Tales Told In The Dark XIV

**Jessica** (0:00)
This is Jessica and you are listening to The Asian Madness Podcast.
Hi everyone, and welcome back to Episode 140 Before I talk about this episode, I want to say a few words about what's been going on in my life. If you follow me on social media, you may know that I had to pause for a little bit because my dog died recently.
She was 13 and a half, very cute, and I brought her to the US from Taiwan to live with me in 2024 We found out earlier this year that she had hemangiosarcoma, an aggressive form of cancer. She had a tumor growing on her little tiny heart. We knew she didn't have long, but she was doing so well for months, so it almost felt like she was misdiagnosed until it all changed overnight. So thank you all for your kindness, your understanding, and for your sympathy. It's greatly appreciated. Okay, now on to the episode. So I know for many of you this is your favorite episode, where we talk urban legends and ghost stories. I truly understand that because most of the books and movies I consume nowadays are of the horror genre.
I would love to add some social media posts introducing some of my favorite books in recent years, so if you're into that, I hope you check it out once I decide to post. But what is spooky to me may not be spooky to you. And that's okay.
We can range from the mildly creepy, the mildly wrong, the mildly uncanny to straight up horror, people screaming their heads off. But the tales I choose to retell are rarely the screaming kind. I prefer the somewhat unsettling tales, the ones that perhaps can be explained away with some type of logic. Door slamming for no reason must have been the wind. The mug you left on the table is suddenly sitting on a bookshelf. Someone obviously moved it, probably. But what if you live alone? Then just blame your own memory. These tales leave more to the imagination, and in that way, you can choose to branch out in whatever direction you please.
Before we get to the tales today, I do hope you're all doing fantastic, taking great care of yourselves, and staying hydrated. The usual. I'm extra excited to discuss today's tale because it took me a long time to come up with the five that I liked enough to want to share.
Not all spooky tales work very well because some are either too short and I don't want to make stuff up, or I have a hard time writing it. I'm also genuinely running out of stories, so kind of tough. Again, truth, fiction, or somewhere in between, that's up to you to decide. Let's begin.
For tale number one, this was found online, which is where I find most of my stories. It's one of those tales that have been retold so many times that no one actually knows where it came from, or how it truly happened. Either way, it's somewhat creepy, and like many others, a little bit sad. This story supposedly takes place somewhere in India, and that can literally be anywhere as India is large. So here goes. This is a story involving four best friends, whom we shall simply name A, B, C, and D.
The four best friends attended the same boarding school, and they were constantly hanging out, doing activities together, and of course, staying in touch with each other when away from school. It was break time, and the four of them were set to begin their final year of school soon. The four of them agreed weeks ago on the day they would all arrive back at their dormitories, and of course, they were excited to see each other again and share their holiday tales.
All four girls arrived back to their dorms as planned, a couple of days before the school year was set to start. They wanted some time to get back into the rhythm, to hang out. So A, B, C, and D all gathered in one of the rooms, the four of them nibbling on snacks, giggling over stories, and sharing their dreams and fears. A couple hours go by, and at this point, one of the girls, D, stands up and tells her friends she's getting kind of tired. She's going to go take a shower, and will be back to say good night before she heads off to bed. The three other friends agree, and they continue doing their thing until suddenly, A looks at the time. To her surprise, a whole hour had gone by since D left to shower. Where was D? They wondered if D was actually still in the bathroom, perhaps taking a long shower and doing skincare, so they dismiss their initial worry and continue on. Another hour passes by, and D has not returned. Logically, D could have just showered and gone straight to her room to sleep, but the three friends decided to make sure nothing happened to her, just to reassure themselves.