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,807Please respect copyright.PENANArLzUuHLflo
The ally-ally-oh, the ally-ally-oh,807Please respect copyright.PENANAOyTaRNHPCx
Oh, the big ship sails on the ally-ally-oh,807Please respect copyright.PENANAhxsOkhnkz8
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANANxVpLsgZsW
"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.807Please respect copyright.PENANA38xiJkcnH8
"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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAPsWHuYYuzr
"May, I'm not going to tell you that." He sits down on the grass oval and opens his chemistry book.807Please respect copyright.PENANAtGoCI5kz5w
"Okay then. First letter."807Please respect copyright.PENANA5ifznPWTaw
"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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAiu1LQog5gP
"Okay. It's an B." He sighs.807Please respect copyright.PENANAZixyOS1cHy
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAqPWXyGyQ1B
"No, what the hell, May?"807Please respect copyright.PENANAyE9A8NaXTR
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANA1ziamWm3zp
"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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAON7omgtFqG
Esme smiles conspiratorially. "You're quite the puzzle, aren't you?" A more sophisticated person might have used the word 'enigma' instead.807Please respect copyright.PENANAbNJsYFtaa1
David looks up. "Only if you want me to be."807Please respect copyright.PENANAUltnjBnowW
"Haha…" He can tell she doesn't understand him, as he expected. No one would.807Please respect copyright.PENANAwSGHZKByF9
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAazEaXRighb
"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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAZBSXBUuRaY
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!'807Please respect copyright.PENANAEPmLdxcOqD
David sighs, and closes the book.807Please respect copyright.PENANAL7ebUqaf4g
He can't concentrate now.
-impurities-
There was a crooked man and he walked a crooked mile,807Please respect copyright.PENANAcDlY2DN0fP
He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.807Please respect copyright.PENANAGjgIi6gwY0
He bought a crooked cat which caught a crooked mouse.807Please respect copyright.PENANAhImaZEb6Ju
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.
sample: H2O807Please respect copyright.PENANAIRsIeyW1L3
sample volume: 7325kL807Please respect copyright.PENANAORpe6j00mx
hypothesis: i am alone807Please respect copyright.PENANAbCuiCpGJNK
method:807Please respect copyright.PENANAcKFysafWFm
-extract impurities807Please respect copyright.PENANACSv4gsfpGc
result: collected 109875L of impurities807Please respect copyright.PENANAEtHrxru2UR
hypothesis disproven807Please respect copyright.PENANADBVNqHNUGa
hypothesis ii: i am alone, here807Please respect copyright.PENANAl7BVk6USkh
method:807Please respect copyright.PENANA2NEgoW2ruJ
-sift and sort impurities807Please respect copyright.PENANAnH8XLUvt1V
result: collected 809550mL of relevant impurities807Please respect copyright.PENANAayzay3hrwq
hypothesis disproven807Please respect copyright.PENANAo3vBAqSrIh
hypothesis iii: magic does not exist807Please respect copyright.PENANA97R8xWBhtR
method:807Please respect copyright.PENANAysszTIdSUQ
-collect 2mL of relevant impurities807Please respect copyright.PENANAUZa4kAZGTK
-place in flask807Please respect copyright.PENANAzFCwPnxpqG
-wait807Please respect copyright.PENANATTb5uZHGmp
-wait807Please respect copyright.PENANAuYf72rinMW
-wait807Please respect copyright.PENANAwAmnqFImxP
-wait807Please respect copyright.PENANATUJGqz0ck1
-wait807Please respect copyright.PENANAKyCHCYmS7F
-wait807Please respect copyright.PENANAv7onvaPYg6
-wait807Please respect copyright.PENANAKzTPx17WQ5
-until something magical happens807Please respect copyright.PENANAM3HUhZJtZH
result: i waited807Please respect copyright.PENANAYsou0AtReg
result: i wanted807Please respect copyright.PENANAxizyBs1Apn
result: i failed807Please respect copyright.PENANAvWkzd9UkEC
result: i hid807Please respect copyright.PENANA6CaJFZaHIv
result: i tried807Please respect copyright.PENANAwOMsgiumRb
result: i searched807Please respect copyright.PENANAgyJTdxvZvT
result: i found807Please respect copyright.PENANAUSWPyHrrln
result: i found something magical807Please respect copyright.PENANAZ5lsDBm4J0
hypotheses disproven807Please respect copyright.PENANAHOZCsf0zfm
i am not alone
-sign here-
Monday's child is fair of face,807Please respect copyright.PENANAu2COZ4eFar
Tuesday's child is full of grace,807Please respect copyright.PENANA3jnPAYNyPa
Wednesday's child is full of woe,807Please respect copyright.PENANAmZvFSplOSP
Thursday's child has far to go,807Please respect copyright.PENANABXT9l5nrXL
Friday's child is loving and giving,807Please respect copyright.PENANABMF19JKu1S
Saturday's child works hard for his living807Please respect copyright.PENANAtGkVqCtICT
And the child that is born on the Sabbath day…
The author signs the book, another thank, another person. The line goes on.807Please respect copyright.PENANAjmUMk6bx0K
"The name's Gretta. I'm your number one fan!"807Please respect copyright.PENANANgDLNfodaj
To Gretta, my number one fan. -sign here-807Please respect copyright.PENANA11c7vi3pr9
"I really loved your book. It touched me so much. I've had similar issues myself…"807Please respect copyright.PENANA2HM9g4aYXi
To quote a cat meme: 'Hang in there!' Don't give up, Jacob! -sign here-807Please respect copyright.PENANA2xKH2i290l
"What an honour to meet you! I'm lost for words."807Please respect copyright.PENANACVmhBfKUxG
To Kyle, my number one fan. -sign here-
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-807Please respect copyright.PENANA4ACIcMt9lc
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-807Please respect copyright.PENANAGzE8kQzvwX
To (name), my number one fan. -sign here-807Please respect copyright.PENANAw1d1yJKcw3
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 –807Please respect copyright.PENANABVV1JEWpfU
"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."807Please respect copyright.PENANASpJUrTGXiE
The author opens to the inside cover, and sure enough, there's a signature there. It's not his own, though.807Please respect copyright.PENANAWecbqvWPLk
This is for you, Hector. I want you to know that I'm sorry.807Please respect copyright.PENANAMtcowe1ssp
Carolyn807Please respect copyright.PENANA0qdS1EfND5
"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand –" The author is interrupted by the young man.807Please respect copyright.PENANApeFS4WvdoI
"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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAaA7JejSHiB
"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."807Please respect copyright.PENANA7XNu7V6eCI
The author finally sees; and – for a moment – for an eternal, deathly moment – he wants to cry.807Please respect copyright.PENANAtOy2jzN44Z
"Yes…" He manages to form the word. "…I agree."807Please respect copyright.PENANAoQo2V4QpeZ
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAxqaw52hmQX
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANATfygaLK9he
The clearing of a throat brings his attention back to the person in front of him.807Please respect copyright.PENANABfB8fxKXBl
To Samantha, my number one fan. -sign here-
-ghost 54-
"When will that be?" say the Bells of Stepney,807Please respect copyright.PENANAr463NZVFTU
"I do not know" say the Great Bells of Bow.807Please respect copyright.PENANA0kUjvLBCpn
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAo2AE1K94ie
Why is this, experts ask?807Please respect copyright.PENANA28UfjMXsUs
And why is it only occasionally that ghosts are found in groups?807Please respect copyright.PENANAFy3Yr06eKD
It was decided that a study must be conducted.807Please respect copyright.PENANAezKinZ8uPy
We stayed at the Crawley Cemetery for five nights, with video cameras, audio recording equipment, and an ectograph.807Please respect copyright.PENANAFud7VLbeaR
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 1:807Please respect copyright.PENANA5fAJx0B9VB
Video cameras find nothing.807Please respect copyright.PENANAzGuvQMFSiL
Audio finds only the faintest of whispers.807Please respect copyright.PENANAB1nedUJEQY
No ectograph response.807Please respect copyright.PENANAfq126no7e3
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 2:807Please respect copyright.PENANAaUyNP5CL5J
Video cameras find nothing.807Please respect copyright.PENANAgx6d9tCDLn
Audio records crying at a frequency unnoticeable to human ears. Had to be edited.807Please respect copyright.PENANAFmG2iirpf3
Slight ectograph response.807Please respect copyright.PENANAAWFcNA7bkB
At our midnight campfire, we sensed a presence, 5 foot 4 inches tall. One member of our group panicked, and bailed from experiment.807Please respect copyright.PENANA4sQBBz2ZPm
The presence feebly tried to morph into a replica of a human body, but the image collapsed.807Please respect copyright.PENANAh8dxoozQfD
We have christened the presence 'ghost 54'.
NIGHT 3:807Please respect copyright.PENANAibkZuh4hyA
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAp1xPk44aQ5
Audio records multiple prayers being said through the night. Again, frequency had to be edited.807Please respect copyright.PENANAXEAM8Vurkc
Ectograph gives huge response. Large ghost activity in area.807Please respect copyright.PENANArzkipNsAci
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 4:807Please respect copyright.PENANA2UaHNV92aW
Video cameras record images of horrific beings, humanoid but monstrous.807Please respect copyright.PENANAV0btNevdRa
Audio records unintelligible noises. This phenomenon requires further study. Possibly an attempt at communication.807Please respect copyright.PENANAhwZfHMEur1
Ectograph spikes, has buffer overflow. Line of activity goes off the top of graph before the machine breaks.807Please respect copyright.PENANAJtTFWlFka3
We repair the ectograph during our midnight campfire.807Please respect copyright.PENANAsiiRO6i2id
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANA8OulJLrMbC
Ghost 54 is silent.
NIGHT 5:807Please respect copyright.PENANAyVaSpmUEcp
Video cameras show many people walking around the cemetery.807Please respect copyright.PENANAwlp4D56vnj
Audio records many casual conversations.807Please respect copyright.PENANAd8A3ny2hdT
The repaired ectograph gives no response.807Please respect copyright.PENANAEvvbxBB503
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANA0gPSRsxepq
No ghost activity was found at all.807Please respect copyright.PENANA6QIrTR0iWI
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAxBQup6w9a3
We congratulate ourselves on our unusual findings.807Please respect copyright.PENANAson6WBnwrC
To celebrate, we watch the footage of ghost 54 being placed in the cage.807Please respect copyright.PENANApRGklb6vyV
We are surprised to see in the recording, us placing a perfectly healthy (and struggling) human into the cage.807Please respect copyright.PENANAZJvWXxjypX
The footage has not been tampered with.
This phenomenon requires further study.
-whish-
Jack and Jill807Please respect copyright.PENANAWnSD7ZHEYB
Went up the hill807Please respect copyright.PENANALxCKERkLEE
To fetch a pail of water…
The hill is silent, serene – peaceful, he wants to say.807Please respect copyright.PENANA5We47zhMdp
This is his place, where he can lay the storm of thoughts rushing about inside his mind to rest.807Please respect copyright.PENANAinMR5fBqKP
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANA5BZxk4uLLk
But he still does it, perhaps once a month, sometimes more, sometimes less, because of the Whishing Well.807Please respect copyright.PENANAGDCt7rFvyO
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAg3EGLpkRqx
Tonight is different.807Please respect copyright.PENANA0edUIZAdwS
He has nothing left to give to the well.807Please respect copyright.PENANAHMrUuX7bQY
Or, perhaps, he has everything to give.807Please respect copyright.PENANAsyqSdN20nf
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANA5ilIyUrA2S
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANABQlLKX5zrn
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANAeyrKGlVa4k
He opens his eyes. The wish is over.807Please respect copyright.PENANAaKqXzM7b6O
He wants it. He needs it.807Please respect copyright.PENANAv5JV2Fhwbj
With a sigh, he walks back down the hill.
The next evening, his parents are crying.807Please respect copyright.PENANAONV0SOl5bE
"We're proud of you, son, no matter what." They're smiling, but they're shocked as well, shaken.807Please respect copyright.PENANAFosfjvDSXp
His dad, eyes red, pats him on the back.807Please respect copyright.PENANAonWnIY4J8O
"Go get 'em, tiger."807Please respect copyright.PENANAdabAEB51fp
And so a door closes, another opens.807Please respect copyright.PENANAKmU3ddL2t0
He walks out, a half-hearted goodbye, a see you soon, and they watch all the way as he walks down the street.807Please respect copyright.PENANAcOUz5mI9R0
The thirty minute walk gives his time to think about what's going to happen, to him, to them, to everyone they know.807Please respect copyright.PENANATv3eMdljKf
He reaches his destination, and there, a slim, quiet figure waits, extending a hand upon sight.807Please respect copyright.PENANAL3b84bYrVL
He grasps it.807Please respect copyright.PENANAgjxFuBxqT7
"Ready?"807Please respect copyright.PENANAGOaVTiysLj
The person answers. "Ready."807Please respect copyright.PENANAnV8aRKnZ6f
He can tell that they're not, really, but they're going to do this anyway.807Please respect copyright.PENANAbCTQUIQ7Uv
They can hear all the noise from inside the hall, growing louder as they open the door.807Please respect copyright.PENANAJxf2KQEsFm
Silence.807Please respect copyright.PENANAVYh6UP99F6
Everything stops.807Please respect copyright.PENANANSLlIwtRSm
And he thinks of his wish, still strong in his mind, and walks, hand in hand, into the room.807Please respect copyright.PENANA14cVg1LiKK
I wish…807Please respect copyright.PENANArlPwu9ppDE
I wish…807Please respect copyright.PENANAvjAt5NIUHN
Esme cries.
-extract from memoir of a ghost by david whishaw-
When Adam delved, and Eve span,807Please respect copyright.PENANAfAAKghs7yz
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.807Please respect copyright.PENANA1BM08Eo9zI
-chalkboard stories-807Please respect copyright.PENANAe8BTrduyPN
its only an enigma807Please respect copyright.PENANAAH05GAAFr9
if you want it to be