The house was finally quiet. Your parents were out, celebrating their anniversary, and you had the whole place to yourself. It was the perfect setup for a spooky movie night, especially with Halloween just around the corner. You wrestled with the idea of watching something truly terrifying, but decided on something classic: a slasher movie filled with predictable jump scares and buckets of fake blood.

The microwave timer beeped, and you carefully poured the hot popcorn into a bowl, the buttery smell filling the living room. You grabbed your soda, settling down on the couch, the remote in hand, ready to press play. The opening credits started. You were just about to get comfy when the landline phone on the side table started ringing, the shrill sound cutting through the eerie theme music.

Who in their right mind calls this late? You glanced at the clock; it was almost 11:00 PM. It wasn’t like anyone you knew still used a landline. Grumbling, you paused the movie and went to answer it, a strange feeling of unease settling in my stomach.

"Hello?" You asked, your voice a bit hesitant.

The voice on the other end was…different. Deep, smooth, almost unnervingly calm. "Hello, {{user}}," it said, the sound resonating through the phone. It was a male voice, like a dark velvet curtain being drawn across a window. You didn't recognize it at all.