He Came Out of Nowhere, Holding Something in His Hands — I Wish I’d Never Seen It

It was dusk — that eerie, half-light hour when everything feels a little unreal. My sister and I were laughing about something silly when the man appeared in front of us, motionless on the road. I slammed the brakes, the world going silent. He started walking toward the car, eyes hollow, hands trembling around something he refused to let go of. My sister whispered, “Don’t open the window.” But then I saw what he was clutching — and my heart nearly stopped…

It was just supposed to be a quiet drive home. My sister and I had spent the afternoon visiting our mom’s old house — sorting through boxes of yellowed photos, chipped mugs, and the kind of memories that make you nostalgic and heavy at the same time. The sun was setting, painting the sky with tired streaks of orange and purple, and the road ahead was empty, except for the hum of the tires beneath us.

Then I saw him.

At first, I thought it was a deer. Something dark and motionless standing ahead in the middle of the road. But as we got closer, my stomach clenched — it was a man.

“Do you see that?” my sister whispered, leaning forward.

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