WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.600 --> 00:00:05.280 Welcome to Scary Story Podcast. A strange sense of being watched, 2 00:00:05.559 --> 00:00:11.919 not feeling like yourself eventually turns into a nightmare. My 3 00:00:12.000 --> 00:00:20.800 name is Edwin and here's a scary story. It was 4 00:00:20.879 --> 00:00:23.679 to eighteen am and I had probably seen everything there 5 00:00:23.760 --> 00:00:26.760 was to see on Instagram and TikTok, so I opened 6 00:00:26.839 --> 00:00:29.239 up the Facebook app and saw the same fifty eight 7 00:00:29.239 --> 00:00:33.320 notifications still waiting for me. I had been a few 8 00:00:33.320 --> 00:00:36.479 weeks a month now that I think about it, Getting 9 00:00:36.479 --> 00:00:39.880 to sleep was much harder now. Plus the whole Milly 10 00:00:39.960 --> 00:00:43.320 thing wasn't helping. I pushed her away, this time a 11 00:00:43.359 --> 00:00:47.439 little too far, and she never came back. She took 12 00:00:47.439 --> 00:00:49.640 her things while I was at work and texted me 13 00:00:49.679 --> 00:00:51.960 saying that she wanted to go no contact, and I 14 00:00:52.079 --> 00:00:55.679 just accepted it. Part of me wished for her to stay, 15 00:00:55.920 --> 00:00:59.799 like wishing that I could love her again. Splitting up 16 00:00:59.840 --> 00:01:07.400 in this case also split me in two. Two thirty am, 17 00:01:07.519 --> 00:01:10.159 now lost in between those apps and staring at the 18 00:01:10.159 --> 00:01:12.519 dim ceiling lit up by the headlights of a car 19 00:01:12.560 --> 00:01:18.480 passing by, when I heard the doorbell ring. Curious but startled, 20 00:01:18.519 --> 00:01:20.480 I rolled out of the couch and onto the carpet. 21 00:01:21.159 --> 00:01:24.159 I had been sleeping there ever since Milly left, that 22 00:01:24.239 --> 00:01:30.840 place felt smaller, less empty. The doorbell rang again. I 23 00:01:30.920 --> 00:01:33.959 crawled closer to the couch. The window was right behind it, 24 00:01:34.000 --> 00:01:36.400 and I stood up slowly to peek between the blinds 25 00:01:36.400 --> 00:01:39.000 of that dark room. I was leaning over the couch, 26 00:01:39.079 --> 00:01:41.920 making up characters in my mind, but I was never 27 00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:46.120 expecting what I actually saw. There was an old man 28 00:01:46.200 --> 00:01:49.599 out there in what looked like a UPS uniform, holding 29 00:01:49.599 --> 00:01:53.280 a box with both of his hands. He didn't move, 30 00:01:53.840 --> 00:01:57.680 didn't blink, just stood there with his eyes staring straight ahead, 31 00:01:57.719 --> 00:02:02.040 completely motionless. I thought about going to the door, but 32 00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:04.599 only for an instant before realizing that I shouldn't open 33 00:02:04.640 --> 00:02:07.719 the door for any one this late. I didn't even 34 00:02:07.719 --> 00:02:10.479 consider how absurd the idea of a delivery man being 35 00:02:10.520 --> 00:02:14.000 out so late was, or how I hadn't ordered anything. 36 00:02:14.840 --> 00:02:17.759 Call this part paranoia, I don't care, but it defined 37 00:02:17.800 --> 00:02:21.719 what I had been feeling. Watched that old man was 38 00:02:21.759 --> 00:02:24.879 somehow always watching me from inside the house in that 39 00:02:25.000 --> 00:02:28.520 same manner. Sometimes I would end up in the kitchen 40 00:02:28.560 --> 00:02:31.080 wondering what I was doing there or what I needed. 41 00:02:32.319 --> 00:02:35.879 Felt like I wasn't myself. The reflections in the bathroom 42 00:02:35.879 --> 00:02:39.719 mirror looked off. It was that of a stranger with 43 00:02:39.759 --> 00:02:42.360 a look of disappointment in his face, looking at me 44 00:02:43.159 --> 00:02:46.439 in the eyes. With those thoughts, I fell on the couch, 45 00:02:47.039 --> 00:02:49.439 my head buried in the corner between the cushions, as 46 00:02:49.439 --> 00:02:52.479 a figure that this man outside may have been a drunk, 47 00:02:53.319 --> 00:02:56.000 a man just as confused as I was, who just 48 00:02:56.080 --> 00:03:00.400 needed a few more hours of sleep. But as I there, 49 00:03:01.280 --> 00:03:05.439 I heard a soft noise from the door. I jolted up, 50 00:03:05.560 --> 00:03:07.759 went for the window, and I saw the man slowly 51 00:03:07.879 --> 00:03:13.719 walking away, his arms completely still by his side. He 52 00:03:13.800 --> 00:03:16.280 went to the street and got lost in the darkness. 53 00:03:17.520 --> 00:03:23.360 There was no truck out there. I waited until morning 54 00:03:23.400 --> 00:03:27.199 to check the package was still there. No return address, 55 00:03:27.759 --> 00:03:31.280 no postage. But my name was printed clearly on a 56 00:03:31.319 --> 00:03:36.719 white label, and it wasn't handwritten or smudged. It was clean, precise, 57 00:03:37.080 --> 00:03:39.599 almost like it had been stamped there at the exact 58 00:03:39.639 --> 00:03:43.639 moment I stepped outside to retrieve it. I picked it up, 59 00:03:43.879 --> 00:03:47.039 turning it over in my hands. The box itself was 60 00:03:47.080 --> 00:03:51.599 heavy for something so small. It was sealed shut, no tape, 61 00:03:51.719 --> 00:03:57.240 no flaps, just a perfect solid package. For a moment 62 00:03:57.280 --> 00:03:59.879 I considered throwing it away. Something about it mid my 63 00:04:00.120 --> 00:04:04.759 stomach churn. But curiosity is a funny thing. It overrides 64 00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:07.560 the gut, making you do things you wouldn't normally do. 65 00:04:08.400 --> 00:04:12.919 So I carried it inside. Sitting at my kitchen table, 66 00:04:12.960 --> 00:04:18.240 I hesitated before opening it. My fingers hovered over the edges, waiting. 67 00:04:19.040 --> 00:04:21.279 I told myself it was fine, that it was just 68 00:04:21.360 --> 00:04:26.199 a package. I peeled back the cardboard, revealing a small 69 00:04:26.480 --> 00:04:31.800 black velvet pouch. I tipped it over and something dropped 70 00:04:31.800 --> 00:04:36.040 onto the table with a soft clink. It was a 71 00:04:36.120 --> 00:04:40.800 USB drive, no label, no markings, just a plain black 72 00:04:40.920 --> 00:04:46.399 drive resting against the wood. Waiting. I almost tossed it. 73 00:04:46.759 --> 00:04:50.800 Who even used USB drives anymore? But something about it 74 00:04:50.839 --> 00:04:54.000 felt intentional, like it was meant to be found by 75 00:04:54.040 --> 00:04:59.000 me in this exact moment. I hesitated, but eventually I 76 00:04:59.040 --> 00:05:01.519 plugged it into my old laptop, the one I barely 77 00:05:01.560 --> 00:05:05.160 used anymore. I figured, worst case it was a scam 78 00:05:05.279 --> 00:05:08.240 or some kind of virus, and if my computer crashed, 79 00:05:08.279 --> 00:05:14.399 I wouldn't miss it too much. The screen flickered, A 80 00:05:14.519 --> 00:05:20.759 folder popped up, containing just one file, a video. My 81 00:05:20.879 --> 00:05:23.839 hands felt plammy against the keyboard. My gut told me 82 00:05:23.920 --> 00:05:26.959 to unploy the drive, to walk away and forget it ever. 83 00:05:27.079 --> 00:05:32.240 Showed up on my doorstep, but of course I clicked 84 00:05:32.240 --> 00:05:39.519 on it and it opened. It was security footage, grainy, 85 00:05:39.639 --> 00:05:42.160 black and white. It was my single camera, the one 86 00:05:42.199 --> 00:05:46.439 I had outside. It was pointing at my doorway. The 87 00:05:46.519 --> 00:05:51.399 timestamp said last night, around one point fifteen am, an 88 00:05:51.399 --> 00:05:57.240 hour before the delivery. At first, nothing happened. The screen 89 00:05:57.319 --> 00:06:01.360 flickered slightly with static fuzzing at the edge, but then 90 00:06:01.399 --> 00:06:06.040 there was movement. A figure appeared, stepping out from the 91 00:06:06.079 --> 00:06:10.079 shadows at the edge of the frame. It was me 92 00:06:11.639 --> 00:06:17.040 standing on the porch. I leaned forward, my fingers gripping 93 00:06:17.120 --> 00:06:19.759 the edge of my desk. I tried to recall if 94 00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:22.920 I had gone outside last night. Maybe I had stepped 95 00:06:22.959 --> 00:06:26.680 out for fresh air. But top down I knew the truth. 96 00:06:27.800 --> 00:06:31.680 I had not been outside. The figure on the screen 97 00:06:31.759 --> 00:06:35.160 stood still for a few seconds, and then glanced left 98 00:06:35.199 --> 00:06:39.199 and right, as if making sure no one was watching. Then, 99 00:06:39.639 --> 00:06:44.920 with precise, deliberate movements, I reached into my jacket pocket 100 00:06:44.959 --> 00:06:49.879 and pulled out a key. My breath hitched. I watched 101 00:06:49.920 --> 00:06:52.120 as the other MEE inserted the key into the lock, 102 00:06:52.319 --> 00:06:57.600 and it twisted and stepped inside the door, slowly closing 103 00:06:57.680 --> 00:07:04.720 behind him. Green went black. A deep nauseating feeling settled 104 00:07:04.720 --> 00:07:08.240 in my gut. I swallowed hard, trying to rationalize what 105 00:07:08.279 --> 00:07:12.720 I had just seen. Maybe someone had doctored the image, 106 00:07:12.879 --> 00:07:15.839 like it was a prank or a sick joke. I 107 00:07:15.879 --> 00:07:18.600 rewound the video and played it again. This time, I 108 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:23.680 paid closer attention, and I looked for anything unnatural. But 109 00:07:23.720 --> 00:07:28.360 there it was again, myself standing on the porch, unlocking 110 00:07:28.399 --> 00:07:33.360 the door and disappearing inside. I reached for my phone 111 00:07:33.360 --> 00:07:36.079 and pulled up my home security app, searching through the 112 00:07:36.120 --> 00:07:41.720 previous night's footage. Nothing not a single recording between one 113 00:07:41.839 --> 00:07:44.920 and three am, just a gap of static, as if 114 00:07:44.920 --> 00:07:51.279 nothing had happened at all. Something had I looked back 115 00:07:51.319 --> 00:07:55.000 at the USB, a small black shape resting next to 116 00:07:55.040 --> 00:07:59.399 my laptop like a silent taunt. Someone wanted me to 117 00:07:59.439 --> 00:08:02.600 see this, and I had a feeling that someone wasn't 118 00:08:02.680 --> 00:08:08.480 done with me just yet. I replayed the footage, my 119 00:08:08.600 --> 00:08:11.959 pulse hammering in my ears. The person on the screen 120 00:08:12.040 --> 00:08:15.120 moved like me, acted like me, but something about him 121 00:08:15.199 --> 00:08:19.040 was off. There was a hesitation in his steps, a 122 00:08:19.079 --> 00:08:23.279 precision to his movements that didn't feel natural. It was 123 00:08:23.319 --> 00:08:27.160 as if he was following a script. I paused a video. 124 00:08:27.199 --> 00:08:31.319 At the moment he or I reached into the pocket 125 00:08:31.360 --> 00:08:34.960 for the key, my breath caught in my throat. I 126 00:08:35.000 --> 00:08:37.759 had no memory of going outside last night, let alone 127 00:08:37.840 --> 00:08:41.639 unlocking my own door, But there I was on the screen, 128 00:08:41.799 --> 00:08:46.399 turning the handle and stepping inside. I checked my locks again. 129 00:08:46.960 --> 00:08:50.120 Dead bolts was still fastened, the chain latch was untouched. 130 00:08:50.639 --> 00:08:53.919 I even tested the door, shaking the knob, but it 131 00:08:54.039 --> 00:08:59.200 didn't budge. Still, the thought nagged at me. If I 132 00:08:59.279 --> 00:09:06.080 never went out, how did that footage exist? I grabbed 133 00:09:06.120 --> 00:09:09.080 my phone, swiping through my security app again. Then I 134 00:09:09.120 --> 00:09:13.399 scrolled back to the timestamps from the video. There were 135 00:09:13.440 --> 00:09:17.679 no recordings there. A cold sweat broke out across my back. 136 00:09:18.120 --> 00:09:22.600 Someone had tampered with my security system, But who and 137 00:09:22.679 --> 00:09:26.840 why leave me the footage. I turned back to the laptop, 138 00:09:27.000 --> 00:09:30.559 staring at my frozen doppelganger on the screen. The more 139 00:09:30.600 --> 00:09:33.279 I looked at him, the more I noticed tiny discrepancies. 140 00:09:33.679 --> 00:09:37.120 The way his shoulders sat too stiff, how his fingers 141 00:09:37.200 --> 00:09:41.759 curled around the doorknob just a fraction too tightly. It 142 00:09:41.840 --> 00:09:44.799 was like someone was pretending to be me, but not 143 00:09:44.919 --> 00:09:50.159 quite getting it right. I directed the video's progress bar forward. 144 00:09:51.000 --> 00:09:53.320 The screen cut to black as soon as my double 145 00:09:53.440 --> 00:09:58.759 entered the house, and that was it. No movement, no sound, 146 00:10:00.200 --> 00:10:05.120 just a number upt end. I felt a presence, a 147 00:10:05.240 --> 00:10:08.399 weight in the air around me. Just then my apartment 148 00:10:08.440 --> 00:10:13.240 suddenly seemed too quiet. I shut the laptop and stood up, 149 00:10:13.600 --> 00:10:17.360 running a hand over my face. My mind cycled through 150 00:10:17.480 --> 00:10:20.840 rational explanations, but each one dissolved under the weight of 151 00:10:20.879 --> 00:10:24.600 the truth staring back at me from that footage. I 152 00:10:24.799 --> 00:10:29.559 wasn't alone, and whatever had come inside I was still there. 153 00:10:32.600 --> 00:10:36.279 I searched the USB again, my fingers trembling over the keyboard. 154 00:10:37.039 --> 00:10:41.240 The drive wasn't empty. There was another folder. I learned 155 00:10:41.240 --> 00:10:44.080 about hidden files way back in the dial up days. 156 00:10:44.399 --> 00:10:49.720 But there I found hundreds of video files. Each one 157 00:10:49.840 --> 00:10:54.320 was security footage from different houses, different front doors. The 158 00:10:54.360 --> 00:10:59.480 file names were just time stamps going back years. I 159 00:10:59.519 --> 00:11:03.360 clicked on at random. The grainy, black and white video 160 00:11:03.440 --> 00:11:06.519 showed another porch, this time belonging to a house I 161 00:11:06.559 --> 00:11:10.480 didn't recognize. The angle was the same as before, a 162 00:11:10.519 --> 00:11:16.360 single fixed camera watching the front door. The door was closed, 163 00:11:16.399 --> 00:11:19.679 the porch was empty, and then after a minute someone 164 00:11:19.720 --> 00:11:24.279 stepped into view, a man mid thirties wearing a hoodie 165 00:11:24.320 --> 00:11:27.399 in jeans. He looked up and down the street and 166 00:11:27.440 --> 00:11:30.039 then pulled a key from his pocket. He unlocked the 167 00:11:30.080 --> 00:11:34.960 door and went inside. My stomach turned. I clicked another file, 168 00:11:35.360 --> 00:11:39.159 a different house, a different person, this time a woman 169 00:11:39.279 --> 00:11:43.559 in a long coat. She checked her surroundings, unlocked the door, 170 00:11:43.600 --> 00:11:48.480 and then stepped inside. Every single video was the same, 171 00:11:49.159 --> 00:11:54.279 different houses, different people, but always the same scenario. I 172 00:11:54.360 --> 00:11:57.559 clicked into more files, each one making my skin crawl. 173 00:11:58.559 --> 00:12:02.919 Some showed figures that strangely, their limbs slightly off rhythm 174 00:12:03.080 --> 00:12:06.799 and their heads turning too sharply, as if their bodies 175 00:12:06.799 --> 00:12:10.320 weren't used to moving the way that they should. One 176 00:12:10.399 --> 00:12:13.360 video showed a man unlocking his door, stepping inside, and 177 00:12:13.720 --> 00:12:18.159 just before shutting the door, his head snapped back unnaturally, 178 00:12:18.200 --> 00:12:21.720 as if he had heard something behind him. The screen 179 00:12:21.759 --> 00:12:24.000 cuts a black before I could see what happened. Next. 180 00:12:25.440 --> 00:12:28.480 Another file, another home, and this time a woman was 181 00:12:28.480 --> 00:12:31.759 in a business suit, but when she turned over the 182 00:12:31.799 --> 00:12:36.519 camera before going inside, her face was blurred, and not 183 00:12:36.600 --> 00:12:41.960 by poor video quality, it was intentionally obscured. A sickening 184 00:12:42.000 --> 00:12:45.919 thought took root in my mind. Who was recording these 185 00:12:46.000 --> 00:12:50.799 and why were they sent to me? And then I 186 00:12:50.840 --> 00:12:54.480 found the last video in the folder. The timestamp was 187 00:12:54.519 --> 00:13:01.080 from tomorrow. I hesitated, my throat dry and I clicked it. 188 00:13:02.480 --> 00:13:08.240 The footage loaded, showing my house, my front door, a 189 00:13:08.320 --> 00:13:13.840 long empty stretch of time, no movement, and then at 190 00:13:13.879 --> 00:13:19.279 exactly two forty five a m. The door opened, just 191 00:13:19.399 --> 00:13:26.320 darkness beyond the frame, and then something stepped out. It 192 00:13:26.360 --> 00:13:29.039 was hard to make out at first, just a shifting 193 00:13:29.080 --> 00:13:32.240 outline at the edges of the light, moving in slow, 194 00:13:32.360 --> 00:13:37.159 deliberate motions. The shape didn't seem quite human. Its limbs 195 00:13:37.200 --> 00:13:40.960 were too long, its posture was wrong. It hesitated at 196 00:13:40.960 --> 00:13:44.440 the threshold as though adjusting to the air, stretching its 197 00:13:44.480 --> 00:13:49.240 limbs like it was waking from a long sleep. And 198 00:13:49.279 --> 00:13:54.480 then it took a step forward. I squinted at the screen, 199 00:13:54.679 --> 00:13:59.039 barely breathing. The image flickered, The figure wavered in and 200 00:13:59.120 --> 00:14:02.200 out of clarity, as though the camera itself wasn't sure 201 00:14:02.279 --> 00:14:07.399 it should be recording it, And then the details clicked 202 00:14:07.399 --> 00:14:13.720 into place. It was me. I clapped a hand over 203 00:14:13.759 --> 00:14:16.759 my mouth to stop the gas from escaping the figure, 204 00:14:17.080 --> 00:14:21.399 my double was standing in my doorway. Its movements were 205 00:14:21.440 --> 00:14:24.440 too fluid, too calculated, as if it had practice being 206 00:14:24.559 --> 00:14:29.519 me but hadn't quite mastered it. It tad twitched its mouth, 207 00:14:29.600 --> 00:14:32.639 forming something that looked like a smile, but the expression 208 00:14:32.759 --> 00:14:37.200 never fully took shape. And then it did something that 209 00:14:37.279 --> 00:14:42.200 sent eyes through my veins. It turned and looked directly 210 00:14:42.519 --> 00:14:50.759 into the camera, directly at me. I didn't move, I couldn't. 211 00:14:51.519 --> 00:14:55.559 My pulse pounded in my ears. The double in the 212 00:14:55.639 --> 00:14:59.639 video stepped forward and off the porch. My stomach was 213 00:14:59.679 --> 00:15:02.480 to or was it going? And what was it doing? 214 00:15:04.000 --> 00:15:07.840 The screen glitched again, distorting into black static, before flashing 215 00:15:07.960 --> 00:15:12.480 back to the front door. It was wide open and 216 00:15:12.559 --> 00:15:23.519 the figure was gone. I shot out of my chair, 217 00:15:23.639 --> 00:15:27.679 my breath coming in ragged gasps. My gaze was darting 218 00:15:27.720 --> 00:15:31.159 to my front door. It was still closed and still locked. 219 00:15:32.759 --> 00:15:35.240 I worked back to the screen, my fingers trembling as 220 00:15:35.279 --> 00:15:40.320 I rewound the footage. Had I really seen that? The 221 00:15:40.440 --> 00:15:44.200 video resumed and the figure was no longer there. Instead, 222 00:15:44.200 --> 00:15:49.639 the footage cut to something else, something worse. It was 223 00:15:49.679 --> 00:15:53.759 the inside of my house. The camera angle had changed. 224 00:15:53.879 --> 00:15:56.200 The view was now from within my living room, as 225 00:15:56.200 --> 00:15:58.639 if someone had set up a camera just from outside. 226 00:15:58.679 --> 00:16:02.759 Looking through the window, the furniture was all in place, 227 00:16:03.159 --> 00:16:08.679 nothing looked disturbed except for one thing. A shadow stretched 228 00:16:08.720 --> 00:16:14.480 across the floor, and it was not mine. The video 229 00:16:14.559 --> 00:16:19.519 distorted again, and when it refocused, the shadow had moved closer, 230 00:16:20.639 --> 00:16:27.360 closer to the camera, closer to me. I slammed the 231 00:16:27.440 --> 00:16:32.440 laptop shut, my hands shaking controllably. Somewhere in my house 232 00:16:32.480 --> 00:16:38.120 a floorboard creaked and I realized that I was not alone. 233 00:16:38.320 --> 00:16:41.519 I grabbed my phone and stepped outside. I walked randomly 234 00:16:41.559 --> 00:16:44.799 around the block for about half an hour. I went 235 00:16:44.879 --> 00:16:46.759 back to the house to grab my car keys, and 236 00:16:46.799 --> 00:16:49.200 then went to get some food. Doing anything to stay 237 00:16:49.200 --> 00:16:52.399 out of the house for as long as possible. I 238 00:16:52.519 --> 00:16:55.519 managed to stay out until about ten at night, roaming 239 00:16:55.559 --> 00:16:59.440 around stores sitting in my car, but eventually it was 240 00:16:59.480 --> 00:17:02.279 time to come back. The first thing I saw was 241 00:17:02.320 --> 00:17:06.359 that USB drive by the laptop. I imagined the footage again, 242 00:17:06.759 --> 00:17:09.079 but I decided to head to the couch and instead 243 00:17:09.160 --> 00:17:11.160 try to get some sleep instead of messing with it 244 00:17:11.160 --> 00:17:16.200 one more time. It was around two forty am when 245 00:17:16.240 --> 00:17:18.599 I was woken up by the sound coming from the hallway. 246 00:17:19.839 --> 00:17:23.119 I sat up, trying not to look into the darkness. 247 00:17:23.599 --> 00:17:28.559 But then I saw it, a shape walking up to me. 248 00:17:29.319 --> 00:17:32.519 The figure moved strangely, its limbs slightly off, like a 249 00:17:32.599 --> 00:17:36.359 video with corrupted frames, as if reality itself was struggling 250 00:17:36.359 --> 00:17:40.440 to render it correctly. It stood just beyond my front door, 251 00:17:40.640 --> 00:17:45.799 rocking slightly on its heels, watching, but I knew what 252 00:17:45.880 --> 00:17:51.480 I was looking at. It was me re lee. It 253 00:17:51.599 --> 00:17:56.160 wasn't its face mimicked mind, but the expression was wrong, 254 00:17:56.440 --> 00:17:59.839 a grin that didn't fit. The lips were too stretched, 255 00:18:00.400 --> 00:18:05.240 the teeth were too visible. Its head was tilted slightly, 256 00:18:05.359 --> 00:18:11.119 the movement unnatural, deliberate, like it was considering something. I 257 00:18:11.160 --> 00:18:13.519 was trying to convince myself that this was a nightmare, 258 00:18:13.680 --> 00:18:18.119 a hallucination brought on by stress, but my body refused 259 00:18:18.119 --> 00:18:23.200 to move. My breath came in short, panicked bursts, and 260 00:18:23.240 --> 00:18:27.200 then it twitched, a sharp, sudden jolt, like a puppet 261 00:18:27.200 --> 00:18:31.000 whose strings had just been yanked. Its arms flexed, fingers 262 00:18:31.039 --> 00:18:32.880 opening and closing, as if it was trying to get 263 00:18:32.920 --> 00:18:38.279 comfortable in its own skin, my skin. I pushed my 264 00:18:38.359 --> 00:18:44.000 chair back instinctively, my heart hammering. My laptop screen flickered 265 00:18:44.000 --> 00:18:46.599 as the video continued to play, but I didn't need 266 00:18:46.640 --> 00:18:50.200 to watch it anymore. I could see it happening in 267 00:18:50.240 --> 00:18:55.039 real time. My phone buzzed duck against the table. The 268 00:18:55.119 --> 00:18:58.000 sound made me jump, and my hands shook as I 269 00:18:58.039 --> 00:19:02.599 reached for it, barely able to hold. It's steady when 270 00:19:02.640 --> 00:19:11.880 you text message from my own number. Look outside. I hesitated, 271 00:19:12.200 --> 00:19:14.519 the weight of the moment pressing down on my chest. 272 00:19:15.160 --> 00:19:17.480 My body screamed at me not to look, but I 273 00:19:17.559 --> 00:19:23.279 knew I had to. Slowly, I turned my head toward 274 00:19:23.319 --> 00:19:27.480 the window, pushing down the rising nausea in my throat, 275 00:19:29.240 --> 00:19:32.960 and through the blinds, I saw a movement. Someone was 276 00:19:32.960 --> 00:19:37.519 standing on my porch, not knocking, not ringing the bell, 277 00:19:38.319 --> 00:19:43.759 just watching. And then in the dim glow of the 278 00:19:43.799 --> 00:19:49.759 street light, I saw its face, my face, and this 279 00:19:49.920 --> 00:19:58.599 time it didn't just grin. It waved slowly, patiently, like 280 00:19:58.680 --> 00:20:04.279 it had all the time in the world. My vision blurred. 281 00:20:04.480 --> 00:20:08.400 I stumbled back, my legs barely holding me up. The 282 00:20:08.400 --> 00:20:11.720 air in the room felt thick and suffocating, and I 283 00:20:11.759 --> 00:20:14.400 tried to convince myself that I was still asleep, that 284 00:20:14.519 --> 00:20:17.359 none of this was happening, but the weight in my 285 00:20:17.480 --> 00:20:22.519 chest told me otherwise. The figure didn't move from the porch. 286 00:20:22.559 --> 00:20:26.160 It just stood there, unwavering, its reflection barely distorted by 287 00:20:26.160 --> 00:20:30.359 the glass. And then, as I gasped for breath, it 288 00:20:30.440 --> 00:20:35.759 did something I will never forget. It reached into its pocket, 289 00:20:37.279 --> 00:20:40.799 pulled out a key, and I heard the dead fold turn. 290 00:20:43.160 --> 00:20:48.000 The front door creaked open. I lurched backward, nearly tripping 291 00:20:48.000 --> 00:20:50.519 over the chair. My breath was loud as the door 292 00:20:50.559 --> 00:20:54.519 creaked open an inch and then another. The cold night 293 00:20:54.599 --> 00:20:57.440 air seeped in, carrying with it a silence so heavy 294 00:20:57.480 --> 00:21:01.799 that it made my ears ring. I didn't want to look, 295 00:21:01.960 --> 00:21:05.240 but I had to, and through the widening gap, I 296 00:21:05.279 --> 00:21:09.680 could see it my reflection, and no, not my reflection. 297 00:21:09.960 --> 00:21:13.559 It was standing outside. It stepped forward, one foot, crossing 298 00:21:13.599 --> 00:21:18.599 the threshold, and moved deliberately, like someone savoring the moment. 299 00:21:20.039 --> 00:21:23.440 It said, was still tilting at an unnatural angle, examining 300 00:21:23.480 --> 00:21:26.880 me with an expression that wasn't quite right. The two 301 00:21:26.920 --> 00:21:31.279 white grin remained frozen in place, but its eyes, its 302 00:21:31.279 --> 00:21:35.319 eyes were not mine. They were empty, hollow, as if 303 00:21:35.400 --> 00:21:38.559 whatever this thing was had never really been a person 304 00:21:38.599 --> 00:21:45.359 at all. I scrambled for something, anything to defend myself, 305 00:21:45.519 --> 00:21:49.359 my hands fumbling across the table, a coffee mug, my laptop, 306 00:21:49.519 --> 00:21:53.359 nothing that would matter, nothing that would stop it. And 307 00:21:53.400 --> 00:21:56.440 then it spoke, and not with words, not with sound, 308 00:21:56.680 --> 00:22:00.440 its lips never actually moved, but inside my head I 309 00:22:00.480 --> 00:22:07.000 heard it clearly, let me in. The voice was mine, 310 00:22:07.160 --> 00:22:11.359 my own tone, my own inflections, but stretched, warped, like 311 00:22:11.400 --> 00:22:13.720 a recording that had been played too many times that 312 00:22:13.839 --> 00:22:18.400 was starting to decay. I clapped my hands over my ears, 313 00:22:18.400 --> 00:22:22.799 squeezing my eyes shut. You're not real, I whispered, You're 314 00:22:22.839 --> 00:22:32.279 not and then footsteps inside My eyes snapped open. The 315 00:22:32.359 --> 00:22:34.640 thing was still at the door, but I could hear 316 00:22:34.680 --> 00:22:38.799 it inside the house, the creak of the wooden floor boards, 317 00:22:39.319 --> 00:22:43.839 the soft rustling of movement just out of sight. I 318 00:22:43.960 --> 00:22:48.039 wasn't looking at the real threat. It was already in here. 319 00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:53.039 The realization hit me like ice in my veins. My 320 00:22:53.079 --> 00:22:56.680 own breathing was too loud, my pulse roared in my ears, 321 00:22:57.000 --> 00:23:01.039 and I turned, scanning the dimly lit room, the corners 322 00:23:01.039 --> 00:23:05.079 where the shadows stretched longer than they should have. A 323 00:23:05.200 --> 00:23:10.160 shape shifted near the hallway, and then another, and was 324 00:23:10.160 --> 00:23:12.599 it looking at just one of them any more? There 325 00:23:12.640 --> 00:23:16.680 were more dozens standing in the doorways, crouching in the corners, 326 00:23:16.720 --> 00:23:19.400 waiting in the dark spaces I had never paid attention 327 00:23:19.559 --> 00:23:24.039 to before. They were me, All of them were me. 328 00:23:25.400 --> 00:23:28.680 The thing at the door finally moved, stepping inside, completely 329 00:23:28.880 --> 00:23:33.920 merging into the others. Their forms blurred, their faces distorting 330 00:23:33.920 --> 00:23:38.440 into grotesque parodies of mine, smiles stretched, two wide, eyes, 331 00:23:38.519 --> 00:23:44.359 black and endless. I stumbled back, pressing against the wall. 332 00:23:45.039 --> 00:23:48.400 My mind screamed at me to run, but where there 333 00:23:48.440 --> 00:23:52.599 was nowhere to go. That's when my phone vibrated again, 334 00:23:53.880 --> 00:23:59.240 a new message for my own number. It's your turn. 335 00:24:03.400 --> 00:24:07.119 I understood now the figures had seen in the videos, 336 00:24:07.200 --> 00:24:11.319 the ones entering their homes. They hadn't just vanished. They 337 00:24:11.359 --> 00:24:16.000 had all been taken, replaced. They had become part of 338 00:24:16.039 --> 00:24:20.920 whatever this was. I had watched their fates unfold, unaware 339 00:24:21.000 --> 00:24:25.640 that the videos weren't just warnings. There were instructions, a process, 340 00:24:25.720 --> 00:24:30.599 a cycle, and now it was happening to me. The 341 00:24:30.680 --> 00:24:36.599 shadows around me deepened, stretching unnaturally across the walls. The figures, 342 00:24:36.799 --> 00:24:41.839 my figures, stepped closer, their forms flickering like a distorted signal. 343 00:24:42.559 --> 00:24:45.359 My breath hitched as I backed into the farthest corner 344 00:24:45.400 --> 00:24:49.160 of the room, but there was no escape. I realized 345 00:24:49.200 --> 00:24:52.960 I wasn't gonna leave. I was going to become another face, 346 00:24:53.160 --> 00:24:56.440 another file, another timestamp in the folder for someone else 347 00:24:56.480 --> 00:25:04.480 to find. The air turned thick, suffocating, and the shadows launched, 348 00:25:08.279 --> 00:25:25.640 and then darkness. Scary Story podcast is written and produced 349 00:25:25.640 --> 00:25:29.839 by me Edwin Karubyez. Thank you very much for your reviews. 350 00:25:30.160 --> 00:25:32.000 I love the story ideas that you guys are putting 351 00:25:32.000 --> 00:25:34.119 on there, and if you want to support the show 352 00:25:34.200 --> 00:25:37.480 and get stories without ads, try out Scary Plus. Thank 353 00:25:37.519 --> 00:25:42.440 you very much for listening. Keep it scary everyone. Let's 354 00:25:42.440 --> 00:25:42.960 see you soon.