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,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFHrKXLPtNN
The ally-ally-oh, the ally-ally-oh,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPWvWH9Zqa1
Oh, the big ship sails on the ally-ally-oh,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmUGRsMpIys
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAHHzorK5X2
"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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwcPl0Brkdr
"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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRWk5wf3Xs
"May, I'm not going to tell you that." He sits down on the grass oval and opens his chemistry book.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvxhpuYBNK2
"Okay then. First letter."988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr5LUcBmpD5
"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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTvxlkm870q
"Okay. It's an B." He sighs.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCeZUO1WxWE
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEba7yQ9g3B
"No, what the hell, May?"988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ485sZcH73I
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxI1mHL2Q66
"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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvyyF7jcLHz
Esme smiles conspiratorially. "You're quite the puzzle, aren't you?" A more sophisticated person might have used the word 'enigma' instead.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjhpU4Ekdx8
David looks up. "Only if you want me to be."988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE2JdbwB5bU
"Haha…" He can tell she doesn't understand him, as he expected. No one would.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLLk7ljsuWY
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv3tRVH5s63
"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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8sN3Lq3fVg
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!'988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdHEUdfZKvh
David sighs, and closes the book.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxASEXHlBjr
He can't concentrate now.
-impurities-
There was a crooked man and he walked a crooked mile,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ24HD8lvrIm
He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6TLSLCWaMm
He bought a crooked cat which caught a crooked mouse.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj3Vi777KxV
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.
sample: H2O988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYDpbAmUVkX
sample volume: 7325kL988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs7amXP53m2
hypothesis: i am alone988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaGb0diYR55
method:988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv8JFOJN6JA
-extract impurities988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz5AyhTZcTn
result: collected 109875L of impurities988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6dcjBatgB4
hypothesis disproven988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHrYDA0XQUg
hypothesis ii: i am alone, here988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBFaloAH7EP
method:988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnxtDbGjAI5
-sift and sort impurities988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo5njvPZ2rO
result: collected 809550mL of relevant impurities988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrt9GSO1gHt
hypothesis disproven988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUAhEScf2XG
hypothesis iii: magic does not exist988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg1ZgeNphxb
method:988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzcwS7yQtzl
-collect 2mL of relevant impurities988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVqyILddlCx
-place in flask988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl42xjYhVWp
-wait988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4XzcVMpWKQ
-wait988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWi0qI3ahu5
-wait988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw2ECY3fJpq
-wait988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV2kxJB77Cm
-wait988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm6Ee8A322p
-wait988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfThZkYcT3P
-wait988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrNdFTxIfFC
-until something magical happens988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCayReRFdov
result: i waited988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAGZyixB2uy
result: i wanted988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV2evYfI0Mp
result: i failed988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZHK37bwtc
result: i hid988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhnnZfikWGJ
result: i tried988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERAVm7lp3P
result: i searched988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDkkaKUg9HJ
result: i found988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMOPbeZExFz
result: i found something magical988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVLhltN7w4N
hypotheses disproven988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqeAPyubAfF
i am not alone
-sign here-
Monday's child is fair of face,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxFaxcSr0Zh
Tuesday's child is full of grace,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgS5g58G8y5
Wednesday's child is full of woe,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6HaCZE7pHd
Thursday's child has far to go,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSi9BHETODo
Friday's child is loving and giving,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLhHGohv8AN
Saturday's child works hard for his living988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNjzuUkJdOa
And the child that is born on the Sabbath day…
The author signs the book, another thank, another person. The line goes on.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv5VkzNv5KO
"The name's Gretta. I'm your number one fan!"988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLXheRV9JW7
To Gretta, my number one fan. -sign here-988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0oLj1sSmOF
"I really loved your book. It touched me so much. I've had similar issues myself…"988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfzopPe5ed2
To quote a cat meme: 'Hang in there!' Don't give up, Jacob! -sign here-988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7cjAeQLUEY
"What an honour to meet you! I'm lost for words."988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGUzNEAVbkR
To Kyle, my number one fan. -sign here-
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNiOg32eBSQ
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJKIfyh1v3S
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡittqdqy7FT
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 –988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYsXGyTpgU1
"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."988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5XKQyQazd
The author opens to the inside cover, and sure enough, there's a signature there. It's not his own, though.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphegZr4Odk
This is for you, Hector. I want you to know that I'm sorry.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yfo0KDNMj
Carolyn988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEZxXUALwK0
"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand –" The author is interrupted by the young man.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyJNH91YwCz
"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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDmjmAmWb8V
"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."988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfJQew1bl6k
The author finally sees; and – for a moment – for an eternal, deathly moment – he wants to cry.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUMqGKkIw34
"Yes…" He manages to form the word. "…I agree."988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMIZ7sjfKp7
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ15NQoiLrtL
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS8B8UPTHtK
The clearing of a throat brings his attention back to the person in front of him.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3J0wDbdbqk
To Samantha, my number one fan. -sign here-
-ghost 54-
"When will that be?" say the Bells of Stepney,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOOU7MHtP6
"I do not know" say the Great Bells of Bow.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnUti0baT4R
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0AU1GRN0sE
Why is this, experts ask?988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ860Emo4GX9
And why is it only occasionally that ghosts are found in groups?988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4WoJqQv5Uy
It was decided that a study must be conducted.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ho8isz8Er
We stayed at the Crawley Cemetery for five nights, with video cameras, audio recording equipment, and an ectograph.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡendTOmPK8T
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 1:988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡelm3jFZylQ
Video cameras find nothing.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqNIF7EETD4
Audio finds only the faintest of whispers.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqWH5TEKBJR
No ectograph response.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEojIkMzmp2
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 2:988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡahtRgTD3mO
Video cameras find nothing.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzitv4J8DeL
Audio records crying at a frequency unnoticeable to human ears. Had to be edited.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAA65cBGCb4
Slight ectograph response.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMh6iuNW1zZ
At our midnight campfire, we sensed a presence, 5 foot 4 inches tall. One member of our group panicked, and bailed from experiment.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSrvnShvVTD
The presence feebly tried to morph into a replica of a human body, but the image collapsed.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM00BexhiGd
We have christened the presence 'ghost 54'.
NIGHT 3:988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNXaENkAthP
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnfL3VCovxy
Audio records multiple prayers being said through the night. Again, frequency had to be edited.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOa87iodlD5
Ectograph gives huge response. Large ghost activity in area.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxsz0GYueHn
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 4:988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgK7jCcVl4q
Video cameras record images of horrific beings, humanoid but monstrous.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTvBGECstet
Audio records unintelligible noises. This phenomenon requires further study. Possibly an attempt at communication.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5CU5OuaH30
Ectograph spikes, has buffer overflow. Line of activity goes off the top of graph before the machine breaks.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyfHVuXmmXo
We repair the ectograph during our midnight campfire.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQIBJNqsBk
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK56fJhgSks
Ghost 54 is silent.
NIGHT 5:988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA27ONBKREF
Video cameras show many people walking around the cemetery.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpz5iEjiMaw
Audio records many casual conversations.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHqlKGfPnVq
The repaired ectograph gives no response.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0IFgEVjvx4
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0fCGLyUwut
No ghost activity was found at all.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrzfqDVsBL1
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDnsuQaIz1n
We congratulate ourselves on our unusual findings.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcCbPKFe8OV
To celebrate, we watch the footage of ghost 54 being placed in the cage.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYGLv8mmbHy
We are surprised to see in the recording, us placing a perfectly healthy (and struggling) human into the cage.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6aTo2Ub6tN
The footage has not been tampered with.
This phenomenon requires further study.
-whish-
Jack and Jill988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV6DMcDQ0dB
Went up the hill988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUPLXVfqoIF
To fetch a pail of water…
The hill is silent, serene – peaceful, he wants to say.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlzbOZD9iJ7
This is his place, where he can lay the storm of thoughts rushing about inside his mind to rest.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvFYa6p8fDU
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRdIqawlyDU
But he still does it, perhaps once a month, sometimes more, sometimes less, because of the Whishing Well.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhTuhqHPNq1
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaV6dQwh1Qf
Tonight is different.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGVQYwUCze4
He has nothing left to give to the well.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ42kKFCyoia
Or, perhaps, he has everything to give.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYNhMK7CXKZ
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUpM5s2pEfk
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡay7nANaEEa
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPv7MUMqtCL
He opens his eyes. The wish is over.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLHfD0A6GUe
He wants it. He needs it.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkrDYTB5AP
With a sigh, he walks back down the hill.
The next evening, his parents are crying.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgVTEvBNZ0C
"We're proud of you, son, no matter what." They're smiling, but they're shocked as well, shaken.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm2J6ieEre3
His dad, eyes red, pats him on the back.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGpxpB65pL
"Go get 'em, tiger."988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPBm5YLqB0O
And so a door closes, another opens.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjp7Wgs50hY
He walks out, a half-hearted goodbye, a see you soon, and they watch all the way as he walks down the street.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn72aqadXQ6
The thirty minute walk gives his time to think about what's going to happen, to him, to them, to everyone they know.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8VImDO8UkP
He reaches his destination, and there, a slim, quiet figure waits, extending a hand upon sight.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuILmeFHhqQ
He grasps it.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnLTV3IYiPK
"Ready?"988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIWscGvkJgu
The person answers. "Ready."988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzSoGPuMnnd
He can tell that they're not, really, but they're going to do this anyway.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHqNr2zL1iB
They can hear all the noise from inside the hall, growing louder as they open the door.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtrTcnJdCVw
Silence.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYcRDfw0a7q
Everything stops.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQpYZdnayfH
And he thinks of his wish, still strong in his mind, and walks, hand in hand, into the room.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb5u3UTPbzX
I wish…988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrFHjTI3sru
I wish…988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv6xvHsNeJz
Esme cries.
-extract from memoir of a ghost by david whishaw-
When Adam delved, and Eve span,988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIqww0DLzlM
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.988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy11agka4LY
-chalkboard stories-988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxz8pnEqhRR
its only an enigma988Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMsuC7W9IWE
if you want it to be
