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,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFMwEAxUyjf
The ally-ally-oh, the ally-ally-oh,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7BejOiuH0E
Oh, the big ship sails on the ally-ally-oh,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt39ryFXcnu
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAMX0vfDtY9
"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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeTX1KAVbHy
"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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡResqPHvx3m
"May, I'm not going to tell you that." He sits down on the grass oval and opens his chemistry book.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKLmp3b77yQ
"Okay then. First letter."1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB94Mn5ywcg
"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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBRoErGgqDf
"Okay. It's an B." He sighs.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeUJYjnc7DB
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQOED7W0F8X
"No, what the hell, May?"1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqkZyEFplfU
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOxigvwGxaq
"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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXSUTylVE9G
Esme smiles conspiratorially. "You're quite the puzzle, aren't you?" A more sophisticated person might have used the word 'enigma' instead.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj7XmrSgHoo
David looks up. "Only if you want me to be."1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2iu8zplifD
"Haha…" He can tell she doesn't understand him, as he expected. No one would.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNhkoch8yi4
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHtYPyaK5Kh
"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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWWzUoSlpRu
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!'1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwIeUNpY4Ta
David sighs, and closes the book.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh3RSZnTish
He can't concentrate now.
-impurities-
There was a crooked man and he walked a crooked mile,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwU5KxCvyJE
He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYPn00OTOvo
He bought a crooked cat which caught a crooked mouse.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsA5UCqHYwM
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.
sample: H2O1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrkPUDTDg0B
sample volume: 7325kL1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8a4UEFr4K8
hypothesis: i am alone1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUNfxqnvR8B
method:1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPuAMXmBzSv
-extract impurities1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpNefqi3IAt
result: collected 109875L of impurities1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxXW0sqtlNR
hypothesis disproven1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJLsLChNbDz
hypothesis ii: i am alone, here1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Jj0niqv2u
method:1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡloQWWCk9iG
-sift and sort impurities1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjaFHQkbB06
result: collected 809550mL of relevant impurities1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZNzonS1L3j
hypothesis disproven1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmuCFxiueTJ
hypothesis iii: magic does not exist1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCCWvUhzYDf
method:1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1f4pGDog13
-collect 2mL of relevant impurities1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhPhLOUwx1x
-place in flask1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTKcDUJzKU1
-wait1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDflff7ZotE
-wait1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHHaQEQ0CgM
-wait1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfwg4G14JtI
-wait1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8gG1FObewj
-wait1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXLojtg4bNc
-wait1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpOXwefnwIs
-wait1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn0xiYnFvAj
-until something magical happens1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrdqCicFkCe
result: i waited1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ43WctzwMms
result: i wanted1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzaotkSG0L3
result: i failed1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAOInTrjcg
result: i hid1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpr0BGxLOxk
result: i tried1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5MHPzJS5cv
result: i searched1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGPf7LulE0Z
result: i found1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBfBc7d6UKO
result: i found something magical1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtdyJ3ssty0
hypotheses disproven1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMH9y2ixoUO
i am not alone
-sign here-
Monday's child is fair of face,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡApcVia0J3d
Tuesday's child is full of grace,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFS5wqyJtMS
Wednesday's child is full of woe,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqioTBFHSto
Thursday's child has far to go,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOrQGHYPQiS
Friday's child is loving and giving,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfacgq438Fp
Saturday's child works hard for his living1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUrmntXxkUp
And the child that is born on the Sabbath day…
The author signs the book, another thank, another person. The line goes on.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhwOEaVQZKa
"The name's Gretta. I'm your number one fan!"1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoPHgmqSl8e
To Gretta, my number one fan. -sign here-1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDJ5zz5F317
"I really loved your book. It touched me so much. I've had similar issues myself…"1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9WeV6kAat8
To quote a cat meme: 'Hang in there!' Don't give up, Jacob! -sign here-1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWOBgVKG9zm
"What an honour to meet you! I'm lost for words."1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNNVnkXC5g2
To Kyle, my number one fan. -sign here-
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMPXLKgOIWt
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEyoYLmyw7j
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt2cGXrUzcT
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 –1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIvZSO4vJyg
"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."1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUZSJ8FoJOR
The author opens to the inside cover, and sure enough, there's a signature there. It's not his own, though.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYqRGkmrlAv
This is for you, Hector. I want you to know that I'm sorry.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡontOuIpDBC
Carolyn1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0NPWwKtV35
"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand –" The author is interrupted by the young man.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJVhGyWuGL
"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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5SSBJJq8OM
"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."1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjyaW7YB8Yj
The author finally sees; and – for a moment – for an eternal, deathly moment – he wants to cry.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKsqcrgVaT
"Yes…" He manages to form the word. "…I agree."1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmNGbZsQQaI
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡItc26HJFBg
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFcafqg1oJP
The clearing of a throat brings his attention back to the person in front of him.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmmT79MHWAs
To Samantha, my number one fan. -sign here-
-ghost 54-
"When will that be?" say the Bells of Stepney,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGPhNBrRJDE
"I do not know" say the Great Bells of Bow.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bOoKywLc7
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAVgpFouw1M
Why is this, experts ask?1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkRrIRsLAIp
And why is it only occasionally that ghosts are found in groups?1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMBKbcgJ28o
It was decided that a study must be conducted.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpKAGHdY8WA
We stayed at the Crawley Cemetery for five nights, with video cameras, audio recording equipment, and an ectograph.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnhS6v1jJPb
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 1:1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKNN1PCNqVu
Video cameras find nothing.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc63cGjyRSl
Audio finds only the faintest of whispers.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr3S3N0o74R
No ectograph response.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmXAXzBkvD9
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 2:1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGRb5av9PSe
Video cameras find nothing.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyElCKHFgOm
Audio records crying at a frequency unnoticeable to human ears. Had to be edited.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcDiWYIT3qu
Slight ectograph response.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJef76nEz1H
At our midnight campfire, we sensed a presence, 5 foot 4 inches tall. One member of our group panicked, and bailed from experiment.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXaugZqlkEr
The presence feebly tried to morph into a replica of a human body, but the image collapsed.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFPy7slkTb2
We have christened the presence 'ghost 54'.
NIGHT 3:1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡImOY5fV4ZW
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeYuc10yYcl
Audio records multiple prayers being said through the night. Again, frequency had to be edited.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF4KWFiK6DZ
Ectograph gives huge response. Large ghost activity in area.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrR8WIUGz9C
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 4:1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtbHtSMhuTN
Video cameras record images of horrific beings, humanoid but monstrous.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6hjHdKXLyu
Audio records unintelligible noises. This phenomenon requires further study. Possibly an attempt at communication.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9BNM9YCi6i
Ectograph spikes, has buffer overflow. Line of activity goes off the top of graph before the machine breaks.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBtmjaZCqS4
We repair the ectograph during our midnight campfire.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡssXUTiRoew
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVeYG8E3zoS
Ghost 54 is silent.
NIGHT 5:1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU5LRlvyFBB
Video cameras show many people walking around the cemetery.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtin6UDozja
Audio records many casual conversations.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLCRo5S4xOZ
The repaired ectograph gives no response.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwAldVrq0s2
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2g3NLY9yS4
No ghost activity was found at all.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYc2LRPxFmu
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF8vRvPJ8iR
We congratulate ourselves on our unusual findings.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3QyAqu4ixr
To celebrate, we watch the footage of ghost 54 being placed in the cage.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXe3TkKQseA
We are surprised to see in the recording, us placing a perfectly healthy (and struggling) human into the cage.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnB6XVB98dp
The footage has not been tampered with.
This phenomenon requires further study.
-whish-
Jack and Jill1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Tu65EvIKO
Went up the hill1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm3f6k5phqK
To fetch a pail of water…
The hill is silent, serene – peaceful, he wants to say.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXvRRqWnCSq
This is his place, where he can lay the storm of thoughts rushing about inside his mind to rest.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk85G2vRyY4
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtSRoocDPoQ
But he still does it, perhaps once a month, sometimes more, sometimes less, because of the Whishing Well.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNnaMKK2bVW
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNRDt1rXfRo
Tonight is different.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWKj3lRbUf4
He has nothing left to give to the well.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4OB217DNg0
Or, perhaps, he has everything to give.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7qifgRe9ks
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvS13NGwMlN
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGiyasSQ8qE
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmMnL30C43m
He opens his eyes. The wish is over.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqOTnW95KNv
He wants it. He needs it.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMvqUtdV8yy
With a sigh, he walks back down the hill.
The next evening, his parents are crying.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1sZBhBqrn9
"We're proud of you, son, no matter what." They're smiling, but they're shocked as well, shaken.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ3lRJkii5U
His dad, eyes red, pats him on the back.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Cyfvf8CnX
"Go get 'em, tiger."1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ewXpdU2sE
And so a door closes, another opens.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIfIbQtLQAv
He walks out, a half-hearted goodbye, a see you soon, and they watch all the way as he walks down the street.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdVXXw0i5RN
The thirty minute walk gives his time to think about what's going to happen, to him, to them, to everyone they know.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB5ItlAJjqs
He reaches his destination, and there, a slim, quiet figure waits, extending a hand upon sight.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeBIsPBIxbx
He grasps it.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuTiHX88rtn
"Ready?"1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW4lehkABY8
The person answers. "Ready."1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP8r2JcYwVt
He can tell that they're not, really, but they're going to do this anyway.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbkCmwlgGIW
They can hear all the noise from inside the hall, growing louder as they open the door.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxUoLiqAt8G
Silence.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcTuVY1FBy5
Everything stops.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbeWLmnFvqw
And he thinks of his wish, still strong in his mind, and walks, hand in hand, into the room.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9rylz0MJiG
I wish…1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcByswO9Ucf
I wish…1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzTS4gNhq2F
Esme cries.
-extract from memoir of a ghost by david whishaw-
When Adam delved, and Eve span,1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmC5PL13Pzg
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.1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy85rIOBDMp
-chalkboard stories-1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXXGl14ON2Y
its only an enigma1055Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaD0qdFkXYj
if you want it to be
