15 Spine-Chilling Tales That Haunt People Long After the Lights Go Out

Sometimes, truth is far stranger—and scarier—than fiction. This collection uncovers eerie, real-life stories that have left people questioning reality. From unexplained supernatural encounters to unsettling mysteries, these tales will give you chills and stay with you long after the lights go out. Prepare for a journey into the disturbing and the unknown.

• My daughter had been having nightmares, waking up saying someone was “talking under her bed.” I chalked it up to stress from the divorce. One morning, while changing her sheets, I lifted the mattress and found a set of small crumpled notes — written in pencil, in handwriting that wasn’t hers. Each one started the same way: “Don’t tell your mom I’m here.”

• [edited] Once, I woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of my bedroom door creaking open. I could see the outline of someone standing there, but when I turned on the light, there was no one there. The door was still slowly closing, as if whoever or whatever had been there was leaving. Even creepier, my fire alarm had illuminated in the corridor, sensing movement, but there was nobody there. Still gives me chills thinking about it. © justheway / Reddit

• [edited] I used to run late at night (11pm — 1am) in a valley near my house. The road passed through an area with cemeteries on both sides and an abandoned Shinto temple nearby. One night, while running between the cemeteries, I saw an old Asian lady by a bus stop. She slowly waved and said, “Hi.” I nodded, smiled, and kept running.
  
  My turnaround point was 5 minutes past the bus stop. When I turned around and headed back, she was gone. No cars or buses had passed, and I didn’t see her walking anywhere. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but later it struck me as strange. Why was she there so late? Where did she go? I still get a chill remembering her odd “Hi” and wave. I changed my route shortly after. © Rodby / Reddit

• Our first dog passed away when I was 5. A week after he died, I was at the dining table having breakfast, when my sister (8 years old) sat down and said “I woke up at 11pm and saw Bandit last night. He walked into my room and laid down beside my bed”. For context my sister was the dogs favourite.
  
  My mom was in the kitchen nearby and threw her hand over her mouth and had tears in her eyes. Turns out she had also woken up right at 11 and from her room she saw Bandit walk down the hall and into my sister’s room, but she thought it was just a dream. They both described the path the dog took and what he looked like exactly the same. © ReactionClear4923 / Reddit

• [edited] About a week ago, I saw a TikTok video that said, “Always trust your gut” and “Every time you leave the house, lock the door and look around.” It stuck with me, though I didn’t think much of it at first. A few days later, as I was leaving my house to meet friends, I locked the door and that video popped into my mind. Something told me to look around, so I did. Everything seemed normal until I checked the back of the house.
  
  That’s when I saw a car parked 30-50 meters away, facing my house. Two men sat inside, staring without talking or using their phones. My heart dropped. I tried to take a picture, and they quickly started the car and sped off. It was clear they weren’t lost or waiting for someone; they were watching me. What’s even creepier is that six days earlier, I had a car accident, and for days before, I had a nagging feeling that something would happen.
  
  I ignored it then, but this time, I listened, and maybe it saved me. Now, I always get that uneasy feeling like someone’s still watching. To the men in that car—let’s not meet. © Pristine-Tension4229 / Reddit

• Several years ago, when my son was young, I was sitting at the computer doing some work when I heard him wake up. He made a tiny whimper sound and the typical toddler, pathetic-sounding cry/moan, “mommmyyyyy.” So I jumped up to get him. Then I remembered my son was not home. He had been on a sleepover at my parents’. © Cellophaneflours / Reddit

• I was staying at my grandparents’ for the summer when I was fourteen. It was 11 p.m., and I was thirsty. I go out to the kitchen and see who I thought was my granddad sitting at the table eating a sandwich. I say hello, grab a glass of water, and head back to my room.
  
  My grandfather comes out of his room and asks who I was talking to. I turn around, and no one was there. It freaked me out and still does to this day. © Lucanthethird / Reddit

• About two months after my father passed, my mom, all my brothers, and sisters were sitting around the dining room table. We were just talking about the past and sharing stories. We were talking about my father when, suddenly, the globe around the light on the ceiling fell straight down onto the center of the table. It didn’t break, roll, or move at all after hitting the table. © Unknown author / Reddit

• I got lost in the woods in North Carolina during a game of paintball. It was broad daylight, but the woods were really thick, and every tree looked exactly the same. It probably only lasted 1–2 minutes, but it felt like I was screaming “help” for hours.
  The worst part? Turns out, I wasn’t even lost. I was maybe 10 feet from everyone else, and they all heard me screaming “help,” but they thought I was acting as a decoy... © reincarN8ed / Reddit

• When I was about 17, my friends wanted to do a ghost investigation at one of their houses. The girl who lived there and her sisters always talked about weird ghost stuff that happened. I was a skeptic, but had nothing better to do.
  
  About 4–5 hours in, I was sitting in a chair next to a closed door. The doorknob turned, the door opened halfway, then all the way, and then slammed shut. I then felt footsteps next to the chair. I am no longer fully a skeptic. © jado9814 / Reddit

• We’ve had little things happen during the 2.5 years we’ve lived here. Mostly sounds, like knocking, and always toward the front of the house and in the hallway to the kids’ rooms.
  However, one time I heard footsteps late at night that went from my wife’s side of the bed to the other side of the room, then just stopped. In the morning, my wife’s phone was where the footsteps had gone. She was confused as to why she would have placed it there, and I just kept my mouth shut. © cartmancakes / Reddit

• A long time ago, when I was just starting kindergarten, I would ride the afternoon bus home. For the first few weeks, I would see my grandpa on the side of the road by the entrance to my neighborhood. When I got home, I told my mom all about it—how he just stood there and waved at me. All I got were perplexed looks.
  
  The reason? My grandfather had died two weeks before school started. What I didn’t find out until recently was that he had died right by the pond, a few feet from that road. © Bookwormgirl991 / Reddit

• Back in the 90s, I was in the living room playing a game on the computer. My dad came in, talked to me for about a minute, then went back to his room to go to bed. I went back to playing the game.
  A few minutes later, I got this feeling that something was looking at me. I looked up, and in the same spot where my dad had been standing was a form in the shape of my dad. I could see through it, and it looked like iridescent smoke. © bur1sm / Reddit

• I was sitting in a movie theater with my aunt when I saw a man walk up the aisle. He was tall, youngish, and wearing white. He almost had a sort of glow about him. He reached the top of the stairs, turned towards the wall, and disappeared.
  I was stunned. My jaw dropped. At that moment, my aunt turned to me and said, “You saw him too?!” © obscura87 / Reddit

• The night my elder brother died, we were living in an apartment. My neighbor across the hall has a ferocious Rottweiler who is very aggressive. Around 3 AM, there were three distinctive knocks on the door, and we heard the Rottweiler squealing in fear. We opened the door to see no one.
  The next day, my aunt came home and cried in grief. She said, “I felt like someone knocked on my door at 3 AM; I felt it was your brother, but there was no one.” © caprismart1978 / Reddit

Sometimes, the most chilling confessions come from our children. In this article, you’ll discover a collection of haunting things kids have said that left their parents stunned and speechless.