Man documents ‘haunted’ apartment via viral Twitter threads

Almost a month ago, Twitter user Adam Ellis posted a thread about how the ghost of a young child was trying to kill him in his own apartment.

So, my apartment is currently being haunted by the ghost of a dead child and he’s trying to kill me. (thread)

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 7, 2017

The child (known as Dear David) apparently first started appearing in dreams, until he manifested in Ellis’ real life.

He had a huge misshapen head that was dented on one side. I did my best to draw it: pic.twitter.com/AJizlw7qXe

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 7, 2017

Thus began the first thread, in which Ellis outlines his arguments: his cats guarding a door, weird shapes on his banister and persistent nightmares.

What is going on? pic.twitter.com/30mLSqYhXo

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 9, 2017

The first thread went viral, with the initial tweet raking in 50 000 retweets and 71 000 likes. Replies poured in with possible explanations like carbon monoxide (known to produce feelings of dread) or simply another cat.

Ellis said he had checked all of these.

Yeah, I have a detector! I’ve also had sleep paralysis in different states/countries, so it’s not just my apartment.

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 7, 2017

The second thread arrived when Ellis tried out a sleep talking app — but it picked up too many external noises to work.

It’s been pretty quiet tonight. I’m gonna try out a sleep talk app to see if anything happens during the night.

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 10, 2017

The following night, Ellis posted a video of his cats disturbed by something. He responded by placing a salt circle around the door.

And here we go. Just minutes before midnight. pic.twitter.com/vZ7MGCumpu

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 11, 2017

The next night proved more interesting: a sound app had picked up three suspicious sounds. These included snaps, steps, and unexplained “electric static”.

This one is weird because out of 33 recordings, this is the ONLY one that has that strange electric sound throughout https://t.co/2bQqU0yMYX

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 11, 2017

On the thirteenth of August, Ellis left his creepy apartment — but some spotted David in a selfie he’d taken.

Getting the eff outta my haunted apartment for the weekend ✌🏻👻 pic.twitter.com/30Tk4Xzmm9

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 12, 2017

Eyes, nose and mouth, misshapen head, small stature. Please tell me it’s just a painting. pic.twitter.com/MnxWT4j4mr

— PsychoKineticEditing (@Psy_Kin_Editing) August 12, 2017

Took me a while, hope it helps? pic.twitter.com/4k2Kh2eJe9

— Hato Sensei (@TouchMyStaff) August 13, 2017

The next thread involved a Fujifilm Instax that developed completely black. He eventually experimented from different angles.

Left is with my phone. Right is with with Polaroid. The hall light was on both times. Why is it pitch black each time with the Polaroid? pic.twitter.com/Sh94OKP0xA

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 14, 2017

More threads were eventually posted — about using sage and further nightmares. More recently, Ellis says he’s been contacted by unknown numbers.

Then, just as I was about to hang up, I heard a very small voice whisper, “hello.”

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 26, 2017

The latest thread involves the initial rocking chair Ellis says he saw David on — except this time it was moving on its own.

So, I moved the green chair out of the bedroom weeks ago. It’s been in various parts of the living room ever since. (thread) pic.twitter.com/aqq5RTjiRj

— ˗ˏˋ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ᴇʟʟɪs ˊˎ˗‏ (@moby_dickhead) August 29, 2017

The threads have maintained their popularity — all of Ellis’s David tweets have been like over 1000 times and the numbers will probably stick around for as long as stories about David do.

Whether they’re real or not — Ellis has cultivated an engaging story that keeps followers coming back for more.