What are Black-eyed Children?

Black-eyed children are a contemporary urban legend comprising children ages 6–16 with black eyes. Witnesses claim to have seen them bumming for change, hitchhiking, or on doorsteps asking to be let in so they can call their phone home. Some believe that the children are aliens, ghosts, or vampires.

Origins of Black-eyed Children

Some reports place the origins of the black-eyed children in the 1980s, but most sources agree they entered the urban legend canon in 1996 with reporter Brian Bethel’s leaked email. Bethel claims to have had a first-hand encounter with the black-eyed children in Abilene, Texas. While regarded as a classic creepypasta, the legend grew so popular that Bethel started a FAQ page just to flag inquiries into the children.

One Black-eyed Children Legend

Late one evening, three loud knocks on the front door awakened an elderly couple. When they answered it, they found two young children who asked if they could come inside while waiting for their parents to pick them up.

The couple hesitated, but eventually let the kids inside. They sat on the couch and averted their eyes from the couple. The wife went to the kitchen to make hot cocoa, and the husband stayed with the children and peppered them with questions that went unanswered. The…