The narrator shares three personal spooky experiences.
The first story is about a 15-year-old narrator who is left to watch his 10-year-old brother while their parents are away. The younger brother becomes scared of a "boogeyman" in his closet, and when the narrator investigates, he finds a strange, scruffy-looking man hiding in the closet. The narrator chases the man away and locks himself and his brother in the bathroom, calling the police. The man is later caught in another house, where he had committed a more serious crime.
The second story takes place when the narrator was younger and on a family vacation in a village with a haunted forest and cemetery. The narrator, his younger sister, and cousins decide to play hide-and-seek at night in the cemetery, despite the parents' warnings. They encounter an old man who appears to be digging a grave, making hissing noises, and the group barely escapes.
The third story is about the narrator getting bored at his brother's soccer game and wandering off to the playground. He meets a kid with a Spider-Man toy and is lured to the kid's van, where the kid's father is waiting with a creepy grin. The narrator's father intervenes just in time, shouting his name and pushing him out of the van, which then speeds away. The narrator reflects on the importance of teaching children not to follow strangers.
Here are the key facts from the text:
1. The narrator's parents went out to a party in New Jersey, leaving the narrator, who was 15, to watch their 10-year-old brother.
2. The party started at 8pm and the parents expected to return by 3am.
3. The narrator and their brother watched movies and ate popcorn until around 11:30pm.
4. The brother came downstairs and claimed that the boogeyman was in his closet and wanted to touch him.
5. The narrator checked the closet and found a tall, scruffy-looking man with long black greasy hair.
6. The man was in his mid-40s and fairly built, and was watching the brother sleep.
7. The narrator grabbed their brother and ran to the bathroom, locking the door and calling the police.
8. The police searched the house but didn't find the man.
9. A week later, the narrator found out that the same man had been caught in another person's house, where he had killed the family.
10. The narrator's family went on vacation to a village with a forest rumored to be haunted.
11. The narrator's cousins wanted to play hide and seek in the forest at night, despite the parents' rules against it.
12. The narrator and their younger sister, who was 7, went to the cemetery with their older cousin, who was 22.
13. The cemetery lights went out, and the group heard digging noises and saw an old man with ruffled hair and dirty clothes digging a grave with his bare hands.
14. The group tried to sneak away, but the narrator stepped on a broken branch, making a loud noise and alerting the old man.
15. The old man chased the group, but they were able to outrun him.
16. The old man was later caught by the police and found to be a criminal who was digging up dead bodies to hide a secret stash of potatoes.
17. The narrator's family went to a soccer match, and the narrator got bored and went to the playground.
18. The narrator met a kid with a Spider-Man web shooter, who invited them to see another one in their family's van.
19. The narrator was about to get into the van when their father shouted their name and pushed them away, just as the van sped off.
20. The narrator's father hugged them and they left the game with their family.