Previously: “Kagome Kagome.”
I debated filing “The Strangest Security Tape I’ve Ever Seen” under “Creepypasta of the Week,” as technically I’m not sure that it actually qualifies as creepypasta. It is, however, a cracking good story, and wonderfully written to boot; as such, I think it’s worth sharing. And anyway, since its inception roughly a year ago on the nosleep subreddit (it’s written by a fellow who goes by the moniker powerhawkmash), it’s made its way into the archives of Creepypasta.wikia – so there you go. Justification for including it here.
I’m lucky enough never to have had to work a job like this one, but if I ever find myself behind the register at a gas station, you can be damn sure I’ll be keeping an eye on those security tapes.
[Like what you read? Check out Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark, available from Chronicle Books now!]
I work at a gas station in rural Pennsylvania. It’s a boring job, but it’s pretty easy and it pays all right. A few weeks ago, this new guy started; I’ll call him Jeremy.
Jeremy is weird. He’s about 25 or 26, and he hardly speaks, but he’s got the creepiest laugh I’ve ever heard. My boss and I have both noticed this, but it’s never been a problem, so there’s not much we can do about it. Customers have never complained about him, and he’s always done his job fairly well. Up until a few weeks ago, anyway—that’s when things started going missing. Employee theft can be a problem at any business that sells consumer goods, and there’s only one person working at a time at this gas station (it’s a pretty small place). About two weeks ago, my boss started noticing that we were short on motor oil. At first, it was a few containers at a time, then entire shelves and boxes from the back room. Pretty soon entire shipments would be gone the day after we got them, and it would always be right after Jeremy’s shifts. My boss has checked the security camera tapes from every single night he worked, but he could never catch him in the act. Jeremy would lock up at closing, then the motor oil would be gone the next day.
My boss usually takes the tapes home with him to try and catch Jeremy stealing, but his daughter had a softball game last night, so he asked me to watch the tape for him. He offered to pay me overtime, under-the-table, so obviously I took that offer. There are three cameras, so he gave me three different tapes to check. I figured it would be a long night, but I’m trying to save up for vacation, so I really needed the money. I took the tapes home, popped them in an old VCR and sat back.
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