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People Share The Scariest Thing To Happen In Their Hometown

People Share The Scariest Thing To Happen In Their Hometown
Stevica Mrdja / EyeEm / GettyImages

It seems like just about every town, no matter how big or small, has that one story. For a lot of people that story can be brushed off as a local urban legend - but not for the people in this article.


Reddit user PatrickBateman asked:

What's the creepiest/downright scariest thing to happen to you or someone else in your hometown/city?

What follows are some of the scariest and most horrific responses we could find and confirm. Honestly, it's stuff like this that terrifies people. Warning: The responses you're about to read through include mentions of murder, suicide, harm to children, racism, unexplained death and more. We've even got werewolves and Slenderman in here.

Proceed with caution.

Sister's Jog

"My sister found a teen who had just committed suicide when she was running once. She heard the gun and was just rounding a turn and thought someone was shooting at her. He shot himself in the head."

- zigazigazah

Minor Mysteries

"This isn't exactly the scariest thing but it's an unsolved mystery and it creeped me and my dad out then."

"We just came home to see all the lights in the house were on. The TV was on the Netflix profile select, and the glass on the fireplace was on the opposite side of the room. Nothing was taken, nothing else was out of place."

"In my room, the computer was on and logged into my password-protected account. And I turned it off before. Also, most of my printer paper was gone and the TV in there was on the Netflix select too."

"I still don't know what happened."

- MP8_YT

Werewolf Murders

Giphy

"Some 22 year old guy who claimed to be an immortal werewolf, was "dating" a tween. The two of them came up with a plan to kill her whole family, and did. Both parents and her younger brother were murdered in their sleep."

- mr_cristy

A Lot Of People Assume I'm Racist

"My town is known for a hate crime that happened in 1998, I was only three years old at the time but three white supremacist chained a black man to the back of a truck and drug him down the street. It was pretty horrible stuff and got brought back into the news this year because the last guy was finally executed. A lot of people assume that I'm racist when I tell them where I am from which is pretty awkward considering I work in social services."

- liza5335

"That Guy"

"Sat next to a kid in high school who killed his mom by stabbing her over 100 times. It was a Microsoft class so we were on computers talking all day and became buddies. He would show me pictures of bombs he made from 2 liters, home-made flamethrowers from squirt bottles, etc. I never thought he was "that guy" though."

"He was sentenced to 35 years because he admitted guilt and refused to plea insanity even though the judge advised him to. In trial he didn't try to defend himself. Walked in, said "I'm guilty and deserve prison" - seriously. Judge asked why he did it and he told her that his mom was verbally and physically abusive to him and he just lost mental stability for a bit. Told the judge that despite that, she didn't deserve death and he deserved prison. I don't think he opened up too much about what type of abuse she did because he wasn't trying to defend himself saying he was in the okay."

"Please note this was many years ago before the time you'd make teachers aware of these types of things."

- donutshopsss

To Hide The Evidence

"A guy I went to school and hung out with and his precious two year old daughter where found dead in his car after it had caught on fire. I am not sure if it was ruled a homicide, but I know tons of people who believe they were murdered and then their bodies where burned to hide the evidence. I cannot imagine the pain the mother is going through. She lost her precious little girl and boyfriend."

- Aubs71993

Blame The Aboriginals 

"A little boy was bashed to death by his mother and stepfather in front of his younger siblings. After the little boy died in hospital, the "parents" were questioned by the police and claimed that he'd been attacked and beaten by a group of young Aboriginal boys in a nearby park."

"My brothers in law, who are Aboriginal, were about 12 & 13 at the time. They were pulled aside on the street by police and interrogated aggressively/accused of killing the little boy. There was excessive police force involved. My younger brother in law up to this point had been a very happy, trusting boy...he has never been the same since."

- Trin20k

Just Started Stabbing

"Two girls were randomly stabbed at one of the high schools here. The guy who did it didn't go there, didn't know them. Just walked in an started stabbing. A video of it ended up online... it's all our town was talking about for weeks."

"One girl lived, but the second unfortunately died in the hospital. She was my aunt's neighbor and we had gone trick or treating together as kids. Less than a year after it happened there was a publication ban put on the name of the girl who died. Her family was furious. The killer was getting all of this attention and she, the victim, was just some nameless teenager."

- Ta5hak5

Gutted

"When I was in high school a girl I knew worked at a gas station in town, which I went to everyday after school. She was murdered."

"She went missing and they found her at conservation site naked on the edge of the river. They didn't find her murderer until he tried to kill another girl I knew, luckily she survived him gutting her like a deer."

"Apparently, he and the first girl got into an argument and he proceeded to hit her with the hatchet he had. The first blow didn't kill her so he "decided to put her out of her misery" (his words) and hit her again. To cover his tracks he opted to undress her and hide her in the tall grass along the river."

"The second girl's boyfriend was "friends" with the guy. I believe he showed up when the boyfriend wasn't there or had just left (I'm not totally sure what the situation was this was probably nine years ago) but he got in an argument with the second girl and he gutted her."

"She was able to get herself to a neighbor, survived, and was able to I.D him. When they arrested him he confessed to the first girls murder. It was crazy because I knew both girls, I knew the guy and went to school with his younger sister. I also lived about a minute away from where he attempted to murder the second girl."

"I felt so bad for his sister because she continued to tell everyone what a great guy he was. She had to deal with all the people at school who hated her brother because the first girl was well loved in our small community."

- Aubs71993

Free Baby Clothes

Giphy

"A pregnant Colorado woman responded to a Craigslist ad for free baby clothes. When she arrived the woman that lived there stabbed her and cut out her baby. She left her there to die but she was still some how able to call 911. They ended up finding the crazy lady at the hospital with the baby and she had told the doctors she had a miscarriage. The baby unfortunately did not make it but the woman was able to recover after surgery."

"The lady just recently was sentenced to 100 years. Apparently this has happened several times in several different places."

- justneededausername_

How'd He Get There?

"A young man went missing in the city I went to university in. He was a first year student and vanished walking back home from a night out in town. This is a long walk (about three miles from the pubs and clubs in the centre to the campus) and it was January, so very cold. General theory was that he had passed out drunk and frozen to death, but no body was found in any of the nearby areas."

"Our campus is surrounded by mountains, forests, trails, cliffs... there's a big lake in the middle of it. Lots of places for a drunk person to get into trouble, but still nothing showed up."

"Not even any clues, like some of his belongings or something. Abduction was briefly considered, but again no evidence. It kind of faded out of the forefront of everyone's minds, though the search was never called off."

"Finally the body was found. It was in a remote area of forest, and I believe it was spotted either from the air, or from someone walking at some distance and seeing bright clothing in the snow/frost. The body itself was in an area inaccessible by foot or road, far past the distance he could have walked without succumbing to hypothermia (he was only in jeans and T-shirt). Nobody knows how he managed to get up there, or survive long enough to get anywhere near it, but an autopsy showed nothing suspicious. I know there's probably a rational explanation, but it was incredibly unnerving. It was a long walk, too, and not a single person saw him while he was making it."

- Lavrentiiy

D And His Dad

"A kid that I went to school with started doing meth with his dad and one day, in a paranoid state, they kidnapped a woman and her daughters. They kept them in a house just a few streets up from me, had them tied up and beat them to get some kind of "revenge."

"One of the girls escaped and ran to a neighbor to call 911. The kid (we'll call D) and his dad took off, ended up in a city about 20 minutes away. They stole an older man's work truck and kidnapped the man as well. They then drove to nearby Wyoming where they stopped in a secluded wooded area, beat the old man to death and abandoned the truck."

"They were caught about a week later. D ended up receiving a life sentence and his dad killed himself in his cell before trial."

- LandShark93

Scared Of You

"So I work as a nursing assistant. I approached a new patient introducing myself but she looked terrified and said "I don't know why but I'm scared of you". After we laughed about it."

Anyway, the next day I checked her blood pressure etc and everything was fine. She asked to go to the toilet so I helped her across. 5 minutes later I go to check on her and she's lying on the floor, no pulse, no breathing but her eyes are wide open staring at me as I begin chest compressions and I snap her ribs within the first few. Never forget the feeling of her bones moving under the skin and looking at her eyes. That's why she was scared of me. I genuinely think she had a premonition."

""Unfortunately after the crash team came and an extensive effort of resuscitation the decision was made to stop. It was about 6 years ago but I still remember her name. Autopsy said she died from a blood clot in the lung - sudden and not something I could have picked up when I checked her before walking."

- GledaTheGoat

The Star Athlete

"Star athlete at my high school executed his girlfriend with a single gunshot to the back of her head. His case garnered national attention for some time because he was about to join the US Olympic team, until he got locked up. He was released several years later after he was exonerated. But those of us in his class know beyond all doubt that he did it."

- AJNSD619

Creepypasta

Giphy

"I live in the city in Wisconsin where the Slenderman stabbing happened. For those unfamiliar, two middle schoolers lured their friend into the woods at a sleepover, they then stabbed her multiple times and left her there to die because "Slenderman told them to." Slenderman is, essentially, a creepy meme. The girl was found the next morning by a man riding on a bike trail and she somehow survived."

- Unfocusedgamer

"Not just multiple. 34 times. They stabbed their friend 34 times as a sacrifice to a creepypasta."

- 1-1-19MemeBrigade

Bruce

"I used to live across the street from Bruce McArthur."

"He's a serial killer that killed at least eight LGBTQ+ men who were in Toronto. He also preyed on LGBTQ+ men who were homeless."

"He buried victims' body parts on his property and apparently in a nearby ravine that I used to play in with my friends."

- reves-de-lavande

They Still Don't Know

"In my village, there's a railway that goes along a forest and a road. On that railway, there's a bridge for cars to cross. One day someone found a puddle of blood with traces of dragging. Thinking it was an attempt at suicide or a boar that got hit by a train, the person that found it called the mayor and the mayor called the cops. The police also assumed it was a suicide, so they came with a forensic team to get samples, etc."

"The "creepy" part is that no one really cared. My grandmother even said "good riddance". I was like 12 at the time, I didn't understand anything."


"I asked my mom about it when I was 17 and she explained that it was a 27 year old drunk guy that played around on the bridge and tipped over it. He got badly injured, dragged himself in the forest and died there from blood loss."

"He was not really liked in the village, he was known to vandalize houses, break signs, let his dog chase teens, burn hay inside barns, shoot at cats with his paintball gun, etc. People knew because he would always brag about it, but they wouldn't complain to his parents because they were nice people."

"They found the body about one week after the accident. Everyone went to his funeral but the parents were the only one to cry. To this day they still don't know that there son was hated by everyone."

- Hyperbawl

Distracted With Toys

"So I was best friends with this girl that lived with her wonderful grandma across the street. My friend's estranged mother just went up to the house one day, and, distracting my friend (who I think was about 8 or 9 at the time) with toys, she walked up to my friend's grandma and shot her twice, and when she was still alive, buried an axe in her head.

"My dad went across when he heard the gun shots and described brain matter and blood all over the china cabinets, the walls, everything.""

"The killer is in jail now. And my old friend... I don't even know. I heard she's tried to attempt suicide numerous times, but I haven't seen her in almost 10 or so years. I wish I could see them both again. It makes me tear up when I think about it."

- Andromeda0_0

The School Pretended It Never Happened

""The high school near mine had a student commit suicide over the summer the same year I graduated. The school made it worse my not commemorating him, banning any articles of clothing that were dedicated to his memory, and didn't even give him an empty seat during when he was supposed to graduate."

Info also later came out that the student went to the counselors before he died and asked for help, but they basically told him to eff off. It's scary how mental health is downgraded where I live."

- eeveecatcher

Small towns can have huge problems.

If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/

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Things People Secretly Love But Would Never Admit To In Public

Reddit user sweet_chick283 asked: 'What do you secretly love that you would never admit to in public?;

Collection of VHS tapes
Bruno Guerrero/Unsplash

What makes us all unique is our passions and the things we love, whether it's singing in the shower, reading books, or listening to specific music artists.

Unfortunately, we live in a world where we are judged for our various tastes and interests thanks to social media, and it makes us consciously selective about sharing the things we love on the internet.

Curious to hear about people's personal desires under anonymity, Redditor sweet_chick283 asked:

"What do you secretly love that you would never admit to in public?"

These aren't really chores for the following Redditors.

Good Clean Fun

"Mopping, im a janitor and generally hate my work... but damn mopping is so good."

– MrDDog06

"When you have a great rhythm going it is something special. I get the same feeling while I vacuum, but won’t let my wife know I enjoy it."

– Bogus_34

Act Of Unwrinkling

"Ironing clothes. A dozen of them. Can’t explain how it relaxes me. I told one person and they looked at me like I’m crazy."

– eerie_white_glow

"My mum misses the days when dad would be out on a Friday night, my brother out with friends and me upstairs quietly playing PS1. She would pour herself a Bacardi & Coke and do the ironing while watching her TV shows."

"I'm sure she doesn't really miss it now that we've moved out and they've retired but it was her wind-down after a busy working week so I can see how people can find it relaxing."

– xdq

Our solo actions can spark joy.

Big Brother Is Watching

"pretending to be on the Truman show and whenever im in my house i act all inconspicuous so they dont know that i know that they’re watching me."

– Bec_121

"C’mon man, you’re not supposed to let him know. You signed a contract when signing up for live views. I’m reporting you."

– doeswaspsmakehoney

The Multi-Tasker

"Playing video games naked at home while eating cheese."

– thickening_agent

Releasing The Kraken

"I love the feeling when you've eaten good fibre and let out a solid long train log in the toilet. That feeling is heavenly."

– therapoootic

"Even better when it’s a clean wipe and not a poo crayon."

– TheWarmestHugz

Ultimate Comfort

"My (male 41) weekend routine is coming home from work, make hot chocolate, start a fire, dress in a ugly pink nightgown made for old ladies and watch forensic files."

– crazyloomis

Some people are obsessed with collecting things.

So Kawai

"Sanrio stationery stores. All those different multicolor pens, a thousand kinds of erasers, spiral bound notebooks galore... my kids sadly have absolutely no appreciation for this wonderland..."

– HavingNotAttained

It's A Staple

"Office supplies have a weird, special place in my heart ever since I was a kid. They don't even have to be 'cute' necessarily."

"Japan's legendary stationery stores is unironically a reason I want to go."

– _CozyLavender_

Not Caring Anymore

"The older I get the shorter that list gets. Not because I love less things, but because I don't care about hiding it."

– Bi-Beast

"YES!! I'm 53 now. I'm working my first job in public since 2006. Today is Halloween and we're allowed to dress up so I am sitting here waiting to go to work dressed as a VERY bad Wednesday Addams. My bf said I'd 'look stupid' because no one else will probably dress up and I'm like, 'WHO CARES!' My makeup looks horrible and not like I practiced, but I DO NOT CARE! I'm having fun with it anyhow and I don't care if my coworkers dress up or not. I'm bein' ME! :)"

– deanie1970

Honorable mentions start here.

The Savior

"Picking up worms from the street and sidewalks when it rains and moving them into the dirt so they don’t burn in the sun, every time it rains I do this."

– sky_kitten89

Hero Of The Moment

"Yoooo I scoot SO many snails and worms. I work as a tech/mechanic at an automotive shop, I had a peoject car towed to my house the other day and it was covered in snails. I saw them when the tow guy/coworker was unloading and I was like, 'oh! It comes with free snails!' and began moving them. He laughed then realized and said, '... Oh, you're serious. Uh... Okay.'"

"I don't care who knows it. These little things barely can look out for themselves, why shouldn't we if we can take a moment to help? I don't care what happens next, it probably doesn't matter overall but I can help this moment."

– chris14020

Why should some of the hidden desires mentioned above have to be secret?

Redditors opening up about some of these would make them a hit at parties–no shaming.

As a matter of fact, I'll totally be down for a Forensic Files viewing party where we all make hot chocolate, light the fireplace, and cozy up together in our respective pink ugly nightgowns for old ladies.

historical reenactors
Sigmund on Unsplash

We've probably all heard some variation of the saying "Truth is stranger than fiction."

Real life isn't just strange, it can also be downright ridiculous.

History is riddled with moments of absurdity.

So ridiculous that people have a hard time believing real life is, well, really real.

Keep reading...Show less