I Keep Hearing Strange Noises From the Flat Above Me

I’ve been living in this apartment for almost six months now. It’s not fancy but it’s quiet enough and close to my workplace so I never really had any complaints until a few weeks ago. It started with faint noises at night. At first I ignored them because old buildings always make sounds pipes wind random creaks. But this was different. It always came from the flat above mine and it always started around the same time somewhere between 2:30 and 3:00 AM. It sounded like dragging furniture slow heavy movements like someone was pushing something across the floor. Sometimes there were soft thuds like something being dropped and other nights it sounded like footsteps moving back and forth room to room. I asked the security guard about it one morning and he looked confused and told me no one stays in that flat it has been empty for months.

I tried to ignore it after that but the noises kept happening and they started getting clearer. One night I woke up suddenly and checked my phone it was 2:47 AM and right after that I heard it again dragging directly above me but louder this time like whatever it was had moved closer to the center of the room. I could not sleep after that so I went outside my apartment and looked up the stairs. The door to the upper flat was slightly open and I froze because I had never seen it open before. I stood there for a long time debating whether to go up or not but eventually I climbed the stairs. Each step felt heavier than the last. When I reached the top I pushed the door and it opened easily.

Inside the flat there was nothing. No furniture no signs of anyone living there just dust and empty rooms. But the strange thing was the sound did not stop. The dragging was still there only now it felt like it was coming from right above me even though there was nothing above except the roof. I looked up and saw faint scratch marks on the ceiling moving slowly like something heavy was shifting above the concrete layer directly over me. I backed out immediately and went back to my apartment but I did not sleep that night.

The next morning I asked the landlord about the flat again. He looked uncomfortable and told me no one is allowed to go there ever. When I asked why he refused to explain and only said it is sealed for a reason do not pay attention to anything you hear from above. After that I decided I would move out as soon as possible because I could not take it anymore.

But last night something happened that made it worse.

I was lying in bed trying to sleep when I heard it again but this time it was not dragging. It was right above my bed. Slow and steady breathing. And it was matching mine exactly even when I stopped breathing for a few seconds.