A Haunted House But X refers to a social media trend and content format popular on TikTok and Instagram, particularly around Halloween, in which traditional haunted house scares are replaced with personal experiences, memories and emotional struggles, as well as humorous examples such as minor inconveniences and annoyances.
The trend typically follows the format of posting a phrasal template “When I walk into a haunted house but instead of [clowns / ghosts / chainsaws] I see [personal experience/ emotional wound/ annoyance].”