I kept seeing this bright light in my mom’s bedroom. It was a bathroom. I mean, I have been in it before, and there is nothing inconspicuous about the inside of it. But every time I go in there at night, it gives me a shiver down my spine to be in that dark room and has the only illumination be from the bathroom door, with that yellowish light.
I usually stay in my mom’s room for a short time. But one particular night, we had a family emergency. A family friend was assaulted, so my mom left quickly, leaving my little brother in my care. It was around 10 PM, and my toddler brother was extremely sleepy. Putting him to bed, I noticed the light again. It felt ominous. I knew the inside was nothing to fear, but that light in the dark gave me irrational fear. I couldn’t turn it off, however, at least not until my baby brother was asleep. He is afraid of the dark and couldn’t slumber, les he had some night light.
I sat in my mom’s chair, read him a book, and listened to atmospheric music until my brother slept. I started playing games on my video game console and watching some YouTube videos. Three hours passed, and yet… That light… It got to me. It doesn’t matter how much my phone or DS illuminated the room; I would stare at the bathroom light until the device’s screens shut off.
I got sick of it. Knowing that my little brother was asleep, I decided to go in and turn the light off. Considering the time, the only problem was that I was scared that if I made too much noise, I would wake up my little brother.
I said screw it and decided to take the risk anyway. I got up and started to walk towards the door. As soon as I stood, I felt a giant wave of dread hit me. Why did I feel like this? Yes, the room was considerably large, but as soon as I took the first step, the path felt like it had extended for miles. And it only got scarier.
I took a few more steps, and I started getting dizzy. I got further, and that’s when I heard the voices. They were, at first, faint whispers. I got halfway to the door, and my little brother started crying. Unlike a soft baby cry, this was more like a yelp for help. A mixture of sounds that I can only describe as the sound that you hear when you know someone or something is in danger. I wanted to stop, but it wasn’t far from the door.
As I got closer, I started to feel the tendrils on my legs. These entities did not want me to go any further. At this point, the whispers turned into faint screams, though my little brother’s screech was overpowering them. I felt like I couldn’t go any further, but then I reached the door knob. I rushed to open the door, swooshed it, and quickly turned off the light. It all happened so fast. I soon as I burst through the door, everything stopped. I was greeted with the sight of a standard bathroom. But I didn’t care, as I quickly flipped the light switch.
As soon as I did, I awoke to my phone going off. It was at around 2 in the morning. It seems I have only been asleep for an hour. I checked my phone and found that it was a call from my mom. She informed me that the family friend barely escaped the assault and was currently accompanied by police. However, despite the family friend being traumatized and seriously injured, it wasn’t long before the cops found and arrested the culprit.
Days later, I told my mom about the nightmare I had. She got visibly uncomfortable, and I pressed her slightly. She informed me that the criminal was a serial killer and thief. He would break into houses, locate witnesses, and brutally beat them before stealing all their valuables. However, the family friend was brilliant, as they hid in the bathroom and called the police. When found by the monster, they subdued them by turning off the light and attempting to hinder him when the darkness blinded him. The police came just before the injuries were enough to kill the family friend. We were all thankful that the killer was arrested. There were 30 confirmed Breaking And Entering incidents and even more murders. He was sentenced to life in prison.
After these events, the family friend, despite the trauma, told me personally how the event changed their perspective. They realized that if it wasn’t their house that evening, they didn’t turn off the light, and if the police didn’t come just in time, many things could’ve gone wrong. From then on, she has always said, “I guess there’s a light in the darkness, and a dark in the light.”