"He's here

."

It was the late 1980s, when I was still a cheerful junior. Our professor's mother died. Lacking any male relatives to carry the coffin (and also to have a drink at the wake), he invited several students, including me. I was carrying the lid and accidentally scratched myself on a nail. The thought of a few drops of my blood remaining in the coffin with the deceased was very unpleasant. But upon reflection, I considered it nonsense. We drank well, talked, and parted ways peacefully. On the way back, I stopped at a friend's house, where I downed another glass of port and drove away all the bad thoughts, especially since everything was happening in the company of two wild young ladies. Having had my fill of fun, I returned home and, sneaking into my room, fell asleep.

Let me say right away: I don't know if all of this is related to what I'll describe below. Perhaps not. You be the judge of that.

I was suddenly awakened by a terrifying yet solemn thought: "He's here." Opening my eyes, I saw a gigantic figure towering over me. It was like a pillar of blackness, standing on my chest, its tip reaching the ceiling. The figure seemed human, and I clearly understood that IT was trying to kill me. I lay there with my eyes open, unable to move, and felt incredible terror. I felt very, very bad at that moment... I felt like I was dying. And yet, I clearly heard my parents walking around the kitchen and the clink of dishes. But I couldn't even groan.

I don't remember how long it lasted—I tried to fight this mortal terror, to make at least one sound. And finally, I succeeded: I managed to let out a pitiful squeak. The grip loosened, and I rolled over onto my right side. The figure disappeared, and I immediately began to breathe easier. I came to, slightly dangling from the bed, looking at the strip of light shining from under the door.

I know the state I described is very similar to regular sleep paralysis. However, the strange thing was that even after waking up, I felt a hostile presence in the room for a long time. It faded gradually, rather than disappearing immediately upon awakening, as expected. As far as I know, this doesn't happen with sleep paralysis.