paranormal.

The Hat Man:

A shared hallucination? A shadow person? The Hat Man is a tall, silhouette figure wearing a fedora or trench coat, often seen during sleep paralysis. Unlike other shadow people, he doesn't attack. He just observes.

Encounter:

I was a child when it happened. It was late at night, and I was already on edge. I was terrified of the dark back then. Especially after my uncle thought it was a good idea to show me clips from The Ring. That image stuck. The long hair, the stillness, the sense that something could just appear without warning. It got into my head. I was in bed with the door open, staring into the hallway. The stairs were visible from where I lay. I remember watching the darkness more than anything else, waiting for something I could not name. Then I saw it. A tall black shape passed by the stairs. Not running. Not rushing. Walking. It had a distinct silhouette, and what stood out most was the top hat. Not vague. Not imagined after the fact. A clear, clean outline against the darkness. And then it was gone. At first, I tried to rationalize it immediately. I told myself it had to be my dad. That explanation felt safer than the alternative. I got out of bed and walked straight to my parents’ room, which was directly opposite the stairs. My dad was asleep. Deep sleep. Completely still. That is when the fear hit properly. Not a sudden shock kind of fear. Something colder. The kind that keeps your body alert while your mind searches desperately for logic. I did not sleep at all that night. I do not know what it was. I do not claim it was supernatural, and I do not need it to be. Childhood fear, imagination, exhaustion, suggestion. Any of those could explain it. But the image never left. The shape. The movement. The certainty of what I saw in that moment. Years later, learning about the Hat Man did not bring comfort. It only gave the memory a name. And names do not make things disappear. They just make them easier to return to.