My friend Kenny doesn’t believe in the supernatural, but even she can’t offer a scientific explanation for her experiences. Perhaps you can help?

Story 1: Footsteps from Below

Kenny lived on top of her family’s store. She tended to sleep late and liked to read in the kitchen. There have been times when, in the middle of the night, she’d hear the shuffling of slippered feet coming from the empty store below, as well as the clink of a spoon against a coffee cup from the shop’s dirty kitchen. There was no reason for anyone to be in the store in the middle of the night, and no one else was awake, so she’s not sure who’s responsible for making the noises.

There was a mirror in that same kitchen. One night, Kenny was brushing her teeth when she felt a malevolent presence staring at her from behind. She looked at the mirror but couldn’t see anything. She turned around, and there was nothing. She could still feel the presence though, staring angrily at her until she finished brushing her teeth. Perhaps it didn’t like her brand of toothpaste?

Story 2: An Unexpected Visitor

Kenny was alone in her room one night when she noticed a distinctly human-shaped shadow by her window. When she blinked, it was gone. She’s not sure how someone could have climbed to the second floor of her house, peeked into a ledge-less window, and disappeared in the blink of an eye. Thankfully, it’s only happened once.

Story 3: Cold Hands

Kenny was awakened one night by a heaviness in her chest and the feeling of cold hands around her throat. She tried her best to move but couldn’t. She could only lie there helpless as the unseen forces’ grip grew tighter and tighter, and a voice whispered, ‘Hinahanap ka’–we’re looking for you–next to her ear. After that, the force lifted and she could move again. She’s been reading up on sleep paralysis ever since and has yet to find a scientific explanation that corresponds to her experience.

She’s also once woken to find herself standing beside her sleeping form. Her immediate thought was she was having an out-of-the-body experience, and that she should return right away to prevent something else from possibly taking over. She woke up soon after.

Photo from Pexels.