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No One "lives" Next Door

 

Life in Russia was a lot like life in the US. The similarities between the way people spoke, what they said, how they dressed, what they liked to do for fun, was pretty much spot on. There were some "odd" differences that took way more time to get used to than I was happy about. One time, I went to the corner convenience market to grab some milk for cereal and tea... A relatively simple act? Normally, yes - however not in Russia. It turns out there are two kinds of milk, both widely available and usually located right next to each other in any beverage or dairy cooler. Both are called "milk" or Moloko. However, one is Nastolnoye and one is Tertoye. The bottles look pretty much the same, they even both come in "whole cream" or "1.5%". So I purchased some "milk" and poured it over my cereal one morning and took a bite. I was instantly greeted with the most sour, curdled, revolting sensation I've ever experienced... My eyes teared up, my nostrils flared and I had to rush to the sink to expel my breakfast before the floor (or my lap) could greet it first. Nastolnoye is "table milk" and that's what people in the US would put in tea or on their cereal. If only I had purchased that... I had bought Tertoye milk (tart) which is intentionally soured with additives such as vinegar. That's right, the Russians love a good sour milk to drink while on the go. The stuff is a little like sour cream, but liquid.

Another odd quirk, is that the younger generation does not stay put for very long. People in our building were constantly moving in, moving out. They'd find a better flat at a slightly better rate and they were gone. I guess no one ever bothered to calculate the costs associated with moving. I was well into my second year living in Vladivostok, things were going great. My girlfriend was finally moving into my apartment while we looked for something bigger that we could afford with our new combined income. Her place was a tiny studio near the factory district - so it wasn't really a candidate.

The strange "phantom" odor that seemed to plague the flat still cropped up from time to time, but we soon discovered that incense seemed to drive it away. It also masked the smell quite nicely. Directly next door to me lived an amazing couple who were in their early 30's and who spoke some English. We hung out quite a lot when I wasn't sleeping from my crazy hours. Practically every other night we'd go out as a group to the cinema, or shopping districts and spend hours together.

Two months after my girlfriend moved in, they moved OUT. It was more than a little devastating. They were the perfect neighbors and although they did shuffle around a lot at night, it was usually just some low, muffled bumping noises. Who knows how loud a new tenant would be!

We never got to find out. Shortly after they had completed the process of moving out, we began to notice strange sounds during the middle of the night. The same low, thumping, dragging noises could be heard through the wall from the apartment next door. At first, we thought they might be contractors, working to get the apartment rentable for new tenants, however the noises seemed to go on all night. I was usually gone until very late at night, and when I did get home, I was so exhausted no amount of thumping through a wall was going to keep me up. My girlfriend was another story however. She'd toss and turn all night... Eventually moving out to the living room to pass out, trying to get as far from the shared wall as she could. We eventually complained to the apartment manager, who took us immediately to the vacant flat. Of course, the place was completely deserted. My first thought was mice, or rats. After all, I'd been warned from my first day living there that "dog sized" rats were common in the building. Traps were set, and a small digital video camera was placed, the idea being that if a vagrant was breaking in at night the manager could show it to police.

Two or three nights passed, and as usual there were plenty of bumping and dragging noises coming from the apartment next door. Each day we would all enter the apartment and check the traps - nothing. We'd check the camera, and while it did seem to capture some of the noises, there was no indication of where they were coming from. After about a week we'd had enough and FINALLY convinced the apartment manager to give us a copy of the key. We planned to wait until the noises got to their loudest, and run into the apartment to confront whoever was banging around all night. We didn't have to wait long. The noises started at around 8:30pm and got steadily louder. At about 10:00pm we sneaked into the hallway and unlocked the door, turning the lock very slowly to avoid making too much noise. There was a fire escape and we were "sure" that if the occupant was alerted, they'd be gone before we could get there. We swung open the door and flipped on the overhead lights... Nothing. Not a thing. No noises, no movement, no activity at all except for the lone camera on a tripod to one corner of the room.

My girlfriend was looking a little ragged, and truth be told I wasn't in great shape either. The lack of sleep was putting incredible pressure on her and, in turn, on me. We actually ended up renting a hotel room for a weekend just to get away, and give my poor girlfriend a chance to sleep through the night. Before going home, we made arrangements to meet up with our friends, the former tenants of the apartment which was causing us so much trouble. We met up at a cafe and went over the entire story from start to finish. By the end, our friends had a look of shock and a little fear in their faces. I still remember exactly what they said next, it was freaky enough to make us pack up that night and go back to the hotel for good...

"Those sounds you heard... We know them well." My friend Petra said. "But, they were not coming from our apartment. They came from yours." "We heard them every night, it kept us awake and that is why we moved, the walls were too thin."

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Comments about this paranormal experience

The following comments are submitted by users of this site and are not official positions by yourghoststories.com. Please read our guidelines and the previous posts before posting. The author, Dreyk, has the following expectation about your feedback: I will read the comments and participate in the discussion.

sheetal (6 stories) (771 posts)
+2
6 years ago (2017-10-25)
This is really creepy, and I love your narration. Really thinking that what is the reason behind those noises?
Faith1990 (2 stories) (10 posts)
+2
6 years ago (2017-10-24)
Dreyk--Wow, your experiences are intense! I am so relieved you got the heck out of that place. A person can only take so much. I imagine you felt a bit terrified after your friends/former neighbors told you that they thought the sounds were coming from your apartment. That would have chilled me to the bone. I hope the home you moved into next was peaceful. Thanks for sharing! Love your stories.
Sid926 (2 stories) (25 posts)
+2
6 years ago (2017-10-24)
Hey dreyk seriously your stories are amazing. I have not read all of your stories but this is the second one I read. The first I read was about siberian forest 😊
Love to read about your other new stories if any 😉
Sid
babygoatpuller (4 stories) (432 posts)
+3
6 years ago (2017-10-23)
Dreyk-

I'm with Jubeele and the others. Your accounts are all fascinating and this one is no exception. Please do share more!

I'm off to the Siberian Forest! 😆
annie16 (13 stories) (53 posts)
+2
6 years ago (2017-10-23)
I just love your stories. Please keep writing, they are so vivid.
Jubeele (25 stories) (882 posts)
+2
6 years ago (2017-10-22)
Dreyk, when you return to Vladivostok, be sure to keep us updated. I'm interested to know if those "giant mutant rats" are still there... Wouldn't it be peculiar if the new tenants turn out to be "tone-deaf" to the noises?

I laughed about the Tertoye milk. It sounds like buttermilk. That's the sour liquid left behind after churning butter out of cream. I use it in pancakes or cakes <yum> 😆
Dreyk (9 stories) (27 posts)
+2
6 years ago (2017-10-21)
The walls were plaster, which generally is a little better at soundproofing than sheet rock. We had a corner unit, so we only shared one wall with our friends' flat and the other wall with the corridor. To answer, YES I very much wish they had asked about it earlier. Looking back though it was probably good for us to move. We ended up finding a much better place.

After speaking to our friends, we never spent the night in that building again.
moonrider (2 posts)
+2
6 years ago (2017-10-21)
So well written Dreyk. I love reading your accounts. Very spooky 🦇
Jubeele (25 stories) (882 posts)
+2
6 years ago (2017-10-21)
Eeeeeekkk! Dreyk, your account is so brilliantly scary!

Don't you wish your friend Petra had spoken to you earlier? Then you could've compared notes and worked it out together. But if you and your girlfriend are still living there, you should seriously try Rook's cleansing ritual. It may get you some needed peace and quiet.

My husband and I live in a split-level unit with thin gyprock walls. The common walls are "hollowed-out" to accommodate wiring but the whole effect is like living in a giant sound-box. Sounds get amplified especially at night and we often can't tell where they're coming from. We'd think the people next door are giant possums in disguise and running amok, but then it turns out to be the children in the unit across the hall bouncing a ball on their wooden floor.

Right now, the building next to ours has been demolished and a new apartment block is going up. When the heavy machinery is being used on the construction site, our floor shakes like in an earthquake!

Sure hope it's not some mutant, super-smart and humongous rats living in our walls... 😟

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