WEBVTT
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Thank you for joining us around the fire. For more
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information or to make a donation, please visit random actsnetwork
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dot com. Now want to hear a scary story?
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My mom was watching Jesse, our newborn, and my wife
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and I were on our way to see a house
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we hoped to rent. Molly was relocating for work, and
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we didn't have much time to put things in order.
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I was excited for the change, though a bit hesitant
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to pack up our lives and move so quickly. The
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house was brick and fairly nondescript. There were neighbors a
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couple hundred yards away on each side, close enough to
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feel suburban, but far enough to feel like everyone has
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their own space. Molly pulled up and parked along the curb,
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even though the driveway was clear. We got out of
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the car, and as we walked toward the house, a
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tall man with shaggy white hair came out, shielding the
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sun from his eyes. He was quiet and weak, and
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his name, he said, was mister Hart. He was a
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little weird, but nice enough that we.
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Brushed it off. We toured the home.
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It was suitable for what we needed, but never something
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I would have picked out if I had a choice.
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As we finished the tour, mister Hart offered to give us.
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A few minutes alone.
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Molly had that look in her eyes where I knew
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her mind was already made.
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She insisted we should apply.
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If the approval came through in a week, we'd be
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able to move right after, and she'd only have to
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commute from our old place for a few days. It
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did make sense. I agreed and sat in the car
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while they talked details. When Molly came back, she was beaming.
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Were already approved what She just wants to get rid
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of the place. He used to live here with his wife,
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and when she died he couldn't.
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Stay without her. It so sad.
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He hates showing the place. He was practically convincing me
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that we should take it.
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I already got him a jack.
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I felt that this was kind of odd, but didn't
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want to rain on the excitement. We were free to
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move in as early as the next day and would
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take care of the paperwork later. When we arrived with
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our truck, the house key was waiting under the map.
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A few days passed and we'd gotten everything in. It
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was my first time being alone in the house with
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the baby, with Molly at work. The laundry was in
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the basement, and while the baby napped upstairs, I went
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down to put a load in. The stairs came down
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in the middle of the basement, and then you had
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to take a sharp turn and walk all the way
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towards the back to get to the washshur and dryer.
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Above them was this large fluorescent light encased in a
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red plastic shield and a metal grate. It basically looked
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like an emergency light. I turned it on and it
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emitted a deep, monstrous hum. Every corner of the basement
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illuminated in a ghastly blood red glow. I couldn't imagine
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what it was used for, but I certainly.
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Didn't need it.
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I quickly turned it back off and threw the laundry in.
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As I got to the top of the stairs, I
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heard a click, followed once again by a deep, familiar hum.
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I turned around, and sure enough, the basement was once
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again glowing red. I took a breath and took the
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first step, then the next. I probably didn't turn the
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switch back off all the way, and the vibrations of
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the laundry pushed the light back on. This logical thought
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gave me the confidence. I needed to round the corner
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and return to the back of the basement, where I
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flipped the light back off. Once again, the humming stopped,
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and I stood in the quiet glow of a single
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light bulb at the foot of the stairs. I looked
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again into the red light and saw it had its
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own pluck. I followed the cord and yanked it from
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the outlet. As I reached the top of the stairs,
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I heard the hum again. Pins and needles ran through
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my entire body. I closed my eyes, took a breath,
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and turned around. The basement was glowing red. I took
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one step down. What was I going to do?
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I took the next. The humming grew louder.
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I reached the bottom of the staircase and turned towards
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the light. Just as I confirmed with my eyes that
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it was still unplugged, it snapped, flickered, and turned off.
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I stood there for a moment, listening to my own breath,
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and then.
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The light came on again. I stepped towards it and
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it clicked off. I waited and took another step. It
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clicked on again.
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I kept moving across the basement, and the flickering grew faster.
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And faster. The humming louder and louder. The strobing made
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it almost impossible to see. I reached toward the grating exists.
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Every light in the basement went out at once. I
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ran as quickly as I could, smashing into old boxes
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and furniture as I made my way by the dim
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light bleeding.
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Down the stairs.
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I climbed up on all fours and slammed the door
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behind me, trying to catch my breath.
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I heard the baby crying in his bedroom.
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When Molly got home, I could tell she didn't believe me,
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even though she saw how upset I was. She went
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downstairs alone to replace the bulb that had blown out.
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The red light wouldn't work for her, even after plugging
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it back in and flipping the switch. Still, she removed
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the grate and took it down at my request. A
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few days later, I'd almost forgotten about what had happened.
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I got a little nervous doing laundry, but with the
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red light off the wall, I was able to convince
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myself that Molly was right. We were safe. Jesse was
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once again down for his afternoon nap and Molly was working.
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I was watching daytime TV and unpacking boxes when there
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was a sudden, loud knock on the door. I turned
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the TV off and wiped off my hands, getting quickly
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to the door, but there was nobody there. I hadn't
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seen any kids around the neighborhood, but I don't know,
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I guess I assumed it must have been a joke.
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I shut the door and went back to the boxes.
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I was busy and stressed, and it was kind of
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easy to just put it behind me. But then a
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little while later it happened again. I rushed to the
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door without missing a beat, but once again there was
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no one there. I stepped out onto the front porch
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and took a long look in each direction.
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No one.
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I went back inside and decided to check on the baby.
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He was gurgling in the crib, so I picked him
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up and walked around with him for a bit before
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I sat down with him in the rocking chair.
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Before I knew it, we had both dozed off.
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Another knock and it was loud, but I was upstairs,
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far from the front door.
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How could it have been? My heart sank as I
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realized the sound hadn't come.
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From the front door. The knock came from the bedroom
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door that I didn't remember closing. Molly, I asked.
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Nothing.
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My heart was throbbing and my mouth was dry. I
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gently put the baby back in his crib and took
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a cautious step toward the door. Mollie, I nearly screamed
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and rushed to lock the door.
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Falling to my knees, I looked through the crack into
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the hallway.
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But there was no one there. I stayed locked in
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that room with Jesse until Molly got home. I was
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too scared to do anything else. Molly suggested having my
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mother come stay for a few days, but I knew
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I was ready to leave.
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She wouldn't have it.
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Babe, It's just the sounds of an old house settling.
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You'll get used to it.
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As always, she was able to calm me down. I
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planned to start spending our days away from the house,
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running errands or visiting the park. The less time in
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the house without Molly, the better. But only a bit later,
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we were watching a movie on the couch win we
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were both startled by a large thud directly above us,
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like something heavy had hit the floor hard.
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This was Jesse's room.
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Without saying a word, we bolted up the stairs We
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could hear the baby shrieking as we opened the door.
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I expected Jesse's crying to get louder, but it remained muffled.
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The bright moonlight came through the windows, and the heavy
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antique curtains had been torn down, left in a tall
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heap on the floor. The crying was coming from inside
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the pile. We threw everything aside, digging towards the sound
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before Molly pulled Jesse from the curtains.
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Thank God, he wasn't hurt, but it was It's enough
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of us scare.
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Molly finally agreed she'd call mister Hart tomorrow and discuss
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our options. The three of us slept together in one
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room that night, with all the lights on. The Next day,
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Molly was busy trying to reach mister Hart and sort
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out missing a few days of work, while I repacked
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the boxes that I had unloaded.
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The baby never left my sight.
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Of course, we cared about the money we'd lose in rent,
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but it was more important for us to feel safe.
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I found myself terrified to do anything in that house.
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We'd gotten a moving truck and Molly planned to stay
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in a hotel. Well. Jesse and I went back home
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to my mother's for a bit. Anything was better than there.
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Jesse needed his teething ring, which we'd left upstairs. I
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didn't want to go upstairs alone, but I couldn't pull
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Molly from the phone, and it would only take a second.
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I grabbed a box of Jesse's things and stepped towards
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the door, but tripped and fell hard, spilling baby clothes
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onto the large throw rug that covered the original floors.
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A few of the rooms had rugs like these when
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we moved in. Somehow the rug had gotten bunched up.
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As I bent over to fix it, I instead decided
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to pull it up walk backwards towards the center of
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the room. In the middle of the floor was a large,
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deep brown stain covering the floorboards, exactly where we'd found
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Jesse the night before. I dropped the carpet and ran
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down the stairs to get Molly, but she didn't acknowledge me.
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She was staring at something, confused. After a few moments,
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she turned to me and handed me a check. The
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check she'd written for mister Hart on the day we met.
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It had never been cashed, It had never left the house.
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Standing in the sun by the truck, I felt a
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massive sense of relief, knowing I'd never have to go
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inside again. As we loaded up the last of our things,
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a neighbor I'd never seen made is way down the
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street toward us.
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I never got the chance to come and introduce myself,
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and you're already on the way out.
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I know.
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I'm so sorry, I said, we've had a last minute
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change of plans.
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I was honestly surprised to see anyone come into the
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place being followed with you.
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I asked him to elaborate his wife.
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She was old and sick, bedridden, but she hated relying
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on him for everything. She wanted to open the curtains
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and let him light in, but she couldn't reach him
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on her own. She pulled over a stool and stretched
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for the corner when her husband knocked on the door.
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It scared is so bad, they say. She fell face
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first toward the floor, smashed the whole face in the
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worst part. Her husband somehow didn't hear a thing, so
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he assumed she was asleep. He went downstairs and made
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dinner while she bled out on the floor.
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Do you know which room this was?
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She had the room upstairs in the front.
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Of the house, his eyes lifted to the windows of
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the room that until today had belonged to my infant son.
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I felt sick.
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Thanks for telling me, I said that, poor old man,
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it's so terrible, But I wish she had mentioned all
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that to us. When we met him, the neighbor looked
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back at me like I had lost my mind.
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You couldn't have met him, he said.
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The night he found her, he hanged himself in the
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same room. Mister Hart has been dead months.
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Knock Knock written by Brian Renaud, told by Angie Campbell,
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featuring Shannon Lee Webber and Aaron Holland.
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Thank you for joining us around the fire. For more
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information or to make a donation, please visit random actsnetwork
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dot com. Now want to hear a scary story?
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My mom was watching Jesse, our newborn, and my wife
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and I were on our way to see a house
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we hoped to rent. Molly was relocating for work, and
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we didn't have much time to put things in order.
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I was excited for the change, though a bit hesitant
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to pack up our lives and move so quickly. The
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house was brick and fairly nondescript. There were neighbors a
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couple hundred yards away on each side, close enough to
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feel suburban, but far enough to feel like everyone has
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their own space. Molly pulled up and parked along the curb,
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even though the driveway was clear. We got out of
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the car, and as we walked toward the house, a
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tall man with shaggy white hair came out, shielding the
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sun from his eyes. He was quiet and weak, and
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his name, he said, was mister Hart. He was a
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little weird, but nice enough that we.
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Brushed it off. We toured the home.
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It was suitable for what we needed, but never something
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I would have picked out if I had a choice.
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As we finished the tour, mister Hart offered to give us.
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A few minutes alone.
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Molly had that look in her eyes where I knew
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her mind was already made.
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She insisted we should apply.
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If the approval came through in a week, we'd be
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able to move right after, and she'd only have to
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commute from our old place for a few days. It
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did make sense. I agreed and sat in the car
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while they talked details. When Molly came back, she was beaming.
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Were already approved what She just wants to get rid
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of the place. He used to live here with his wife,
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and when she died he couldn't.
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Stay without her. It so sad.
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He hates showing the place. He was practically convincing me
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that we should take it.
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I already got him a jack.
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I felt that this was kind of odd, but didn't
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want to rain on the excitement. We were free to
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move in as early as the next day and would
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take care of the paperwork later. When we arrived with
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our truck, the house key was waiting under the map.
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A few days passed and we'd gotten everything in. It
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was my first time being alone in the house with
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the baby, with Molly at work. The laundry was in
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the basement, and while the baby napped upstairs, I went
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down to put a load in. The stairs came down
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00:02:26.680 --> 00:02:28.639
in the middle of the basement, and then you had
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to take a sharp turn and walk all the way
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towards the back to get to the washshur and dryer.
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Above them was this large fluorescent light encased in a
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red plastic shield and a metal grate. It basically looked
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like an emergency light. I turned it on and it
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emitted a deep, monstrous hum. Every corner of the basement
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illuminated in a ghastly blood red glow. I couldn't imagine
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what it was used for, but I certainly.
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Didn't need it.
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I quickly turned it back off and threw the laundry in.
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As I got to the top of the stairs, I
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heard a click, followed once again by a deep, familiar hum.
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I turned around, and sure enough, the basement was once
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again glowing red. I took a breath and took the
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first step, then the next. I probably didn't turn the
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switch back off all the way, and the vibrations of
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the laundry pushed the light back on. This logical thought
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gave me the confidence. I needed to round the corner
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and return to the back of the basement, where I
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flipped the light back off. Once again, the humming stopped,
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and I stood in the quiet glow of a single
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light bulb at the foot of the stairs. I looked
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00:03:34.560 --> 00:03:36.479
again into the red light and saw it had its
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own pluck. I followed the cord and yanked it from
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the outlet. As I reached the top of the stairs,
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00:03:43.319 --> 00:03:46.520
I heard the hum again. Pins and needles ran through
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my entire body. I closed my eyes, took a breath,
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and turned around. The basement was glowing red. I took
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one step down. What was I going to do?
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00:03:59.479 --> 00:04:01.919
I took the next. The humming grew louder.
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I reached the bottom of the staircase and turned towards
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the light. Just as I confirmed with my eyes that
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00:04:07.879 --> 00:04:10.719
it was still unplugged, it snapped, flickered, and turned off.
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I stood there for a moment, listening to my own breath,
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and then.
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00:04:16.720 --> 00:04:20.319
The light came on again. I stepped towards it and
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it clicked off. I waited and took another step. It
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clicked on again.
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I kept moving across the basement, and the flickering grew faster.
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And faster. The humming louder and louder. The strobing made
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00:04:32.079 --> 00:04:35.399
it almost impossible to see. I reached toward the grating exists.
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Every light in the basement went out at once. I
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ran as quickly as I could, smashing into old boxes
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and furniture as I made my way by the dim
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light bleeding.
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Down the stairs.
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I climbed up on all fours and slammed the door
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behind me, trying to catch my breath.
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I heard the baby crying in his bedroom.
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When Molly got home, I could tell she didn't believe me,
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even though she saw how upset I was. She went
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downstairs alone to replace the bulb that had blown out.
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The red light wouldn't work for her, even after plugging
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it back in and flipping the switch. Still, she removed
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the grate and took it down at my request. A
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few days later, I'd almost forgotten about what had happened.
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I got a little nervous doing laundry, but with the
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red light off the wall, I was able to convince
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myself that Molly was right. We were safe. Jesse was
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once again down for his afternoon nap and Molly was working.
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I was watching daytime TV and unpacking boxes when there
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was a sudden, loud knock on the door. I turned
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the TV off and wiped off my hands, getting quickly
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to the door, but there was nobody there. I hadn't
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seen any kids around the neighborhood, but I don't know,
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I guess I assumed it must have been a joke.
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I shut the door and went back to the boxes.
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I was busy and stressed, and it was kind of
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easy to just put it behind me. But then a
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little while later it happened again. I rushed to the
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door without missing a beat, but once again there was
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no one there. I stepped out onto the front porch
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and took a long look in each direction.
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No one.
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I went back inside and decided to check on the baby.
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He was gurgling in the crib, so I picked him
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up and walked around with him for a bit before
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I sat down with him in the rocking chair.
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Before I knew it, we had both dozed off.
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Another knock and it was loud, but I was upstairs,
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far from the front door.
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How could it have been? My heart sank as I
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realized the sound hadn't come.
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From the front door. The knock came from the bedroom
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door that I didn't remember closing. Molly, I asked.
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Nothing.
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My heart was throbbing and my mouth was dry. I
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gently put the baby back in his crib and took
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a cautious step toward the door. Mollie, I nearly screamed
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and rushed to lock the door.
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Falling to my knees, I looked through the crack into
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the hallway.
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But there was no one there. I stayed locked in
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that room with Jesse until Molly got home. I was
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too scared to do anything else. Molly suggested having my
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mother come stay for a few days, but I knew
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I was ready to leave.
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She wouldn't have it.
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Babe, It's just the sounds of an old house settling.
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You'll get used to it.
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As always, she was able to calm me down. I
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planned to start spending our days away from the house,
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running errands or visiting the park. The less time in
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the house without Molly, the better. But only a bit later,
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we were watching a movie on the couch win we
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were both startled by a large thud directly above us,
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like something heavy had hit the floor hard.
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This was Jesse's room.
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Without saying a word, we bolted up the stairs We
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could hear the baby shrieking as we opened the door.
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I expected Jesse's crying to get louder, but it remained muffled.
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The bright moonlight came through the windows, and the heavy
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antique curtains had been torn down, left in a tall
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heap on the floor. The crying was coming from inside
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the pile. We threw everything aside, digging towards the sound
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before Molly pulled Jesse from the curtains.
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Thank God, he wasn't hurt, but it was It's enough
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of us scare.
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Molly finally agreed she'd call mister Hart tomorrow and discuss
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our options. The three of us slept together in one
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room that night, with all the lights on. The Next day,
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Molly was busy trying to reach mister Hart and sort
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out missing a few days of work, while I repacked
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the boxes that I had unloaded.
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The baby never left my sight.
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Of course, we cared about the money we'd lose in rent,
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but it was more important for us to feel safe.
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I found myself terrified to do anything in that house.
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We'd gotten a moving truck and Molly planned to stay
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in a hotel. Well. Jesse and I went back home
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to my mother's for a bit. Anything was better than there.
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Jesse needed his teething ring, which we'd left upstairs. I
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didn't want to go upstairs alone, but I couldn't pull
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Molly from the phone, and it would only take a second.
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I grabbed a box of Jesse's things and stepped towards
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the door, but tripped and fell hard, spilling baby clothes
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onto the large throw rug that covered the original floors.
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A few of the rooms had rugs like these when
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we moved in. Somehow the rug had gotten bunched up.
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As I bent over to fix it, I instead decided
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to pull it up walk backwards towards the center of
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00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:04.240
the room. In the middle of the floor was a large,
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00:09:04.320 --> 00:09:07.919
deep brown stain covering the floorboards, exactly where we'd found
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Jesse the night before. I dropped the carpet and ran
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down the stairs to get Molly, but she didn't acknowledge me.
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00:09:13.960 --> 00:09:17.960
She was staring at something, confused. After a few moments,
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00:09:18.279 --> 00:09:20.919
she turned to me and handed me a check. The
198
00:09:21.039 --> 00:09:23.440
check she'd written for mister Hart on the day we met.
199
00:09:24.120 --> 00:09:27.480
It had never been cashed, It had never left the house.
200
00:09:29.000 --> 00:09:31.399
Standing in the sun by the truck, I felt a
201
00:09:31.480 --> 00:09:33.879
massive sense of relief, knowing I'd never have to go
202
00:09:33.960 --> 00:09:37.159
inside again. As we loaded up the last of our things,
203
00:09:37.320 --> 00:09:39.320
a neighbor I'd never seen made is way down the
204
00:09:39.320 --> 00:09:40.120
street toward us.
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00:09:40.639 --> 00:09:42.879
I never got the chance to come and introduce myself,
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00:09:42.879 --> 00:09:44.600
and you're already on the way out.
207
00:09:44.840 --> 00:09:45.120
I know.
208
00:09:45.279 --> 00:09:48.200
I'm so sorry, I said, we've had a last minute
209
00:09:48.279 --> 00:09:49.080
change of plans.
210
00:09:49.440 --> 00:09:51.759
I was honestly surprised to see anyone come into the
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00:09:51.799 --> 00:09:53.120
place being followed with you.
212
00:09:53.960 --> 00:09:56.960
I asked him to elaborate his wife.
213
00:09:57.360 --> 00:10:00.360
She was old and sick, bedridden, but she hated relying
214
00:10:00.399 --> 00:10:02.919
on him for everything. She wanted to open the curtains
215
00:10:02.960 --> 00:10:04.759
and let him light in, but she couldn't reach him
216
00:10:04.799 --> 00:10:07.960
on her own. She pulled over a stool and stretched
217
00:10:07.960 --> 00:10:11.840
for the corner when her husband knocked on the door.
218
00:10:12.159 --> 00:10:14.399
It scared is so bad, they say. She fell face
219
00:10:14.519 --> 00:10:18.320
first toward the floor, smashed the whole face in the
220
00:10:18.360 --> 00:10:23.200
worst part. Her husband somehow didn't hear a thing, so
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00:10:23.240 --> 00:10:26.480
he assumed she was asleep. He went downstairs and made
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00:10:26.480 --> 00:10:28.960
dinner while she bled out on the floor.
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00:10:29.440 --> 00:10:30.879
Do you know which room this was?
224
00:10:31.279 --> 00:10:33.399
She had the room upstairs in the front.
225
00:10:33.159 --> 00:10:36.159
Of the house, his eyes lifted to the windows of
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00:10:36.200 --> 00:10:39.360
the room that until today had belonged to my infant son.
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00:10:40.159 --> 00:10:40.919
I felt sick.
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00:10:41.159 --> 00:10:44.080
Thanks for telling me, I said that, poor old man,
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00:10:44.279 --> 00:10:47.080
it's so terrible, But I wish she had mentioned all
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00:10:47.080 --> 00:10:49.639
that to us. When we met him, the neighbor looked
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00:10:49.679 --> 00:10:51.480
back at me like I had lost my mind.
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00:10:51.840 --> 00:10:53.600
You couldn't have met him, he said.
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00:10:53.840 --> 00:10:56.679
The night he found her, he hanged himself in the
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00:10:56.720 --> 00:11:00.519
same room. Mister Hart has been dead months.
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00:11:10.799 --> 00:11:16.639
Knock Knock written by Brian Renaud, told by Angie Campbell,
236
00:11:17.240 --> 00:11:20.799
featuring Shannon Lee Webber and Aaron Holland.
