A Scary Car Camping Experience
I love traveling. And I often go on budget trips where I sleep in my car.
I usually sleep in my car at places like parks or rest stops. But sometimes, scary things happen.
The scariest experience I ever had was sleeping in my car in a parking lot by the ocean.
I had a long drive that day, so I got ready to sleep as soon as I arrived at the parking lot. No cars were around, so it was quiet, and I could sleep peacefully.
But just as I was drifting off, something strange happened.
I suddenly heard a ringing in my ears. An intense headache hit me like someone had hit me with something heavy. My body wouldn’t move.
(Sleep paralysis!)
I often experience sleep paralysis, so at first, I thought:
“Oh, it’s happening again.”
But it was rare for it to happen while sleeping in my car.
I stayed calm and tried to move any part of my body.
But then something strange happened. My heart pounded. A sudden, overwhelming fear overtook me.
(Oh no, this isn’t the usual thing…)
Suddenly, I started to panic. I had to break free from the sleep paralysis!
Then, all of a sudden, the dark inside of the car lit up like sunlight was shining through.
At the same time, I heard footsteps outside the vehicle.
It was as if someone was walking around on gravel.
But it didn’t feel like a person. It felt like something that shouldn’t be there was after me.
I felt so scared like it was going to take my life. The footsteps went around and around, making a gravel sound.
But the parking lot wasn’t gravel; it was concrete. There was no way actual footsteps would make that sound.
The ringing in my ears got louder.
The light became brighter.
The footsteps outside were getting louder, too.
It even sounded like more people were walking.
(I’m done for…), I thought.
Just then, a strong gust of wind hit the car, shaking it hard. It felt like an earthquake.
The car was moving, and I was parked by the ocean!
I thought the wind was going to push me into the water.
But suddenly, the wind stopped. The darkness returned, and the ringing in my ears went away.
I was free from sleep paralysis.
I felt relieved and sat up. I wanted to look outside, so I peeked out of the window.
But there was a shadow of someone looking in. I jumped back and saw another shadow at the other window!
One of them slammed their hands on the window and started banging.
I was so terrified that I passed out.
When I woke up, it was morning.
(I’m safe), I thought.
Maybe it was just a strange dream because I was so tired.
But when I got out of the car, I saw something shocking.
My car wasn’t parked where I had left it. It was now in a messy spot in front of a guardrail.
I was just inches away from falling into the ocean.
From that day on, I promised myself I’d never sleep in my car alone in a place with no people.
When I hear about accidents on the news, I wonder if it almost happened to me.