Horror Stories Based on True Events

Dear speakers and listeners! Welcome to English Trainer Christelle's English Horror story-telling class. You are about to read collections of ghost stories which are based on real events - not fictional. So, sit back and let's enjoy some spooky time together. Brace yourself. Goal: The goal of this lesson is to allow you to practice your English reading accuracy and pronunciation. After reading each story, we will also have a free-talking conversation about it, and answer some short exercises.

1. What is a 'Silhouette'? A. Shapeless or formless B. A figure or shadow 2. Choose a synonym for the word, 'Lanky.' A. Chubby or Stout B. Skinny or lean 3. Choose a synonym for, 'utterly unnerved.' A. Afraid and anxious B. Calm and comforted 4. What does the word, 'sparse' mean? A. Small in number or amount and not dense or close together. B. Plentiful and dense. 5. Free-talking Conversation: "What would you do if you were to experience this scary experience yourself? Feel free to tell me your thoughts and feelings."

TRUE PIZZA DELIVERY HORROR STORY, animated by Llama Arts, originally by Mr. Nightmare (Youtube) I was out doing a delivery one late night. It was probably the longest drive I have ever taken for a pizza delivery. From the pizza place I worked at, it was a 20-minute drive, which isn't too crazy out where I live. Plus, they ordered four large pies, so I figured it was a party and I would get a much bigger tip. Navigating the dirt roads at night was always annoying though. I pulled up to the given address.

It was some old sketchy-looking building literally in the middle of a forest clearing. There were no cars parked anywhere or any lights on. I put my car in a park and called my boss. I asked him to reread the address at least three times to make sure I typed it right, but that checked out. I could tell he was in a really bad mood, and told me to at least knock on the door and check it out.

He would normally get mad if we took back one pie, but I was afraid what he would do if I brought back four. I was insanely unnerved but got out anyway and forced myself to the front door of the building. There was no doorbell, so I just knocked really hard. I heard nothing and didn't really expect to hear anything. I was extremely disappointed, not because nobody answered the door, but because I was realizing that it was all a waste of time and gas.

I knocked one more time out of desperation... and then began to hear some kind of rustling noises from inside of the building. I knocked again and yelled that I was the pizza guy. There was silence now. I felt a bit more uncomfortable now than before, but before I could turn around... I noticed something at the window. There was someone looking through the window. I couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman.

All I noticed were their eyes... Their eyes were opened wider than I knew possible, staring intently at me. I was disturbed enough by this a dropped the pizzas and ran back to my car. The thing wouldn't start until turning the key for the third time. I drove off the grass and back onto the dirt road, but I felt the car rocking about shaking and bumping. Something wasn't right. I didn't make it far from the building before I started hearing a sharp, scraping sound coming from outside.

There was so much resistance that I couldn't even drive. The car came to a stop. I got out of the car to check what was wrong. A chill ran up my spine as I began to feel like my heart was constantly skipping beats. My tires had been slashed and had completely fallen off the rim. Not just the front though... all four tires were slashed. I realized somebody did this when I was knocking on the door to that building. Instead of running, I got back in the car and locked the doors.

I was so close to that building I could practically see it from where I was if it weren't for the trees blocking the view. I dialed 911 and explained everything to the operator. She told me the cops would be over as soon as possible and that I need to stay hidden . I asked her if it was advisable to stay in the car or run. And she told me it would be best to stay in the car with the door locked. She asked me to stay on the line with her until the cops arrived. My whole body was shaking.

In all directions there was nothing but dark, seemingly endless forest. I knew it would take forever for the cops to get there. I was not comfortable in that car so close to whoever did this. The next part though is what utterly destroyed me. It still shakes me to this day, and I hope nobody ever has to experience this kind of fear. As I was scanning all the windows making sure nobody was outside, I looked in the rear view mirror... and there was the same person.

The same person I saw at that window... Eyes... opened wider than ever. I could see now that it was a woman. And I could ever so slightly see a smile begin to spread across her face.

I opened my door and full on sprinted into the woods, not caring how much noise I made. I ran until I was out of breath, which didn't take long and I hid behind a giant log on the ground. I tried to cover my loud breathing with my hand as I waited and waited for what felt like hours... Until I finally hear sirens in the distance.

I gathered up all the stamina I had left to run all the way back in the direction of the dirt road. Eventually, the glowing red and blue lights came into view and I had never felt better in my life. They were parked in front of my car investigating with flashlights. I came out yelling at them like a lunatic to help me. I fell to the floor and started to gag, almost throwing up from running so much. They picked me up and began to question me, to which I explained everything to the best of my ability.

One of the two cars drove over to the building and the two officers began to search the building. They came back with nothing except for a couple of spiky objects. These objects were exactly the same as the ones used to slash my tires. The cops guessed that it was some kind of sick demented couple, being that I saw the woman. But unfortunately, they were never found and that still kills me to this day.

I obviously quit my job after that and started working at a local grocery store. I know I'll never forget seeing that woman at the back of my car.

Free-talking Conversation: 1. "If you were the delivery man given the situation, what would you do? Stay in the car or run? Why?" 2. "If you needed money as soon as possible, would you work as a pizza delivery person at a midnight shift? Tell me more about your choice." 3. What is a 'lunatic'? A. A normal and sane person. B. An insane or crazy person.

GOOD DECISION: A True Ghost story from Kashedi, India It was January 3, 2018. I was driving back to Ratnagiri from Mahabaleshwar after enjoying a solo holiday. It was around 10 pm and I was enjoying driving on empty roads. Suddenly, I noticed a lady waiting alone at a bus stand near Kashedi and I slowed down a bit, stopping eventually. She looked old, tired and had a bag which she grabbed and hurried towards my car. Something told me to be ready to accelerate soon. She knocked at my window asking me to roll it down, which I did no more than 2 cm. "My husband threw me out of the house and I am all alone. My family lives about half an hour from here. Will you give me a ride? Please, I am no ghost", she pleaded with an intriguing smile on her face. She was pale and had unkempt hair. "I am not going that way, I am sorry", I lied and started accelerating. "Good decision", she yelled from behind and these words still send chills down my spine till date. - Anonymous

Hitch-hiking: - Hitchhiking is a means of transportation that is gained by asking individuals, usually strangers, for a ride in their car or other vehicle. Free-talking Conversation: 1. "Would you hitch-hike? Why yes or why no?" 2. "If a stranger asked for a hitch-hike, would you help him/her?" 3. "Do you know any scary hitch-hiking stories? Tell us about it."

Terrifying True Story Of The Winchester Mystery House San Jose, California, USA In 1886 an eccentric woman named Sarah Winchester traveled from New Haven, Connecticut, to San Jose, California, to start a new life. She purchased a small eight-room farmhouse and started a small renovation project that would take 36 years and $5.5 million (in the money of the time), only stopping when she passed away in 1922. By the time she was done, the Winchester Mansion was a modern marvel with indoor plumbing, multiple elevators, a hot shower, and central heating. It had over 160 rooms and 40 bedrooms, 10,000 windows, and even 2 basements. Of course, that’s not all that’s unique about the house. Not all the 2,000 doors can be walked through—one leads to an 8-foot drop to a kitchen sink, another to a 15-foot drop into bushes in the garden below. Staircases lead straight to ceilings, expensive Tiffany stained-glass windows were installed in places where they would get no light, and there are more secret passages than Narnia. A particularly odd delight is a cabinet that, when opened, extends through 30 rooms of the house.

No one is quite sure why Mrs. Winchester demanded constant changes to her very large house. Of course, there are stories. The most prevalent story is that Mrs. Winchester was being haunted by the spirits of those killed by the Winchester rifle, which her late husband’s company had invented. After her husband passed away, a psychic told her that to evade the spirits, she would have to move out west, buy a home, and build nonstop. Some theories say she believed that as soon as construction was complete, she would die, while other theories suggest she built the house like a maze in order to keep her paranormal tormentors at bay and lost in the many intricacies of the building. As the theory goes, to avoid them she would sleep in a different bedroom every night and take labyrinthine paths through her own home. /credits: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/winchester-mystery-house/