The Day “Call Me” Turned into “Follow Me”

Running The House of Things means I’ve seen all kinds of reactions—screams, laughter, confusion, and even people trying to outsmart the housekeeper. But nothing quite prepared me for this.

As usual, I was in character, the mysterious housekeeper in a long black cloak and a rather intimidating mask. The lights were dim, the music suspenseful. Inside the first room, a group of six grown men had already started their mission. They were talking, laughing, and trying to solve their first puzzle, completely unaware that I was about to make my entrance.

A few minutes into the game, I crept slowly into the room, silent as a shadow. To my mild disappointment, they didn’t scream or jump. They just froze for a second, then stared, half curious, half amused. Still, I stayed in character. In my best eerie tone, I introduced myself and explained,

“When you need help, please call me.”

Then I turned dramatically and walked out of the room, back into the dark control area.

Just as I was catching my breath, I heard footsteps behind me. I froze. Slowly, I turned around, and there he was. A tall, broad man standing silently in the dark. I couldn’t see his face, only his outline in the faint light.

“Who are you?” I asked, genuinely startled.

He paused for a second and said, “Mark.”

I blinked, still confused. “Okay, Mark… Why are you here?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?” I said, half laughing, half nervous. “What do you want from me?”

He shrugged again, calmly, as if this was the most normal situation ever. “I don’t know. You called me, so I came.”

“I did not call anybody,” I said, trying to sound confident.

“Yes, you did!” he insisted, sounding slightly offended. “Why else would I be here, man?”

Now I was starting to panic a little. “Look, I didn’t call anyone! Maybe I should be calling the police instead!”

That’s when he looked completely bewildered. “Wait... What kind of escape room is this?” he said. “You came into our room, introduced yourself, and said, ‘Follow me.’ So… I followed you!”

It finally clicked.

He hadn’t heard “Call me.” He’d heard “Follow me.”

So, there we were, me thinking I was the one scaring them, and one of them silently following me through the dark like some kind of devoted horror movie sidekick.

We both stood frozen for a moment, realizing how absurd the whole thing was. I took off my mask, burst out laughing, and explained the misunderstanding. Thankfully, he started laughing too.

I guess I succeeded in creating fear that day, just not in the direction I expected.

Since that night, I’ve made a tiny but very important change. Now I say:

“When you need help, please ring the bell.”

Much safer. No one’s followed me into the control room since, at least, not yet.

#escaperoom #escapehouse #escaedefacto #gatewaymall