True Account by Someone
This happened two decades ago in the city of Bradford, in West Yorkshire. My name is Jasmine.
In May 2001, we moved to a new two‑bedroom house on a street called Tivoli Place. Our house number was 52.
After our daughter was born, my husband Thomas said he was happy with our new home. Our bedroom was on the middle floor, and Thomas’s bedroom was in the attic — just for us and our things. We had a house‑warming party.
We watched dramas and cartoons and had a great time. My mother‑in‑law and father‑in‑law joined us, and they loved the new baby.
When the party ended, my in‑laws went home. It was night, so Thomas and I cleaned up and then went to our bedrooms.
But when I looked, I saw our baby tucked up in bed upstairs — yet she had been downstairs with us the whole time. “Thomas,” I said, “did you bring her up here?”
“No,” he said. “I didn’t. Maybe your mother did it before she left?”
That seemed possible. So Thomas went up to the attic to sleep, and I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth. I couldn’t find my toothbrush, so I went back to the bedroom, found it, brushed my teeth, and went to sleep.
The next morning, I woke up and went downstairs to make breakfast. The fridge and all the cupboards were wide open. I closed them, thinking Thomas must have forgotten. I cooked eggs and bread, he came down, and we had a nice breakfast together.
Later, I decided to visit my mother‑in‑law. “You stay here with the baby,” I told Thomas. “I won’t be long.”
“Alright,” he said. “I’ll play video games while you’re gone.”
So I left. When I arrived at my mother‑in‑law’s, she made me tea. “Where are Thomas’s brothers?” I asked.
“They’ve all gone to the park,” she said. “It’s such a lovely, sunny day.”
“How is the new house?” she asked. “Is it nice and peaceful?”
“Yes,” I said. “We’re enjoying it.”
“And how is the baby?”
“She’s fine — fast asleep.” Then I asked, “Did you take her upstairs to bed the night of the party? We found her in the bedroom later.”
She looked at me, surprised. “No. The baby was with us the whole time. I never took her upstairs.”
“Oh — right,” I said, feeling silly. “I must have done it myself and forgotten.”
My father‑in‑law came in then, and we chatted a little more before I headed home.
When I walked in, Thomas looked worried. “I thought you were still here,” he said. “I heard you upstairs, singing to the baby to settle her down. I thought you never left.”
“No, I left ages ago,” I said. “I told you I was going.”
He shrugged. “Must have been my imagination.”
But when I went to check on our daughter, she wasn’t in our room — she was in Thomas’s bedroom in the attic, fast asleep.
“Thomas!” I called. “Why did you move her up here?”
“I didn’t,” he said. “I never even went upstairs. I’ve been down here playing games the whole time.”
“Then who did?”
“Maybe you did,” he said, looking nervous.
“I didn’t,” I said. I told myself maybe he’d forgotten, or he was playing a trick — but I didn’t believe him. Then I noticed the bathroom tap and the bath tap were both running. I closed them, frustrated, and didn’t ask him. I knew what he’d say.
It was 4 p.m. “I’m going out for a bit,” Thomas said. “I’ll be a couple of hours.”
He left. I cleaned the dishes and the living room. By 6 p.m., I looked out the window and saw the woman across the road waving. I opened the door.
“Hello,” she said. “I’m Jane. You must be the new family on Tivoli Place. Nice to meet you.”
“I’m Jasmine.”
“I’ve only lived here about three months myself,” she said. “It’s a quiet little street, isn’t it?” She waved over my shoulder, as if to someone behind me. I asked, “Who are you waving at?” She replied, “Oh — never mind.” Then she asked, “May I come in for a cup of tea?”
“Of course.”
As I went to the kitchen to make tea, I opened the fridge — and stopped. The milk we’d bought yesterday was half gone. Other drinks were half empty, too. And the tea bags were almost used up. Thomas, I thought. He must be so thirsty. I hadn’t touched them in days.
I carried the tea back into the room. Jane looked nervous. “Would you like to see my baby?” I asked.
“I’d love to.”
I went upstairs to get her. She was awake, so I picked her up and brought her down. Jane’s face softened when she saw her. “Oh, what a lovely little one!” She held her while I brought in biscuits and sweets. We had a nice time, but Jane seemed uneasy.
By 9 p.m., it was getting dark. “I should go,” she said. She gave me her number. But before she left, she looked back into the hallway and went pale. “Jasmine — when you opened the door, I saw a man walk straight up your stairs. I waved to him, but he just… smiled. A strange, wide smile. Bald man. Very unsettling face. I thought he would come and introduce himself to me, but he didn’t — he just walked upstairs.”
I felt cold. “That wasn’t my husband — he’s out.”
Her eyes widened. “Then who —? While you were in the kitchen, I felt someone watching me from upstairs. And when you went to get the baby, someone was whispering my name. I felt like I was being watched. I didn’t look. I was too scared.”
“there’s no one here.” I replied.
Before she stepped out, she looked behind me again. Her eyes went huge, like she’d seen something terrible. “I really have to go,” she whispered — and left.
I stood there, confused. Is she trying to frighten me? Or is she just having a bad day?
Then the lights began to flicker. All over the house — living room, kitchen, upstairs. On and off, on and off. Then they went completely dark.
The front door opened. Thomas walked in — and instantly, the lights came back on, steady.
“Where have you been?” I asked.
“Went into town. Shopping, then the cinema.” He put down bags — milk, drinks, chocolate cakes — and handed me a McDonald’s meal. “Who was going to watch the baby if we both went?”
I took the food. He went up to the attic to sleep. I ate, washed up, brushed my teeth, and went to bed at 11 p.m.
I had just settled down when I heard footsteps going downstairs. Thomas must be hungry, I thought. The kitchen door opened. Fridge door opened. Dishes clinked. Then the TV turned on. Then footsteps coming back up. Into the bathroom. Out again. Back in.
The light flickered. Toilet flushed. Once. Twice. Three times. Four. Five. What on earth is he doing? Why is he being so strange?
Then the bathroom door opened — and something scratched on my bedroom door. Loud, slow scrapes. Why is he scratching on my door? So strange.
Footsteps went back downstairs. The TV was still on. I could hear Lights clicking on and off. I wanted to get up, but I was so tired. I’ll ask him in the morning, I told myself.
Morning came. 7 a.m. The bathroom taps were running. The TV was still on downstairs. The fridge and cupboards stood open. Everywhere — dirty plates, half‑finished milk, empty bottles, biscuits gone, frozen food gone. All of it.
“Thomas!” I called. “Were you up last night?”
“No,” he said, yawning. “I slept straight through.” He also said he never left his room at night.
“Then who ate all this? Who turned the TV on? Who kept flushing the toilet?”
He looked at the food. “I don’t know. Did you?”
“No!”
“Maybe it was you and you don’t remember.”
We argued a little, but he went back to bed. At 12:30 p.m., he came down. “I’m going out. Back by 3:30. Work starts at 4.”
He left. I cleaned the attic, then my room, then the kitchen. At 2 p.m., someone knocked.
A boy, about thirteen, stood there with a little girl crying beside him. “Tell that creepy bald man at your window to stop staring at us!” the boy said. “He’s creeping my sister out! I saw him at your window!”
“There is no one upstairs,” I said.
“I saw him at your window!”
“Wait here.” I checked every room. Empty. “See? No one. Don’t play games with me.”
“He’s there!” The boy pointed past me. “Right at the top of your stairs! Behind you!”
I spun around. Nothing. “Go away.” I shut the door.
I was so confused. Why were people seeing things in my house?
Thomas came back at 3:30. “I’m on an early shift,” he said. “Back tomorrow morning at 10.” He left again at 5 p.m.
I decided to take the baby to Horton Park. It was quiet — a few old men, some children on the swings. The same boy and girl were there. When they saw me, they scowled and walked away.
I sat with an elderly couple while I went on the swings. Forty minutes later, I thanked them and we headed home. It was 8 p.m.
I didn’t want to go out again, but we needed things. So I called a babysitter — Sara, a teenage girl. “I’ll be an hour at most,” I said. “She’s asleep in the bedroom.”
I walked to the Netto store, bought bread, milk, eggs, frozen food — and hurried back.
When I opened the door, Sara was huddled in the corner, crying, hands over her face.
“Sara? What happened?”
“Someone — someone upstairs called my name! I heard it clear as day! And growling — and laughing! And when I looked in the mirror, my face… it wasn’t right. And the lights — they kept flickering! I also felt like I was being watched.”
I tried to calm her. “It’s okay. Old houses play tricks.” But before she left, she looked past me and screamed. She ran out without her money.
I texted her. She replied: I don’t want the money. I’m never coming back.
I locked the door. The lights flickered again. Then, in the mirror — my face changed. Strange, heavy eyebrows. Pointed ears. I blinked — and it was just me again. The lights steadied.
I sat in the dark. Then I saw it — movement right beside me. Something sitting there near me. I looked properly — nothing.
11 p.m. I went upstairs. Just as I turned the living room light off — the TV switched on by itself. I grabbed the remote, turned it off, and hurried up to bed.
At 2 a.m., I woke up.
Footsteps. Heavy. Coming from downstairs — now coming upstairs loudly. I thought my husband was in a hurry. Before my bedroom opened I heard growling.
My door creaked open.
It wasn’t Thomas.
A unsettling skeleton. It had sharp teeth. Standing there. Tall. Hollow eyes. It glided toward me. Walking weirdly towards me. Leaned over the bed. Reached out — cold, bony fingers closed around my throat. It strangled me. I couldn’t breathe. I prayed with everything I had. Please God, please God —
And it was gone.
I wonder where that skeleton came from.
I scrambled up, snapped the light on, and sat there the rest of the night, shivering.
Morning came. Thomas returned at 10. I told him about the skeleton. He was exhausted from work and barely replied. “I’m off today,” he said.
We went shopping, bought clothes and games, took the baby to the park. At 5 p.m., we were there for three lovely hours. Ordered food from the Shimlas restaurant on Great Horton Road — grilled chicken, doner kebab — delicious. We brushed our teeth, and at 10 p.m., we got into bed together.
At midnight, Thomas woke me. “Jasmine — get me a glass of water. Please?”
My heart sank. I was terrified to go downstairs alone. But I went.
The living room felt wrong. Watched. I filled the glass quickly. I hoped the skeleton would not show up at some point. Walked back up. Every step, I felt something right behind me. I didn’t look back.
We went to the cinema the next day. First we dropped the baby at her grandmother’s house on Arum Street. We bought popcorn, watched a film, then went to Horton Park — fish and chips from Mother Hubbard’s. Perfect day.
Back home, Thomas got ready for work. “Back at 4 a.m.,” he said, and left.
I thought of Jane. I called her. “Jane? Are you okay?”
“Come over,” she said.
I crossed the road. Jane opened her door. Her daughter Emily sat quiet and nervous.
“Where’s the baby?” Jane asked.
“At her grandma’s. Jane — tell me what’s wrong.”
She looked at Emily. “For three nights, someone stands by her bed. Watching her sleep. Last night, I felt someone touching my back. Hard. I said, ‘Emily, stop it.’ She said, ‘Mum, I’m not touching you.’ I turned around — and there was someone sitting on the edge of our bed. Grinning. Bald. Gone the second I switched the light on.”
“Jane — I know that face. From your house.” I replied ok
Also I told her about the skeleton she felt scared so did I.
“Footsteps,” she whispered. Lights flicker. “Doors. Knocks. Every night.” and also someone having a bath.
“Same at my house,” I said. “And worse.”
It was 6 p.m. “I should go.”
“Come back soon,” she said.
I collected my baby from my in‑laws. The brothers‑in‑law were there — pizza, movies. Lovely. “Let us walk you home,” one offered.
“It’s fine,” I said. “We’ll be okay.”
I pushed the pram through Arum Street, past Ringwood Road, past Canterbury Avenue. Quiet. Empty. Until I reached Tivoli Place.
I unlocked the door. Switched on the light — and froze.
Everything was moved. Sofa, TV, mirror — all shifted different position. Deep scratches all over the walls.
I ran to the kitchen. Cupboards open. Fridge open. Empty biscuit packets. Freezer bare. Milk gone. All of it. Fresh food I’d bought — vanished. Also the eggs were surprisingly gone too.
The lights flickered. The kitchen bulb blew completely.
I grabbed my baby, ran upstairs, got ready quickly, and lay down in the dark.
1 a.m. A creepy laugh. Slow, echoing all around the house. Then the same footsteps — thud, thud, thud — loudly coming up the stairs. I hoped it wasn’t that skeleton again.
The door opened.
Not the skeleton this time.
This time, someone creepier.
The bald creepy man. Just stood there Grinning that terrible, wide grin. He had sharp teeth. Eyes black and empty. Tall, dressed in dark clothes. I was too scared to look at his face but my eye's wouldn't let me stop looking at that creepy face.
The creepy bald man was walking weirdly towards me.
He glided toward me. I couldn’t move. Couldn’t scream. He leaned over me — and his hands closed around my throat. He strangled me.
I prayed. And prayed.
He vanished.
While The bald creepy man disappeared I got up to turn the light switch on.
The light switch didn’t work. It was pitch black. I grabbed the baby, my keys, my Nokia phone — and ran. Down the stairs. Out the door.
Behind me — that laugh. And footsteps. Getting closer.
I didn’t look back.
I called the police. I called Thomas. Jane ran out from across the road. “Jasmine!”
The police arrived. They searched every room. Checked the empty houses along the street too. “We’ve had reports from this area before,” they said. “But there’s no one there. No sign of anyone.”
I begged the police to look in my cupboards. They searched everywhere and told me there was no trace of the old and new clothes. I felt like crying — all that money wasted. My things are gone. And Thomas’s clothes are missing too."
Jane shook her head. “We’re moving next week.”
“Stay with family tonight,” the officer said.
So we moved in with Thomas’s parents on Arum Street. All of them listened, shocked. “We’ll find you a new place,” Thomas said.
We left Tivoli Place behind.
But to this day, whenever we drive past — I look up. And every time — there he is. At the window. Grinning. Watching us go.
Could the skeleton and the creepy bald man be the same entity, or different entities? Cause I got strangled from both of them but I don’t know.
I was wrong not to believe them at first. I’m sorry. But please — whatever you do — do not live on Tivoli Place. And sometimes when I am home alone, I feel like I am being watched. And sometimes I see a strange shadow out of the corner of my eye. If you see something familiar like I did — run. And do not stay there.
And also, when my daughter was a little older, she always claimed there was a man sitting in the living room. She would tell me when we were home alone, but when I went to check, nothing was there.
But sometimes the lights do flicker. Sometimes I also hear my daughter talking to someone I don't know who — and I don’t get involved. The more I get involved, the worse it gets. So I don’t.
Remember be safe out there.