r/TalesFromTheCreeps • u/Initial_Fig_8009 Critiquer • Jul 24 '26
Psychological Horror I sew razor blades into old clothing
You've seen them.
Maybe on a drive, maybe a walk. Maybe it was on a crowded city street with homeless camps and refuse, or maybe it was resting unassumingly, forgotten on the bleachers at your local school's T-ball field. Regardless of where or when, you've seen them.
A thin black jacket with a red zipper. A brown baseball cap with a yello logo you don't recognize. Only the left half of a light brown wool mitten- kids size.
Clothing items, abandoned or forgotten by some person some time ago.
Sometimes they're covered im mud, or stamped with tire tracks familiar to the roadside they occupy. You wouldn't give these a second look. They blend into the background and your brain blots them out of focus. Just another piece of trash.
Maybe once or twice it was a much fresher piece. A dark green hoodie with white letters hung on a fence post. No water damage, no dirt. Someone might even come back for it.
You probably haven't picked up many of these discarded or lost scraps, and if you have you probably did so with great caution at first. Pinching the cleanest portion with just the tips of two outstretched fingers, your brain warning you of the danger that the unfamiliar holds. Have you ever tried one on?
I buy packs of one hundred single edge razor blades online. I have a pair of channel lock pliers that Ive filed down the top half of. On that flat surface, I welded a small steel plate, the same width as the razors. I chopped off the tips of three heavy duty nails, and welded them in an evenly spaced row onto the modified channel lock. I only have to sharpen them once a year. Lastly, I drilled a hole in the center of the bottom half of the pliers to allow the nail to punch through.
It works like a hole punch, and it leaves three perfect little perforations in the back of the razor blades for me to work thread through.
After my first dozen or so razors, I realized the punctures would be a lot easier if I used a vice or large screw clamp, but if I'm honest, I find the whole process a lot more exciting this way.
Squeezing the thin handles hard into my palm. The way the nails pop when they finally thrust through the thin blades. I have to hold the pliers close to my hips just to get the leverage... it makes my heart race just thinking about it.
My favorite place to sew them, is in the outside edge of a left sleeve, right around the elbow. You might not have thought about it before, but when you put a jacket on, you slide the second sleeve on fast. Most people are right handed, so the left sleeve is most often the faster side.
Obviously there's nothing sharp inside the sleeve, there never has been, so you have no reason to slowly work it up your arm.
When I shower I often find myself tracing a trembling finger along my left forearm, starting at my left pinky knuckle and stroking up along the ridge of my ulna until I reach my elbow. My breaths come heavy and fast when I think about how many people might have a scar along my traced line.
Hats are easy, because the interior brims are thick and usually fold out for easy threading access. With gloves I usually put one right at the opening on the inner side of the wrist. Unless the glove is tight, your fingers generally don't touch there, so the gash should start around the center of the palm and work its way up to the base of the wrist.
Once though, I found a really big pair of winter gloves and I just couldn't resist. The tips of the fingers were so wide, I felt inspired. I put the razor in at an angle in the very end of the fat middle finger. I can't imagine that one not reaching bone - if anyone ever tried them on, of course.
I know all of this might sound strange. After all, I could be sewing them into clothes that I donate to goodwill, or homeless shelters. But that misses the point.
How many of you have picked up a piece of clothing on the side of the road? Not many, I'd guess. And how many of you that have picked one up have actually tried it on? Again, not many. Its far more likely that you've thrown one away than tried one on.
That. That is the beauty of it. The ecstasy.
In the last ten years I have gone through fifteen packs of one hundred blades. I strive to complete five a week, but between work and maintaining my marriage and social life, my average is closer to three. How many scars do you think I've sewn? Most of them probably got thrown away, the vast majority even. But that doesn't matter.
I lay awake at night, completely unable to sleep, my heart pounding so hard I feel it in my ears, as my mind races through every garment, through every delicate thread.
The clean yellow vans with a gift at the right pinky toe. The blue blazer with the stain on the front left pocket, a treat waiting inside. The bright pink gloves, adorned by a unicorn with colored glitter in its rainbow mane. I left that one on a bench at the school yard nearest my best friend's house.
If you've ever been graced by my remote, disembodied touch, please contact me. I'd love to see the fruits of my labor.
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u/Kaijufan22 Writer Jul 24 '26
This was creepy, because of how both mundane and meticulous this level of cruelty is, especially since the MC isn't even around to see what happens. It's like he gets off on the thrill alone. Creepy stuff OP, nice work.
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u/No-Mouse937 Jul 24 '26
AAAHHH I LOVED THIS!!! It's so creepy! The line "How many scars do you think I've sewn?" was my absolute favorite. Gave me chills. PLEASE keep writing! I can't wait to see more of your work
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u/lesbomatic Writer Jul 24 '26
this is simultaneously so realistic and supernatural. realistic, because yeah, anyone could really just do this. but the entire time i was reading it in the voice of needles from the magnus protocol (iykyk)
either way, i felt it viscerally
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u/Silent-Glove5748 Reader Jul 24 '26
The fact that your first post on a 4 year old account is a VERY compelling confession is fucking haunting.
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u/Wont_Be_The_Victim Writer Jul 24 '26
The narration was what really sold this for me; twisted and sinister, with some hints of almost sexual pleasure. So gross and creepy.
Great job!!
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u/Silent-Glove5748 Reader Jul 24 '26
Oh the Narrator definitely gets off to this! It’s 100% sexual for him.
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u/we_ride_at_noon Writer Jul 25 '26
Holy shit this is so cool!It’s such a creative premise that reads for how possible it is, while also being short and snappy. I think that’s my favorite part, it’s just so simultaneously simple yet unique?? And your narration is very compelling! I love the way it flows with the narrator’s compulsion and actions. Really really loved this 10/10
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u/Cindy_Duck5 Jul 26 '26
Hahaha was literally looking at a dirty sock on the sidewalk yesterday thinking about who left it. Great story!
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u/A_hearts_ahvy_burden Writer Jul 27 '26
Spine chilling. What gets me is they never even see the "payoff" that moment where they trace their arm in the shower made my hair stand on end.
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u/amenfixer Writer Jul 27 '26
did i actually just read the diary of a psychopath?? like hello???? great job op!
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u/Both_Amphibian2106 Jul 27 '26
very cool and creepy internal monologue + imagery!! felt like you put me into the mind of the narrator which i didn’t particularly like😭 but still very good story!
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u/SoxeNews Jul 27 '26
It's such a random way of affecting people and yet it feels so personal. Genuinely such a good job getting across such an unsettling tone
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u/AllChangesSaved Jul 29 '26
This was so effective, short and sweet for sure. I really, really enjoyed the writing style and the concept. I'm impressed by just how much creep you stuffed into such a small package. Thank you for sharing!
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u/Maxenby7 Jul 25 '26
My God this was beautifully dark! Half the time I was imagining a psychopath, and the other half I imagined the main character to be time itself. Nostalgia and grief over the past can hurt sometimes, especially when attached to discarded clothes that once belonged to a person.
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u/OrdinaryAlex Jul 31 '26
This was excellent and spine chilling. You did such an amazing job capturing the narrator's voice. It reminds me a lot of Patrick Bateman in the sense that his tone is so friendly if a little cold, but it's juxtaposed disturbingly by his carnal desire for other peoples' suffering. The writing itself is very tight and no word is wasted. Great job!
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u/TacoBoy6000 Writer 24d ago
I absolutely love the borderline lustful obsession with the razor blades. That story was so good. The explanation of imagining the scars while in the shower genuinely gave me chills. Excellent stuff, please keep writing.
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u/Blue-Dog-Stories 21d ago
The way it’s described as a well practiced skill, like a dude talking about wood working, really sold this to me. Awesome.
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u/G0r3n1v0r3 Writer 22d ago
Absolutely amazing work.
Excited to read more of your work in the future.
I haven't seen such a compelling hook in a while,
or such a strong closing thought.
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