:20:22] to focus

[00:20:23] on her

[00:20:23] career

[00:20:24] before

[00:20:24] settling

[00:20:24] down.

[00:20:25] He was

[00:20:26] a cop

[00:20:26] and he

[00:20:27] let her

[00:20:27] know that

[00:20:28] he already

[00:20:28] knew

[00:20:29] her address

[00:20:30] the names

[00:20:30] of her

[00:20:31] parents

[00:20:31] and their

[00:20:32] addresses.

[00:20:34] Basically

[00:20:34] he ran

[00:20:35] a background

[00:20:36] check on

[00:20:36] her.

[00:20:37] She was

[00:20:38] understandably

[00:20:39] creeped out

[00:20:40] so she

[00:20:41] pretended

[00:20:41] that she

[00:20:41] was in

[00:20:42] a big

[00:20:42] hurry

[00:20:42] and left.

[00:20:44] A few

[00:20:45] weeks later

[00:20:45] she was

[00:20:46] visiting her

[00:20:46] parents

[00:20:46] in her

[00:20:47] hometown.

[00:20:48] The

[00:20:48] mailman

[00:20:49] delivered

[00:20:49] a heavy

[00:20:50] package

[00:20:50] at her

[00:20:51] parents

[00:20:51] house.

[00:20:52] The guy

[00:20:53] had sent

[00:20:53] her various

[00:20:54] issues

[00:20:54] of cop

[00:20:55] magazines

[00:20:56] in which

[00:20:57] he had

[00:20:57] written

[00:20:58] a few

[00:20:58] op-eds.

[00:21:00] He

[00:21:01] attached

[00:21:01] a letter

[00:21:02] explaining

[00:21:02] that she

[00:21:03] could get

[00:21:03] to know

[00:21:04] him better

[00:21:04] through

[00:21:04] these

[00:21:05] and asked

[00:21:06] her to

[00:21:06] write him

[00:21:07] back.

[00:21:08] She

[00:21:08] never

[00:21:08] did

[00:21:09] and

[00:21:09] she

[00:21:09] freaked

[00:21:10] out

[00:21:10] for

[00:21:10] a few

[00:21:10] weeks

[00:21:11] because

[00:21:11] the guy

[00:21:12] kept

[00:21:12] sending

[00:21:12] her

[00:21:13] letters

[00:21:13] but

[00:21:14] he

[00:21:14] eventually

[00:21:14] stopped.

[00:21:16] She

[00:21:16] told me

[00:21:17] that even

[00:21:18] though she

[00:21:18] didn't feel

[00:21:19] that her

[00:21:19] life was

[00:21:20] threatened

[00:21:20] she was

[00:21:21] still anxious

[00:21:22] about going

[00:21:22] back to her

[00:21:23] job for a

[00:21:24] few weeks

[00:21:24] after that

[00:21:25] especially

[00:21:26] since she

[00:21:26] never

[00:21:27] relocated

[00:21:27] as her

[00:21:28] only ad

[00:21:29] seemed

[00:21:30] to attract

[00:21:30] creeps.

[00:21:32] She

[00:21:32] met my

[00:21:32] father a

[00:21:33] few years

[00:21:33] later

[00:21:34] so I

[00:21:35] guess

[00:21:35] there's

[00:21:36] still

[00:21:36] a

[00:21:36] happy

[00:21:37] ending

[00:21:37] here.

[00:21:56] This

[00:21:57] encounter

[00:21:57] happened

[00:21:58] in the

[00:21:58] summer

[00:21:58] of

[00:21:58] 2006

[00:21:59] when I

[00:22:00] was

[00:22:00] 20

[00:22:00] years

[00:22:01] old.

[00:22:02] I

[00:22:02] looked

[00:22:02] young

[00:22:03] for my

[00:22:03] age

[00:22:04] and was

[00:22:04] often

[00:22:04] mistaken

[00:22:05] for

[00:22:05] a

[00:22:05] high

[00:22:06] school

[00:22:06] student

[00:22:07] all

[00:22:07] throughout

[00:22:07] my

[00:22:08] 20s.

[00:22:09] I

[00:22:09] didn't

[00:22:09] get

[00:22:10] my

[00:22:10] driver's

[00:22:10] license

[00:22:11] until

[00:22:11] around

[00:22:11] January

[00:22:12] of that

[00:22:13] year

[00:22:13] and

[00:22:14] driving

[00:22:14] opened

[00:22:15] so many

[00:22:15] doors

[00:22:15] for me.

[00:22:16] I

[00:22:17] took

[00:22:17] a lot

[00:22:17] of

[00:22:17] solo

[00:22:18] road

[00:22:18] trips

[00:22:18] to

[00:22:19] go see

[00:22:19] my

[00:22:19] friends

[00:22:20] in

[00:22:20] nearby

[00:22:21] New

[00:22:22] Atlantic

[00:22:22] States.

[00:22:24] I

[00:22:24] was

[00:22:25] driving

[00:22:25] alone

[00:22:25] on

[00:22:25] I-78

[00:22:26] on a

[00:22:27] random

[00:22:27] July

[00:22:28] day

[00:22:28] on my

[00:22:29] way

[00:22:29] to

[00:22:29] visit

[00:22:29] my

[00:22:30] friend

[00:22:30] in

[00:22:30] southern

[00:22:31] Pennsylvania

[00:22:31] for a

[00:22:32] long

[00:22:32] weekend.

[00:22:33] I

[00:22:33] had a

[00:22:34] great

[00:22:34] drive,

[00:22:35] listened

[00:22:35] to

[00:22:35] some

[00:22:35] good

[00:22:36] music

[00:22:36] and

[00:22:37] it

[00:22:37] was

[00:22:37] a

[00:22:37] beautiful

[00:22:37] day.

[00:22:38] I

[00:22:39] was

[00:22:39] so

[00:22:39] excited

[00:22:40] for

[00:22:40] this

[00:22:40] weekend

[00:22:40] trip.

[00:22:41] Her

[00:22:42] parents

[00:22:42] were

[00:22:43] away

[00:22:43] and

[00:22:43] we

[00:22:43] had

[00:22:44] the

[00:22:44] house

[00:22:44] to

[00:22:44] ourselves.

[00:22:45] We

[00:22:45] were

[00:22:45] planning

[00:22:46] on

[00:22:46] drinking,

[00:22:47] getting

[00:22:47] in

[00:22:47] the

[00:22:47] hot

[00:22:47] tub

[00:22:48] and

[00:22:48] watching

[00:22:48] planet

[00:22:49] earth

[00:22:49] since

[00:22:50] that

[00:22:50] had

[00:22:50] just

[00:22:50] come

[00:22:51] out.

[00:22:52] We

[00:22:52] also

[00:22:52] planned

[00:22:53] on

[00:22:53] possibly

[00:22:53] running

[00:22:54] around

[00:22:54] some

[00:22:54] cornfields

[00:22:55] at

[00:22:55] night.

[00:22:56] Right

[00:22:57] after I

[00:22:57] crossed

[00:22:58] the border

[00:22:58] from

[00:22:58] New

[00:22:59] Jersey

[00:22:59] to

[00:22:59] Pennsylvania,

[00:23:00] I

[00:23:00] stopped

[00:23:01] at one

[00:23:01] of the

[00:23:01] first

[00:23:02] rest

[00:23:02] stops

[00:23:02] to get

[00:23:03] gas

[00:23:03] and

[00:23:03] snacks

[00:23:04] for the

[00:23:04] last

[00:23:05] part

[00:23:05] of my

[00:23:05] drive.

[00:23:06] Opposite

[00:23:07] the

[00:23:07] gas

[00:23:07] station

[00:23:08] was the

[00:23:08] on-ramp

[00:23:09] to get

[00:23:09] back

[00:23:18] to

[00:23:18] the

[00:23:18] store

[00:23:19] when

[00:23:19] a

[00:23:19] man

[00:23:20] in

[00:23:20] his

[00:23:20] late

[00:23:20] thirties

[00:23:21] or

[00:23:21] possibly

[00:23:21] early

[00:23:22] forties

[00:23:22] approached

[00:23:23] me.

[00:23:24] He

[00:23:24] was a

[00:23:24] stocky

[00:23:25] guy

[00:23:25] who

[00:23:26] was

[00:23:26] decently

[00:23:26] tall,

[00:23:27] to

[00:23:27] me

[00:23:27] anyway,

[00:23:28] I'm

[00:23:29] 5'1".

[00:23:30] He

[00:23:30] had

[00:23:31] dark

[00:23:31] brown

[00:23:31] hair

[00:23:32] and

[00:23:32] a

[00:23:32] mustache

[00:23:32] and

[00:23:33] goatee.

[00:23:34] He

[00:23:35] was

[00:23:35] wearing

[00:23:35] a

[00:23:35] plain

[00:23:36] black

[00:23:36] t-shirt

[00:23:36] and

[00:23:37] jeans.

[00:23:37] He

[00:23:38] had

[00:23:38] just

[00:23:38] gotten

[00:23:38] out of

[00:23:39] a

[00:23:39] black

[00:23:39] pickup

[00:23:39] truck

[00:23:40] parked

[00:23:40] a

[00:23:41] few

[00:23:41] spaces

[00:23:41] away

[00:23:41] from

[00:23:42] my

[00:23:42] car.

[00:23:43] He

[00:23:48] had

[00:23:48] a

[00:23:48] different

[00:23:49] energy

[00:23:49] about

[00:23:49] him,

[00:23:50] which

[00:23:50] was

[00:23:50] strange

[00:23:51] for

[00:23:51] me

[00:23:51] to

[00:23:51] pick

[00:23:52] up

[00:23:52] on

[00:23:52] as

[00:23:52] I

[00:23:52] don't

[00:23:53] really

[00:23:53] get

[00:23:53] vibes

[00:23:54] from

[00:23:54] people

[00:23:54] like

[00:23:55] that

[00:23:55] all

[00:23:56] too

[00:23:56] often.

[00:23:57] He

[00:23:58] was

[00:23:58] standing

[00:23:58] too

[00:23:59] close,

[00:23:59] his

[00:24:00] gaze

[00:24:00] was

[00:24:00] fixated

[00:24:01] on

[00:24:01] me,

[00:24:01] and

[00:24:01] his

[00:24:02] choice

[00:24:02] of

[00:24:02] words

[00:24:03] was

[00:24:03] odd.

[00:24:04] He

[00:24:05] instantly

[00:24:05] set

[00:24:05] off

[00:24:05] alarm

[00:24:06] bells.

[00:24:08] Despite

[00:24:08] my

[00:24:09] Connecticut

[00:24:09] license

[00:24:10] plate,

[00:24:10] he

[00:24:11] asked

[00:24:11] if I

[00:24:11] was

[00:24:12] from

[00:24:12] the

[00:24:12] area.

[00:24:13] He

[00:24:13] also

[00:24:13] asked

[00:24:14] where

[00:24:14] I

[00:24:14] was

[00:24:18] later

[00:24:18] and

[00:24:19] wanted

[00:24:19] to

[00:24:20] kill

[00:24:20] time

[00:24:20] beforehand.

[00:24:21] He

[00:24:22] invited

[00:24:22] me

[00:24:23] to

[00:24:23] go

[00:24:23] play

[00:24:23] mini

[00:24:23] golf

[00:24:24] or

[00:24:24] watch

[00:24:24] a

[00:24:24] movie

[00:24:25] with

[00:24:25] him.

[00:24:26] I

[00:24:26] didn't

[00:24:26] answer

[00:24:27] any

[00:24:27] of

[00:24:28] his

[00:24:28] questions,

[00:24:29] declined

[00:24:29] his

[00:24:30] invitation

[00:24:30] to

[00:24:30] hang

[00:24:31] out,

[00:24:31] and

[00:24:32] I

[00:24:32] told

[00:24:32] him

[00:24:32] that

[00:24:32] I

[00:24:33] didn't

[00:24:33] know

[00:24:33] the

[00:24:33] area

[00:24:34] well

[00:24:34] before

[00:24:35] walking

[00:24:35] away

[00:24:36] toward

[00:24:36] the

[00:24:36] store.

[00:24:37] I

[00:24:38] was

[00:24:38] blown

[00:24:38] away

[00:24:39] that

[00:24:39] he

[00:24:39] asked

[00:24:39] me

[00:24:39] to

[00:24:40] go

[00:24:40] somewhere

[00:24:40] with

[00:24:41] him.

[00:24:41] It

[00:24:41] was

[00:24:41] so

[00:24:42] random

[00:24:42] and

[00:24:42] uncomfortable.

[00:24:44] As

[00:24:44] I

[00:24:45] was

[00:24:45] walking

[00:24:45] away

[00:24:45] he

[00:24:46] yelled

[00:24:46] you're

[00:24:47] gorgeous

[00:24:47] at

[00:24:49] a

[00:24:49] volume

[00:24:49] and

[00:24:49] tone

[00:24:50] that

[00:24:50] made

[00:24:51] my

[00:24:51] hair

[00:24:51] stand

[00:24:51] on

[00:24:52] end.

[00:24:53] It

[00:24:53] was

[00:24:54] very

[00:24:54] inappropriate

[00:24:54] and

[00:24:55] aggressive

[00:24:55] enough

[00:24:56] to

[00:24:56] startle

[00:24:57] a

[00:24:57] family

[00:24:57] walking

[00:24:58] out

[00:24:58] of

[00:24:58] the

[00:24:58] store.

[00:24:59] I

[00:25:00] didn't

[00:25:00] turn

[00:25:00] around

[00:25:01] and

[00:25:01] proceeded

[00:25:01] to

[00:25:02] go

[00:25:02] inside.

[00:25:03] He

[00:25:04] came

[00:25:04] into

[00:25:04] the

[00:25:04] store

[00:25:05] shortly

[00:25:05] after

[00:25:05] I

[00:25:06] went

[00:25:06] in.

[00:25:07] He

[00:25:07] was

[00:25:11] in

[00:25:16] the

[00:25:16] store

[00:25:18] anymore.

[00:25:19] So

[00:25:20] I

[00:25:20] took

[00:25:20] my

[00:25:21] time

[00:25:21] buying

[00:25:21] drinks

[00:25:22] and

[00:25:22] snacks

[00:25:23] sour

[00:25:24] bite

[00:25:24] crawlers

[00:25:24] and

[00:25:25] trail

[00:25:25] mix

[00:25:25] to

[00:25:25] be

[00:25:26] specific.

[00:25:27] I

[00:25:27] then

[00:25:28] went

[00:25:28] out

[00:25:28] to

[00:25:28] gas

[00:25:28] up

[00:25:29] my

[00:25:29] car.

[00:25:30] I

[00:25:30] was

[00:25:30] relieved

[00:25:31] to

[00:25:31] see

[00:25:31] that

[00:25:31] his

[00:25:32] car

[00:25:32] was

[00:25:32] gone

[00:25:32] and

[00:25:33] started

[00:25:33] thinking

[00:25:33] about

[00:25:34] the

[00:25:34] rest

[00:25:34] of

[00:25:34] my

[00:25:34] drive.

[00:25:38] I

[00:25:40] on

[00:25:40] the

[00:25:41] highway

[00:25:41] I

[00:25:42] heard

[00:25:42] someone

[00:25:42] persistently

[00:25:43] honking

[00:25:44] a

[00:25:44] horn.

[00:25:45] I

[00:25:45] looked

[00:25:45] around

[00:25:46] and

[00:25:46] saw

[00:25:46] that

[00:25:47] this

[00:25:47] creep

[00:25:47] show

[00:25:48] was

[00:25:48] now

[00:25:49] on

[00:25:49] the

[00:25:49] dirt

[00:25:49] road

[00:25:49] that

[00:25:50] I

[00:25:50] had

[00:25:50] mentioned

[00:25:50] before.

[00:25:51] He

[00:25:52] was

[00:25:52] parallel

[00:25:52] to

[00:25:52] the

[00:25:53] on

[00:25:53] ramp

[00:25:53] honking

[00:25:54] and

[00:25:54] shouting

[00:25:54] and

[00:25:55] waving

[00:25:56] at

[00:25:56] me

[00:25:56] to

[00:25:56] drive

[00:25:57] over

[00:25:57] to

[00:25:57] him.

[00:25:58] He

[00:25:59] was

[00:25:59] directly

[00:25:59] facing

[00:26:00] the

[00:26:00] gas

[00:26:00] station

[00:26:01] and

[00:26:01] had

[00:26:01] been

[00:26:01] waiting

[00:26:02] for

[00:26:02] me

[00:26:02] to

[00:26:02] pull

[00:26:02] up.

[00:26:04] I

[00:26:04] immediately

[00:26:05] freaked

[00:26:05] out

[00:26:05] and

[00:26:10] pulled

[00:26:11] onto

[00:26:11] the

[00:26:11] highway

[00:26:12] after

[00:26:12] me

[00:26:12] and

[00:26:13] I

[00:26:13] was

[00:26:13] scared

[00:26:14] so

[00:26:14] I

[00:26:14] called

[00:26:14] my

[00:26:14] friend.

[00:26:15] I

[00:26:16] was

[00:26:16] driving

[00:26:16] so

[00:26:16] fast

[00:26:17] probably

[00:26:17] at

[00:26:18] dangerous

[00:26:18] speeds

[00:26:19] and

[00:26:19] looking

[00:26:19] back

[00:26:20] I

[00:26:20] realize

[00:26:21] I'm

[00:26:22] lucky

[00:26:22] that

[00:26:22] I

[00:26:23] didn't

[00:26:23] get

[00:26:23] into

[00:26:23] an

[00:26:23] accident

[00:26:24] but

[00:26:25] I

[00:26:25] didn't

[00:26:25] know

[00:26:25] what

[00:26:25] to

[00:26:25] do.

[00:26:27] Thankfully

[00:26:27] he

[00:26:28] didn't

[00:26:28] follow

[00:26:28] me

[00:26:29] for

[00:26:29] long

[00:26:29] and

[00:26:29] after

[00:26:30] a

[00:26:30] few

[00:26:30] exits

[00:26:30] he

[00:26:31] pulled

[00:26:31] off.

[00:26:32] My

[00:26:33] friend

[00:26:33] and

[00:26:33] I

[00:26:33] formed

[00:26:34] a

[00:26:34] backup

[00:26:34] plan

[00:26:34] in

[00:26:35] case

[00:26:35] I

[00:26:35] saw

[00:26:35] his

[00:26:35] car

[00:26:36] again.

[00:26:36] She

[00:26:37] was

[00:26:37] planning

[00:26:37] to

[00:26:38] direct

[00:26:38] me

[00:26:38] to

[00:26:38] a

[00:26:38] police

[00:26:39] station

[00:26:39] but

[00:26:40] that

[00:26:40] ended

[00:26:40] up

[00:26:41] not

[00:26:41] happening

[00:26:41] and

[00:26:42] I

[00:26:42] got

[00:26:42] to

[00:26:42] my

[00:26:42] friend's

[00:26:43] house

[00:26:43] safe

[00:26:44] and

[00:26:44] sound.

[00:26:45] The

[00:26:46] last

[00:26:46] few

[00:26:46] hours

[00:26:47] of

[00:26:47] my

[00:26:47] drive

[00:26:47] were

[00:26:47] extremely

[00:26:48] tense

[00:26:48] and

[00:26:49] anxiety

[00:26:49] filled.

[00:26:50] I

[00:26:51] remember

[00:26:51] checking

[00:26:52] my

[00:26:52] mirrors

[00:26:52] regularly

[00:26:53] for him

[00:26:53] and

[00:26:54] his

[00:26:54] black

[00:26:54] pickup

[00:26:55] truck.

[00:26:56] I'm

[00:26:56] grateful

[00:26:57] that

[00:26:57] it

[00:26:57] ended

[00:26:58] well

[00:26:58] and

[00:26:59] I

[00:26:59] had

[00:26:59] a

[00:26:59] nice

[00:27:00] weekend

[00:27:00] with

[00:27:00] my

[00:27:00] friend.

[00:27:02] The

[00:27:02] encounter

[00:27:03] was

[00:27:03] definitely

[00:27:03] creepy

[00:27:04] but

[00:27:04] over

[00:27:04] the

[00:27:05] years

[00:27:05] I

[00:27:06] never

[00:27:06] put

[00:27:06] too

[00:27:06] much

[00:27:06] thought

[00:27:07] into

[00:27:07] it.

[00:27:08] That

[00:27:08] is

[00:27:08] until

[00:27:08] a

[00:27:09] few

[00:27:09] years

[00:27:09] ago

[00:27:09] when

[00:27:10] I

[00:27:30] met

[00:27:31] back

[00:27:31] in

[00:27:32] 2006.

[00:27:33] It

[00:27:34] was

[00:27:34] a

[00:27:34] chilling

[00:27:34] and

[00:27:35] odd

[00:27:36] coincidence

[00:27:36] that

[00:27:37] I've

[00:27:37] never

[00:27:38] forgotten.

[00:27:51] I've

[00:27:52] been

[00:27:52] doing

[00:27:52] my

[00:27:52] one

[00:27:53] hour

[00:27:53] of

[00:27:53] outdoor

[00:27:54] exercise

[00:27:54] at

[00:27:54] night

[00:27:55] since

[00:27:55] that's

[00:27:56] when

[00:27:56] I

[00:27:56] find

[00:27:57] it

[00:27:57] most

[00:27:57] relaxing.

[00:27:58] My

[00:27:59] neighborhood

[00:27:59] is very

[00:28:00] quiet

[00:28:00] and

[00:28:01] I'm

[00:28:01] lucky

[00:28:01] to

[00:28:01] live

[00:28:01] in

[00:28:02] a

[00:28:02] nice

[00:28:02] area

[00:28:02] that

[00:28:03] I've

[00:28:03] always

[00:28:03] considered

[00:28:04] to

[00:28:04] be

[00:28:04] safe.

[00:28:05] I

[00:28:05] used

[00:28:05] to

[00:28:06] walk

[00:28:06] at

[00:28:06] night

[00:28:07] even

[00:28:07] before

[00:28:08] lockdown

[00:28:08] because

[00:28:09] I

[00:28:09] live

[00:28:09] right

[00:28:09] next

[00:28:10] to

[00:28:10] a

[00:28:10] canal

[00:28:10] that

[00:28:11] has

[00:28:11] a

[00:28:11] lot

[00:28:11] of

[00:28:11] nice

[00:28:12] paths.

[00:28:13] These

[00:28:13] paths

[00:28:14] are

[00:28:14] even

[00:28:15] prettier

[00:28:15] to

[00:28:15] walk

[00:28:16] around

[00:28:16] on

[00:28:16] at

[00:28:17] night

[00:28:17] when

[00:28:18] everything

[00:28:18] is

[00:28:18] lit

[00:28:19] up

[00:28:19] by

[00:28:19] the

[00:28:19] moon.

[00:28:20] This

[00:28:21] happened

[00:28:21] about

[00:28:21] four

[00:28:22] years

[00:28:22] ago

[00:28:22] when

[00:28:23] I

[00:28:23] was

[00:28:23] on

[00:28:23] one

[00:28:23] of

[00:28:23] these

[00:28:23] walks.

[00:28:24] I

[00:28:25] decided

[00:28:25] to

[00:28:25] go

[00:28:25] to

[00:28:25] a

[00:28:26] shop

[00:28:26] in

[00:28:26] my

[00:28:26] neighborhood

[00:28:27] first

[00:28:27] because

[00:28:28] I

[00:28:28] was

[00:28:28] hungry.

[00:28:29] After

[00:28:30] that

[00:28:30] I

[00:28:30] planned

[00:28:31] a

[00:28:31] detour

[00:28:31] back

[00:28:31] to

[00:28:32] my

[00:28:32] usual

[00:28:32] route

[00:28:32] along

[00:28:33] the

[00:28:33] canal.

[00:28:34] As

[00:28:35] I

[00:28:35] was

[00:28:35] walking

[00:28:35] I

[00:28:35] heard

[00:28:36] two

[00:28:36] guys

[00:28:36] behind

[00:28:36] me

[00:28:37] speaking

[00:28:37] very

[00:28:38] loudly

[00:28:38] in

[00:28:39] German.

[00:28:40] I

[00:28:40] live

[00:28:40] in

[00:28:40] England

[00:28:41] so

[00:28:41] it

[00:28:42] was

[00:28:42] a

[00:28:42] bit

[00:28:42] unusual

[00:28:43] but

[00:28:43] I

[00:28:43] didn't

[00:28:43] think

[00:28:44] twice

[00:28:44] about

[00:28:44] it.

[00:28:45] They

[00:28:46] looked

[00:28:46] to be

[00:28:46] around

[00:28:47] thirty.

[00:28:48] They

[00:28:48] were

[00:28:48] pretty

[00:28:49] tall

[00:28:49] had

[00:28:50] caps

[00:28:50] on

[00:28:50] which

[00:28:51] I

[00:28:51] remember

[00:28:51] because

[00:28:52] they

[00:28:52] were

[00:28:52] wearing

[00:28:52] matching

[00:28:53] designs.

[00:28:54] I

[00:28:54] thought

[00:28:54] it

[00:28:54] was

[00:28:54] funny.

[00:28:56] They

[00:28:56] were

[00:28:56] starting

[00:28:57] to

[00:28:57] get

[00:28:57] close

[00:28:57] and

[00:28:58] when

[00:28:58] I

[00:28:58] glanced

[00:29:02] they

[00:29:03] were

[00:29:03] looking

[00:29:03] at

[00:29:04] me.

[00:29:04] This

[00:29:05] freaked

[00:29:05] me

[00:29:05] out.

[00:29:07] I

[00:29:07] sped

[00:29:07] walk

[00:29:08] towards

[00:29:08] the

[00:29:08] shop

[00:29:09] but

[00:29:09] I

[00:29:09] had

[00:29:09] to

[00:29:10] stop

[00:29:10] on

[00:29:10] the

[00:29:10] road

[00:29:11] as

[00:29:11] I

[00:29:11] wasn't

[00:29:11] planning

[00:29:12] on

[00:29:12] getting

[00:29:12] hit

[00:29:13] by

[00:29:13] a

[00:29:13] car.

[00:29:14] They

[00:29:14] caught

[00:29:15] up

[00:29:15] with

[00:29:15] me

[00:29:15] but

[00:29:16] didn't

[00:29:16] stop

[00:29:16] to

[00:29:17] wait

[00:29:17] for

[00:29:17] the

[00:29:17] light

[00:29:17] to

[00:29:18] change.

[00:29:19] They

[00:29:19] crossed

[00:29:20] the

[00:29:20] street

[00:29:20] and

[00:29:20] went

[00:29:20] into

[00:29:21] the

[00:29:21] store

[00:29:21] that

[00:29:21] I

[00:29:22] was

[00:29:22] headed

[00:29:22] for.

[00:29:23] I

[00:29:24] didn't

[00:29:24] want

[00:29:24] to

[00:29:24] follow

[00:29:25] them

[00:29:25] so

[00:29:26] I

[00:29:26] shrugged

[00:29:26] off

[00:29:26] my

[00:29:27] hunger

[00:29:27] and

[00:29:27] decided

[00:29:28] to

[00:29:28] go

[00:29:28] to

[00:29:28] the

[00:29:28] canal

[00:29:29] for

[00:29:29] my

[00:29:29] walk.

[00:29:31] I

[00:29:31] stopped

[00:29:31] thinking

[00:29:32] about

[00:29:32] the

[00:29:32] men

[00:29:33] soon

[00:29:33] after

[00:29:33] chalking

[00:29:34] it

[00:29:34] up

[00:29:35] to

[00:29:35] me

[00:29:35] being

[00:29:36] generally

[00:29:36] anxious

[00:29:37] but

[00:29:38] after

[00:29:39] that

[00:29:39] I

[00:29:40] was

[00:29:40] able

[00:29:40] to

[00:29:40] complete

[00:29:41] my

[00:29:41] walk

[00:29:41] and

[00:29:41] I

[00:29:42] headed

[00:29:42] back

[00:29:42] home.

[00:29:44] For

[00:29:44] the

[00:29:44] encounter

[00:29:45] to

[00:29:45] make

[00:29:45] sense

[00:29:45] I

[00:29:46] have

[00:29:46] to

[00:29:46] describe

[00:29:46] where

[00:29:46] I

[00:29:47] was

[00:29:47] on

[00:29:48] my

[00:29:48] right

[00:29:48] was

[00:29:48] the

[00:29:48] canal.

[00:29:49] I

[00:29:49] was

[00:29:49] standing

[00:29:50] on

[00:29:50] the

[00:29:50] path

[00:29:50] and

[00:29:51] to

[00:29:56] next

[00:29:57] to

[00:29:57] that

[00:29:57] road

[00:29:57] there

[00:29:58] were

[00:29:58] a

[00:29:58] few

[00:29:58] rows

[00:29:59] of

[00:29:59] houses

[00:29:59] then

[00:30:00] right

[00:30:00] in

[00:30:00] front

[00:30:00] of

[00:30:01] me

[00:30:01] was

[00:30:01] the

[00:30:01] railway

[00:30:02] bridge.

[00:30:03] I

[00:30:03] had

[00:30:04] my

[00:30:04] earphones

[00:30:04] in

[00:30:05] and

[00:30:05] my

[00:30:05] music

[00:30:05] was

[00:30:05] pretty

[00:30:06] loud

[00:30:06] but

[00:30:06] I

[00:30:06] thought

[00:30:07] I

[00:30:07] heard

[00:30:07] somebody

[00:30:08] shouting

[00:30:08] so

[00:30:09] I

[00:30:09] took

[00:30:09] one

[00:30:10] earphone

[00:30:10] out

[00:30:11] and

[00:30:11] listened.

[00:30:12] I

[00:30:13] didn't

[00:30:13] hear

[00:30:13] much

[00:30:13] though

[00:30:14] it

[00:30:14] was

[00:30:15] pretty

[00:30:15] quiet

[00:30:15] apart

[00:30:15] from

[00:30:16] the

[00:30:16] cars

[00:30:16] and

[00:30:17] the

[00:30:17] road

[00:30:17] below

[00:30:17] me.

[00:30:18] That's

[00:30:19] when

[00:30:26] jeered

[00:30:26] at

[00:30:26] me

[00:30:26] before.

[00:30:27] They

[00:30:28] were

[00:30:28] easy

[00:30:28] to

[00:30:29] spot

[00:30:29] because

[00:30:29] of

[00:30:29] those

[00:30:30] matching

[00:30:30] caps.

[00:30:31] I

[00:30:32] stopped

[00:30:32] walking

[00:30:32] as

[00:30:33] my

[00:30:33] anxiety

[00:30:34] flooded

[00:30:34] back

[00:30:34] and

[00:30:35] considered

[00:30:36] phoning

[00:30:36] somebody

[00:30:36] since

[00:30:37] I

[00:30:38] thought

[00:30:38] if

[00:30:38] I

[00:30:38] appeared

[00:30:39] to

[00:30:39] be

[00:30:39] on

[00:30:39] the

[00:30:39] phone

[00:30:40] when

[00:30:40] they

[00:30:40] walked

[00:30:40] past

[00:30:41] me

[00:30:41] they

[00:30:41] wouldn't

[00:30:42] bother

[00:30:42] me.

[00:30:43] Their

[00:30:44] reappearance

[00:30:44] was

[00:30:44] especially

[00:30:45] jarring

[00:30:45] since

[00:30:46] they

[00:30:46] were

[00:30:46] walking

[00:30:47] under

[00:30:47] the

[00:30:47] bridge

[00:30:47] but

[00:30:47] nobody

[00:30:48] came

[00:30:48] out

[00:30:48] from

[00:30:49] under

[00:30:49] the

[00:30:49] bridge.

[00:30:50] I

[00:30:51] waited

[00:30:51] and

[00:30:51] stared

[00:30:52] at

[00:30:52] the

[00:30:52] bridge

[00:30:52] for

[00:30:52] a

[00:30:53] while

[00:30:53] in

[00:30:53] complete

[00:30:53] confusion

[00:30:54] since

[00:30:55] I

[00:30:55] lost

[00:30:55] sight

[00:30:56] of

[00:30:56] them.

[00:30:57] There

[00:30:57] was

[00:30:57] no

[00:30:58] way

[00:30:58] that

[00:30:58] they

[00:30:58] could

[00:30:59] have

[00:30:59] just

[00:30:59] vanished

[00:30:59] and

[00:31:00] I

[00:31:00] could

[00:31:01] see

[00:31:01] through

[00:31:01] to

[00:31:01] the

[00:31:01] other

[00:31:02] side

[00:31:02] of

[00:31:02] the

[00:31:02] bridge

[00:31:03] so

[00:31:04] I

[00:31:19] that

[00:31:20] so

[00:31:21] I

[00:31:21] started

[00:31:21] to

[00:31:21] slowly

[00:31:22] walk

[00:31:22] towards

[00:31:23] the

[00:31:23] mouth

[00:31:23] of

[00:31:23] the

[00:31:24] bridge

[00:31:25] just

[00:31:25] as

[00:31:25] I

[00:31:25] was

[00:31:26] about

[00:31:26] to

[00:31:26] step

[00:31:26] in

[00:31:27] I

[00:31:27] saw

[00:31:28] it

[00:31:28] the

[00:31:29] shadow

[00:31:29] of

[00:31:29] one

[00:31:30] of

[00:31:30] the

[00:31:30] men

[00:31:30] cast

[00:31:30] across

[00:31:31] the

[00:31:31] wall

[00:31:32] my

[00:31:32] blood

[00:31:33] ran

[00:31:33] cold

[00:31:33] as

[00:31:33] I

[00:31:34] realized

[00:31:34] what

[00:31:34] was

[00:31:34] going

[00:31:35] on

[00:31:35] they

[00:31:36] were

[00:31:36] waiting

[00:31:36] for

[00:31:36] me

[00:31:37] at

[00:31:37] the

[00:31:37] other

[00:31:37] side

[00:31:38] of

[00:31:38] the

[00:31:38] bridge

[00:31:38] they

[00:31:39] must

[00:31:39] have

[00:31:39] hidden

[00:31:40] behind

[00:31:40] the

[00:31:40] abutment

[00:31:41] so

[00:31:41] I

[00:31:41] wouldn't

[00:31:41] see

[00:31:41] them

[00:31:42] my

[00:31:43] mind

[00:31:43] went

[00:31:50] I

[00:31:51] was

[00:31:51] convinced

[00:31:51] that

[00:31:51] they

[00:31:52] would

[00:31:52] follow

[00:31:52] me

[00:31:52] if

[00:31:53] I

[00:31:53] stayed

[00:31:53] where

[00:31:53] I

[00:31:54] was

[00:31:54] and

[00:31:54] phoned

[00:31:54] for

[00:31:54] help

[00:31:55] I

[00:31:56] was

[00:31:56] certain

[00:31:56] that

[00:31:57] they

[00:31:57] would

[00:31:57] come

[00:31:57] out

[00:31:58] to

[00:31:58] see

[00:31:58] what

[00:31:58] was

[00:31:59] going

[00:31:59] on

[00:31:59] and

[00:32:00] I

[00:32:31] next

[00:32:35] I

[00:32:35] made

[00:32:36] down

[00:32:37] the

[00:32:38] bridge

[00:32:41] I

[00:32:42] only

[00:32:42] glanced

[00:32:42] back

[00:32:43] when

[00:32:43] I

[00:32:43] was

[00:32:44] nearing

[00:32:44] the

[00:32:44] end

[00:32:44] of

[00:32:44] the

[00:32:45] road

[00:32:45] which

[00:32:46] was

[00:32:46] when

[00:32:46] I

[00:32:46] saw

[00:32:47] that

[00:32:47] the

[00:32:47] men

[00:32:47] were

[00:32:48] next

[00:32:48] to

[00:32:49] the

[00:32:49] bridge

[00:32:51] From my new vantage point, I could see that they were looking through the bridge to see where I had gone.

[00:32:56] I felt sick and terrified when I saw that.

[00:33:00] But I made it home safely.

[00:33:03] I don't know who the men were or what they wanted.

[00:33:06] I have no idea if I'll see them around again.

[00:33:09] But I do know I'm not going to be walking at night for a very long time.

[00:33:14] To the strangers under the bridge, let's not meet.

[00:33:32] This happened in the mid-90s when I was just a kid, maybe about seven.

[00:33:36] My family and I took a trip to a beach in Florida.

[00:33:40] We were staying in a beach house that was just a short walk from the beach.

[00:33:46] We went to the beach and I was supposed to stay in sight of my mom, but I wandered away.

[00:33:52] I quickly found myself way down the beach and before I knew it, I was lost.

[00:33:58] My instinct was to make my way back to the beach house, but a lot of the houses in the area looked identical, so I wasn't sure which one was ours.

[00:34:09] I started to get a little nervous since I couldn't see my mom anywhere and it started to rain.

[00:34:15] I came to a path that I was pretty sure led back to our house, but it didn't lead to a house at all.

[00:34:21] It led me to a parking lot instead.

[00:34:25] There was a big, dirty van parked there and it was the only vehicle around.

[00:34:30] I was about to turn back when I noticed this burly woman with brown hair.

[00:34:36] She was wearing a hot pink tank top and those large, chunky glasses that were popular in the 80s.

[00:34:44] She was waving and smiling at me from the passenger seat of the van.

[00:34:48] She called out,

[00:34:49] Oh my, it's raining.

[00:34:52] Where's your mommy?

[00:34:53] Let us take you to her.

[00:34:55] It's dangerous for you to be out here in the rain.

[00:34:58] You could be struck by lightning.

[00:35:01] She was very friendly.

[00:35:03] Almost overly so.

[00:35:05] In the driver's seat was a large man without a shirt on.

[00:35:09] He had gray chest hair and he was wearing a chunky looking gold chain.

[00:35:14] He was staring at me intently through the yellow tinted Elvis shades that he had on.

[00:35:20] He was also smoking a cigarette, which I knew was bad.

[00:35:24] The woman stepped out of the van, knelt down to my level and asked how old I was.

[00:35:30] When I told her, she gleefully remarked,

[00:35:32] We have two boys your age back at our house.

[00:35:35] You should come over and spend the night with us.

[00:35:38] We could watch movies and play Nintendo.

[00:35:40] We've got all types of cereal to eat in the morning.

[00:35:45] I had been taught all about stranger danger, but up until this point in my life,

[00:35:50] no adult has ever given me any reason not to trust them.

[00:35:54] The lady continued talking about stuff like how the boys at their house have go-karts

[00:36:00] and they even like to drink chocolate milk.

[00:36:03] It all sounded so enticing for seven-year-old me.

[00:36:07] I trusted her.

[00:36:09] Everything she was saying sounded great,

[00:36:11] but I mainly liked the idea of getting to play with some kids who were my age.

[00:36:16] I told her I needed to ask my mom first.

[00:36:19] She told me that it was no problem, since they lived just up the road.

[00:36:23] She insisted my mom wouldn't mind.

[00:36:26] As she continued her pitch,

[00:36:28] it started to rain harder.

[00:36:30] So, she slid the back door of the van open and said,

[00:36:34] Now let's get you out of this rain and go find your mommy.

[00:36:38] I knew that going along with her was something I shouldn't do,

[00:36:42] but the lady seemed nice and I was desperately wanting to get out of the rain.

[00:36:47] As I walked toward the open door of the van,

[00:36:50] an awful stench that almost made me gag immediately hit me.

[00:36:55] This set off alarm bells in my head.

[00:36:58] Something wasn't right.

[00:37:00] I noticed that there were cigarette butts all over the floor,

[00:37:04] and I looked up at the man in the driver's seat who was staring at me.

[00:37:07] He had this menacing glare.

[00:37:11] He had a creepy, toothy smile.

[00:37:14] His teeth were stained dark yellow.

[00:37:16] So, I instantly picked up on a very fucked up vibe from him.

[00:37:20] I knew right then and there I should run,

[00:37:23] but the woman was now ushering me to hurry up and get in.

[00:37:27] And when I hesitated, her demeanor completely changed.

[00:37:31] She became demanding and literally tried to push me into the van.

[00:37:35] She angrily said,

[00:37:36] Just get in already!

[00:37:38] In a tone that was completely opposite of how she sounded initially.

[00:37:42] I impulsively jumped to the side and started running as fast as I could.

[00:37:47] The woman managed to grab my arm or wrist,

[00:37:50] but somehow I was able to break free quickly and make a run for it.

[00:37:54] I think she tried to chase me, but thankfully I made it back to the beach.

[00:37:59] I got back to my mom who was now freaking out.

[00:38:02] I tried to explain what happened,

[00:38:04] but since I was seven,

[00:38:06] I don't think I was able to convey the danger I was actually in.

[00:38:09] I didn't fully understand it myself,

[00:38:12] but I'm glad that I got out of there.

[00:38:24] Salt Lake City, Utah.

[00:38:26] Let's Not Meet will be there live at the Metro City Music Hall on September 19th.

[00:38:32] Brandon Lanier of Odd Trails will be joining me to tell a story

[00:38:35] and do a Q&A after the show along with the meet and greets for the VIP tickets.

[00:38:40] You can get your tickets at letsnotmeetpodcast.com slash tour

[00:38:44] or follow the link in the show notes again.

[00:38:47] That's September 19th in Salt Lake City, Utah at Metro Music Hall.

[00:38:51] I'll see you all there.

[00:39:05] In 2015, I was 19 and working for the summer at a Bible camp for inner city kids.

[00:39:12] I'm going to leave out the name of the city,

[00:39:15] but just know that crime often occurs frequently in big cities,

[00:39:18] and this one was no different.

[00:39:21] I had been assured that the neighborhood we were going to be in

[00:39:25] was in the process of being quote-unquote gentrified,

[00:39:28] and they had even opened up a hipster coffee shop with its own dog park right down the street.

[00:39:34] Just to give you a crystal clear visual,

[00:39:37] this neighborhood had dilapidated houses

[00:39:39] with trash scattered about right next to the newer houses with immaculate yards

[00:39:44] and square modern architecture.

[00:39:47] The Bible camp, where I was working,

[00:39:50] was essentially located in a huge two-story house

[00:39:53] with a large fenced-in yard.

[00:39:56] Again, we were assured that we were safe

[00:39:58] since we had security bars on the windows

[00:40:01] and the exterior doors locked automatically when they were shut.

[00:40:05] The camp was conducted downstairs

[00:40:07] and the four counselors lived in a small unit upstairs

[00:40:11] that was off-limits during the day while kids were there.

[00:40:15] Our camp ran five days a week,

[00:40:17] from eight in the morning to four in the afternoon.

[00:40:20] Once the kids were gone for the day,

[00:40:23] any excess time was hours to explore the city,

[00:40:26] relax, or do whatever.

[00:40:29] One weekend night in July,

[00:40:31] all of us counselors were hanging out in the house,

[00:40:34] making a spaghetti dinner together.

[00:40:37] We were provided a stipend for food

[00:40:40] that we would divide accordingly each week

[00:40:42] so that we could buy what we needed for meals,

[00:40:45] snacks, and supplies.

[00:40:46] We also had a separate budget for food for the campers,

[00:40:50] as we were also in charge of preparing lunch

[00:40:53] and snacks for the kids on camp days.

[00:40:56] We had two fridges and two pantries,

[00:40:58] which helped keep our camp food and personal food separated.

[00:41:03] As you can probably guess,

[00:41:04] we labeled each as camp fridge pantry,

[00:41:08] and then staff fridge pantry.

[00:41:12] We were also pretty territorial over our personal food

[00:41:16] and wrote our names all over our snacks in the fridge.

[00:41:19] My best friend, we'll call her Chris,

[00:41:22] worked at the camp with me.

[00:41:24] It was our turn to cook dinner on this particular night,

[00:41:27] so I went into the staff fridge to grab the ground beef.

[00:41:31] I immediately noticed that my whole case of yogurt was gone.

[00:41:36] Yogurt was my go-to snack,

[00:41:38] and I regularly bought three cases a week.

[00:41:41] It was easy to notice that it had gone missing

[00:41:44] since I had just opened my last box about an hour before,

[00:41:48] and I left it in front of the ground beef.

[00:41:51] I know this sounds oddly specific,

[00:41:54] but I knew I did this.

[00:41:56] So, I closed the refrigerator door,

[00:41:59] and then I headed to the dining room.

[00:42:02] Chris was close behind me when I yelled,

[00:42:04] Who stole all my yogurt?

[00:42:07] That night, in addition to Chris and myself,

[00:42:10] the other two seasonal counselors were also there.

[00:42:14] Two other counselors who worked there full-time

[00:42:17] and lived in the area were there too,

[00:42:19] and one of them had their cousin there hanging out.

[00:42:24] Everyone looked at me wide-eyed

[00:42:25] before looking around at each other blankly.

[00:42:28] I immediately assumed it was the random cousin who was there,

[00:42:32] since I had never met her before.

[00:42:35] So, I sucked it up and said,

[00:42:38] Whatever.

[00:42:39] If you see something in the kitchen that has a name on it,

[00:42:41] please don't eat it.

[00:42:43] Then, I pulled Chris back into the kitchen

[00:42:46] to finish making the spaghetti for the group.

[00:42:49] We all ate dinner,

[00:42:51] and then the two full-time counselors volunteered

[00:42:53] to do the dishes since we made the food

[00:42:56] and let them eat with us.

[00:42:58] We figured that was fair,

[00:43:00] so the rest of us headed back upstairs

[00:43:02] to get comfy in the sitting room on the couches,

[00:43:04] and we started watching Family Guy.

[00:43:07] We were only about two minutes into an episode,

[00:43:10] when the counselor's cousin,

[00:43:12] who we'll call Sarah,

[00:43:13] announced,

[00:43:14] I can't find my phone or wallet.

[00:43:17] I paused the show and rolled my eyes,

[00:43:19] still annoyed by the missing yogurt.

[00:43:22] Chris asked,

[00:43:24] Where did you last have them?

[00:43:26] Sarah said that she left them on the couch

[00:43:28] before she went downstairs to dinner.

[00:43:31] Naturally,

[00:43:32] we all started looking around the small room for them.

[00:43:35] We were turning over couch cushions,

[00:43:37] looking under couches,

[00:43:39] behind them,

[00:43:40] under blankets,

[00:43:41] everywhere,

[00:43:42] but there was no phone and no wallet.

[00:43:45] Finally,

[00:43:45] we asked her,

[00:43:46] Are you sure you didn't leave them downstairs?

[00:43:49] So she headed back downstairs to look.

[00:43:52] The other two counselors went with her,

[00:43:54] while Chris and I stepped into our room,

[00:43:56] which was connected to the sitting room.

[00:43:58] We flopped down on the bottom bunk,

[00:44:01] and I proceeded to talk shit about Sarah,

[00:44:04] who I felt was ruining our chill night.

[00:44:07] Our door was open,

[00:44:09] and I was shocked when I saw a hand

[00:44:11] creep into view,

[00:44:13] like it was going to grab the doorframe.

[00:44:16] Assuming Sarah,

[00:44:17] or maybe one of the other counselors,

[00:44:19] happened to quietly come back upstairs,

[00:44:21] I said,

[00:44:23] Hey,

[00:44:23] did you find them?

[00:44:25] But the hand immediately disappeared from the doorframe,

[00:44:29] and there was no response.

[00:44:32] I looked at Chris,

[00:44:33] thinking,

[00:44:34] What the fuck?

[00:44:35] She looked back at me confused,

[00:44:37] since she never saw the hand.

[00:44:40] I quickly explained what happened,

[00:44:42] and we both jumped up and headed over to the stairs.

[00:44:45] I yelled down at the others.

[00:44:47] They were all still down there looking for Sarah's phone and wallet.

[00:44:51] By this point,

[00:44:52] I was freaked out because

[00:44:53] who else could possibly be up here with me and Chris?

[00:44:57] So then,

[00:44:58] we started looking around upstairs.

[00:45:01] We looked in our bedroom,

[00:45:03] the other bedroom,

[00:45:04] and the sitting room.

[00:45:05] We found nothing and no one.

[00:45:08] We decided not to say anything to the rest of the group yet,

[00:45:11] since I was worried about sounding insane.

[00:45:14] Plus,

[00:45:15] I was wondering how someone could have gone up and down the stairs so fast without making any noise.

[00:45:20] When Chris and I decided to go back downstairs,

[00:45:23] we saw Sarah.

[00:45:24] She was upset and crying.

[00:45:27] Her cousin said,

[00:45:28] Come on guys,

[00:45:30] did somebody take her stuff?

[00:45:32] Chris and I both knew that we didn't,

[00:45:34] so we said so.

[00:45:36] Then Sarah screamed that somebody obviously took her stuff,

[00:45:40] and we should just be honest.

[00:45:43] Things got heated.

[00:45:45] I finally decided to tell them about the hand that I saw on the doorframe,

[00:45:49] since I felt like it would reduce the tension of the situation.

[00:45:53] It did help,

[00:45:54] but then everybody started panicking.

[00:45:57] We were running around the house like maniacs,

[00:45:59] looking in every closet or hiding place that the kids use,

[00:46:04] but we found no one.

[00:46:06] We then called our camp director and asked him to come over

[00:46:09] as the situation just developed into chaos.

[00:46:13] When he arrived,

[00:46:14] the seven of us were all huddled in the foyer,

[00:46:17] freaked out,

[00:46:18] and we explained what was going on as best as we could.

[00:46:21] Our camp director didn't seem convinced that someone was in the house,

[00:46:25] and then threatened to call the cops

[00:46:27] if one of us didn't give Sarah her phone or wallet back.

[00:46:31] None of us fessed up,

[00:46:32] so he did.

[00:46:34] The cops came and searched the property,

[00:46:36] then took our statements.

[00:46:38] It seemed so dumb to keep going over everything

[00:46:42] as we were repeating our stories.

[00:46:44] It felt like we were talking in circles.

[00:46:46] We didn't have much to go off of except for a feeling.

[00:46:50] The cops wrote up a report for stolen property,

[00:46:53] which at least made Sarah feel a little bit better.

[00:46:56] With the house secure,

[00:46:58] everyone else left except for four seasonal counselors

[00:47:02] who were living there.

[00:47:04] We were a bit rattled,

[00:47:06] so we spent the night in the same room

[00:47:08] with the door barricaded,

[00:47:09] reassuring ourselves

[00:47:10] that Sarah's phone and wallet

[00:47:13] would turn up somewhere random,

[00:47:15] and when it did,

[00:47:16] we would just laugh about it.

[00:47:19] Fast forward to a few days later.

[00:47:22] We relaxed a bit,

[00:47:24] even though we hadn't found the phone or wallet

[00:47:26] like we expected.

[00:47:28] But nothing else weird had happened,

[00:47:31] and we had been occupied with the kids

[00:47:33] and the job in general.

[00:47:35] The kids had all gone home at this point,

[00:47:38] and it was just the four of us,

[00:47:40] seasonal counselors,

[00:47:41] all alone.

[00:47:43] We finished cleaning up outside,

[00:47:45] locked the gate,

[00:47:46] and headed to the dining room.

[00:47:48] We were all hungry and ready for some snacks.

[00:47:52] Chris went into the kitchen first and said,

[00:47:54] someone left the kitchen door open again.

[00:47:58] It wasn't too weird to find that door open.

[00:48:00] Kids go in and out of that specific door all day.

[00:48:03] She shut the door,

[00:48:05] and that's when I noticed

[00:48:06] that the staff refrigerator door was cracked open.

[00:48:10] I don't know what possessed me,

[00:48:12] but I referred to the mystery hand

[00:48:14] I swore I saw before and jokingly said,

[00:48:17] Oh no, he's back.

[00:48:20] The four of us laughed.

[00:48:22] We just thought it was ridiculous.

[00:48:25] Chris then grabbed a broom,

[00:48:27] held it as a weapon,

[00:48:28] and joked,

[00:48:29] Let's get him, girls.

[00:48:31] She threw open the pantry doors,

[00:48:33] screaming,

[00:48:34] Where the fuck are you, motherfucker?

[00:48:36] We know you're here.

[00:48:37] Show yourself.

[00:48:38] I was following behind her,

[00:48:40] laughing,

[00:48:40] but I inexplicably began to feel nervous

[00:48:43] and uneasy.

[00:48:44] Meanwhile, Chris,

[00:48:45] who was fully committed to the bit,

[00:48:47] continued her charade into the next room,

[00:48:49] throwing two more closet doors open.

[00:48:52] Then she moved into the front room

[00:48:54] and opened the closet door that was in there.

[00:48:57] She started to belt out another confident heckle.

[00:49:01] We know you're...

[00:49:04] When she stopped mid-sentence,

[00:49:06] she screamed loudly,

[00:49:08] so loudly that the skin on my neck prickled.

[00:49:12] She then threw the broom in the closet

[00:49:14] and sprinted out the front door,

[00:49:17] leaving it wide open.

[00:49:18] My heart was pounding so fucking hard at this point,

[00:49:21] but I was thinking that

[00:49:23] maybe she was messing with us.

[00:49:25] So I slowly went towards the foyer

[00:49:27] and out the front door.

[00:49:29] From there,

[00:49:30] I saw her booking it down the street

[00:49:32] towards a coffee shop.

[00:49:33] I thought,

[00:49:35] okay,

[00:49:36] what's going on?

[00:49:37] What is she doing?

[00:49:39] Just as soon as I turned around,

[00:49:41] assuming I'd have to address the others,

[00:49:43] I saw him.

[00:49:44] It was an older man

[00:49:45] who hardly had any teeth.

[00:49:47] He was just standing there

[00:49:49] after he emerged from the closet

[00:49:51] that Chris had sprinted away from.

[00:49:54] He walked toward me,

[00:49:56] grinning,

[00:49:57] put his hands up

[00:49:58] and impartially said,

[00:49:59] I didn't mean any harm.

[00:50:03] Then he slowly backed away

[00:50:05] and went down the street

[00:50:07] in the other direction.

[00:50:09] The creepiest part about him saying

[00:50:11] that he meant no harm

[00:50:12] was that

[00:50:13] I could tell

[00:50:15] he didn't mean it.

[00:50:17] It's like his tone

[00:50:19] and the grin

[00:50:20] were mocking me.

[00:50:22] I froze for a second,

[00:50:24] but then sputtered out,

[00:50:26] you can't just leave.

[00:50:28] He again impartially said,

[00:50:31] I didn't mean any harm.

[00:50:33] Then he flashed

[00:50:35] that goddamn creepy grin

[00:50:37] before turning

[00:50:38] and running away.

[00:50:40] I fumbled around

[00:50:42] in my pocket for a phone

[00:50:43] so I could dial 911

[00:50:45] and then I started to follow him,

[00:50:47] but as soon as I reached

[00:50:49] the edge of the house,

[00:50:50] he was gone.

[00:50:52] The next events

[00:50:53] were kind of a blur.

[00:50:55] The cops took our statements

[00:50:56] and reminded us

[00:50:57] that we needed to keep

[00:50:58] the doors shut

[00:50:59] at all times

[00:51:00] no matter what.

[00:51:01] Our director apologized

[00:51:03] profusely

[00:51:03] for not believing us.

[00:51:05] My parents wanted me

[00:51:06] to come back home

[00:51:07] for the remainder

[00:51:08] of the summer,

[00:51:09] but I figured,

[00:51:10] what else could happen?

[00:51:12] What kept me up that night

[00:51:14] were the unanswered questions.

[00:51:16] How long had he been

[00:51:17] in the house?

[00:51:18] Why did he randomly decide

[00:51:20] to take the phone

[00:51:21] and wallet

[00:51:21] from the person

[00:51:23] who didn't work there?

[00:51:25] Had he listened

[00:51:26] to our private conversations?

[00:51:28] Did he watch us

[00:51:29] take showers

[00:51:30] and get dressed?

[00:51:31] How much food

[00:51:32] had he stolen?

[00:51:34] Where did he go

[00:51:35] when the police

[00:51:35] were looking for him?

[00:51:37] What hiding places

[00:51:38] did we all miss

[00:51:39] during our extensive searches?

[00:51:42] Was he under my bed

[00:51:43] at night

[00:51:43] or at any other point

[00:51:45] during my stay?

[00:51:47] I just don't know

[00:51:48] and I don't think

[00:51:49] that I'll ever know,

[00:51:50] but I'm thankful

[00:51:51] that our interaction

[00:51:53] wasn't any worse.

[00:51:55] Chris was the one

[00:51:56] who was affected the most.

[00:51:58] She was terrified

[00:51:59] to stay in that house

[00:52:00] after that.

[00:52:01] She told me later

[00:52:02] that when she opened

[00:52:03] that door

[00:52:04] he was just grinning

[00:52:05] at her with those

[00:52:06] dead eyes,

[00:52:07] like he was waiting

[00:52:08] for her to finally

[00:52:09] find him.

[00:52:10] She said that

[00:52:11] she'll never forget

[00:52:12] his face.

[00:52:14] She and I

[00:52:15] are still best friends

[00:52:16] and at almost

[00:52:17] 30 years old

[00:52:18] I can't ever bring up

[00:52:20] that summer

[00:52:21] around her

[00:52:21] unless she's had

[00:52:23] a drink or two.

[00:52:24] So to the creepy

[00:52:25] grinning squatter

[00:52:26] who lived among us

[00:52:28] at summer camp

[00:52:28] for God knows

[00:52:29] how long

[00:52:31] Let's Not Meet.

[00:52:47] Thanks for listening

[00:52:48] and stick around

[00:52:49] after the music

[00:52:49] for your extended

[00:52:50] version of

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[00:52:53] access to that

[00:52:53] and add free versions

[00:52:55] of all of our episodes

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[00:53:04] let's not meet

[00:53:05] podcast

[00:53:05] to sign up

[00:53:06] and support

[00:53:07] the show today.

[00:53:08] This week

[00:53:08] you have heard

[00:53:09] he recorded us

[00:53:10] for years

[00:53:10] by Hageti

[00:53:38] I was being watched

[00:53:41] and finally

[00:53:42] the man who secretly

[00:53:43] lived at our

[00:53:44] summer camp

[00:53:45] by Rollup

[00:53:46] all of the stories

[00:53:47] you've heard

[00:53:47] this week

[00:53:48] were narrated

[00:53:49] and produced

[00:53:49] with the permission

[00:53:50] of their respective

[00:53:51] authors

[00:53:51] Let's Not Meet

[00:53:52] a true horror podcast

[00:53:54] a true horror podcast

[00:53:54] is not associated

[00:53:55] with reddit

[00:53:55] or any other

[00:53:56] message boards

[00:53:56] online

[00:53:57] as always

[00:53:58] if you have

[00:53:58] a story to share

[00:53:59] send it to

[00:54:00] letsnotmeetstories

[00:54:00] at gmail.com

[00:54:02] and make sure

[00:54:03] to check out

[00:54:03] the new episodes

[00:54:04] of my other podcasts

[00:54:05] like Odd Trails

[00:54:06] Cryptic Encounters

[00:54:07] and the Old Time

[00:54:08] Radio Cast

[00:54:08] at crypticcountypodcasts.com

[00:54:11] or wherever

[00:54:12] you get your podcasts

[00:54:13] I'll see you all

[00:54:14] in Salt Lake City, Utah

[00:54:16] on September 19th

[00:54:18] at the Metro Music Hall

[00:54:19] for the next live episode

[00:54:21] of Let's Not Meet

[00:54:22] don't forget

[00:54:23] to get your tickets

[00:54:24] you can get the link

[00:54:24] in the show notes

[00:54:25] additionally

[00:54:26] I'll be in Seattle, Washington

[00:54:27] on October 9th

[00:54:29] Portland, Oregon

[00:54:29] on October 30th

[00:54:31] Houston, Texas

[00:54:31] on November 9th

[00:54:32] and finally

[00:54:33] Dallas, Texas

[00:54:34] on November 10th

[00:54:35] again

[00:54:36] tickets are available

[00:54:37] at letsnotmeetpodcast.com

[00:54:39] slash tour

[00:54:40] or in the show notes

[00:54:42] I'll see you all

[00:54:42] next week

[00:54:43] stay safe