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Somewhere around the early 2010s, a rule for a sleepover game was being spread around internet message boards. It is difficult to tell who the original author of the game is, or what its true origins are. The game is said to be based off an old pagan ritual reserved to punish those that have wronged pagan Gods. In reality, the game sounds more akin to an urban legend. There have been several sleepover games invented in the past used to cause fright. Perhaps most known among these is the Bloody Marry game. The player must repeat “Bloody Marry” for a set number of times in quick succession in front of a mirror. Evoking this name is said to conjure an evil female spirit. Some versions of the game involve the spirit manifesting in front of the player and those who stare for too long get scratched with her claws—or in some cases, killed.
The midnight man is also conjured by player actions, but the process is a little more complicated. First, all the lights inside the house must be turned off. When the hour strikes midnight or directly leading up to it, the player writes their full name on a piece of paper. They are then instructed to douse the paper with a few drops of their own blood. Next, the blood-soaked paper is placed just in front of the front door and a lit candle placed on top of it. The player must then knock on the door a total of twenty-two times, making sure that the hour is exactly 12:00 at the time of the final knock. To let the midnight man inside, the player blows out the candle, briefly opens the door and then promptly shuts it. That is when the fun begins.
The candle is relit, and the player must walk around the house avoiding the midnight man. Some accounts of people playing this game describe the midnight man as a real entity that hides in corners and meshes with the shadows. If the candle becomes unlit, the player needs to relight it at all costs. If they fail to do so, they must step in a circle of salt and remain there until the midnight man leaves. Usually, this happens at 3:33. However, if the player fails to both relight the candle and surround themselves with salt, the midnight man attacks. Hallucinations and panic attacks have been reported at this stage, even bodily harm and the possibility of death. The midnight man must be avoided at all cost. When the midnight man is near, you will know it either by a dramatic drop in temperature or the appearance of a shadowy feature. You may hear things like inaudible whispers. If it comes near you, the player is advised to run.
A Harmless Game
When I moved schools going into freshman year I was lucky enough to make friends with a rich girl. Her name was Annette, she was in the same year as me and had this pretty long flowing brown hair. I was always jealous of her, but she was such a good friend that the jealously never materialized beyond the occasional bad thought. She allowed me to join her friend group right from the get-go and she even introduced me to her family. She took me shopping, bought me presents, and always had my back. I’m not sure how we become so close. I think it was because we both shared a fascination with the paranormal. We could talk for hours about ghosts and the spiritual realm. Both of us had some personal experience in this area and we shared stories all the time.
One day she invited me and another friend to a sleepover at her parent’s massive two-story house. Both parents would be gone on a business trip, and we decided we would skip school on Friday to have ourselves a three-day weekend. Milly, the other girl who was invited didn’t know me so well but found mutual friendship through Annette. Despite this, she was always friendly towards me. I was super excited to spend an entire weekend at Annette’s house with just the three of us. We decided early that no boys would be invited. The plan was to get dropped off at Annette’s after school by my Milly’s older sister. We didn’t tell anyone that no adults would be in the house. I cherished the freedom that my parents gave me early on. If I told them I was going to see Annette they wouldn’t protest. If I told them I was going to spend the weekend at her house, they only asked me when I would be back. I knew they were only compensating for the fact that they made us move at such an unfortunate time. Starting off your highs school experience and simultaneously losing all your friends is not something I wish on anyone. I love my parents, despite all their mistakes.
Thankfully I found Annette early in the school year. We first met at PE class. Though she was somewhat popular, she didn’t have any friends in our section. We hit it off instantly after we forgot (or refused) to wear our gym clothes and had to sit behind the bleachers while all the other girls ran laps and played volleyball. I don’t remember how we arrived at the subject of the paranormal, but before the period was over we were in deep discussion about the existence of ghosts. She told me how she used to spend summers at a haunted cabin owned by her uncle. I told her about how when I was little I would see things. Sometimes I would point at a corner and cry, but everyone assured me there was nothing there. I believe I was seeing spirits, and for some reason being a toddler only I could discern their presence. Before the bell rang, I remember one thing she told me that I probably never will, “These things do exist. And just because science can’t prove them, it doesn’t mean they are made up.”
In a way, we both shared a connection with the paranormal and I thought that was really neat. So did she apparently, because she always treated me better than her other friends. None of them liked talking about the things that we did. They thought it was boring and preferred to talk about boys and fashion. The more I hung out with Annette the more I started noticing about the problems that she had. Despite coming from a well-off family, Annette had frequent mental breakdowns, often over the smallest things. I would be lying if I said they didn’t make me feel uncomfortable. I can recall many times I overheard her talking with her parents over her cell phone and how she just seemed to lose control. She would raise her voice and curse a lot. In hindsight, I should have known that she had some anger problems. But when I was with her, I could only smile and think about how cool she was standing up to her parents.
Annette was definitely a risk taker. She had many boyfriends and while I can’t say for sure, I believe she slept with all of them. I have reason to believe that some of it took place while we were at school. After all, she would disappear mysteriously in the middle of the school day and I couldn’t locate her until hours later. She drank occasionally and would offer me some, which I usually declined. She promised me when summer break came, we would go ghost hunting at her uncle’s cabin. It was our strong friendship that allowed me to overlook such things. I was also an impressionable girl, and while I knew that the things she did were wrong, I thought they were kind of cool. I didn’t want her to think I was a goodie-two-shoes, so I never told her it was wrong. When she offered me to do things, she simply offered and never pressured me. I really liked that about her.
The day came a few days after Halloween. We didn’t get the spend Halloween together, so the sleepover was Annette’s way of making it up to me. She promised we would watch spooky movies and play with an Ouija board. I had an uneventful Halloween, so I was completely on board with it all. Milly hung out with us at lunch period and we decided it would be better to ditch for the rest of the day. That felt really good. After lunch, we stocked up on snacks and soda at the vending machines and disappeared beyond the bleachers. It was a big school that had plenty of places to hide. We found a little recess next to an abandoned stairwell. There was a large window and a low wall that if we crouched or laid against it nobody could see us from the other side of the hall. Not that there was anyone to see us there. Whenever we heard footsteps we simply lowered our voices.
For the next four periods, we watched videos on our phones and ate snacks, giggling all the way. We talked about boys and told ghost stories. Annette sprawled on the floor and rested her head on my lap meanwhile Milly laid in the opposite direction with her feet at my shins. It was then that Annette first brought it up. A new game she heard of from a boy, who got it off the internet. Something called the Midnight Man challenge. Annette explained how to set up the game, and then slowly went into detail about how it was played. My immediate thought was that the game sounded really scary and at the same time dangerous. Milly thought it sounded like a good thrill. I said I would do it, but if the midnight man came I wasn’t going to stay put. Annette burst out laughing and told me that it was probably a lie, anyway. Whoever heard of a midnight man? We heard a rustling of branches as the big oak outside brushed violently against the lower window. We were quiet for a little bit, then Annette said, “We should play the midnight man game tonight.”
The final bang rang, and we all sneaked out of our hiding place to go wait at the schoolyard. In high school nobody really cares if they saw you in the morning but not in the afternoon, only to materialize when it was time to go home. Or else that’s what Annette used to tell me. I feel like she was a girl who desperately wanted to grow up. I was just along for the ride. We had to wait for Milly’s sister to get off from work, so we hung out on some steps, finishing what was left of our snacks. When the beige corolla finally arrived, the courtyard was hollowed out of students. Only those with extracurriculars lingered about. Every now and then a teacher would pass by. We prayed that our teachers from the classes we skipped didn’t go by, but as Annette said, in high school, nobody cares. Milly’s sister was also cool. She had tattoos that covered her entire left arm and wore a septum ring. “Are you chicks all ready to go?” She turned the radio to a local rock station that played nu-metal bands of the early 2000s. I felt rebellious, almost grown up.
We made a short stop at Starbucks for sugary drinks and went straight to Annette’s house. It was some thirty minutes away, cumulating in a winding two-way street that led us through a forest of autumn trees and other big houses. Annette’s house looked ancient. It had a front gate, a cobblestone driveway, a huge porch. I could make out several windows along the two-story structure, and the pointy roofs you only find in rich people’s homes. The first time I saw it I couldn’t believe my eyes. There were always several cars parked, one of them reserved for when Annette could start driving. “Okay Milly, remember to call your mom later so she won’t be on your ass all night. Other than that, you girls have fun.” We had all our clothes crammed into our backpacks, so Milly’s sister didn’t have to help us with that. I half expected her to burn out on her way back, but she drove the Corolla at normal speed.
Annette opened the gate with her personal key and made sure to lock it again before walking us through the house. I’ve been there a few times and it already felt like a home away from home. My toes curled in anticipation of all the fun things we could do. It wasn’t even four O’ clock yet and the possibilities were endless. The first we did was a kick off our shoes and socks. Annette turned on the TV and asked us if we wanted something to drink. I think she poured herself some Vodka and mixed it with juice, but I didn’t ask for any. The day was spent playing video games, UNO, talking about boys. The usual stuff girls do at sleepovers. I was careful not to eat too much because I really hated using other people’s bathrooms. In fact, I think the house had four of them. We jumped outside on her trampoline until sundown.
The night came swiftly. It was hard to believe that some hours ago we were all huddling behind a wall hoping they wouldn’t get caught ditching. Annette only kept some lights on the rest of the house was pitch black. Most of our time was spent downstairs in the living room and kitchen. That’s where the big TV was. We watched scary movies. Annette kept trying to creep behind us to make us jump, and soon we were doing the same. I think it was after the second movie that Milly fell asleep on the couch. It was just me and Annette. We continued our talk from earlier about ghosts. The subject was on how ghosts can interact with the physical world if they are floating spirits. I said it had something to do with jumping dimensions, but Annette disagreed. She got a little more serious then. She told me that ghosts don’t travel through dimensions but that ghosts share our reality. She went as far as to say that they are part of the soul, and insofar as people have souls they also have a personal connection with ghosts.
We put off playing with the Ouija board and instead went upstairs to sleep for the night. Everyone was exhausted from school and then jumping outside. We left some lights on just in case Milly woke up and wanted to come upstairs, but she didn’t. Annette told me she would give us a tour of the house when we woke up. So far, I had only seen her room, the kitchen and living room area, two bathrooms and the backyard. I shared Annette’s queen size bed that night.
When morning came, Annette was noticeably hungover. We made a quick breakfast and decided to go for a walk to freshen up. It was colder than what we expected. A cold front or something or the other had blown in the night before, and the sky was a deep gray. I thought it was a little unusual. It must have been around noon, but it was so dark outside you’d think that the sun had disappeared. Of course, it wasn’t as dark as night, but it was still eerie. Annette told me that ghosts travel with storms. I laughed at the time but walking along the deserted forest made me a little scared. I think the other girls felt it too because we turned back soon after. The rest of the day wasn’t as fun as the first, but we still had a good time. Lull’s of boredom caused us to retreat to our phones. I had been texting a boy from school and Annette wrote ghost stories. I and Milly giggled nervously as we heard Annette having a breakdown with parents on the phone upstairs. They were worried about her and considered calling someone to look after her. I thought the fun was over, but in the end, Annette convinced her parents not to call her aunt. They didn’t know we were there.
Night came and with it, the storm. The rain wasn’t falling too hard, but the thunder and lightning were substantial. Annette was set on playing the midnight man game once it got close to 12 o’ clock. I was still nervous about it, buy Milly was onboard. They both managed to convince me that it might be fun. I texted my guy friend that we were going to play, and he said to let him know if anything interesting happened. I was totally game after that. Annette couldn’t find her Ouija board, so we just lingered about until it was 11. I think we were all a little nervous at that point because nobody said much. Annette gathered everything we needed. We made holes on the top of Morton salt containers for easy access. Three candles were sourced, as well as paper. Annette produced a sharp hunting knife. That scared me. “Netters are you sure?” I had somehow forgotten the blood price requirement in all my excitement. “You don’t have to cut yourself if you don’t want to,” she told me as lightning lit up the backyard screen door. I really didn’t want to.
She gave me and Milly the rundown once more. Any room in the house was up to it, but we were to avoid the master bedroom. She’d unlocked the front gate in case someone felt they needed to run out and I guess to let the midnight man in. We all wore our raincoats just in case. Then she did something I wasn’t expecting. She picked up our phones from where they were charging and put them in a locked box. “We don’t need these until after.” I gulped. I still had my nerdy watch, but it didn’t have a strong backlight. “Rely on your candles.” We were each given a lighter. One by one, we shut off the lights until the living room was the only lit place.
Then we lit our candles and turned those lights off as well. I could hardly see anything except for Milly’s anxious expression and the glint of the hunting knife. One by one we wrote our names on the paper. “Now!” I couldn’t see it, but Annette had just sliced the tip of her finger. Milly used a needle, I think. I was the only one to put down an unsoiled paper. We started knocking in unison, counting down the seconds. On the 22nd knock, we opened the door and we were engulfed in darkness. The wind from outside had blown the candles out. Frantically we let them back, I heard a shrill scream. Milly. I turned to her and she was smiling. The midnight man was now in the house.
One by one we walked around the spacious living room, candle in one hand salt container in the other. I kept my lighter in my back pocket. We each had big saint candles, they weren’t going out anytime soon. I tried to stay close to Annette, but she kept motioning to keep my distance. The first hour or so was uneventful. But with all the lights off you hear things that you normally wouldn’t. I think I did hear things move, or else dull thuds coming from upstairs. It was hard to tell with the thunder and rain pelting the old house.
In a way, the storm outside was scarier than the so-called midnight man. I kept checking my watch for the time. Somewhere after 1 is it stopped working. The backlight wouldn’t turn on and the digit face was blank. Each girl was in a separate place of the house. I was downstairs still in the kitchen and living room area. I think Milly had gone off upstairs, and Annette was in the garage. My candle flickered off for the first time. I quickly relit it, only to be met by the sound of torrential rain. It was as if the storm intensified as soon as the candle went out. I noticed that the candle continued to flicker, and I panicked a little. I thought I should leave the area and go upstairs. I didn’t find Milly. Had her candle gone out already? There was salt all around the shag carpet. I found her in the guest room bath, quivering in fear. She was practically swimming in sweat. I knew we weren’t supposed to talk, but she didn’t look good. “Where is Annette?” I asked but there was no response.
It’s hard to explain what happened next. My initial reaction was to go back downstairs and look for Annette, but my candle went out. I tried lighting it, but the wick was too wet from my sweat. It got cold. Like really cold. But my sweat kept running anyways. I tried running downstairs but found that I couldn’t. Like I was in a dream and every time I tried to walk I remained in the same spot. Somehow, I made it to the stairs, which is where I felt the sudden urge to fling myself off them. But, it wasn’t me making the decision. I knew it then, that the midnight man was trying to push me off the railing. I poured the salt almost everywhere, creating a solid circle more than a ring. I sat down in a fetal position, not daring to leave. The rain never stopped. The thunder only got worse. I could hear Milly whimpering into the night, but I couldn’t move.
I don’t know if I feel asleep first, or if I heard Annette’s scream before losing consciousness. But I did hear a scream, and a loud wail coming from Milly. I didn’t have my watch. My phone was locked. I didn’t know the time. But it was Annette who remembered to set an alarm clock for 3:33. I must have spent an eternity clutching my chest on those stairs. I didn’t know if Annette was okay. I didn’t know if Milly was okay. But I didn’t want to risk my life to get to any of them. I knew that as soon as I got up I would fling myself over the stairs. I just knew. It’s a decision that I will regret for the rest of my life. I only comfort myself with the contention that at that moment, I was not fully in control of myself. I had lost voluntary action.
When the alarm clock finally went off I practically rolled down the stairs. I could taste salt in my mouth. I ran to Annette by instinct. I thought she would be in the most trouble. When I got to her she was laying down in the downstairs bathroom. I could just make out the glint of a knife. I turned on the lights and saw blood everywhere. I’m not sure how much, but there was a lot. Immediately I screamed. I will never be able to forget the sight of blood congealing on top of mounds of salt. I called 911 and turned on as many lights as I could. I didn’t want to touch Annette. I heard Milly come down the stairs also crying. I didn’t search Annette for the key to grab my phone. I didn’t talk to Milly. I just bolted down the street, screaming.
When the paramedics came they found me on my knees, hands splayed to my sides looking directly up at the sky. I couldn’t say a coherent word for 24 hours. We were all rushed to the hospital. Milly suffered from severe bruising and I had a fractured clavicle bone. Annette lost a lot of blood but survived. I was extensively questioned, as was Milly. We all spent at least a few days in a psych ward, suicide watch you name it. We survived, but none of us were the same after that, especially Annette. The official story was that Annette, a girl with a history of mental health issues and substance abuse tried to commit suicide. She even admitted to it. Everywhere we said it was midnight man, Annette said it wasn’t. She’s been institutionalized ever since. I don’t talk to Milly anymore. I spend my days on a high dosage of antipsychotic drugs. I don’t know what’s real anymore. I am prohibited from trying to contact Annette, and to this day I haven’t tried. My parents are thinking about moving away again, to somewhere that doesn’t have as much rain.
