Speaker 1: My name is Jamie, and I've always been cautious about
Speaker 1: who I led into my life. But when I moved
Speaker 1: to a new city for college, I had to find
Speaker 1: a roommate quickly. That's when I met David, and my
Speaker 1: life took a dark turn. I moved to the city
Speaker 1: a week before the semester started, excited about the new
Speaker 1: chapter in my life. The college dorms were full, so
Speaker 1: I had to find an off campus apartment. After browsing
Speaker 1: through various ads, I found one that seemed perfect. It
Speaker 1: was a two bedroom apartment near campus, reasonably priced, and
Speaker 1: the current tenant, David, was looking for a roommate. David
Speaker 1: seemed normal enough during our first meeting. He was a
Speaker 1: bit older, maybe in his late twenties, and work night
Speaker 1: shifts at a local factory. He was clean, respectful, and
Speaker 1: seemed eager to have someone share the rent. I moved
Speaker 1: in a few days later, ready to start my college adventure.
Speaker 1: At first, things were fine. David and I had different schedules,
Speaker 1: so we didn't see each other much. He would come
Speaker 1: home early in the morning and sleep while I was
Speaker 1: at school, and by the time I got home in
Speaker 1: the evening, he was getting ready for work. We had
Speaker 1: polite conversations in passing, but that was the extent of
Speaker 1: our interactions. One evening, about a month after I moved in,
Speaker 1: I noticed something strange. I came home to find David
Speaker 1: sitting in the living room staring blankly at the TV,
Speaker 1: which was turned off. He didn't seem to notice me
Speaker 1: at first, and when he did, he gave me a
Speaker 1: forced smile and went to his room without a word.
Speaker 1: It was unsettling, but I chalked it up to him
Speaker 1: being tired from work. Over the next few weeks, I
Speaker 1: began to notice more odd behaviors. David started leaving his
Speaker 1: door slightly ajar at night. I could hear him whispering
Speaker 1: to himself. Sometimes I would catch him watching me, quickly
Speaker 1: looking away. When I noticed, I started feeling uneasy in
Speaker 1: my own home, but I tried to convince myself that
Speaker 1: I was overreacting. One night, I woke up to the
Speaker 1: sound of something rustling in my room. My heart pounded
Speaker 1: as I strained to see in the darkness. I flicked
Speaker 1: on the bedside lamp and saw David standing in the doorway,
Speaker 1: his eyes wide and unblinking. David, what are you doing?
Speaker 1: I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. He didn't answer. Instead,
Speaker 1: he just stood there, staring at me for what felt
Speaker 1: like an eternity, before turning and leaving without a word.
Speaker 1: I locked my door that night and every night after.
Speaker 1: The final straw came. A few nights later, I was
Speaker 1: sitting in the living room studying for an upcoming exam
Speaker 1: when David came home. He seemed agitated, pacing back and
Speaker 1: forth in the kitchen. Suddenly he stopped and turned to me,
Speaker 1: his eyes wild. Jamie, do you believe in fate? He asked,
Speaker 1: his voice low and intense. I felt a chill run
Speaker 1: down my spine. I guess so, I replied cautiously. He
Speaker 1: stepped closer, his expression darkening. I think it's fate that
Speaker 1: brought us together. Don't you see we were meant to
Speaker 1: be here in this moment. I stood up my instincts,
Speaker 1: screaming at me to get out. David. I don't know
Speaker 1: what you're talking about, but you're scaring me. His face
Speaker 1: twisted into a sinister smile. You don't need to be scared, Jamie.
Speaker 1: I won't let anything happen to you. We're connected. I
Speaker 1: grabbed my phone and backed towards my room. I'm going
Speaker 1: to my room now, Please leave me alone. David's smile faded,
Speaker 1: replaced by a look of anger. You don't understand, do you.
Speaker 1: You can't leave. Were meant to be together. I bolted
Speaker 1: to my room, locking the door behind me and dialing
Speaker 1: nine one one. I explained the situation as calmly as
Speaker 1: I could, but my hands were shaking. The operator assured
Speaker 1: me that help was on the way. As I waited,
Speaker 1: I could hear David outside my door, mumbling to himself
Speaker 1: and occasionally pounding on the door. The minutes felt like
Speaker 1: hours until I finally heard the sound of sirens. I
Speaker 1: opened the window and shouted for help, and moments later
Speaker 1: the police burst through the front door. David was taken
Speaker 1: into custody, and I was left to explain everything to
Speaker 1: the officers. They found several notebooks in David's room, filled
Speaker 1: with disturbing writings and drawings, all centered around me. It
Speaker 1: turned out that David had a history of mental illness
Speaker 1: and had stopped taking his medication. I moved out the
Speaker 1: next day, staying with a friend until I could find
Speaker 1: a new place. The experience left me shaken and paranoid.
Speaker 1: Constantly looking over my shoulder in double checking wocks. I
Speaker 1: continued my studies, but the fear lingered a constant reminder
Speaker 1: of how quickly things can go wrong. Looking back, I
Speaker 1: realize how important it is to trust your instincts and
Speaker 1: take action when something feels wrong. Living with a dangerous
Speaker 1: stranger was a nightmare, but it taught me valuable lessons
Speaker 1: about personal safety and awareness. Now I always take extra
Speaker 1: precautions when choosing roommates and never ignore the warning signs.
Speaker 1: Sharing my story is my way of helping others avoid
Speaker 1: the same fate and stay safe in their own homes.
Speaker 1: My name is Emily, and I used to think that
Speaker 1: finding a roommate online was the best solution to splitting
Speaker 1: rent costs. That was until I met Claire, the woman
Speaker 1: who turned my life into a living nightmare. It all
Speaker 1: started a year ago when I moved into a quaint
Speaker 1: two bedroom apartment in a quiet neighborhood. Claire was my
Speaker 1: new roommate, A seemingly kind and friendly woman in her
Speaker 1: late twenties. She was neat, polite, and worked as a
Speaker 1: graphic designer from home. We bonded over our shared love
Speaker 1: for cooking and Netflix's binge watching sessions. The first few
Speaker 1: weeks were great, and I felt like I had found
Speaker 1: the perfect roommate. However, things started to change subtly. Claire
Speaker 1: began to show an unusual interest in my personal life.
Speaker 1: She would ask detailed questions about my work, my friends,
Speaker 1: and even my family. At first, I thought she was
Speaker 1: just trying to be friendly, but her questions became more
Speaker 1: intrusive over time. She wanted to know where I was going,
Speaker 1: who I was meeting, and what time I would be back.
Speaker 1: It was as if she was trying to control my
Speaker 1: every move. One evening, I came home later than usual
Speaker 1: after meeting a friend for dinner. Claire was waiting for
Speaker 1: me in the living room, her face a mask of concern.
Speaker 1: Where were you? I was so worried, she said, her
Speaker 1: voice trembling. I assured her I was fine, but her
Speaker 1: reaction seemed over the top for someone I had known
Speaker 1: for just a few weeks. Over the next few months,
Speaker 1: Claire's behavior became increasingly possessive. She would text me constantly
Speaker 1: while I was at work, asking when I would be
Speaker 1: home and what I was doing. If I didn't respond immediately,
Speaker 1: she would call repeatedly until I answered. It felt like
Speaker 1: I was being smothered, and the apartment no longer felt
Speaker 1: like a safe space. One weekend, I decided to visit
Speaker 1: my parents, who lived out of town. I didn't tell
Speaker 1: Claire about my plans, hoping to avoid her barrage of questions. However,
Speaker 1: as soon as I arrived at my parents' house, my
Speaker 1: phone started buzzing with messages and calls from Claire. Where
Speaker 1: are you? Why didn't you tell me you were leaving?
Speaker 1: She demanded. I felt a chill run down my spine.
Speaker 1: How did she know I had left? When I returned
Speaker 1: home on Sunday evening, I found Claire sitting on the
Speaker 1: couch staring blankly at the TV. We need to talk,
Speaker 1: she said, without looking at me. She accused me of
Speaker 1: being secretive and dishonest, and insisted that as roommates, we
Speaker 1: should share everything with each other. Her intensity scared me,
Speaker 1: and I realized I needed to find a way out
Speaker 1: of this situation. The final straw came one night, when
Speaker 1: I was lying in bed trying to fall asleep. I
Speaker 1: heard Claire's footsteps outside my room, and then the sound
Speaker 1: of my doorknob turning. I had locked my door a
Speaker 1: precaution I had started taking recently. Claire jiggled the doorknob
Speaker 1: a few times, then knocked softly. Emily, are you awake,
Speaker 1: she whispered. I pretended to be asleep, my heart pounding
Speaker 1: in my chest. After a few minutes, she left, but
Speaker 1: I couldn't shake the feeling of being trapped in my
Speaker 1: own home. The next day, I decided to look through
Speaker 1: Claire's room while she was out. I felt guilty for
Speaker 1: invading her privacy, but I needed answers. What I found
Speaker 1: was terrifying. Claire had a notebook filled with details about
Speaker 1: my life, my schedule, my friends, my habits. She had
Speaker 1: even taken photos of me without my knowledge. I realized
Speaker 1: then that I was living with someone who was obsessed
Speaker 1: with controlling me. I knew I had to live, but
Speaker 1: I couldn't let Claire know my plans. I started packing
Speaker 1: my things slowly, hiding boxes in my car when she
Speaker 1: wasn't around. I found a new place to live and
Speaker 1: arranged to move out on a day when Claire was
Speaker 1: scheduled to be out all day. The morning of my move,
Speaker 1: I left a note on the kitchen counter explaining that
Speaker 1: I couldn't live with her. Anymore, and that I needed
Speaker 1: my space. I didn't go into details, fearing her reaction
Speaker 1: if she knew I had gone through her things. As
Speaker 1: I drove away from the apartment for the last time,
Speaker 1: I felt a mixture of relief and fear. Claire called
Speaker 1: and texted me repeatedly over the next few days, but
Speaker 1: I never responded. I changed my phone number and blocked
Speaker 1: her on all social media. Even now, months later, I
Speaker 1: still feel a lingering sense of unease. I learned a
Speaker 1: valuable lesson about trusting my instincts and the importance of
Speaker 1: being cautious when choosing a roommate. Claire's possessive nature left
Speaker 1: a lasting impact on me, a reminder that sometimes the
Speaker 1: people we invite into our lives can become our worst nightmares.