[Music] summer is the greatest season by a long shot that's a hill I'll die on any day my love for the summer doesn't revolve around partying or drinking as you may expect but nature warmer weather and the outdoors are inseparable in my opinion and I guarantee you that when the heat rolls through I spend more hours outside than inside it was a warm night in mid June a few summers ago when this happened I was 17 or 18 at the time for context there's a massive nature preserve near my house when I say massive I mean it it's close to 1,000 acres in size to this day there are still parts of it that I'm positive I haven't explored two of my friends and I agreed to spend a night camping in those woods technically camping there was strictly forbidden and borderline illegal but we figured that there was no chance someone would catch us in this dense forest we just have to Trek as deeply as possible Chuck was the camping fanatic of the group I'm telling you this kid loved cosplaying as a Boy Scout and probably knew close to a 100 different knots our other friend Jackson always supplied the drinks if we were sober he was unhappy that's just how things went when Jackson was involved I remember the feeling of the gentle Summer Breeze blowing through my hair as the three of us packed up Jackson's car the weather was ideal not too cold not not too hot a few beers later the three of us found ourselves lugging camping equipment through the woods at like 11:30 I can't lie I was feeling the alcohol start to hit me as we marched along Chuck always carried this industrial grade flashlight with him so the darkness of the forest wasn't much of an issue as much as I enjoyed the outdoors though traversing through thick Woods at this hour was a bit creepy even with Chuck's flashlight on hand after close to half an hour of straight walking the three of us found our elv in a small flat clearing that was an ideal spot to set up camp we pitched our tent as per Chuck's instruction and set our chairs up the fire was the next step Chuck once again took the lead on this and after a few more minutes we had a pretty decent fire going Jackson reached into his bag and tossed me another drink he then grabbed his JBL speaker and started playing some music the vibe was perfect and we must have been talking and drinking for a good 2 hours we were all pretty drunk in at that point and I could tell the other guys were just about ready to pack it up for the night Jackson turned the music down and started collecting discarded beer cans just then a deafening whistle pierced the silence I nearly jumped out of my seat going from drunken Haze to high alert in a matter of seconds I don't know how to describe it the whistle was abnormally loud but still sounded distant Jackson quickly shut the speaker off and the three of us sat in silence as we exchange concerned looks I could feel my heartbeat pounding through my chest we sat there Frozen in place for what seemed like forever listening intently to our surroundings but there was nothing it almost seemed quieter now than it had when we first got there like eily quiet not even the normal wood sounds you come to anticipate I used that time to play my memory of the Whistle Back In My Head it definitely wasn't an animal's noise the best way I can describe it is a standard whistle you wouldd hear at a ball Park Chuck finally broke the silence quietly urging us to pack up and leave Jackson and I disagreed with that plan though we might risk encountering whoever made the noise which I was beyond terrified of it was past 3:00 a. m. at this point and encounter this late would only mean trouble Chuck hypothesized that whoever made that noise was probably aware of our presence which was a chilling thought I didn't know what to do on one hand staying put violated every survival Instinct I had packing up and leaving at this hour didn't seem like a much better option either though we finally agreed to wait it out I went to put the fire out but Chuck cautioned me against it saying that a fire would repel any dangerous animals only then did the true gravity of the situation smack me in the face we were literally miles away from any civilization it was 3:00 a.
m. and there was an unknown entity somewhere in the darkness another 10 minutes or so ped and we had resumed talking but at a much lower volume with with no music I don't think any of us felt safe going to sleep just yet though and then out of the corner of my eye I saw it something small Flew Over The Darkness of Jackson's shoulder and landed directly in the fire it was a firecracker I screamed bloody murder as it started sparkling in the fire and Chuck cursed as he sprung up out of his chair and bolted into the darkness Jackson and I scrambled to follow leaving all of our stuff behind we caught up with Chuck who flashlight was beaming wildly through the woods as he frantically sprinted we ran until we couldn't anymore and Jackson keeled over and threw up Chuck shut the light off and the three of us stood there panting trying to figure out if we were being followed to my surprise it didn't seem like anyone followed us I don't think I've ever been so afraid though why in the world would someone have done that we needed to figure out what to do Jackson wanted to just find our way out of the woods and never come back but Chuck was reluctant to leave all of his camping gear behind plus he reminded us the fire was still active I was dumbfounded how could he be concerned with forest fires after what had just happened eventually I agreed with Chuck that we should at least check on the site after all no one had actually chased us so there was a slight possibility that whoever threw that firecracker was just playing a cruel prank Chuck was a navigational expert and was actually able to retrace our footsteps I could make out the glow of the fire as we quietly approach approached before I could get any closer though Jackson put a hand in front of me and pointed with a horrified look on his face I strained my eyes to make out the sight in the distance what I saw is probably the most terrifying thing I'd ever laid eyes on there were three people sitting motionlessly in our chairs like statues the one whose face I could see looked lifeless and his mouth was hung open I was afraid to move what were they even doing I thought realizing that they weren't even talking this was not normal the three of us watched for a little while longer before deciding to back off we turned to leave but Jackson's foot clipped a rock causing him to curse and frustration within seconds the glow from the fire abruptly went dark as if it had been covered with a cloak it was freakishly fast we didn't stick around another second we again sprinted away from the site but this time we could hear footsteps crashing behind us we didn't stop this time we bolted out of the woods and ran all the way to Jackson's car by some miracle we weren't followed Out of the Woods none of us spoke on the drive back each of us lost in our thoughts the next day Chuck insisted we return to the site in the daylight to collect his belongings Jackson wanted nothing to do with that but I agreed to accompany Chuck after some searching we eventually found the site which looked mostly untouched that is until we got a little closer and noticed the puted smell coming from Chuck's tent he unzipped it and we found a dead rotting rat it was sickening I took the hint and haven't been back to that preserve [Music] since this ongoing issue started about a month ago but let me provide some context first I'm 24 years old and I live with my parents my family is not well off and never has been and pretty much all the money I make go go into supporting the household my relationship with my parents is not the best we bicker quite often and whenever I'm not working or Hanging With Friends I tend to stick to myself I don't want to write a hard luck story or anything like that but I've had a tough growing up Fitness has always been my go-to Escape I see it as a healthy way to get my mind off personal burdens while also providing a good excuse to leave the house there's a park about a 10-minute drive from my house that has a workout facility with bars for pull-ups dips and other calisthenic exercises during the summer months I like to go there to work out as nature helps calm my mind I like to go at nighttime because since it's a public park it tends to get busy during the day so one night while my parents were arguing I decided to slip out of the house to go work out it was an extremely hot summer night probably 85° I remember breathing in the humid air as I walked from my doorstep to the beat up white Corolla sitting in our driveway I started the rickety engine and rolled down down the windows as the warm Summer Breeze flowed through my hair I arrived at the park and exited my car I was the only car in the lot it was probably 10 or 11:00 p. m.
the park was completely empty at this time the beautiful scenery mixed with the steamy air to create a soothing atmosphere which is another reason why I like this park so much it sits on top of a hill that overlooks the downtown area of my city which always adds Pleasant and sentimental emotions to my evenings anyway I started a set on the PO up bar I wasn't really counting the repetitions when I work out I just do it till failure then take a break and do it a couple more times it was somewhere between my sets when I took a break to loosen up my arms before I got back on the bar though an Indescribable feeling came over me and a subconscious urge forced me to turn my head around standing literally a foot away from my face was a tall beaten looking man I actually screamed and jumped like 5 ft back he let out a runchy boisterous laugh and apologized saying he didn't mean to scare me his appearance and mannerisms were extremely eccentric right off the bat like he was damn near face to face with me he clearly had something wrong with him I asked him why he was so close to me and he said he lives here he explained that he sees me working out here all the time and asked me if I could teach him now I'm a very non-confrontational type of person and especially during a time like that I really just wanted to be left alone I awkwardly but politely told him I'm just going to do some pull-ups and leave I hopped back on the bar and continued my set his words marinated in my mind he sees me here all the time I felt the Gaze of his eyes burning the back of my neck but like I said I'm very non-confrontational while he did make me increasingly uneasy I didn't really know what to say or do about it but then something really weird happened right as I was about to finish my set I heard him mutter my full name my blood instant ly turned cold as I jumped off the bar and slowly backed away I said a shaky what he didn't respond and instead just stared at me with this crazed wide-eyed smile I thought I might have been hearing things that's how bizarre it was I started to get an awful feeling in my gut like something bad was about to happen without another word I decided to quickly walk back to my car and leave I felt that man staring at me while I retreated and thankfully he didn't follow me before I left the the park though I took one last look and I saw him hanging from the bar attempting to do a pull-up I watched as he grabbed the bar tried to pull himself up and then failed and tried again in the exact position I was previously in I swiftly left the park without looking back the entire ride back I questioned myself did he really say my name was I hallucinating I tried to forget about it and eventually I did I woke up early the next day to get to work work I work construction and I have to wake up very early before my parents so I was the first one to notice the unmarked envelope sitting at my front door it was addressed to me I picked it up and figured I'd read whatever was inside whenever I had the chance it was another sweltering hot summer day and I took my lunch break early to cool down I sat in my car while eating my pre-made sandwich and decided to open the envelope I didn't really know what to expect but never a million years did I think I'd find 10 printed photos of me they were all unknowingly taken one was of me in my car one was of me at work one was of me exercising at the park I instantly remembered that creepy man for the night before and started to feel uncontrollably nauseous I stared in disbelief as I flipped through the rest of them one was of my house and the worst of all was a photo of me sleeping taken from outside my window I nearly choked on my food as tears rolled down my cheeks I felt unsafe I told my boss a serious issue popped up and I left work right away he wasn't happy with me but I didn't care I took a picture of the photos and drove directly to the police station I gave the police the photos and explained my encounter at the park I described the man to them and they said they would look into it I told my parents about it too and for the first time in a long time I actually got some sympathy out of them more things started happening though a couple nights later at like 3:00 a. m. I awoke to knocks at the door I didn't open it assuming the worst one day I found a sticky note pasted to my car window with a heart drawn in Sharpie I went back to the police to report this and they said they would open up a stalker investigation I haven't heard back from them yet I figured it's hard to build a case without having concrete evidence this happened about a month ago and I've been on high alert ever since my parents are looking for a new home which is already tough given our financial situation I'll update if anything further happens but until then I'll continue to sleep with one eye [Music] open this happened to me last summer when I was 22 I wasn't a very outgoing kid at the time if I ever did anything social it was because my degenerate friends had somehow dragged me out of the house this was one of those times well it was supposed to be my friend Philip invited me to a house party at like 8:00 p.
m. it was pretty spontaneous but I had nothing going on so I reluctantly agreed to go with him I knew he was going to give me crap if I refused I can't even lie though the idea of a party even with strangers sounded more appealing than being alone Philip was a few Towns over from me so it made more sense for us to drive separately instead of going together he gave me the atti and I was on my way way the literal second I pulled onto the street Philip bailed at the last minute rightfully so I was super frustrated how could he bail on me like this there I was feeling like a complete idiot outside A stranger's house annoyed but determined not to waste the night I decided to go in drove all the way here I thought might as well go inside I walked up the front steps and knocked on the door the host Randy greeted me warmly he was instantly likable charismatic and friendly without being a douchebag he introduced me around and things were actually less awkward than I had anticipated people were really friendly to me despite not knowing who I was there were even a few girls I had my eyes on I decided to enjoy the party and hit the booze hard it was getting pretty late but the party was still raging admittedly I might have overdone it with the drinking at one point I was so nauseous and dizzy that I needed a break it must have been close to 2: a. m.
at that point I went upstairs to look for a bathroom but they were all occupied the house was deceptively big granted it was probably the alcohol but I was literally getting lost stumbling through the Maze of hallways up there after making it to the top floor I found a door leading to what seemed like an attic or storage room desperate for privacy I figured it was as good a place as any to pull myself together I groped around blindly for the light switch but there was none this was definitely an attic or something as there was also o dust everywhere there was a window in the far Corner which I opened allowing the cool night Breeze to wash over me there was a solid minute there where I was seriously considering throwing up onto the roof the breeze somewhat cured my nausea though so I just kept my head hung out of the window it was dark outside and the quiet was a refreshing contrast to the boisterous chaos downstairs sometimes all you need to restore your state of mind is a gentle breeze and some peace and quiet just as I was about to close Clos the window and head back I heard a faint noise footsteps on the roof shingles that didn't make any sense though was I going crazy curious I climbed out onto the roof in all honesty there was probably a 0% chance I would have done that if I had been sober I slowly stood up and looked around in the Moonlight I saw something terrifying there were two masked figures with bags emerging from another window it dawned on me ry's house was being robbed I started panicking should I shout confront them then a more pressing question hit me what if they were armed in my Clumsy state of disbelief I slipped and scuffed one of the shingles pretty loudly one of the burglars heard it and jolted his head in my direction our eyes briefly met and I froze he nudged his partner and the two of them quickly started making their way across the roof adrenaline surged through me I couldn't let them get away Randy had been so welcoming and I felt a surge of loyalty I decided to act I quietly followed the burglars across the roof keeping a safe distance they headed towards a sloping part of the roof for an easier Escape as they climbed down I pulled out my phone to dial 911 but fumbled in my drunken State dropping it the phone clattered loudly and the burglar turned sharply who's there one of them hissed heart pounding I ducked and scanned my surroundings spotting a loose roof shingle without thinking I grabbed it and hurled it towards them it missed but the noise startled them causing one to lose his footing he tumbled down the roof crashing into the gutter before falling to the ground the other burglar now panicked leaped to a neighboring tree and scrambled down I rushed to the edge of the roof and saw the Fallen burglar groaning on the ground I needed to alert everyone as I turned to head back I heard sirens someone else must have called the cops I stumbled back into the attic room and made my way downstairs trying to appear calm the party was still in full swing oblivious to the drama outside I found Randy laughing and chatting with guests Randy you need to call the police there's been a robbery I saw the burglar on the roof I said Randy's face turned from Amusement to shock are you serious he said as he hurried to make the call I explained what happened the party mood shifted from celebration to cons ER Apparently one of ry's neighbors had coincidentally already called the police to file a noise complaint which was an incredibly ironic turn of Good Fortune when they arrived I recounted my story leading them to the injured burglar the man was arrested but his partner had fled the party ended abruptly people started scattering and the lights got flipped on I tried my best to act sober but even after all that happened I was still stumbling a bit Randy thanked me profusely still and disbelief as for me I was just glad I could help despite the bizarre and terrifying circumstances looking back I still can't really explain why the burglars would have chosen a house having a party to Rob but maybe they had prior knowledge of the house and knew no one would be upstairs I figured that would be the end of the story but fast forward a few months and I've got quite the update I was playing video games at Philip's house one night when he got a call from Randy who invited us over for a few beers up until that point I hadn't actually realized the two of them were that close the first thing I noticed when I pulled up to ry's house was the front door and every window in sight were completely different was I not remembering his house right I could have sworn the windows in the front door had been white but they were all gray and much more heavyduty looking Randy waved Us in and we went down to his basement we cracked a few beers and started playing a game of pool to my surprise he actually recognized me from the party and thanked me again for my trouble what he told us was actually crazy though apparently the burglar the police caught that night refused to snitch on his partner and was currently serving a lengthy prison sentence the police hadn't been able to get any leads into catching the other guy though Randy told us that not even a week after the incident happens his family started receiving threatening letters from an unknown sender some of which included pictures of Randy and his family members obviously they reported these occurrences but the police had no real leads a month after after that ry's Mom noticed a suspicious vehicle circling the house at like 1:00 a. m.
