Stakeid- Samskoli
It was a little past 2:30 a.m.
Fog so thick it felt alive curling around the road like smoke. 🌫️
I was driving alone on the Nashik Highway, the kind of stretch where the streetlights vanish for miles and even the crickets go silent. 🛣️
I’d been awake too long. Eyes heavy, hands cold on the steering wheel.
Then a shape appeared ahead.
A woman in a red saree, standing by the roadside. Barefoot. Still.
I slowed down.
At that hour, no one should’ve been out there.
As I got closer, she lifted her hand, pointing down the road like she wanted a lift.
Her face was hidden behind her hair, but I could feel her eyes on me.
Something in me said “keep driving,” but I stopped anyway.
I rolled down the window and asked,
Ma’am… are you okay? It’s late
No reply.
She just tilted her head and whispered,
You came back.
The air turned colder. My breath fogged the glass.
Back? I stammered. I’ve never been here before.
She smiled — a small, unnatural curve of her lips and said,
“Everyone says that the first time"
Before I could move, the car engine shut off by itself.
The headlights blinked twice — then everything went black.
In the mirror, I saw movement — her reflection inside the back seat.
But when I turned around… the seat was empty.
My phone lit up suddenly — 1 new photo saved.
I opened it.
It was me, sleeping inside my car. Taken from the back seat. 😨
I jumped out, heart pounding.
The fog had cleared.
The woman was gone.
Only an old banyan tree stood nearby — its roots hanging low, touching the road.
And tied to one of those roots… was a piece of red cloth.
When I checked the location on my phone later, it showed a name I didn’t recognize:
📍Old Sinnar Road — Do Not Stop
Even now, when I drive that stretch, my GPS glitches for a few seconds and I hear a faint whisper from the back seat:
You came back, Sam