Gen Zer Shares 'Scary' Note Left at Door That Made Her Fearful To Go Out

A woman has shared how an anonymous note left on her doorstep left her terrified while living alone. At age 22, Cali was living in an apartment in Sacramento when she returned from a shopping trip to find a note on her doorstep. The handwritten note, penned on torn notebook paper, read in part: "I think you're an extremely beautiful red-haired woman... just wanted to share that." It was signed only as "Your Secret Admirer." When the picture of the note came up on her photo memories recently, Cali was inspired to share it on Reddit's r/FoundPaper subreddit. While some might interpret the letter as a harmless expression of admiration, for Cali, it led to months of anxiety and paranoia. "My initial reaction when I read the letter was skepticism," Cali told Newsweek. "I thought maybe a friend or my boyfriend had left it as a prank, but after ruling that out, I was very scared." The lack of identifying information and the knowledge that someone had been watching her left Cali terrified and with plenty of questions: Did they just see me that day and leave the note? Had they been watching me for longer? How did they know I lived alone?

With a past history of being followed and assaulted by strange men, Cali took immediate precautions. She kept her windows covered, double-checked her locks, and purchased additional security measures like door jamming locks, pepper spray, and a taser. "It was isolating," she said. "I could barely leave my home for weeks." The post prompted plenty of responses on Reddit where people reacted, sharing sympathy for Cali's situation. "The way it's worded sounds like an obsession, so it understandably freaked you out. As an aside, I'm intrigued by their penmanship," said Redditor Shadax. While Ok_Nothing_9733 simply said: "Ew creepy." "Damn. What a creeper. I hope things are better for you nowadays. This would have messed me up for sure," said gooeyjello. Ultimately, Cali never received any further notes or direct contact from the mystery admirer and moved a few months later. She hoped that the Reddit post would highlight an important lesson. "I would like others who feel called to approach people they find attractive to see what not to do," she said. "I have no issue with someone making the first move or complimenting others, but we live in a pretty scary time and there are many other, better ways to communicate those feelings."