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,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9w5KwkugNo
The ally-ally-oh, the ally-ally-oh,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSdd07PxeRB
Oh, the big ship sails on the ally-ally-oh,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIFTgiHHMhP
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmcM5BbF9Nd
"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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcJPP5lafad
"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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQAi2hYeP10
"May, I'm not going to tell you that." He sits down on the grass oval and opens his chemistry book.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8XLq4o1s2L
"Okay then. First letter."1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ933FykMlYZ
"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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiEEQME36og
"Okay. It's an B." He sighs.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSO0bWL16o
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIVkdKIm0FU
"No, what the hell, May?"1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoDLxYH8Ny6
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKkwInd0XpK
"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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSa0JiVh05Y
Esme smiles conspiratorially. "You're quite the puzzle, aren't you?" A more sophisticated person might have used the word 'enigma' instead.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡALb9bzoJcX
David looks up. "Only if you want me to be."1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSLdilde80G
"Haha…" He can tell she doesn't understand him, as he expected. No one would.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm8Jlub71IB
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj9NjZrsQMN
"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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKLopMNNUWG
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!'1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ96rZk8wv5D
David sighs, and closes the book.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOoM0qIspJB
He can't concentrate now.
-impurities-
There was a crooked man and he walked a crooked mile,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡamnMg0uHqj
He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe2VDhO94NY
He bought a crooked cat which caught a crooked mouse.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtnzH6C5w5Y
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.
sample: H2O1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡANqQjj0F8J
sample volume: 7325kL1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyseyDE1h0i
hypothesis: i am alone1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDnK0vcsdc
method:1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvgcSAo6IBK
-extract impurities1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxkL9pvjmNI
result: collected 109875L of impurities1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzgQB5rA1GQ
hypothesis disproven1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyZC7ZugcEg
hypothesis ii: i am alone, here1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfi1hQcPyK9
method:1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCU58dsiDWo
-sift and sort impurities1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmS0sbhrcom
result: collected 809550mL of relevant impurities1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQik9DHGzJ7
hypothesis disproven1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1eDXRlt8KS
hypothesis iii: magic does not exist1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuP83bJ5mWl
method:1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEg55qsvp4X
-collect 2mL of relevant impurities1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9k5RNVZezT
-place in flask1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡonrNqbDMaR
-wait1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡErwLkTlkX9
-wait1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxc7ItV3wka
-wait1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQwP6xNIKLc
-wait1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyBXmHhkBtO
-wait1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKqEtYK6Ehp
-wait1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp1KqfAl9kY
-wait1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm8mhnjty54
-until something magical happens1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6OBXOF4x33
result: i waited1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMNxhhp6XfJ
result: i wanted1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8QdGSjXwlm
result: i failed1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0PrFIL2KPs
result: i hid1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuX5N3K9jpP
result: i tried1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3I6YGU21DO
result: i searched1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKeuG9wl97j
result: i found1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNrSaJ6bo9D
result: i found something magical1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcq81BdnYMB
hypotheses disproven1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNLR2EowsZ9
i am not alone
-sign here-
Monday's child is fair of face,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR53Yjw467O
Tuesday's child is full of grace,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfSjSG7OuHu
Wednesday's child is full of woe,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9OO8NoB2cA
Thursday's child has far to go,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKox8OFt2AZ
Friday's child is loving and giving,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQqDx1Q0XzZ
Saturday's child works hard for his living1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Gssw1v7yo
And the child that is born on the Sabbath day…
The author signs the book, another thank, another person. The line goes on.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSy5yA9yx3J
"The name's Gretta. I'm your number one fan!"1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ91YqB4Iutz
To Gretta, my number one fan. -sign here-1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPHBTsnve9P
"I really loved your book. It touched me so much. I've had similar issues myself…"1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqopZVG75li
To quote a cat meme: 'Hang in there!' Don't give up, Jacob! -sign here-1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwMqsrV9Qy1
"What an honour to meet you! I'm lost for words."1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgbGRwGlp7
To Kyle, my number one fan. -sign here-
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlW9XMGqkE2
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvDjyyQQFmc
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzkFsFqc0ai
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 –1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcFNSWX9sfM
"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."1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBsXyzbE5VK
The author opens to the inside cover, and sure enough, there's a signature there. It's not his own, though.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡArdgvnIe2L
This is for you, Hector. I want you to know that I'm sorry.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU9AX0RIgGb
Carolyn1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6SL8cdWVxo
"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand –" The author is interrupted by the young man.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWivHJx9H3T
"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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡokW9nRQaCK
"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."1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Mb3VZaBJF
The author finally sees; and – for a moment – for an eternal, deathly moment – he wants to cry.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡggcwfqkF2a
"Yes…" He manages to form the word. "…I agree."1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYfwD3hfmgo
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFXmXRcK1Lx
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTOoybh1jLJ
The clearing of a throat brings his attention back to the person in front of him.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWgogcV7C1G
To Samantha, my number one fan. -sign here-
-ghost 54-
"When will that be?" say the Bells of Stepney,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2SPABQWJx1
"I do not know" say the Great Bells of Bow.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH19k1vyYDl
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrvAdAEa0ub
Why is this, experts ask?1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrSQxbxiFRn
And why is it only occasionally that ghosts are found in groups?1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbWtNQYkSAz
It was decided that a study must be conducted.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOTr2qp0INU
We stayed at the Crawley Cemetery for five nights, with video cameras, audio recording equipment, and an ectograph.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7NfL3QH1Xo
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 1:1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1jw1OexiJh
Video cameras find nothing.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7BEMkJEhYZ
Audio finds only the faintest of whispers.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ518OWQXQZk
No ectograph response.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPwT57Mof7o
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 2:1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA5PbNvuvBC
Video cameras find nothing.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR6cE9zBuGc
Audio records crying at a frequency unnoticeable to human ears. Had to be edited.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi6RqEkMop7
Slight ectograph response.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAEHlwfv5Jn
At our midnight campfire, we sensed a presence, 5 foot 4 inches tall. One member of our group panicked, and bailed from experiment.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbc37NyoXfz
The presence feebly tried to morph into a replica of a human body, but the image collapsed.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVetENvvmxR
We have christened the presence 'ghost 54'.
NIGHT 3:1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzKIQsotVzh
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCsXkFDxu9X
Audio records multiple prayers being said through the night. Again, frequency had to be edited.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGVeX5gseHP
Ectograph gives huge response. Large ghost activity in area.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjqelpWUzRc
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 4:1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ3cJazvP87
Video cameras record images of horrific beings, humanoid but monstrous.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVpwOq4rPN0
Audio records unintelligible noises. This phenomenon requires further study. Possibly an attempt at communication.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ80ImMnwU3r
Ectograph spikes, has buffer overflow. Line of activity goes off the top of graph before the machine breaks.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5cjG63VBst
We repair the ectograph during our midnight campfire.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEy75TJfwPT
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwdcu3hf81z
Ghost 54 is silent.
NIGHT 5:1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC5AIOZV5DL
Video cameras show many people walking around the cemetery.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEifzjAWAl5
Audio records many casual conversations.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkGSZEPPTyK
The repaired ectograph gives no response.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqrYqxpZvep
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLcnlEvZazO
No ghost activity was found at all.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRJ7poBc0jU
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6YulROYGS5
We congratulate ourselves on our unusual findings.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWxbuanRjYh
To celebrate, we watch the footage of ghost 54 being placed in the cage.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk6KoGWmDNg
We are surprised to see in the recording, us placing a perfectly healthy (and struggling) human into the cage.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6zi3oEBySd
The footage has not been tampered with.
This phenomenon requires further study.
-whish-
Jack and Jill1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCfxLYGjBRf
Went up the hill1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBfk6EqXxLg
To fetch a pail of water…
The hill is silent, serene – peaceful, he wants to say.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqfeuDmC1rw
This is his place, where he can lay the storm of thoughts rushing about inside his mind to rest.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkdOPvo1UAp
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq4SoyNhV3H
But he still does it, perhaps once a month, sometimes more, sometimes less, because of the Whishing Well.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgW0huovu3d
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZw6MdBTf8V
Tonight is different.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ480ZfsCgxA
He has nothing left to give to the well.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcjNxkgQ10B
Or, perhaps, he has everything to give.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm4EG2dtBVG
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTC7pse5eyF
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdj68ibIM9f
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡenMY5rObYd
He opens his eyes. The wish is over.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQBnqllqnGG
He wants it. He needs it.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8gYkdveQKL
With a sigh, he walks back down the hill.
The next evening, his parents are crying.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1CPAeEl3lz
"We're proud of you, son, no matter what." They're smiling, but they're shocked as well, shaken.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdRDoxErkge
His dad, eyes red, pats him on the back.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM8yslbN6FQ
"Go get 'em, tiger."1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsqUZXbBw40
And so a door closes, another opens.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMrFjvzZxmK
He walks out, a half-hearted goodbye, a see you soon, and they watch all the way as he walks down the street.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPF8gdCBmeo
The thirty minute walk gives his time to think about what's going to happen, to him, to them, to everyone they know.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAO19nWoVKf
He reaches his destination, and there, a slim, quiet figure waits, extending a hand upon sight.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡilUph8Tn40
He grasps it.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxoPJuLcFXG
"Ready?"1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVyQnOcVC7o
The person answers. "Ready."1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlfs4NuT3IC
He can tell that they're not, really, but they're going to do this anyway.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUnKKrA5MiQ
They can hear all the noise from inside the hall, growing louder as they open the door.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwBaJlxxaH
Silence.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxaIwSShKlw
Everything stops.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOAXQWeYjvu
And he thinks of his wish, still strong in his mind, and walks, hand in hand, into the room.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcscdNDJWSJ
I wish…1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRQSUsT8jhs
I wish…1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhHR3IUwMQM
Esme cries.
-extract from memoir of a ghost by david whishaw-
When Adam delved, and Eve span,1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFx2ifIEt7h
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.1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2aaRtx4Sq
-chalkboard stories-1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFEv0EogPPq
its only an enigma1083Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJLkd3aKRo1
if you want it to be
