The Midnight Hour

The Tinder date that went horribly wrong.

I went on a Tinder date a couple of years ago. Everything started out relatively normal. We met at a nice downtown restaurant for dinner. She was even prettier in person and the conversation was flowing. However, it didn't take long for me to realize she was a super private person. For example, she would not tell me her last name, where she worked, or say anything about her family. She made it clear that she was protecting herself, and honestly, I don't blame her. I shrugged it off and the date continued.

She took great interest in the fact that I was in seminary studying to be a pastor. That was nice because usually, that's a deal breaker for most women, at least in my experience. Towards the end of our meal, she confessed something to me. "I have something to tell you," she said, "but please don't think I'm crazy." I braced myself for whatever she was about to say.

She explained that she recently moved into a new apartment. She lived alone, which was also a new thing. Though she couldn't put her finger on it, she was convinced there was a presence of a sinister and paranormal nature in her apartment. She had hardly slept since she moved in because she was plagued with constant nightmares and strange occurrences. I could see the fear and exhaustion in her eyes. She seemed quite sincere.

"I can tell you're a good guy," she said. She elaborated that I seemed trustworthy and had a calming presence.

"I know how this sounds, but would you PLEASE come home with me tonight? Honestly, I'm just scared to go back there alone. I am NOT looking for sex."

I was really taken aback by this. It's not every day I get asked to spend the night with a beautiful woman whom I just met. I figured she was either telling the truth or she picked a really odd way to initiate sex. Either way, the night would be interesting.

We talked for a bit longer and I agreed to spend the night with her. I followed her home, and when I walked into her apartment I was immediately struck with bad vibes. There was just something ominous about that place. I didn't want to freak her out, so I kept these feelings to myself. I said a quick prayer and followed her to the bedroom.

She wasn't kidding about the sex. I tried my luck but was met with swift rejection. We kissed and cuddled for a bit, nothing too crazy, and then she fell asleep. I just laid there for a while in the silent darkness, lost in thought. Sometime later, I 100% heard someone walking down the hallway outside the bedroom. The door was closed, however, so I couldn't see anything. I was definitely frightened, but my curiosity got the better of me so I went to investigate.

Slowly I opened the door. I looked to my left, then to my right. Nothing. I walked downstairs to check out the rest of the apartment. Nothing. I went back upstairs to check the bathroom and the guest bedroom. Nothing. When I walked out of the guest room, which was right across from my date's bedroom, I looked to my left and right again.

At the end of the hallway, I saw a black, humanoid body standing there perfectly still.

It was almost like a shadow, but I could discern that it was a three-dimensional figure. This figure was large in stature; there's no way it could've been my date. She was maybe 5'1 at best.

I ran back into my date's room. To my horror, she wasn't in bed where I left her. I called out her name, but there was no response. I had just walked through the entire apartment, so it literally made no sense to me that she wasn't there. The bed was low to the ground, so she couldn't be under it. The closet was opened too, and it was packed with boxes so I knew she wasn't there either. The window was shut tight, plus it was the second story. It was as if she vanished. I grabbed my wallet, keys, and cell phone and ran out of the apartment in nothing but my underwear. The shadowy figure was gone. I jumped in my car and sped away.

I never heard from her again. Her Tinder profile was deleted the next day, and she never responded to any of my texts. Till this day, I have no idea wtf happened that night. I also never went back to her apartment, mostly because I'm horrible with directions and she lived in the next town over. This was easily one of the most terrifying, inexplicable things I've ever experienced.