8x05: The Housemaid - Let's Not Meet

[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. My name is Andrew Tate and this is Season 8, Episode 5 of Lets Not Meet, A True Horror Podcast.

[00:00:32] This entire ordeal lasted for about 6 months. The year was 2014 and I was 11 years old. Just to give a quick background, I lived in a compound housing, a type of dwelling that featured two houses and one enclosed lot.

[00:01:07] The house that I lived in was shared by me, my 13 year old brother, my mother, and my grandparents. My cousins and their parents inhabited the other one. Due to our fairly large family and the grown-ups busy schedules,

[00:01:23] it was decided that we were going to be hiring a couple of housemaids, one for each house. My grandmother, the matriarch of the entire family, took charge of the hiring process by contracting an agency for household helpers. Not long after, two maids answered the call of duty.

[00:01:44] For privacy reasons, we will call them Leslie and Michelle. Michelle was tasked to work in our cousin's home so that meant that Leslie worked in ours. It was a long-term stay-in gig. My grandparents offered both of them to share a two-bed guest room in our house.

[00:02:04] My bedroom was linked to that room by way of an emergency door. So, if one wanted to access my room to go through the guest room and vice versa, you could do so by passing through that emergency door.

[00:02:20] As far as I can remember, Michelle was a very bubbly and expressive person. She was also very talkative and sometimes it would get annoying but for the most part, it was tolerable. Leslie, on the other hand, was a whole different ballgame.

[00:02:37] From the moment that I first met her, I immediately sensed that there was something off-putting about her. She was quiet and there were times wherein we would notice that she was talking to herself. None of this really mattered initially because she was very efficient in doing her job.

[00:02:56] The first few months of her stay were rather normal. We also got used to the two maids contrasting personalities quickly. It was actually nice that they complimented each other. However, things kind of ramped up in the following months. Leslie's erratic behavior intensified.

[00:03:18] For instance, she became very skittish around us and whenever we tried to talk to her, she'd be startled. There were these times where she would aggressively talk to Michelle and upon noticing that she wasn't being inconspicuous, she would immediately go back to being passive.

[00:03:39] Around that time, Michelle had asked my grandmother if she could receive her salary in advance as she needed to take a month-long vacation. My grandmother, not wanting to deal with labor laws and the like, just granted her request. Leslie now had the guest room all to herself.

[00:03:59] It only got weirder from there. Now I'd like to add that I'm not a heavy sleeper and sudden movements and noises easily wake me up. Anyway, Leslie would leave her room and start going around the house mumbling unintelligible words to herself. And while she mumbled softly,

[00:04:19] the sound was enough to penetrate the thin walls of my room. After a few seconds, she would then start to hum. It became sort of a pattern that happened a few more times. Because of this, I anticipated this routine of hers

[00:04:36] and was able to record her humming just for shits and giggles. Initially, I simply found it funny, so I brushed it off. That is until one night, it turned into something downright creepy. Same thing. It was about one in the morning.

[00:04:55] I heard the guest room door open, followed by light footsteps. This time around, the mumbles didn't sound soft. It seemed like she was conversing with herself, switching back and forth from an irritated tone to having a calm inflection in her voice,

[00:05:15] but still not clear enough to be understood. And then there was the humming. It sounded ominous and sinister. It grew louder and louder, and I could tell that she was just nearing that door. Just as I was about to get up and lock it,

[00:05:37] I heard the door slowly creak open. It was her, standing in the barely lit doorway. I pretended to be asleep, but I could tell that she was staring at me intently as she peeked through the door that was barely cracked open. After just a few seconds,

[00:05:57] it felt like an eternity, she shut the door. That was my opportunity to lock it. And boy, did I race to that door to do so. And boy, did I race to that door to do so. As I returned to the comfort of my bed,

[00:06:15] I heard it again. Once more, the sound drew closer and closer, but it didn't originate from the outside of the main bedroom door. Before I could come to the realization that that emergency door was still unlocked, it suddenly opened. She peeked, then threw her head in

[00:06:36] to fully visualize the surroundings. She said in this hushed, sing-songy voice, I know you're awake. No need to keep me out. Just like that, she shut the door. For thankfully, the final time that night. I was terrified to go back to sleep,

[00:07:02] so I just stayed up and locked myself in the bathroom. Come breakfast time, I told my mom and brother about it. My mom sympathized with me, but said that there was nothing that they could really do because as creepy as she is,

[00:07:17] her work ethic was still invaluable to us. My brother, however, revealed that whenever he woke up, he would occasionally find the bedroom door slightly left ajar when he clearly makes it a point to close it before he goes to bed. This sent a chill down my spine.

[00:07:37] Since then, we made sure to keep our doors locked, even during the daytime. Now that incident would eventually be swept under the rug. Leslie acted normal again and showed no signs of oddity. That all changed one terrifying night though. Telling this story still makes me shiver.

[00:07:59] I was sleeping peacefully in my room when suddenly I heard shouting outside. Shouting outside. I checked the time and it was 2.30 in the morning. Just then, my mom barged into my room with my brother. Stay with grandpa and grandma and be sure to lock the doors, she ordered.

[00:08:19] We complied and even my grandparents were none the wiser. That was the end of it. Morning came but Leslie was nowhere to be found. My mom, grandparents, uncle and aunt were sitting at the dining table having a serious discussion over breakfast.

[00:08:37] My mom filled me and my brother in as we sat with them. I'm glad I caught her when I did, she said. I asked her what she meant and she revealed that around two in the morning she got up to drink a glass of water.

[00:08:50] She found Leslie sitting on the couch looking troubled. Mom offered her a drink as well. As she got up, a large kitchen knife fell from her pocket. That was when I heard the yelling and it all made sense. My mom shouted at her and told her

[00:09:12] that she was going to break her neck so she better not try anything stupid. The disturbing part about this was that while my mom was berating her, Leslie was there just smiling and staring at the knife on the floor. My mother kicked the knife right from underneath her,

[00:09:35] picked it up and shoved her with the other arm in one swift motion. That's where we connected the dots. Mom went to our respective rooms and told us to take refuge with our grandparents. She called my aunt and uncle for backup to contain Leslie

[00:09:52] as they packed her things for her and booked her a cab to get the hell away from us. As she got inside of the ride, they described that she looked as menacing as ever. She gave my mom, aunt and uncle a cold and calculating stare

[00:10:08] before her cab rode off in the dark morning sky, never to be seen again. A few weeks later, Michelle reached out to us for the first time since she had been away. She told my grandma that she was going to have to extend her vacation

[00:10:25] for at least a couple more weeks. Grandma was displeased, so she asked why. I'm afraid of Leslie. She had been making sexual advances towards me and she would stare at me while I slept. She also claimed that Leslie told her that she was going to quote,

[00:10:47] make her squeal like a pig. Michelle apologized to my grandma and told her that she wasn't in the right headspace to continue working. My grandma understood and offered to pay for her extended vacation. She told her to come back whenever she's ready.

[00:11:06] Michelle would eventually send a letter of resignation days later, but I'd like to say that they parted ways amicably. My mom also shared something very horrifying. She had two phones, so she had a tendency to leave the spare on the kitchen countertop. Probably a week after the encounter,

[00:11:28] she was randomly going through her phone's photo albums and she saw a bunch of Leslie's selfies. She had taken several pictures of herself. The first few photos were of her and the kitchen simply smiling and doing peace signs. The last pictures really fucked us up for months.

[00:11:50] It was her smiling and posing with a large kitchen knife, the same kitchen knife that she dropped when my mom caught her. The pictures were also taken that same night. My grandma contacted the agency where Leslie and Michelle came from to find a replacement.

[00:12:09] She also became curious and started asking about Leslie. The agent she spoke to on the phone told her that they pulled Leslie's records to have them subpoenaed by the police. My grandma asked why. Apparently, she was involved in a murder case involving arson.

[00:12:27] This happened right after we kicked her out. She found another job in a city two hours away from us. She had been working for a family of four. She didn't waste time proving that she was dangerous as she burned down the house

[00:12:41] while all four of the family members were asleep. As of writing this, she has yet to be caught. I only pray that Michelle and the souls of the family that she burned will find their peace. How terrifying and humbling it is to know

[00:12:59] that our fates could have been decided by someone we barely even knew. This is a reminder to be careful who you let inside the comfort of your own home. If your gut senses trouble, chances are you are not wrong. I still have nightmares about her.

[00:13:16] I have nightmares about her peeking through my window while humming that eerie tune. And some of my nightmares, it's our house that she burns down. So to Leslie, I hope to God that you spend the rest of eternity behind bars, far away from humanity,

[00:13:35] where you can no longer hurt anyone. Let us never ever meet again, even in my nightmares. I moved to Hawaii with my family when I had just turned 18 years old. Other than a few psycho boyfriends, I really didn't have any problems from people when growing up.

[00:14:12] At 18, I was still pretty shy and quite honestly, a people pleaser. But it didn't really bother me. I was living on the big island and despite the name, there wasn't much to do. Don't get me wrong, I loved the adventures that I experienced.

[00:14:28] But after freshly graduating high school and getting ready for my best years, I was slightly bored and grew depressed. I decided to create a routine to help keep my mind and body occupied. Every morning, I would wake up pretty early, make a cup of coffee,

[00:14:45] scroll through Tumblr because it was 2015, and then head to the health food store in town. I would get the same healthy meal, then drive over to the beach, which is about five minutes away. Across from the beach, there was a large walking path shaped like the number eight

[00:15:04] that I would jog a few laps on. And then I would head over to the beach to cool off in the ocean and eat my lunch in the sun. The beach was extremely remote. It didn't have the nicest sand or water. Not so many people would be around.

[00:15:22] One day in the fall, I decided to put on my favorite bikini and hit the road. I remember feeling so good that day and so confident in myself that nothing was going to bring me down. I had just finished up my jog

[00:15:37] and decided to drive to the other side where I would normally park my car. No one was at the beach yet, so I snagged my best spot under a tree where my car would be protected from the sun. I scoped out the spot

[00:15:51] that I wanted to eat my lunch at and then ran into the waves to cool off. I sat on my blanket and ate lunch. I noticed a couple about half a mile down the beach with their dog, but I was alone at my end.

[00:16:05] I laid back to catch some sun when I started hearing a voice behind me. Startled, I sat up and I tried to play it cool. I looked on either side of me and I didn't see anyone, so I brushed it off, but stayed alert. The voices started again.

[00:16:24] This time, this time I realized that they were coming from behind me. I should also note that I would usually have one headphone in with low music. I heard a man's voice. He kind of sounded like he was moaning or grunting, but then would occasionally say something

[00:16:41] under his breath like, please come here. I casually turned my face down the beach to pretend that I was looking around, showing that I had a headphone in, but I glanced out of the corner of my eye and I could see this man sitting on the beach

[00:16:59] in a chair, just about five feet from me. He was hidden in the tall weeds that separate the sand from the small forest. After about two minutes, the man began to moan and grunt louder. I felt pretty uncomfortable,

[00:17:16] but I figured he was on some sort of phone call telling someone to come here to the beach, but grunting with their reply. I finally had the courage to glance back to see he was sitting in the beach chair with his head propped back, looking very relaxed.

[00:17:35] Then it hit me. Is this man actually hooking up with someone directly behind me on the beach? I felt my blood rush from my face as I grew very unsettled. I didn't want to cause a scene, so I decided to casually get up

[00:17:50] and take a dip in the water so I could look at him without being too obvious. I went to the water, took a quick dip, and then made my way back to the blanket, looking at the weeds in front of him so that we wouldn't make eye contact.

[00:18:05] He was alone, and you can probably imagine what he was doing. I sat back down on my blanket and my fight or flight activated. I was alone. If I ran, he could have easily grabbed me. If I sat there, who knows what could have happened. He kept muttering,

[00:18:25] please come here. I was sick to my stomach. I looked up and down the beach and I found a couple, probably in their 60s, sitting at a picnic table about 500 feet away in the opposite direction. I sat there and came up with a plan.

[00:18:44] I slowly gathered my belongings and packed up the trash from my lunch. I moved almost in slow motion so that he wouldn't realize I was leaving. After everything was packed up, I pretended to change the song on my phone and looked off at the couple in the distance

[00:19:01] like I recognized them and wanted to catch up with them. Once I stood up, he started to beg me to come over to him. I acted like I couldn't hear him over the music when the reality of it was I had turned the music off

[00:19:17] just to listen to my surroundings. His comments got a little more aggressive and I felt my legs go numb. The couple was so far that if this man grabbed me, no one would even know. After about 45 seconds, I built up the courage to start walking.

[00:19:34] I refused to look back. I made it to about 10 feet from the couple and at an indoor voice volume so that the man couldn't possibly hear me. I said, please help me. I think I'm in danger. The couple walked over to me

[00:19:51] and asked me if I was okay and I explained what happened. We turned to see if he had followed me and what we saw still haunts me to this day. The man was just standing there in the weeds staring at me. Now, I know you're thinking, okay, and?

[00:20:11] But when I tell you it was fucking creepy, I just want you to picture this. Remember when Michael Myers is standing behind the hedge watching Laurie walk home from school. He was standing there with his legs slightly apart, arms down at his sides, just staring, emotionless.

[00:20:29] That's what this fucking creep was doing. His lower half was hidden by the weeds in which he was hiding while he was watching me. This spooked all three of us. The couple decided to treat me as a family member.

[00:20:44] I think we decided that I was their niece for the day. The wife stayed on the beach to call the cops and the husband wanted to walk me to my car to make sure that this asshole didn't kidnap me. As we approached my car,

[00:20:58] I noticed an old blazer that was parked next to my car. Out of all of the spaces to park, someone parked so close to my car that I didn't even know if I was going to be able to open my door and get in.

[00:21:12] As we were walking up, the creep pops out from behind the cars and just stands there staring at me. He was waiting. Thankfully, my quote-unquote uncle decided to pull a quick one and spike up a conversation. It was seriously nice to see you.

[00:21:30] Tell your parents that we need to get together this weekend and let me know when you get home safe. I played it off with him. He watched me drive away to make sure that the creep who was now sitting in his car didn't start following me.

[00:21:47] I flew to town. I parked my car and walked to the closest local business and asked if I could hide inside and call the cops because I didn't know if he was following me. The cops came and recommended that I go to the station to file a report.

[00:22:03] I went and I gave them all of the information that I had but it wasn't enough to track the guy down. A few weeks went by and I saw his car once or twice. I knew it was him because the color wasn't the average color. Nothing too alerting.

[00:22:20] Until one day, I decided to meet my parents at the health food store. I walked into the store and shopped around with my parents because, well, I was a broke 18-year-old so I'd take free food from my parents any day. As I walked out of the store,

[00:22:36] I walked past a car that was parked right outside the door. As I passed by, I turned my head to see the driver staring at me through dark sunglasses. I literally dropped my food. My heart felt like it sank all the way to my toes. It was him

[00:22:55] sitting there waiting. I walked to my car and again my fight or flight reactivated. I snuck over to my parents' car just before they left to tell them that he was here. My dad had a plan. He would take my car

[00:23:11] and I would ride with my mom in hers. My dad started driving and the blazer followed. My mom and I followed behind from a distance. After some loops and turns, my dad ended up behind the man following him. The guy pulls off into the driveway

[00:23:29] then got out of the car and started yelling at my car which was stopped directly behind him. My dad gives him the classic stop sign or the classic stop following my daughter or you'll regret it type of protective dad threats. After that, I never saw the guy again.

[00:23:46] It took me a while to get over the paranoia and actually fall asleep at night. I moved to the mainland about eight months later. I've lived in northern Vermont and New Hampshire my entire life. I was raised in a small town where everyone knows everyone

[00:24:16] so the names in this encounter will be changed for identity. I got pregnant right out of high school and in my very religious family I was already the black sheep. I dated the junkies, the abusers and everything in between. My son's father and I

[00:24:34] were on again off again for nearly two years both while I was pregnant and after our son was born. During the off season of my relationship with the son's father someone on Facebook popped up. He was on my suggested friends list

[00:24:51] and was everything that I was looking for. His picture was him in a cowboy hat and a dark jacket and it had something very mysterious about it so I tapped ad friend. It wasn't long before I got a notification of acceptance of my request.

[00:25:10] Seconds later, I got a message. We'll call him Jeremy. Hi, how are you? This is how the conversation began. We texted all day and night and after church on Sunday I said that I would FaceTime him. I'm not a very shy person

[00:25:28] but I don't think very highly of myself thanks to past relationships so it took a while before I'd turn my camera around to show my face. Of course, the compliments started coming in and I brushed them off because I'd often had the mindset that

[00:25:44] men are dogs and want nothing but sex. He knew that I was pregnant when he first messaged me. I didn't hide it on my Facebook page. I had baby bump pictures all over it. When I mentioned that he didn't ask about my pregnancy he responded with

[00:26:02] I'm happy you're pregnant. I can't wait to be a dad. I thought that it was very odd because he obviously wasn't my son's father but I brushed it off. We continued to talk and he would randomly make little comments about how much fun he and my son

[00:26:23] would one day have together. I still find this very strange. Jeremy was going into the Marines. He was leaving for boot camp shortly after we started talking and my son's father decided that he wanted to be a dad. So we were now back together

[00:26:41] and Jeremy got pushed aside. I don't do long distance relationships anyways so Jeremy and I just wouldn't work out. Keep in mind Jeremy and I had never met in person while we first started talking. Our relationship was strictly over Facebook. Flash forward 14 months.

[00:27:03] My son is nearing his first birthday and his father and I for the last time broke up because we decided that we would co-parent better as friends and no longer be in a toxic relationship. I was at the dentist on one morning that I didn't have work

[00:27:18] and I got a message request from a woman's Facebook page. The name sounded familiar so I tapped accept and was able to read the text. It said, Hey, it's Jeremy. I'm in town again on leave and I'd love to see you. My heart nearly exploded.

[00:27:37] I forgot about the creepy things that he would say about my son. After my appointment, we agreed to meet. We met in a Walgreens parking lot where I told him to follow me to my house. I was still living with my parents

[00:27:51] but I knew they wouldn't be home. He came inside, met my son and then we went to my room for some alone time. Now before I say anything else, yes, I made horrible decisions being a 19 year old mom. But my son wasn't alone

[00:28:09] while Jeremy and I were in the other room. My son was always safe in any situation that I put myself in. After we finished, he got up and left. He ghosted me for three weeks. While I was being ghosted, I thought, Was I really that bad?

[00:28:27] A little history with myself and Marines in particular, any relationship or one night stand I had with one, I'd always find out later that they were in a relationship, engaged or even married. It's more common than you think. Again, let me just say,

[00:28:43] I have great respect for military coming from a military family but I have a hard time with cheating and things like this. This time with Jeremy, it was marriage. I still had no idea that he was married when he finally texted me after our rendezvous. Hey,

[00:29:02] I missed you, he said. I responded, Why haven't you texted me for so long? Did I do something wrong? Oh no, and he called me baby girl. My wife took my phone because she found out I skipped her grandfather's funeral to be with you. Unfortunately not surprised,

[00:29:22] I said, You're married? He started talking about how he and his wife were struggling and that he needed to blow off steam. I began to make my responses very short hoping that he would take the hint and leave me alone and thankfully he did,

[00:29:38] until a couple of months ago. I went out to a popular bar. I was with my friend Jenny, her boyfriend, and my husband. I noticed someone staring at me but I'm too naive for my own good so I didn't think anything of it.

[00:29:56] Jenny and I got our drinks and decided to go to the patio because it was too hot inside. It was late October so there was a nice chill in the air. Our men stayed inside to snag an open pool table. Jenny and I were talking

[00:30:13] when I felt this presence behind me. This man got in between Jenny and I and in a vaguely familiar voice I heard in a very loud tone, Do you even know who I am? My blood ran cold. Jeremy? I didn't know what to do. I almost started crying.

[00:30:34] Yes, it's me, Jeremy. How's work at that home improvement store? He even said the name of the location. Taken aback, I stupidly said, I don't work there anymore. Did you start back at work at that clothing store in town? Again, he said the name of the store

[00:30:56] and gave the location. I said, How do you know where I work? I've been watching, he said. I've been keeping tabs on you. I wanted to talk to you but you're always with that damn husband of yours. My husband and Jenny's boyfriend came out

[00:31:17] and I shot my husband a look of help me. My husband didn't address Jeremy. He gave him a look and then took me inside. We didn't leave though. Jenny and I found some chairs near the pool table so that my husband could keep an eye on me.

[00:31:32] Jeremy kept coming over to me all night asking if I was actually happy with my marriage and if my needs were being met. I told him to fuck off and that I was perfectly happy with my marriage and that he needed to butt out. After a few intrusions,

[00:31:49] my husband made the executive decision to bring us all home. He said, I was irritated at first but my husband was driving and I didn't want to make him any madder than he already was. I thought it was over until a couple of days later

[00:32:03] when I brought my boys to a secluded playground away from heavy traffic. My husband was at work so I had his five-year-old son and my three-year-old son at the park by myself. I usually bring the boys to the parks in town around dinner time

[00:32:21] so that there aren't any people around. So that there are less kids and my boys can just be wild. I started to get this uneasy feeling like I was being watched. I noticed a car a little ways off and someone still sitting in it.

[00:32:40] I waved to the person in the car to show them that I noticed them. They drove off and I thought that was the end of it. I wasn't ready to go home with the boys and my husband had made me start to conceal carry

[00:32:53] because it's legal in our state. A few minutes later the car drove by again. It stopped. It left a couple of minutes later but it came back and it stopped. It would come back, park, and leave a couple of more times

[00:33:12] until I told my boys that it was time to go because I was starting to get uneasy. I'm still to this day not sure if it was Jeremy or not. I don't believe in coincidence but this was just too creepily similar to Jeremy

[00:33:27] to think that it could be anyone else. So Jeremy, please fuck off and let's not meet at the bar or at my place of employment again. This happened when I was 19 and returning from college to visit my hometown. I'm now 24. I'm a very small female. One night,

[00:33:59] I had been at my father's house watching TV with him and typically around nine o'clock he would go to visit his girlfriend just down the road. That night, he did just that and I continued to watch my show on the couch. I also have a very small dog

[00:34:16] who is a very kind and friendly dog with humans. She is a pit bull but definitely not in any way aggressive. I made the decision to get a dog, specifically a pit bull for protection when I'm alone and for a sweet companion. Because of her kind demeanor,

[00:34:32] I was always worried about whether she would actually protect me in any dangerous situations or not. Unfortunately, I was forced to find out. To paint a picture of my dad's house, the living room area is essentially surrounded by large windows on the right side of the couch

[00:34:50] with a glass back door behind it in the kitchen. That night, the blinds to all of the windows were still open and I had the lights on in the living room. Behind me, the glass back door is where I let my dog in and out frequently

[00:35:06] so that she can get all of that energy out throughout the day as well as in the night in the fenced backyard. Because of this, the door is hardly ever locked. During this night, my dog was actually upstairs which was quite rare

[00:35:20] because she's usually attached to my side. Unfortunately for me, this was the time when I needed her the most. As I was watching my show at a normal volume, I was relaxed and unconcerned since I had spent countless nights alone at that house.

[00:35:37] Plus it was a safe suburban area and a very safe town. To my surprise, I suddenly heard noises coming from the back door. This was not at all normal because the backyard has no access to our driveway and is fenced in.

[00:35:55] No one in my family would be using this door for entry. Initially, I heard the door handle turn side to side a few times while I was watching my show which prompted me to quickly press pause. I didn't dare look behind me.

[00:36:14] I froze when I realized that the door was not locked and I heard it slowly open. I essentially slid my way down to where I laid flat on my back on the couch in a panic not knowing what to do. My only weapons were knives in the kitchen

[00:36:34] and the stranger was directly in my path to the kitchen. I felt frozen. I couldn't move or think. I was almost in denial of what was happening. I thought fight or flight may kick in but it didn't. It didn't feel real.

[00:36:51] I really don't know what was going through my mind because during that moment rather than calling the police, I texted a friend who I had already been in a conversation with and said, I think someone just broke into my house. At that moment,

[00:37:06] I saw my dog at the top of the stairs. I had never felt so relieved. I locked eyes with her and shakily said, Who is it? This was usually my phrase to get her riled up if a stranger was outside or I wanted her to bark.

[00:37:25] Immediately in that moment, she flies down the stairs. I don't move a muscle as I hear her growl and bark behind me. The most ferocious sounds I had ever heard her make. And then there was silence. When I finally worked up the nerve to look behind me,

[00:37:42] I saw my dog standing in the empty doorway. I felt a little ashamed of my fear and terrible decision making in this moment as I had the phone in my hand and I did not call the police. However, I am forever grateful to my dog's bravery

[00:37:57] and potentially owe her my life. I never want to know what would have happened if she had not been there. In terms of this stranger, there was no question as to whether or not somebody was home. It was very easy to see me

[00:38:11] through all of the open windows and I worry that maybe they had been watching the house waiting until I was alone to make their entry. Afterwards, I called my dad until he finally answered and tried to casually explain what happened. I felt a strange sense of calm

[00:38:29] and I really wasn't that shaken up. I was just so thankful and happy to have my dog. He prompted me to call the police and they searched the area while dusting for fingerprints. They found no one in the area and lectured me on the importance of locking doors.

[00:38:46] A few weeks later, it was reported that there was a homeless man that was arrested after somebody discovered him lurking in their yard at night in my neighborhood. I never found out if it was the same person but whoever it was that tried to enter my home.

[00:39:01] I hope we never meet and if we do, my dog will be waiting. 2021, it's been a rough one for me. I'm a 19-year-old woman who was diagnosed with a severe autoimmune disease earlier in the year and I unfortunately lost my grandmother.

[00:39:30] However, I'm able to get help with my situation and I'm very blessed for those around me. Anyway, this is not supposed to be about any medical history but it helps with understanding my day-to-day life. I'm a true crime sucker. I love podcasts similar to this one

[00:39:48] and can't get enough of them. This has made me smarter in certain situations and always hyper aware of my surroundings. However, I am physically an easy target. I walk pretty slow now and recently with a limp due to the twisting of a knee.

[00:40:07] I've been able to get my hands on a temporary handicap tag which has helped ease my mind when it comes to parking closer to buildings and for people being able to see me get in and out of my car. Thankfully, this story doesn't involve some creep approaching me

[00:40:22] when I'm at my most vulnerable. This was an evening when I was headed home from my boyfriend's house. He had left a little later than usual because we were spending time with his parents and brother. We were just goofing around. I had finally set off around 10.30 p.m

[00:40:41] and it takes me 20 minutes to get to my house. But since it was late at night and not that busy of a route and the fact that I have a bit of a lead foot, I can speed a little. I shave off about five minutes or less.

[00:40:56] I pull up to a light that's always red until a couple of cars are sitting at the sensor. There was already another car sitting there so I pulled up behind them on their left. I don't know about anyone else but I always try not to pull up

[00:41:13] right next to someone else's window while at night. It just makes me feel very awkward and I wasn't in the mood for an awkward smile if both of us happened to look over. Not even two full miles down the road,

[00:41:28] I noticed out of the corner of my eye that the car at the light was level with me for a couple of seconds. I didn't want to think too much of it since we were the only two of a few cars on the road

[00:41:43] and it happened quite often. Next thing I know, he's riding my tail. At the time, I had my hair down so this person could clearly see that I was probably a girl. I started to get a bit suspicious but maybe they were going the same way.

[00:42:00] It wasn't too unlikely. The way to go home is a popular street to go to the next town over without taking the interstate. Once I get close to the light where I turn left, I quickly jump over without my blinker just in case

[00:42:15] but this person was treading behind just enough to jump behind me. I try not to jump to any conclusions but these were some red flags that I couldn't ignore. I didn't want to get ahead of myself so I wanted to confirm that this person was actually following me.

[00:42:33] Once the light turned green, I floored it. This bastard was right behind me not long after. When it came time for me to turn into my neighborhood, I did not slow down as much as I should have and made a hard right

[00:42:47] praying that no one was trying to turn out of the entrance. I slowed down thinking that I may have lost him. When I look over to my rear view mirror, I see them creeping in, no blinker and no actual intentions to enter this neighborhood

[00:43:04] other than to scare me. I make my final decision before calling anyone for help. When I got to the stop sign, I turned right instead of left where I normally would turn. No one turns right. Even those who live on that road always go through the first entrance.

[00:43:25] I look in my rear view mirror. You know what? He turned right, still creeping behind me. Again, no blinker. I quickly grab my phone and call my brother as fast as I can. Thankfully, my poor brother had left his ringer on and was scared awake by my call.

[00:43:46] I frantically told him what was going on trying to keep my composure. My brother is active military and at the time he was working at an aviation office at the airport. This man half asleep leaps out of bed, puts on some pants and grabs a pistol.

[00:44:02] My father was awake as well. So my brother told him what was going on and he went and grabbed a rifle. I kept making turns left and right around my neighborhood, even going around cul-de-sacs. But this bitch was still right behind me.

[00:44:19] My brother and father told me to come on by the house. So I headed that way quickly. When I was right around the corner from my house, I made the mistake of hugging the right side of the road. The next thing I know,

[00:44:34] I hear their engine rev and they speed up by me. Then they stop in the middle of the road, right where I couldn't get around. I see this man's car door open and he steps out of the fucking car with his hand in his left pocket

[00:44:49] as he begins to approach my car. Seriously, he stepped out of the fucking car with his hand in his pocket. In my mind, I was screaming and panicking but I couldn't scream or even open my mouth. I instinctively put my car in reverse and backed up a bit.

[00:45:06] He notices this and runs back to his car and proceeds to peel out. I then pull into my driveway as it wasn't even three houses away and I sit there until my brother gives me the okay. When he drives back, he slows down a bit

[00:45:24] and he can obviously see the two men, my brother and dad, standing on my front porch with very obvious guns in their hands. He quickly got his ass out of there. If he had tried to come up our driveway,

[00:45:43] my brother and dad would have unleashed hell upon that man. I have never cried like I did when I got inside of my home that night. We were able to get a hold of a non-emergency police and send in a description of the man in his car

[00:45:57] but of course nothing ever came of it. To this day, I still wish I had paid attention to his license plate when he pulled in front of me but when someone is menacingly walking towards you, that's usually the last thing on your mind.

[00:46:12] Since then, my family and I have made plans to eventually get myself a revolver to keep in my car and tint my windows. I'm forever thankful that my family is willing to help me out in scary situations such as this one.

[00:46:28] Now, I always try not to drive home by myself too late but if I do for some reason, I always try to wear a hoodie and pull my hair back. The scariest part of this entire situation was the fact that my brother could see this man

[00:46:42] get out of the car and approach me from our front porch. My brother was just far enough away that if he had not done anything, he would not have been able to reach me in time. So to the creep who clearly had nothing better to do

[00:46:56] than follow some random girl all around her neighborhood and to her house, let's not meet. Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Let's Not Meet, a true horror podcast and don't forget if you're looking for the weekly dose

[00:47:23] of true paranormal, head over to my other podcast, oddtrails at oddtrails.com or wherever you get your podcasts today. This week, you have heard, Bad Guy and the Blazer by someone who asked to remain anonymous. Jeremy by Catherine. Pity Savior by AK.

[00:47:43] And finally, followed home by some creep by Noel. All of the stories you've heard this week were narrated and produced with the permission of their respective authors. Let's Not Meet, a true horror podcast is not associated with Reddit or any other message board

[00:48:00] As always, if you have a story to share, make sure you send it to letsnotmeetstories at gmail.com and if you want to get access to the extended ad-free version of this week's episode at a higher bit rate with even better quality audio,

[00:48:14] head over to patreon.com forward slash letsnotmeetpodcast to sign up today and support the show. I'll see you all next week for a brand new episode of Let's Not Meet. Stay safe. This happened in February of 2022. It takes place in the Great Lakes region.