I’ve always been into the paranormal. From stories to movies, video games, and even investigating the existence of ghosts and such. I haven’t had the best success regarding that, but I didn’t stop trying. I’ve tried many games and rituals and I found them all very interesting and unique, but I didn’t expect any of them to actually work. Until one did, and it was the darkest and most traumatic experience of my life.
Last year, I stumbled upon an old VHS tape in the attic while searching for one of my old books for college. I have been staying with my grandma for 3 years since I moved out of my hometown. I figured my life would require much less financial needs that way, and my school was a bus away anyway.
Agatha was sweet and generous, but for the most part, she was very austere. I rarely saw her because my mother didn’t exactly want me to, and my dad was not a big fan of her either. I have vague memories of her in my childhood here and then. I remember her wide smile when she handed me those warm and delicious cookies, but apart from that, nothing else worth mentioning.
Like any other granny house, hers had a VHS player right under the TV, which I always thought didn’t work, so I didn’t bother caring for it until I found that tape. It was a dusty classic black tape, and on it was a piece of paper that said “SOMNIA VERA 3”.
I didn’t put much thought into it, so I grabbed it, planning to watch it some night she wasn’t in the house. Fortunately, the following weekend my parents called her, asking her to fetch some of my old stuff back to my hometown.
I placed the VHS tape inside the player and sat down. The TV turned on, showing a black-and-white environment of bad quality, and two girls on two swings, giggling with each other. Then, it became very dark, and the two girls started walking toward what seemed like a dense forest, holding hands. After 1 minute of showing them walking, a short black figure with a hat that looked like a granny emerged out of nowhere and made very strange, incomprehensible noises that sounded like they ended with the tone of that of a question.
The girls nodded their heads, and the screen went black. After two seconds, it turned on again, this time showing the girls sleeping in their beds. The TV turned black once again and reopened immediately after. I was creeped out waiting for a jumpscare or something, but then it showed the two girls laughing and screaming hysterically as they were flying in that same room.
Their bodies were floating and were completely above the ground. A deep muffled voice was then heard, speaking in a language I couldn’t possibly understand, and then the video ended.
I was so confused after that. I spent the whole night before I slept thinking why would my grandma hide such a disturbing tape in the attic and why she hadn’t talked to me about it. It didn’t make any sense.
With a feeling of a big sack full of thoughts falling on my head, I drifted into sleep. I clearly remember the dream I had that night. It was about my ex-girlfriend and I making up after our long, ever-lasting fight, and…well doing some other stuff. It was so random, in reality, she wouldn’t lay a finger on me. Not after we broke up.
Little did I know, the following morning at school, she greeted me with a huge smile and hugged me so tight, I almost felt asphyxiated. “Uh…what’s up Liz?” I asked her, awkwardly waiting for an answer. “Look, things have not been on our side lately…want to talk after school?” she told me. I was shocked. I would not expect her to come up to me at all.
Although we hadn’t ended well, I thought that I could give us a second chance. After all, I really loved her. Later that day, we were hanging out and she invited me over to her house to watch a movie, and I’m sure you can figure out how that ended.
After arriving home, I was filled with the hunger to find answers again. How could it be? How could my dream come true that easily? There must be a reason behind it. I thought of that tape and the video. Did that have something to do with it? At that moment, I had a brief flashback of the two girls flying into their room. And that figure… What was the point of the video? It didn’t add up.
As happy as I was being with Liza again, I was just as baffled by that tape. I took a shower and collapsed on my bed.
I had another beautiful dream. This time, I dreamed of finally finding a decent job I was so desperately looking for. I can’t quite recall what job it was but I was feeling happy. Like I was complete.
I woke up at 9 am. I was late for school. I quickly changed, took a sip or two of an unfinished coffee sitting on the counter, and took the bus. I turned on my phone and scrolled through the majority of ads for jobs I had applied for, hoping to get accepted somewhere.
It was right there. Top left corner. A message in the app from a guy named John saying I could come by his office for an interview the day tomorrow to discuss my possible position as a waiter at a cafe. I couldn’t believe it. How was that happening? How were my dreams constantly coming true?
That same night I went to bed excited about my next dream. What would I want next? Better grades? another house? The possibilities were infinite. I dumped my body onto the bed and a feeling of relief ran through my body.
In the morning, I woke up to noises coming from the kitchen. It sounded like glasses and pots. “Hello?” I shouted with a questioning voice. “Well well well…look who’s finally woken up”. It was my grandma doing the dishes. I completely forgot she would be home so soon. I checked the time and my heart skipped a beat when I saw it was 12 am.
I totally missed school. With a feeling of desperation and vagueness, I tried to collect my memory. I tried to remember what I had dreamed of. Nothing. I couldn’t remember a single thing.
Suddenly, a feeling of dredge and helplessness took over my body. My feet were paralyzed and I couldn’t move. The thought of not knowing what I dreamed scared the life out of me. As I was standing there, looking at my grandma, my vision became blurry and I ultimately passed out.
I woke up in a hospital with my grandma, my friends, and my dad all sobbing and crying. “What happened? What is going on?” I said. I started hyperventilating and then a doctor came and sat next to me. “Chris…I’m so sorry…your grandmother was informed earlier in the morning that your mother had died in a terrible car accident”. It couldn’t be. I couldn’t believe it.
It turned out that my mother took a detour while she was driving, going to work, because of traffic, which led to her colliding with another vehicle. She was dead.
I still have not yet recovered from this. It’s been a year. I’m starting to believe my grandma knew all along and didn’t tell me on purpose. I couldn’t sleep the following days. The good news is that no more rapid changes in my life have occurred since then. I am still together with Liza and I got the job at the cafe. I have plans of leaving the house very soon. I can’t stand living with Agatha anymore.
Needless to say, the moment I got out of that hospital, I burned the tape and kicked the paranormal out of my life. No one knows about this and I’m not planning to share this story of mine anywhere else except here. To whoever may read this, be careful of what you watch and what you dream.