This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.
The original was posted on /r/nosleep by /u/No_Cockroach_8165 on 2024-09-13 23:44:38+00:00.
"I didn't choose the van life the van life chose me." Something I said often as it was the outro to all my YouTube videos. I've been living in my van for roughly eight months and I'm done after this. The day was like any other day. I woke up and started my boring antisocial life I loved so much. I edited a few videos, ate some leftover meatloaf, and played some video games, you know the basics. I parked the van on the side of a camp ground up near the Colorado Rockies. It was getting late and I wanted to use what sunlight I had left to set up camp. The snow was pretty low at that point, probably from a snowfall a few days prior. I got out my firepit and got a little fire going. I was the only vehicle at the car lot, but I guess that didn't seem weird because it was in the middle of nowhere. As the night grew near, I received a warning on my radio about a blizzard that was due to hit in the next hour. I put my things away and got into my van, bracing for the blizzard. I wasn't to worried as I had a propane heater inside the van incase it got to cold.
The blizzard hit and it hit hard. The wind rocking my van snow covering the windows and sealing me inside the van. I panicked a little ill be honest, the thought of freezing to death flooding my thoughts. I remember laying in bed with my blankets wrapped around me and dozing off. at some point it got really quiet, so quiet it woke me up. I figured the wind had died down and it finally settled so I sat up. I wondered if I should go assess the situation and see how bad it was. Id say it went on for about 3 hours so it got pretty deep. I decided to make some coffee and warm up before I went out. I started to get dressed and put on my boots. Just as I pull up my boot a noise catches my attention. What sounds like something trotting through deep snow is making its way towards my van. Heavy footsteps approach from what I figure was about 30 yards out. I don't move a muscle, even my breath slowed down to basically nothing. My body was riddled with goosebumps as fear pulsed through me. My first thought was moose, but then there's also bears out here. I couldn't see anything thru the thick snow lining my windows. The footsteps were about 10 yards away at this point still making their way towards me.
My body begins to shake violently. I'm not sure if it was from the cold or the fear but I couldn't stop. I could hear what sounded like humming coming from the direction of the noises. It was very low and didn't really sound like anything I knew. It was getting closer and closer, the humming and footsteps were about 5 yards away now and I was almost certain this was no moose or bear. The footsteps stop right outside the rear of my van. The only windows I have are the front seat windows so I cant see anything out of the rear. A voice breaks the silence cold and small.
"Hello in there, may I have a word with you." It said in a voice from what sounded like a little girl.
I almost melted into the ground at that point. My body was absolutely trembling, sweat pouring out from all over my body. Terror doesn't describe the feeling I had at that moment in time. I remained silent, refusing to utter even a breath. Now I really knew it wasn't an animal. First of all that walking sounded way to heavy to be a little girl. Its almost 1am right after a bad blizzard and its out in the middle of no where. No weapon or anything really to defend myself with, I felt absolutely helpless.
"Don't be afraid, I'm not going to hurt you I just need help." It said.
"Please do not ignore me, Its very rude." It said in a slightly deeper tone.
"Y.. I.. wh..." I spit out not being able to talk from the terror I was in.
"Is there a problem?" It asked.
I slowly picked my head up and looked at the back of the van. I gulped, took a deep breath, and forced out what little I could say.
"What's the problem?" I said thru chattering teeth.
"No not a problem, I just wanted to ask if you had a tooth for me." It said.
"A tooth?" I thought to myself.
"You need a tooth?" I asked the voice.
"Yes, Just a tooth." It asked happily.
My mind was in a million different places at this point. Who the hell was I talking to? What did they want with a tooth. Was this some sort of monster you hear about in some travel channel show? I wasn't really sure what it was, but I was afraid nonetheless. I began to reason with myself. Maybe another car pulled up and I didnt realize it and they wanted to play a prank on me because they recognize the van.
"I don't have a tooth, can you please go away this isn't funny." I said
The sweet voice that asked so kindly for a tooth moments ago, changed almost immediately into a twisted dark deep voice like some kind of demon.
"Give me one of your teeth willingly, or I will rip the teeth from your skull one by one!" It yelled.
I began to search thru my van for a weapon, something I could fight this thing with if I had to. All I had was a hammer that was stashed under the engine hood in the front seat. I raised the hood and grabbed the hammer. I stood in the van, hammer in hand like some dollar store Thor. I turned around and that when I remembered the shark tooth hanging from my visor. I ripped the tooth from the visor and went to the back of the van.
"I have a tooth for you." I said body still shaking uncontrollably from the adrenaline.
"THROW IT OUT NOW!" It yelled again so loud it shook the van.
I slid the van door open only to be met with a wall of snow. I stuffed the tooth into the snow and slid the door closed and locked it. A loud bang on the back doors and a loud scratch followed all the way from the back to the side door and stopped.
"Thanks for the tooth." It said back in the little sweet voice from before.
The humming began again and the loud heavy footsteps made their way away from my van. I curled up in the fetal position on the ground of the van until I couldn't hear the footsteps anymore. I jumped up turned the engine over on my van and began to let it heat up. I sat for about 15 minutes and started the van up and began to drive back home from my last day as a van life youtuber. I'm still not sure what to chalk it up to but I don't see myself going around the Rockies again ever.