Hey, guys...
Can I tell you guys something? I try not to think too much about it, but I know that I lie to myself in denying that anything happened.
I'm on the phones at work. A lot. Telling various agents and customers multiple variants of the word 'No.' You see, I work in insurance. A corporate office building no less. There are maybe five-hundred employees here at any given time... except after office hours.
My boss asked me one night a few weeks ago if I could stay late to help with some extra policy processing. Still in the position of 'Office Newbie,' I needed impress the higher ups. I said yes.
You know, I've always wondered why anything strange (or, in my case, downright frightening) always occurs when no one else is around to witness it. Have you noticed that before? Well, I still don't know the answer, but at least I can now make the claim that it does happen.
Anyway, as I was saying, I stayed late one night to get that much-needed overtime. I wasn't expecting any calls to come in as our lines were closed for the evening, not to mention the fact that there was no one else there at the time save my immediate supervisor on the other side of the floor. I still kept my headset on in case my supervisor needed to get a hold of me.
Usually, when someone in my department gets a call, there is a precursory BING-BING in our ear, letting us know to get ready for the call. Well, I wasn't expecting one, so when a BING-BING came through, I was just a little startled.
Wanting to stay professional (all the while getting ready to harp on the tech-supports for keeping the lines open) I kicked into habit and spouted my usual greeting:
"This is ---* , how may I help you this evening?"
...
A slight static from the other end, but otherwise no answer. Keeping within regulation I needed to repeat myself to make sure the caller heard me.
"This is --- , how may I help you this evening?"
More or less static... though I could barely make out an occasional click, like a record off it's track. Or was it more like the clicking of some kind of insect? I can't recall.
One more time. No answer and I can hang up on them.
"This is --- , how may I help y--" Yreeeeeeeech!
Loud enough to hurt, I pulled away the earpiece as the screeching continued for several moments. Eventually, it faded off into more of that clicking from before, and always the same sounds of static pitches rising and falling in tone.
What do I say? Anything at all? Maybe there was electronic static that crossed the phonelines. That could certainly be the cause of all of these noises. I could feel the adrenaline rushing. Too afraid to say anything else, I sat there, staring at the monitor in front of me. The clicking continued, but thankfully there were no further screams, human or otherwise.
"Do you know?"
Finally! Someone is there. Very garbled and sounding like it was coming through a tin can, but he's there all the same.
"I'm sorry, sir. Can I ask you to repeat that?"
"Do you know it?" the voice replied, fading off into more clicks.
Now I was confused. Is this a prank? I've gotten one before. Or maybe...
"I'm sorry. You mean do I know the policy number? Unfortunately, no. But if you tell me I can certainly--"
The line dropped.
I continued to stare at the computer screen, wondering what I had just experienced. I took off my headset to regain myself. No other calls for me tonight. Screw that! So, eventually, the adrenaline faded and my heart slowed. Minutes later I found myself back to work. I pushed it all to the back of my mind but there it still lingered.
Do you know it?
Even as I heard the voice from behind me, the monitor shut off. There, in the reflection, stood the warped image of what looked like a girl, though I knew at once that it wasn't. Why? There was no face.
Do you know the time of your death? I do.
I spun around even as the clicking raised in deafening volumes around me. But there was no girl. No apparitions.
Only the clicking.
Pounding.
Unrelenting.
Endless...
The next thing I remember was my supervisor standing over me, asking if I were alright. I was sitting in my chair, facing the monitor which was on and displaying the last report I was working on.
Did all of that just happen? Well, I wasn't about to tell the boss if it had.
The strangest thing though. A few days later I recalled the actual phone 'conversation'. I remembered that all calls that come in or go out are recorded. I went back to check on my calls for that evening. Nothing. No call took place, or so the records show.
Needless to say, though: I don't work overtime now. Not for the life of me.
-------------------------------
Thought of that today. Admittedly, it all came to me while at work, so maybe it's not as special a story as I at first hoped. Anyway, thoughts?
I'm on the phones at work. A lot. Telling various agents and customers multiple variants of the word 'No.' You see, I work in insurance. A corporate office building no less. There are maybe five-hundred employees here at any given time... except after office hours.
My boss asked me one night a few weeks ago if I could stay late to help with some extra policy processing. Still in the position of 'Office Newbie,' I needed impress the higher ups. I said yes.
You know, I've always wondered why anything strange (or, in my case, downright frightening) always occurs when no one else is around to witness it. Have you noticed that before? Well, I still don't know the answer, but at least I can now make the claim that it does happen.
Anyway, as I was saying, I stayed late one night to get that much-needed overtime. I wasn't expecting any calls to come in as our lines were closed for the evening, not to mention the fact that there was no one else there at the time save my immediate supervisor on the other side of the floor. I still kept my headset on in case my supervisor needed to get a hold of me.
Usually, when someone in my department gets a call, there is a precursory BING-BING in our ear, letting us know to get ready for the call. Well, I wasn't expecting one, so when a BING-BING came through, I was just a little startled.
Wanting to stay professional (all the while getting ready to harp on the tech-supports for keeping the lines open) I kicked into habit and spouted my usual greeting:
"This is ---* , how may I help you this evening?"
...
A slight static from the other end, but otherwise no answer. Keeping within regulation I needed to repeat myself to make sure the caller heard me.
"This is --- , how may I help you this evening?"
More or less static... though I could barely make out an occasional click, like a record off it's track. Or was it more like the clicking of some kind of insect? I can't recall.
One more time. No answer and I can hang up on them.
"This is --- , how may I help y--" Yreeeeeeeech!
Loud enough to hurt, I pulled away the earpiece as the screeching continued for several moments. Eventually, it faded off into more of that clicking from before, and always the same sounds of static pitches rising and falling in tone.
What do I say? Anything at all? Maybe there was electronic static that crossed the phonelines. That could certainly be the cause of all of these noises. I could feel the adrenaline rushing. Too afraid to say anything else, I sat there, staring at the monitor in front of me. The clicking continued, but thankfully there were no further screams, human or otherwise.
"Do you know?"
Finally! Someone is there. Very garbled and sounding like it was coming through a tin can, but he's there all the same.
"I'm sorry, sir. Can I ask you to repeat that?"
"Do you know it?" the voice replied, fading off into more clicks.
Now I was confused. Is this a prank? I've gotten one before. Or maybe...
"I'm sorry. You mean do I know the policy number? Unfortunately, no. But if you tell me I can certainly--"
The line dropped.
I continued to stare at the computer screen, wondering what I had just experienced. I took off my headset to regain myself. No other calls for me tonight. Screw that! So, eventually, the adrenaline faded and my heart slowed. Minutes later I found myself back to work. I pushed it all to the back of my mind but there it still lingered.
Do you know it?
Even as I heard the voice from behind me, the monitor shut off. There, in the reflection, stood the warped image of what looked like a girl, though I knew at once that it wasn't. Why? There was no face.
Do you know the time of your death? I do.
I spun around even as the clicking raised in deafening volumes around me. But there was no girl. No apparitions.
Only the clicking.
Pounding.
Unrelenting.
Endless...
The next thing I remember was my supervisor standing over me, asking if I were alright. I was sitting in my chair, facing the monitor which was on and displaying the last report I was working on.
Did all of that just happen? Well, I wasn't about to tell the boss if it had.
The strangest thing though. A few days later I recalled the actual phone 'conversation'. I remembered that all calls that come in or go out are recorded. I went back to check on my calls for that evening. Nothing. No call took place, or so the records show.
Needless to say, though: I don't work overtime now. Not for the life of me.
-------------------------------
Thought of that today. Admittedly, it all came to me while at work, so maybe it's not as special a story as I at first hoped. Anyway, thoughts?