My university is tiny.
I've always lived in the middle of nowhere, and when your family doesn't have money to send you to a bigger, farther away school, you never get to leave the little town.
That's not all bad, though - at least it's familiar, and easy to navigate. It's hard to get lost or overwhelmed in a place that feels like everywhere else you've been.
[[...->boredom]] it’s also hard to have much fun, though. I’ve only been here a couple of days and I’m already bored. Isn’t university supposed to be exciting?
(sigh)
Well, at any rate, I’m in for a boring afternoon. I’m on my way to the student center to bring my sister her lunch. She works at the front desk on days she doesn’t have class, and I promised her I’d buy her something from the quad. The student center is, appropriately, right at the heart of campus, a clean little building with exposed tan brickwork and surrounded by medium-tall pines. I trudge up the path, [[swinging the bag with my sister’s sandwich as I go. -> a sound]]
For a second, I think I hear something other than the crinkle of the plastic, some noise behind me almost like footsteps, but there’s no one around.
[[I stop and turn around. -> look for the sound]]
[[I ignore it and keep going. -> ignore the sound]]
Stopping, I turn to look. There’s nothing behind me but the sidewalk, which branches off at the other end into different paths, and the trees along the North path that softly sway in the wind. [[I shrug and continue heading towards the Student Center. -> enter the center]] It didn’t sound like anything interesting, so I don’t see why I should care. [[I keep walking to the Student Center. -> enter the center]]I push the door open and relish the cool air conditioning as it hits my skin. Lucy looks up from talking to a student at the desk and smiles at me. I walk up and stand there to wait for her conversation to be over.
There’s a few gentle thuds as some of the pine limbs bat up against the windows of the building, and I look outside - looks like a storm’s coming round. Lucy finishing helping the student and leans over the desk.
“Thank you very much,” she chirps as she poaches the sandwich bag from my hands.
I laugh, holding out a now empty hand. “You’re supposed to trade me, remember? Where’s my vending machine money?”
Lucy pauses in unwrapping her sandwich and hands me a few quarters. “Here, you vulture. Since you can’t do a favor for free.”
I leave her to eat my sandwich and go to grab my dessert from the vending machine around the corner.
[[I get a twinkie. -> twinkie]]
[[I get a Reese’s. -> reeses]]
[[I get a Snickers. -> snickers]]
It’s somehow too squishy and too stiff at the same time. [[Gross. -> lobby]]
The peanut butter to chocolate ratio on plain Reese’s is way off, [[but I still like em. -> lobby]][[You’re not you when you’re hungry. -> lobby]]
When I come back to the lobby, the wind is blowing harder, and the rain has already started coming down. I hear a crash of thunder and frown at the sheets of water pouring over the windows.
Lucy licks tuna off her fingers and looks at me. “You got class? You could stay here and stay dry if you’ve got nothing to do.”
I do have class. Who goes to their classes, though?
[[But I should. -> leave for class]]
[[Fuck class! I sit on one of the lobby couches and finish my snack. -> stay in the student center]]
I can brave the rain. I give Lucy a little salute. “Pray that I don’t melt on my way to Calc, okay?”
The rain soaks the outer layer of my hoodie almost instantly, and glues my hair to my face. It would feel almost nice, if it wasn’t quite so cold. The wind in the trees sounds a little spooky, like a quiet ‘oooo’ on the wind.
I gotta decide the most efficient, or the least soddening, way to class.
[[North I can cut across the parking lot. -> go north]]
[[West I could cut through the admin buildings. -> go west]]
[[East is the most direct route on the path. -> go east]]
[[Fuck it, I'm going to my dorm! -> go south]]Lucy smiles and tosses me a water bottle. I put in one of my headphones and settle in to watch the rain with her.
I sink into the couch and stare at the sheets of rain pooling down the windows. It's really nice when you don't have to be out in it. Lucy finishes her sandwich and starts working on something at the computer, the uniform typing a nice background noise.
My eyes start to get heavy as I finish my snack and [[begin dozing against the couch. -> fall asleep]]Maybe get some cover from the trees, too. I start walking down the path, [[wiping my face with the drier part of my sleeves. -> head north]]
It’s a bit longer, and the admins won’t be too happy about me dripping on their carpet, [[but they wouldn’t stop me. -> head west]]My Calc class is in a general purpose building near the science labs. Maybe somebody had enough foresight to check the forecast and will [[let me under their umbrella. -> head east]]It'll take me a minute to get there, [[but I'm not going to class in soaking wet clothes anyway. -> head to dorms]]I hurry back to the dorms and rush inside, my shoes squeaking on the floor as I cross the lobby. Quick as I can I go upstairs and get changed, putting my wet clothes away and getting into warm pajamas.
Class can wait until all this storming is over. For now, I'm going to get into bed and chill and/or nap until the rain and the weird howling in the wind stops.
End: Went home to sleepThe trees don't do much to keep me dry, but at least it doesn't take me long. I hear some loud discussion from the quad but I ignore it, pressing on.
Until I hear a loud yelp from behind me... It doesn't sound like anybody hurt or anything, cause there were multiple people over there and no one is calling for help. Still it seems curious.
[[I go back and check it out. -> investigate the noise]]
[[I keep going to class -> ignore the yell]]I traipse through the admin building with my wet shoes and drip on the carpet. A few people working with their doors open give me weird looks, but I pay them no mind.
[[A shortcut is a shortcut. -> go to class]]The east path goes directly by the quad and then to the back of campus, where the science labs, the biggest class buildings on campus, are surrounded by squat little trailer-like buildings for random other classes. One of my English classes is in there, which is annoying to me because all my other Wednesday classes are in the Humanities building on the other side of the quad.
Anyway. There aren't many people crossing campus this way, and none of them have an umbrella or even a jacket. [[I spot one of my classmates coming from the other way and wave to her. -> Jackie]]"Hey, Jackie!" I call. She waves back and stops to chat with me. "How come no one checked the forecast today?"
"I did!" Jackie insists, shrugging. "It was supposed to be sunny all day. I don't know what the hell this is."
"Climate change is outta control," I grumble. I give her another little wave. "Stay dry!"
[[We both hurry along toward our respective destinations. -> pass the quad]]Not long after that, I'm passing the quad. The hub of reacreational student activity, with a small cafe of restaurants, a tiny grocery store, and a hangout room with a pool table... and of course the center green, a little courtyard with benches, chess tables, and a small garden fountain. It's actually pretty nice, especially as a place to sit and read. I expect it to be almost deserted what with the rain, but [[there's actually a small crowd gathering around the fountain... -> what's going on?]]The group of kids around the fountain are huddled close together, so I can't see past them to see what's going on. Everyone looks pretty curious, though, so naturally I'm curious, too.
[[I go over there. -> investigate the fountain]]
[[I'm not curious enough to stand out in the rain. -> go to class]]I drift off into a nap. I dream that I'm in a little paper boat on the ocean as the rain starts to come down around me, filling my little boat and sinking it.
[[I wake to Lucy shaking me. -> awake]]"Huh?" I startle, sitting up. It's darker outside and the rain is coming down somehow even harder. "What's going on?"
Lucy is sitting next to me on the couch, a little pale. "I just got a weird call. Something's going on in the quad? I wanna go down there to check it out, but I don't wanna go alone. Can you come with me?"
I sit up, yawning. [["Sure. I'm always up for something weird. -> check the quad with Lucy]]Lucy grabs her bag and her jacket from behind the desk. Her jacket is just a black, cloth blazer without a hood, so it's not going to keep her dry, but it'll at least keep her warm.
I stand up slowly, letting my legs wake up, and frown out the window. It really did get //very// dark out there. I wonder how late it is? I check my phone - [[it's 1:30 pm -> leave the student center]]Lucy and I arrive on the quad to find a small group of kids and a few administrators and campus security milling around the fountain. Lucy spots one of her friends sitting on a bench and we walk up to her.
"What's going on?" Lucy asks.
Caroline shrugs. "These three kids found a knife in the bottom of the fountain and reported it. That jock kid looked at it through his camera and says he saw a ghost, but only his friends seem to believe him. Probably some kind of weird prank. That goth girl has been known to do stuff like that."
"They're nonbinary," I say, then blush.
"Oh, do you know them?" Caroline asks.
"No. I've just seen them around, with their uh, pronoun pins."
Caroline nods. "okay well, they're a sophomore and our resident prankster from what I hear. So I'm betting this was them."
I look over at the gathered group. The jock kid, who I think is called Conner, is talking to one of the school cops. The Goth kid is talking to some girl, both of them sitting on the edge of the fountain.
[[I walk up to them. -> talk to the kids]]
[[I decide to get out of the rain -> leave the quad]]A few people look up as I head over. A guy looks at me and grins. "You gotta see this, it's so weird!"
A girl nudges him, frowning. "It's not weird, Kyle, it's fucking creepy."
"It's both," the goth looking person beside her says. "It's sick."
I shake my head at them and (link-reveal:"look in the fountain.")
[ At the bottom of the fountain is a clean knife.]
[[ ...-> what the fuck]]
I may not want to go to class, but I'm not interested enough in whatever's going on here to stand out in the rain any longer. I keep going, walking the rest of the way to Calc, where I shake off as much water from my clothes as I can before I go outside.
Calc is boring, and the rain keeps coming down outside, but at least I can dry off a little.
Maybe the storm will stop by the time class is over.
End: Go to class"What the fuck," I say.
"Who put that in there? Some fucking wise guy?"
The cute goth laughs. The chains on their jacket jingle. "Wasn't me this time, I promise."
"Nobody touch it," the nervous girl tells us. "I've called campus security just in case."
I roll my eyes. "Right, okay, well this is certainly weird but I'm still getting rained on and now I'm late for class, so..."
I trail off as the guy next to me snaps a picture of the knife with his phone [[and then yelps in fear. -> what the FUCK again]]"DUDE!" I jump half out of my skin. "What is wrong with you?!"
The boy - I think his name is Conner or something? - turns his phone to show me his screen. "Dude, look at this."
I frown and squint at the phone. At first I don't think I see anything, but then I shield my eyes from the rain and look closer.
[["Is that a... a fucking face?" -> ghost in the cell]]
[["... Conner. It's just fucking cloudy. Please calm down." -> major eyeroll]]"Wait, let me see!" the nervous girl yells, shouldering me out of the way to get a look. Goth does the same thing on the other side of me, but gently, with a sideways little smile that gives me inopportune butterflies.
"That's a face," they echo. "Is it a fucking ghost?"
"It looks like a girl," Jumpy says.
"That's what people say about me," Goth mutters. "And yet..."
"Hey guys, shut up," Conner says. "Let me try something." He turns his phone camera to video and points it at the knife. There's not a face on the screen anymore, but there is what looks like a faint hand, a weird after image rippling under the water. The hand holds the knife in a translucent fist.
[["Wicked," Goth whispers. -> I saw a ghost]]Everyone frowns at me. Conner actually seems a little hurt. "Come on, can't you see it? Look, I swear I wouldn't make this shit up. Ruby might, but I wouldn't."
"Hey," the Goth kid - Ruby - shoots back.
I sigh, shrugging. "Look, dude, I'm just not into your ghost, okay. Sorry. I gotta go." Without another word to them, I turn and head off.
End: Ignoring the call of the weird. Everyone seems excited. I don't know how to feel about a weird ghostly image on some boy I barely know's phone. But I guess I'm part of this now. I'm too curious to walk away... and maybe a little to into Goth kid hanging on my arm.
I guess we're gonna try and figure this out.
End: Time for a ghost story"Hey guys," I say, almost regretting it already. "What's up?"
The guy, Conner, grabs me by the shoulder. Definitely regretting it. "Yo, dude, you've gotta listen. Nobody else believes us. Look at this!" He shoves his phone at my face. There's some weird, blurry image that I can barely see with the screen so close to my nose.
"Hey, don't crowd her," his goth friend says, reining him in. I can see the photo clearly now - a ghostly face in a fountain. All three of these weirdos look at me expectantly.
What have I gotten myself into?
End: Ghost timeI sigh. "Lucy, I'm gonna go to my dorm. Text me if anything interesting happens, okay?"
Lucy nods. She seems comfortable now that Caroline is here and it seems the whole thing is just a prank. For my part, any interest I had is now outweighed by my need to be dry.
I hear Conner arguing loudly as I walk away.
End: Not interestedI sigh and head back, half too curious for my own good and half concerned something's going on back there. I find one of my classmates, Conner, hanging around the fountain with some girl I don't know and that cool goth kid with all the buttons. Conner is looking at his phone, wide-eyed, the other two huddled around him.
I jog up to them. "You guys alright?"
Conner looks at me and nods. "Yeah, it's just... we found this knife in the fountain, and... well, look." He shows me a picture on his phone of the knife in the fountain, with a weird afterimage that looks a little like a face. Then he swipes the screen and shows me a short video of the knife, but this time there's a faint hand gripping the handle.
I look down at the actual knife and see nothing but the water rippling over its clean surface. [["Are you guys punking me? -> in on the joke]]I listen for a second to confirm no one's calling for help and then just continue on my way. Probably somebody just fooling around in the fountain. If I'm going to class, I wanna go ahead and get there, [[and get out of this damn rain -> go to class]]"No," Conner insists, shaking his head. "I promise, we're as weirded out as you are. But you see it, right?"
[["Yeah, I guess." -> agree]]
[["Totally, dude, that's a fucking ghost." -> snipe]]
[["No. You guys are dumb." -> disagree rudely]]"We haven't gotten that far," the Goth kid says. "Ruby, by the way. This is Julie and Conner. We called campus police about the knife, but other than that we don't know what to do."
"Should we get a Ouija board?" I quip. They all look at me blankly.
I sigh. "Alright. Let me get us some umbrellas and we'll figure this ghost thing out. Hang tight." I rush off, shoes squelching, hoping I can borrow a couple umbrellas from my dormmates so we can get through this ghost hunt without getting too wet.
End: Reluctant ghost hunterWhatever these kids are smoking, I don't feel like having any right now. [[I might as well get my ass to class. -> go to class]]Conner seems relieved. "Thank god. We've asked a few other people, and none of them seem to see it."
I frown. [["So what are we gonna do? -> plan of action]]Conner's face drops into a frown. "Okay, go ahead and make fun. But don't get salty if the ghost gets you."
"I wasn't making fun, dude. [[What do you think we should do?" -> plan of action]]
[["Alright, well, bye -> ditch these fools!]]Conner and the girl look offended, but the Goth kid snickers. I give them a little wave and turn away, heading to class.
[["Say hi to the ghost for me! -> ditch these fools!!]] Whatever these kids are smoking, I don't feel like having any right now. [[I might as well get my ass to class. -> go to class]]