The Backroom and Other Short Horror Stories

The Backroom (true story)

(No image provided. Sorry!)

Downtown is a library I used to go to all the time. As of right now, it is being remodeled, so it is closed until next year.

Once a year, they open their downstairs area for a science festival, which was canceled this year since renovation had already begun the year before. Most of the festival is held upstairs and in a giant party room downstairs, but the party room was located next to the thing we all fear. That's right; the backrooms.

When I first went to this festival, I had to use the bathroom while downstairs, so I told my mom and quickly went to find the bathrooms. Since I had never been in the basement area, I had no idea where I was going. So, I went running into the backrooms unknowingly.

All sound from the giant room was immediately cut off (note that there was a lot of people inside the room, so lots of commotion) and was replaced with an eerie, thick atmosphere and slight ringing in my ears. No people were in my sight, so I was completely alone.

I had to admit, these backrooms looked more like a fancy hotel hallway; nice, red carpet, clean and shiny doors, and walls that look like they were cleaned every minute. Both the doors and walls were white.

I continued wandering around the backrooms, looking for the bathrooms. One of the lights started flickering, but I didn't pay much attention to that. I was focused on finding a toilet and a toilet only.

Eventually, I found a drinking fountain. Normally there are a set of bathrooms by a drinking fountain, but none were in sight. There were doors, but I'm sure they would have the restroom symbol on at least one of them. I continued walking anyway.

By then, I had not realized how far I had traveled. Since everything looked the same, I came to the realization that I was lost. And looking and turning around made me loose which way I came from.

However, I found two sets of doors that were brown and looked old. Curious, I opened them and found a mini theater inside. The stage lights only shone on the stage, which had a red drape covering the area. Despite seeing no one inside, I had the discomforting feeling that someone was watching me.

Hopeless, I closed the doors and continued walking a random direction.

As I walked, the hallway became more and more narrow, and less and less doors were appearing. The atmosphere also thickened, making it a bit harder for me to breathe. The ringing in my ears also increased, which only made me more uncomfortable.

As a ten-year-old kid at the time, I had no phone to contact my mom, plus being completely alone, I had to depend on myself to save... myself. My biggest fear at the time was getting lost and never be found. I was scared, but I knew sitting on the floor and crying wouldn't solve anything, so I kept going.

After a while, I approached a narrow turn facing the left. I followed it and it lead me to a open space protected by glass to my right. Inside it was sets of empty tables and chairs, but a single middle aged man sat all the way in the back, working on his computer. The room looked like a containment room: gray floors and walls with really bright lights. A sign was taped on the inside of the room, reading This is a quiet room for people to work. Please do not disturb them! No doors were spotted.

I wondered why a man would want to work on a day like this, but I just shook it off and continued walking. However, it seemed no matter how far I walked, the room was always to my right. No doors were appearing at this time, and it was extremely hard to breathe and hear anything. I felt like breaking down and crying, just to see if that man would notice and help me. But, I kept going.

Eventually, I came across an intersection, ultimately cutting off the quiet room. There was a hallway in front of me, and a hallway to my left. I was relieved when I saw a door on the corner across from me. I jumped when I started hearing voices inside of the room, and I saw that the door was slightly open.

Hoping someone would help me, I slowly opened the door and quietly entered the room. Inside was an old man inside a display of the solar system, with older high school students around him, most of them female. The room felt a bit tight, as there were so many space artifacts and people, but I felt at comfort as I was with real people. After what seemed like hours of endless wandering, I finally found society.

The old man started asking the students questions, all of which answered almost immediately. Suddenly, the old man turned to me and asked me to name the planets in our solar system. I was a bit shaky on this topic at the time, but I had somehow named all of the planets correctly. What surprised me even more was that the people treated me as if I was always there. They didn't question me, nor give me strange glances. I answered the question and they simply moved on.

After a while of small activities, the old man concluded his lesson on our solar system, and the students left without another word. The old man stayed to clean up, ignoring the fact that I was still there. However, I quietly followed the students in hopes they'll lead me back to my mom.

The students took the hallway that was once directly in front of me, talking and minding their business. I followed behind, being cautious and mindful of these strangers.

Eventually, I heard more and more muffled voices, soon finding out that I was back at the giant party room. I quickly ran inside and almost immediately located my mom. I told her I was ready to go, that of which she agreed. I never knew what happened to those students, but all I cared about at the time was that I was safe now. I could breathe again. I could hear again.

Ever since what happened, I made sure I had at least one person and my phone with me. Strangely enough, the drinking fountain and theater room were closer than I remember, and the hallway I once walked down dissapeared. The quiet room was still there, but it was off limits for an unknown reason.

One things for sure, I'm glad I survived getting out of those backrooms. But, I may never know the true secret of that set of backrooms since the library is getting remodeled.