Growing up in a tumultuous household, Lucy found solace in her childhood best friend, Lauren — their friendship became a refuge from her mother’s outbursts. But on what seemed like an ordinary day, Lauren unexpectedly and insistently asks Lucy for a seemingly trivial favor. Reluctantly agreeing, eager to return to their playtime, Lucy soon stumbles into a web of deep family wounds and hidden secrets. Check out our Merch Follow us on: Instagram, TikTok, Twitter For business inquiries contact: [email protected] If you have experienced something paranormal or unexplained, email us your story at [email protected] To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chapter 1: Who is Lucy and what is her background?
Everybody moves back into the light, even if it takes them a minute.
Hi, I'm Lucy. I live in the southeast of the United States. I'm 35. I work in the service industry, and I have for 16 years. I work at a really nice, fun, and funky, eclectic restaurant That has been such a blessing in my life. My bosses are great. I'm literally living in their house right now. And yeah, I love everything from hiking to writing to reading. I obviously consume a lot of podcasts.
And I have been wanting to share this story for a really long time. But none of the other podcasts ever felt quite right. So until I was 11, I grew up on a little island along a river. It literally was just big enough to have a neighborhood. So it was really safe. I grew up without squirrels, which in retrospect is pretty hilarious.
I was very lucky because it was so safe that we were all able to ride our bikes constantly. It was very flat. Like even at age three, I was allowed to be outside by myself riding my bike. And I had a difficult childhood. It was not easy. My family is kind of like a sociological experiment, is what my siblings and I joke about, because we're all so far apart in age.
Chapter 2: What was Lucy's childhood like with her family?
I mean, the eldest is Gen X, and then the youngest is Gen Z. And then we have a brother who is seven years older than me. And then I have another brother who is seven years younger than me. My mom calls it the seven-year itch. That dynamic alone is very interesting. And we're not, a lot of people think like, oh, well, that's typical because they remarry and have step sisters.
No, like my siblings were full, had the same exact parents. And it's like we've experienced our parents through different generations. And that creates an interesting dynamic as well. My mom was not a great mom. She was very difficult and not very affectionate. My dad and I actually did have a good relationship when I was young, but he was gone all the time.
And then my mom would actively poison that relationship. She would pointedly make stuff up or exaggerate things that I had done while he was gone so that he wouldn't feel as affectionate towards me. Sorry, I feel like I'm in a therapy session right now. It just always felt like she was trying to pin us against each other.
And this is something that after talking to my sister Jennifer as adults, she has also said is very true. My mom didn't want my dad to love us as much as she wanted him to love her. When I would reach for her hand to hold it, she would pull it away. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, we were beaten physically. I had to pick out my switch from the yard.
There was a fiberglass rod from a tent that she used to hit us with. One time, this is probably, this is like the silliest one that you can include that isn't so dark, but I was a dancer. I did competitive dancing as a child. And one of the girls lived on the same, like in the same neighborhood as us. And we were driving by her house and my mom was like, wow, she's so beautiful.
And I went, mommy, am I beautiful? And she went, no, honey, you're just cute. So for a long time, I hated the word cute. And it's just things like that, that, you know, just start to like wiggle into yourself, your subconscious and your self-confidence and just siphon it away. Because if your own mother is telling you, no, you're not beautiful. You're just cute.
It starts to really wear away at your soul. I think we each with our own personalities handled our parents very differently, but specifically my mom. My sister was always dating somebody to get out of the house and be away. My older brother was always just out of the house with friends or he would, he was the golden child.
So he got away with a lot, but also had a lot of pressure put on him that I've now understood now, looking back. And then I was the one that pushed back really hard and called out the bullshit. I'm the one that was like, we're all just going to pretend that what mom just said isn't ridiculous or awful. Like, is nobody else going to point out the fact that she just said something so mean?
Like, the truth is the meanest things that anybody has said to me in my entire life have come out of my mom's mouth. But I grew up with alligators and turtles and otters. Turtles would lay eggs in our yard all the time. So I grew up having lots of baby pet turtles that my mom would then return to the river. My mom is very good with animals. She's exceptionally good with animals.
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Chapter 3: Who is Lauren and what role did she play in Lucy's life?
So Lauren is, you know, right there being like, still telling me like, it's really important. And I'm like, okay, okay. I'm doing it. And so I see Jennifer at the top of the stairs and I said, Jennifer. And of course she doesn't even look up because I'm her little sister. So I say her name again. And she, without even looking up, she goes, what Lucy?
And I go, Lauren told me to tell you it's not your fault. And her head whipped up. She was like, who, what did you just say? And I said, Lauren told me to tell you it's not your fault. And I remember she looked at me like she was trying to understand. Like she kind of like cocked her head for a second. Like she couldn't believe it. Like her face was extremely shocked.
And I was just like, I don't know. I'm just the messenger. I don't know what I'm saying. I don't know what it means. I just know that I have to say this. As soon as I said it to Jennifer the second time, I remember looking to Lauren and being like, there, I did it. Are you happy? Because I didn't understand what I was saying. I just knew I was doing a favor that had interrupted our playtime.
But as soon as I finished saying it the second time, when I said, Lauren told me to tell you it's not your fault, Jennifer burst into tears. It was probably the hardest I had ever seen her cry. And my mom, who must have been listening in from the kitchen, which is just the other side of that wall, my mom comes and wrenches my arm. And she says, who told you to say that? And I said, Lauren.
And she went, Lucy, who told you to say that? And she seemed angry, which at the time, for a long time, I thought I misremembered that. Because I was like, why would she be angry? She seemed sad, but also angry. And I was honestly mad at Lauren because of what just happened. We were having this great time, riding my bike outside. And then she asked me for a favor.
And then the favor made both my sister and my mom cry and my mom mad at me. And I got sent to my room and I was so confused. So I was in my bedroom, but I remember hearing Jennifer and our mom fighting. Yeah, Lauren was in the room with me and I was really upset. I felt like I had gotten in trouble for doing her a favor.
But I remember her reassuring me and kind of telling me that I may not understand now, but I would understand later. you know, eventually things kind of went back to normal. We had dinner and that was that.
All right. We'll be right back after this quick break.
Do you know what went down at the Viper Room the night River Phoenix died? Or how about the mysterious death of Brittany Murphy? Are you aware of how Steve McQueen escaped murder at the hands of the Manson family? The obsessive killing of Dorothy Stratton? The real-life murder that inspired David Lynch's Twin Peaks? The three conspiracies surrounding Marilyn Monroe's death?
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Chapter 4: What was the unusual favor Lauren asked Lucy to do?
Her umbilical cord was wrapped around her throat and she suffocated and died. She was born, but due to the brain damage and the suffocation that had happened, she died a few hours after being born. And it was obviously extremely traumatic.
You know, you give birth full term to a baby and then to have it die while you're giving birth is really hard, especially because for my family, even though there are five of us, including Lauren, Lauren was the only one my parents actually tried to have. That was the only planned child that they had. And she died.
So while yes, my little kid brain was not that shocked, I do think it's important to note, I had no idea that I had another sister. She was not discussed. It was obviously an extremely traumatic thing for my family and they, my family suppresses. So it was very much a shock to learn that I did have another sister and potentially the friend I was talking to was my sister, if that makes sense.
I think when my mom took me to the grave, I was kind of confused because Because she was like, I think it's your sister that you're talking to. Part of me was like, oh, okay, that makes sense. But also, I was confused that she was saying that her body was in the ground. I do remember feeling that way. It was probably my first real introduction to what death was. now that I think about it.
And yes, she was my sister. That part was very easy to accept. The confusing part for my four-year-old brain was that her body was in the ground. And that she died as a baby because she wasn't appearing to me as a baby, obviously. So it felt confusing, but also I've accepted it pretty easily. And from that point on, I just always thought of her as my sister.
So after visiting Lauren's grave, everything still was the same. I still saw Lauren. She was still my best friend. I just kind of had a renewed appreciation for her. Yeah. And then after that, it was back to business as usual. Lauren was still there all the time, hanging out with me, playing with me.
And it made sense that she didn't go anywhere at night, that she was always with me and that she wasn't at school, that she was always with me. Nobody else could talk to her. So that finally made sense. I mean, I always just assumed that, you know, my siblings were all dealing with our trauma in their own way, which was mainly not paying attention to me. And my dad was always gone for work.
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Chapter 5: How did Lucy’s family react to the message from Lauren?
So it wasn't really a shocker that they weren't interacting with Lauren as well. Lauren didn't look like a ghost, what most people would assume a ghost looked like. She looked to me like a normal girl. And she wasn't see-through. I don't remember... specifics about clothing, but I do remember her hair and her hair being a short bob that was brown. And I remember her eyes.
I remember what she looks like. I don't remember if she could play with toys, but I feel like I feel like maybe I can see the fact that she was there and we're playing in my bedroom. Like I can still see my childhood bedroom, but I don't remember if she would like, if she would move the dolls while we're playing or move the stuffed animals while we're playing.
I do remember her looking the same age as me. She reflected whatever age I was at. I don't remember if Lauren and I ever broached the fact that she was my dead sister. But I do remember her just intense protective energy. And the energy did feel like intense sisterhood. My mom has seen a little girl with me when I was young. She saw a little girl with short brown hair multiple times.
And then she had told my dad, and my dad didn't believe her. Because my dad likes spiritual, spooky stuff, but he's very much a skeptic. It's more like entertainment for him. And he didn't believe her at all. But then one day he came home, and he said, what friend does Lucy have over him? And my mom says, she doesn't have a friend over. What did you see?
And my dad was like, what are you talking about? Like, stop, you know, don't do this to me. And she was like, no, she doesn't have a friend over. Did you see a little girl with short brown hair? And that's exactly what my dad had seen. So it wasn't just like me seeing her. It was also my parents. the older I got and the more I guess I like leaned into my left brain. I don't know.
Like, and the more like I got connected to the outside world, you know, and had other friends, um, the less I felt like she showed up. I feel like she showed up less and less, but I still remember talking to her a lot. I would do the same thing where I would close my door and just play and talk to her. And I would ride my bike.
And now I was old enough that I could go all the way around the island. So I would talk to her a lot while I was going all the way around the island. So I remember continuing to talk to her till I was around 10. I don't remember the last time I saw her. This is a great pain of mine because I wish I could. I do feel that she said goodbye to me, but I can't recall that specific memory.
I remember being really sad because I couldn't talk to her anymore. And I was so sad that I wrote a poem about it. And I gave that poem to my mom for Mother's Day about how much I miss Lauren and that I wished that I could connect with her. I still remember part of it.
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Chapter 6: What did Lucy discover about Lauren’s true identity?
If only I could tell you, if only you could see, if only you were here and were standing next to me, I would tell you that I loved you and that I always cared, that you were always with me, especially when I was scared. And there's like at least three more verses that's like, I remember saying she's behind like an angel guarded door or something. It's very saccharine, but I was 11, okay? Yeah.
So around this time, I am 10-ish. My sister is 23 and she is really making an effort to connect with me. And I think, you know, she was finally somewhat successful in her life. She was in nursing school and she really, she did everything she could to kind of protect me from our mom so that I didn't have to undergo the extent of the damage that mom had done to her.
But she was just a child trying to survive when we were kids too. So I don't hold this against her whatsoever. But she would come and get me for the weekend. I would go and stay with her. It felt really special. I felt really, really special to be able to do that with her.
And then after I had given my mom the poem about Lauren, Jennifer and I were in the car together and we're talking about the poem. And she's like, do you remember what you said to me when you were a little girl? And I was like, Yes, I do. And she was like, do you know why I got so upset? And I was like, no. And she said, it's because mom blamed me for Lauren's death.
When I prayed or hoped that, you know, she wouldn't have another baby when the baby did die, when Lauren did die. Mom was already very mentally unwell, but I think losing Lauren completely just like cracked her open. And she blamed Jennifer for Lauren's death. She blamed a four or five year old little girl and it completely shattered my sister. She said that she just didn't want a sibling.
So, I mean, I remember when my mom told me that she was pregnant with our little brother, I was also really upset. That is a very typical kid reaction. She said that she doesn't remember specifically, quote, praying that the baby would die. But that is what my mom says that she did.
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Chapter 7: What emotions did Lucy and her mother experience at the graveyard?
Jennifer remembers very distinctly going to check on my mom because she could hear my mom crying and had hold herself up in her bedroom and didn't want to talk to anybody. And she went in to check on her and she opened the door and she said, mama. And my mom was like, are you happy? You got what you wanted. this is all your fault.
And I had specifically asked Jennifer, do you remember mom saying, it's your fault? And she was like, those exact words. Like she said, this is your fault. Because part of me was like, maybe as a child, she misunderstood that. But unfortunately, it seems that my mom not only blamed her then, but then continued to blame her for many years after. Jennifer developed severe mental health issues.
She started self-harming and a teacher noticed it at school. And this teacher had self-harmed in the same way, so understood immediately what was happening and understood that it was a result of trauma. And told my mom, you need to get her into a psychologist ASAP. And Jennifer remembers my mom just domineering the entire conversation. And she was like, what did they think was going to happen?
The source of my trauma is the adult that is in the room with me, which I have also experienced this, that same self-harm I started to do when I was a child. And Jennifer stopped me from doing it. Being consistently blamed for your sibling dying. I mean, even if it had been her fault, that's still inappropriate.
But to blame a child for just hoping that the baby would die because they don't want a sibling. I mean, I know that's dark, but kids are weird. Kids make stupid decisions and have silly thoughts. Yeah. So the fact that my mom continued to blame her, she really started to believe that it was her fault. She had this immense guilt that she lived with every day.
She said that she felt so alone and so lonely her whole childhood. So then, you know, this is 13 years later, basically. Her other little sister comes up to her and tells her that Lauren tells her it's not her fault. that it blew her mind. She was truly, her first reaction was like, oh my God. But then her second reaction was fear.
She said her immediate reaction was, oh my God, accept this as the gift it is. And then you have to suppress and move on because she was so afraid that my mom would think that she had told me to say that. Even though I had no idea what I was talking about and that Lauren was just my friend. Her exact words were, accept this as the gift that it is.
Because it truly had been weighing on her her whole life. She has said that through me conveying this message to her, that she was able to really start to forgive herself after that. And that... You know, I think also because it wasn't something that was talked about as a family. It was just something that my mom used against her on a personal level.
I think it kind of brought this knowledge to the family. I think that alone helped her a lot to be like, okay, this isn't a secret I have to keep anymore. Yeah. I think for her, it's very comforting now that I not only brought her some peace, but that I can see the level of trauma that my mom imparted onto her.
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