East Texas Experience
It was late 1992. I was in my last year of college and dating a guy (we'll call him Bryan for privacy's sake) from a neighboring university. We had agreed before going home to our families that I would drive up to see him over the Christmas/New Year break and spend a few days with his family at his parent's home. So, after Christmas but before New Year's I got in my little car and drove the 5 hours out to east Texas.
His family lived in a wood frame older home. The kind that has little parlors and folding/sliding doors. Wood floors. Big attic with large chimney and room to walk around in the attic. Anyway, the first day I was there, I didn't really pay much attention to the house. Bryan showed me around his small town, where he went to church as a kid and we went out to dinner and saw a movie.
I'd like to take a moment to note here that we did not drink any alcohol, do any drugs or other type of mind altering substances (when I retell this story and people hear how late it was they just assume SOMETHING must have happened to cause me to "imagine" this so I provide this disclaimer each time I tell it) Just dinner and a movie. We got back to his parent's house around midnight. I remember that I sat up chatting with his mom for about 30 minutes before I went to my "room." Their house didn't have extra guest rooms so I had been given a sitting room that had double doors on two sides of it. There was a couch, TV, and a fireplace. I was supposed to sleep on the couch. The double doors - one set opened to a larger living room where my boyfriend was sleeping on a sleeper sofa and the other set of doors on the other side of the room opened into a dining area with table and chairs and beyond that was the kitchen.
So, I go into my room and close both sets of doors while I get undressed and into my sleepwear. I flipped the light switch and got under the covers on the couch. I remember rolling over to face the back of the couch and snuggle down to get warmer. I was WIDE AWAKE - clear headed. I had just gotten comfortable when I "felt" Bryan walk into the room. But it was complete silence. You know how sometimes you know someone has walked into a room even if your back is turned and they didn't really make a noise? Well, that is what I thought had happened. Bryan's bags were in the room I was sleeping in so I figured he must need his contact solution or something. But after a minute I realized that I didn't hear him rummaging in his bags and I guess I must have thought it odd that he didn't say something like "oh, forgot my deoderant, mind if I turn on the light?" Just silence but I could tell he was in the room.
Remember it was dark - I had turned off the light. But there was enough light coming through one of the windows for me to see outlines and contrasts in the room. I rolled over on the couch and discovered "Bryan" standing over me RIGHT BESIDE THE COUCH. He seemed to have his arms and hands in a "praying position". Hands together, head bowed. In the dark, I remember it seemed like he was wearing a white t-shirt like my grandpa used to wear under his shirt. Those real thin tank top type of tshirts. Some people call them "wife beaters." Anyway, I am still thinking this is Bryan, cause its dark and the man is about the same size so I say "What are you DOING?" cause I'm puzzled why he'd be standing there like that beside me.
Well, Bryan answered me. FROM THE OTHER ROOM. He said, "nothing, in bed reading" or something totally normal. I am now freaking out and my eyes are tearing up and my heart is pounding because I do not know WHO is standing next to me in the dark. And he is STILL standing there unmoving and I'm terrified. So, I said - still thinking I must have misheard - "um, where are you?" and Bryan replied back, still from the other room, "I'm in bed, why?"
I am lying flat on my back trying to press into the sofa and tears are running down my face and my heart is about to rip out of my chest because I know something isn't right. This man shouldn't be here in the room and he is just standing there. So, I yell "get in here! now, please!" and at that point the man by the couch who has remained still and unmoving and in prayer or meditation or whatever this whole time - just starts to walk backwards. He is still praying or whatever as he goes backwards. As Bryan opened the folding doors, the man walked backward and through the furniture he sort of just vanished.
Bryan turned on the lights and came over to the couch and I had all sorts of questions for him. I was trying to discern if someone had played on a joke on me, how it could have happened. Bryan was calm and puzzled. No grinning like a joke had been played and I don't think he believed me. He told me believed that I believed it and that he could tell I was scared. But he didn't really believe it because he'd lived in that house a long time and never had that happen. I wanted to wake his parents up and ask them what the history of the house was. Bryan said no way as his mom had just had a pacemaker put in and didn't want to scare her. I also felt like he didn't want her to think I was loony. But Bryan's older brother later told me that the house had been built in the early 1900's and a doctor had practiced medicine there and used part of it to treat patients.
Who knows? Who did I see? Did it have to do with the time of the year? Christmas/New Year? Was it the old doc? one of his patients?
I stayed with Bryan's family three more nights and I made myself stay in the same room but I clearly remember going to sleep and keeping my eyes firmly shut once the light went out and facing the back of the couch. I remember PRAYING that I wouldn't see anything else. And honestly, I'm glad I didn't. I probably would have cut my visit short.
--Clare
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