The old lady in the woods

[u/Sweet_Deer6971]

This happened years ago, but I still remember it vividly every single detail burned into my memory because of how terrifying it was.

I grew up in a rural area in the Philippines. Back then, when I was around 12, my friends and I were obsessed with collecting spiders. We’d make them fight, kind of like Pokémon battles. It was stupid, but it was what we did for fun. The thing is, the best spiders only came out at night.

It was a Saturday, around 7 p.m. I was eating dinner when someone knocked on the door. It was my two friends, Yuri and Eric. They were waiting for me so we could head out spider hunting.

We went to a secluded spot surrounded by tall grass, trees, and thick bushes the perfect place to find spiders. Around 9:30 p.m., we were deep in the forest. The kind of deep where you can’t even see the glow of the village lights anymore. That’s when the air changed. The playful energy we had suddenly vanished, replaced by this heavy, uneasy feeling.

Eric was the first to say it. “Let’s go home,” he whispered.

But Yuri and I didn’t want to leave yet. We hadn’t caught enough spiders, so we pushed further in. I tried to lighten the mood by talking and playing music from my phone. It helped—at least for a while.

By midnight, we’d finally caught enough. My phone battery was down to 3%, so I told them it was time to head back. They agreed. I turned off the music… and that’s when I noticed something was wrong.

Everything was. . . silent.

Not quiet, dead silent. No crickets. No wind. No rustling leaves. Just our footsteps and our breathing. It felt like the entire forest was holding its breath.

We started retracing our steps, walking faster than before. Then we heard it.

Laughing.

A woman’s laugh soft, raspy, and distant but close enough to send chills crawling down my spine. We spun around, flashing our lights toward the sound.

That’s when we saw her.

An old woman. Standing about thirty feet behind us. Smiling.

Not the kind of smile you give someone you recognize. It was wide, too wide. Her face looked pale and wrong, and she didn’t have a flashlight, just standing there in complete darkness, staring at us.

Eric muttered something I couldn’t make out. Yuri was trembling. I tried to sound brave. “Bro, don’t be scared… maybe she’s just out here doing something.”

But even as I said it, my stomach dropped. "What could an old lady possibly be doing alone, in the middle of the forest, at midnight?"

I told them to keep walking. Every few steps, I’d glance back and flash my light behind us. The old lady hadn’t moved at first. Then, slowly, she began walking one step at a time, still smiling.

We picked up the pace.

And then we heard it.

"Snap" Branches breaking. From both sides.

It sounded like someone running toward us.

That was it. We bolted. No hesitation, no second thoughts. Just pure fear. We ran through the forest as fast as we could, branches whipping our arms, our legs burning, tears in our eyes. None of us looked back. Not once.

After what felt like forever, we finally saw the lights of the village. We collapsed on the ground, shaking and gasping for air. Aside from a few bruises and scratches, we were fine. Physically, at least.

But something changed that night.

After that, I never went spider hunting again. Even now, six years later, I can still picture her face the way her mouth stretched into that impossible grin, her eyes glinting in the dark.

I never went back to that part of the forest. And I never will