CHALKBOARD STORIES
Proposition 1: It is possible to determine everything that was ever written on a chalkboard from the traces of dust they leave behind.
The hard chalk squeals in pain as the young man drags it across the board. He stops for a moment, then writes a second:
Proposition 2: It is possible to reconstruct a life from the traces they leave behind, the ways they affected other lives.
Yes, he thinks, that's it. Stretching, he adds an underlined title above the two sentences:
The Chalkboard Proposition
-date-
The big ship sails on the ally-ally-oh,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEdo2tYbB5M
The ally-ally-oh, the ally-ally-oh,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSKCuWGYUOG
Oh, the big ship sails on the ally-ally-oh,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsdsKFuw8EX
On the last day of September…
"Oh, come on, you've got to tell me who you're taking to the social!" Esme titters, throwing her luscious blonde hair back with a flick of the head.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnzfr10Cpfv
"Just someone." David was an unusual person; quiet, introverted, and the secret crush of nearly every girl in his year (not to mention ones younger and older). He had well defined features – piercing blue eyes, observant, brown curls hanging over his forehead and the faintest hint of facial hair sprouting beneath his tall nose and under his chin.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrDm5ndQwVD
"Don't tease me, Dave. Give me a name." Esme pouts in what could be considered a sexual way, and a few distant onlookers wolf-whistle. It took a lot to get the self-proclaimed beauty of the school to give that face.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡet7jmxWszV
"May, I'm not going to tell you that." He sits down on the grass oval and opens his chemistry book.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhCeSrYP5gL
"Okay then. First letter."1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0oUBEvWjq6
"May –" Her bottom lip sticks out even further, and she bends over, batting her eyelids. Shit, David thinks. If I don't say anything soon she's going to be undressing for me right here.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ90G2aTL0BC
"Okay. It's an B." He sighs.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXwnNlNqgP
Immediately, Esme straightens herself, and pulls up her dress which had casually fallen a centimeter or two during her maneouvres. "B for bitch?" She adds, helpfully. A hysterical laugh.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgK6qtEQU1
"No, what the hell, May?"1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDqqVaqnO1e
She puts on a young, girly voice: "It was just a joke, mummy, no need to get so uptight!" Another laugh. "Ohhhhh my god, it's Bronte, isn't it. That SLUT!" She gasps theatrically.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzZjbtu5iZ
"No, it's not Bronte. You wouldn't know who it is." He takes out and puts on his glasses and focuses on the book on his lap.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAYJrLEwq0c
Esme smiles conspiratorially. "You're quite the puzzle, aren't you?" A more sophisticated person might have used the word 'enigma' instead.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbV5rG8V4mr
David looks up. "Only if you want me to be."1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCIqw6u2o3E
"Haha…" He can tell she doesn't understand him, as he expected. No one would.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ01v7e5M2C
Esme's group of friends appears suddenly, as if sprouting out of the ground like unwanted weeds; dandelions, pretty at first sight, but as you blow all the frills away you see the filth underneath that spreading over your garden.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA7bQzDTZaT
"Well, Dave, I've gotta go. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!" She giggles, and her friends follow suit with an irritating chord of nervous laughter.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnM4Wt9CaxJ
As if in reverse mitosis, they form one impenetrable cloud of gossip that slowly walks away, emitting the occasional 'No way!' or 'Oh my god!'1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbVyp3CGuG
David sighs, and closes the book.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYEAS0TfG4t
He can't concentrate now.
-impurities-
There was a crooked man and he walked a crooked mile,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPHGaISq97G
He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHzXjLTnnVI
He bought a crooked cat which caught a crooked mouse.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMS5BYFuB3N
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.
sample: H2O1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ7gEpgdy9b
sample volume: 7325kL1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzNy4sP7GpB
hypothesis: i am alone1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiXhhppMhyU
method:1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUZNiF2d7sf
-extract impurities1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYA2qaz1ux
result: collected 109875L of impurities1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh3VF7YUkNo
hypothesis disproven1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDGJY0eQj2m
hypothesis ii: i am alone, here1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7oW06ZE5kW
method:1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC4vm3XyzQc
-sift and sort impurities1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡogW8CUlaSo
result: collected 809550mL of relevant impurities1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1V5Jce2sR
hypothesis disproven1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGrVGyyQlXK
hypothesis iii: magic does not exist1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8TgDCBJFVi
method:1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSH6me4KmGc
-collect 2mL of relevant impurities1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6c7MQfLOSC
-place in flask1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO68bwxgnSy
-wait1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqErrSfMFxs
-wait1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOrok9ySajv
-wait1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFAYw3YESZj
-wait1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo6ddjcCbOy
-wait1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt4byWCKR6A
-wait1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEQpUWbdmE
-wait1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡktc5J6r8YN
-until something magical happens1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDhv227MAay
result: i waited1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk6NP1Ozww8
result: i wanted1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfn8N2Yw0uZ
result: i failed1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDe6fsedqRR
result: i hid1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPr21Sei6Ov
result: i tried1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGhNg57Flw1
result: i searched1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlKyw7up3pu
result: i found1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ737poYB6VE
result: i found something magical1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡctPaX2BtDS
hypotheses disproven1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmPX85psu6v
i am not alone
-sign here-
Monday's child is fair of face,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6bKH5bhjPs
Tuesday's child is full of grace,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ61HJTP3AyJ
Wednesday's child is full of woe,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNTiZJYV3Kz
Thursday's child has far to go,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7duDS4Qphs
Friday's child is loving and giving,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ97VzDaOxwk
Saturday's child works hard for his living1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyxttEIjxT8
And the child that is born on the Sabbath day…
The author signs the book, another thank, another person. The line goes on.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLyENDl7suW
"The name's Gretta. I'm your number one fan!"1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAjjpWDFFTJ
To Gretta, my number one fan. -sign here-1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUbI4gJVASg
"I really loved your book. It touched me so much. I've had similar issues myself…"1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ94GQ3NaSA5
To quote a cat meme: 'Hang in there!' Don't give up, Jacob! -sign here-1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUFdgo6TCfO
"What an honour to meet you! I'm lost for words."1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFaazYwOAFL
To Kyle, my number one fan. -sign here-
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcfVrxz1fwa
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnz1AkcpbTX
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC3ditPMC5f
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-
Endless, endless, endless, and they all mean nothing. Dammit. The pen has run out of ink. He reaches for another –1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0gmdI86CE
"No need to." The author looks up at the voice, and is greeted by the figure of a young man, possibly mid to late twenties, perhaps even in the thirties. Streaky blonde hair, slightly awkward gait, but something elegant about the entire presentation. A smile. "It's already signed."1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDicqSBQixr
The author opens to the inside cover, and sure enough, there's a signature there. It's not his own, though.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIfcgAUeFIe
This is for you, Hector. I want you to know that I'm sorry.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEL2mGzfeL
Carolyn1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMoQqGwXB55
"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand –" The author is interrupted by the young man.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQPbX2xMbiA
"You don't need to. It's only a mystery if you make it one." There's an audible muttering of impatience from the people in the line, and he glances back quickly after he finishes the sentence.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXjKMWlLfaE
"The book isn't mine. I bought it second hand." He takes closes the cover, and takes it back. "I think there's a greater story in those fourteen words than what could ever be expressed in the entirety of your book."1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjPNra5vdho
The author finally sees; and – for a moment – for an eternal, deathly moment – he wants to cry.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2iQqn6G88i
"Yes…" He manages to form the word. "…I agree."1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGMq2wxRbbo
The young man offers nothing for a goodbye, simply walking away; but, just before he exits the bookshop – he turns back, and gives one last smile – that happy, sad, confused, surprised, goddamn smile.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPOvjxalWsw
The author doesn't want to let himself believe it, but he's sure, so sure, that when the man returns home, he'll play an old record of some Shakespeare, sit by his Shigeru and with his long, shapely fingers, play the most impenetrable and so unspeakably beautiful harmonies.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG2vkZHYyns
The clearing of a throat brings his attention back to the person in front of him.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcd1ioA6CZs
To Samantha, my number one fan. -sign here-
-ghost 54-
"When will that be?" say the Bells of Stepney,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyxYRkj5SLA
"I do not know" say the Great Bells of Bow.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs5hsE6QlL4
Here comes a candle to light you to bed…
It is known that ghosts do not come out in day, but only at night, or in the dark.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFumvomAWp
Why is this, experts ask?1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfjOxCoQyhj
And why is it only occasionally that ghosts are found in groups?1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFRVrgrDZiG
It was decided that a study must be conducted.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRLooQAhVk6
We stayed at the Crawley Cemetery for five nights, with video cameras, audio recording equipment, and an ectograph.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvweD4jN0wf
Each night, we video the cemetery, record audio in selected areas, record a transcript of all dialogue at our midnight campfire, and place the ecto-sensors around the cemetery, transmitting information to the ectograph.
NIGHT 1:1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaPZPnvsOLQ
Video cameras find nothing.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs9HYvVI3j1
Audio finds only the faintest of whispers.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUPSnzCQLQv
No ectograph response.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWN5FusCXGI
At our midnight campfire, we had seven people gathered around, telling stories. We came as a group of six. Once pointed out, said extra person vanished. Ghost activity suspected.
NIGHT 2:1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl40etSwf8E
Video cameras find nothing.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbMp6GhlJ5Q
Audio records crying at a frequency unnoticeable to human ears. Had to be edited.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDtq9o4jw2b
Slight ectograph response.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZew9GbC9Wc
At our midnight campfire, we sensed a presence, 5 foot 4 inches tall. One member of our group panicked, and bailed from experiment.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQrn75xVEx
The presence feebly tried to morph into a replica of a human body, but the image collapsed.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ26TTR2EviR
We have christened the presence 'ghost 54'.
NIGHT 3:1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwNf0FkWtpl
Video cameras find a group of ghosts, touching, walking through each other, but seemingly without the knowledge of each other's presence. Further study of this phenomenon is required.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsEt0UUKOQe
Audio records multiple prayers being said through the night. Again, frequency had to be edited.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbfuFlgko39
Ectograph gives huge response. Large ghost activity in area.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa8Y7ZZkwyI
Ghost 54 returned to our midnight campfire, seemingly trying to make contact with us. Sounds made were unintelligible. We managed to capture it: we have placed it in a cage.
NIGHT 4:1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcgjOrch0Fc
Video cameras record images of horrific beings, humanoid but monstrous.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpkpP475nBt
Audio records unintelligible noises. This phenomenon requires further study. Possibly an attempt at communication.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQtz9MLffp0
Ectograph spikes, has buffer overflow. Line of activity goes off the top of graph before the machine breaks.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqcnNZTrLV
We repair the ectograph during our midnight campfire.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU3zooDEBIB
One of our remaining 5 crew members has an epileptic fit. We attempt to calm him before he morphs into a monstrous ghost before our eyes. We restrain him, and place him in the cage. We have lost another crew member.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWXZwV3AKHW
Ghost 54 is silent.
NIGHT 5:1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfdR7r2UTN0
Video cameras show many people walking around the cemetery.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJygUm5OJ0f
Audio records many casual conversations.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmhvFQ56LHB
The repaired ectograph gives no response.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiYMJrFDy1l
The cage contains our crew member and ghost 54. We cannot tell which is which, as both no longer resemble ghosts, both seemingly human now.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ2TsE1ybCy
No ghost activity was found at all.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHmXK0bgcAG
At midnight campfire, we go back through previous footage and recordings. They have changed. Frequencies are back to normal (edited versions had to be re-edited) and unintelligible noises now resemble human conversation.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCUp9HwKQPm
We congratulate ourselves on our unusual findings.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxaWesYhlnY
To celebrate, we watch the footage of ghost 54 being placed in the cage.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXmK2GRxqNx
We are surprised to see in the recording, us placing a perfectly healthy (and struggling) human into the cage.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGv7T2NfnFm
The footage has not been tampered with.
This phenomenon requires further study.
-whish-
Jack and Jill1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ08Mc0MT2bN
Went up the hill1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLScnQWIuOM
To fetch a pail of water…
The hill is silent, serene – peaceful, he wants to say.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbIiJ7fplux
This is his place, where he can lay the storm of thoughts rushing about inside his mind to rest.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaxVGv1g9UA
The climb is harsh, and he recalls when once – as a younger child, perhaps 11 or 12 years old, he twisted his foot on a rock, and it never quite fully healed; you wouldn't notice it at a glance, but there's something ever so slightly awkward about the way he carries himself.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqCukuIC6F4
But he still does it, perhaps once a month, sometimes more, sometimes less, because of the Whishing Well.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4den4epiXK
That's what he calls it; the old, defunct well at the top of the hill – the Whishing Well. His own little private joke. And on those nights that he sneaks out of the house to climb up, he drops something precious down the well and makes a wish, then lies under the glimmering stars for as long as he dares before heading back down to his house.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsT5XyfeIKt
Tonight is different.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8yYPVZNuE1
He has nothing left to give to the well.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGDG4fwH8Ik
Or, perhaps, he has everything to give.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4St1w7JytB
He knows that this is the last time he's going to go to the well. He doesn't want to come back after this, because this – this is his final wish, the most important thing in his whole life, the one thing he wants granted.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjn5SgyyfXn
He reaches the peak, and kneels beside the stone circle surrounding the pit. He makes his wish, and as he does so, he can't help but let a few tears escape; each echoing hollowly as they splash against the bottom of the well.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIrXz5Ev3mj
The sleepless moon watches over him, gliding so slowly across the sky, a guardian, a confidante, the only other that will know the wish, the light reflecting of his streaky blonde hair.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmUfZPlNo9L
He opens his eyes. The wish is over.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡODFaomiizI
He wants it. He needs it.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcCLW46k26R
With a sigh, he walks back down the hill.
The next evening, his parents are crying.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡicyrKqWgwD
"We're proud of you, son, no matter what." They're smiling, but they're shocked as well, shaken.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQEayyDco2d
His dad, eyes red, pats him on the back.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡksIGKZ8rCy
"Go get 'em, tiger."1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbSPreFKqhN
And so a door closes, another opens.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9KAw3KOIKR
He walks out, a half-hearted goodbye, a see you soon, and they watch all the way as he walks down the street.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXn1Wf481da
The thirty minute walk gives his time to think about what's going to happen, to him, to them, to everyone they know.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXCXB2wOB3E
He reaches his destination, and there, a slim, quiet figure waits, extending a hand upon sight.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6ebey8Cup
He grasps it.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE8pq6MJV9i
"Ready?"1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbtPxvVdCGd
The person answers. "Ready."1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyLIYjbQjZO
He can tell that they're not, really, but they're going to do this anyway.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUr2l4IeGDZ
They can hear all the noise from inside the hall, growing louder as they open the door.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM4QPJulgBk
Silence.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYnBhCQfkgB
Everything stops.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6UNH3bA2Uf
And he thinks of his wish, still strong in his mind, and walks, hand in hand, into the room.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhoy7xuKDaV
I wish…1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEi9BwtD79M
I wish…1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7a6RtmlqNA
Esme cries.
-extract from memoir of a ghost by david whishaw-
When Adam delved, and Eve span,1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxEm8dvc0TB
Who then was a gentleman?
I'm walking new territory now, no footsteps in the sand before me. I've thrown everything that I knew and loved to the winds, and I'm scared that I'll take the journey alone. Everything is different now, but even in those first, tentative steps, I know that however hard this will be, something magical is waiting for me at the end. And when I glimpse that beautiful thing, still so far away, rising over the horizon, I'm going to run, oh, I'll run, and I'm never looking back.
Just watch me go.1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ74chcEzJMj
-chalkboard stories-1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS3bnA7WIp0
its only an enigma1027Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNOS1JH2Or7
if you want it to be
