This is just a simple recounting of events that happened long ago when I was a school girl. Nothing spicy or overly scary. Just a true story that some may find interesting. If you are looking for gory details, there are none. Only those who find liminal spaces creepy will understand. For the sake of privacy, I have changed some names.
It was a sunny winter afternoon in Calcutta in the 1980’s. We had stayed back after school for sports practice. After finishing up we casually made our way out, chatting and laughing as normal 14 year old girls do. The sun was about to set and the sky was bathed in a golden glow. After about ten minutes of walking, one of my friends, Tabby, who was strolling beside me, suddenly realised that she had left her cardigan back at school.
She asked us to go back with her to collect it. Obviously none of us wanted to. “Can’t you collect it tomorrow?”, Anita groaned.
“No.” She said. “It’s getting chilly and I will need it. Also this is the third time this month I have lost my cardigan. Mom will give me hell. Please come with me, I don’t want to go there alone.” She begged. Since I was the one who lived closest to the school, I agreed to accompany her.
“Ok, I’ll come. Do you remember where you left it?” I asked.
Tabby was not sure. “ It must be in our classroom or the gym.”
We hurried back as fast as we could. The school was empty. The janitors had already started cleaning the halls. We snuck up the stairs unnoticed. The cardigan was not in the classroom. Neither was it in the gym downstairs.
” It seems as if someone found your cardigan, Tabby.” I said. “ Let’s go. We can ask around tomorrow. In the mean time you can borrow mine if you are feeling cold”.
“Thanks,” Tabby said “ You’re a doll! She paused “Oh wait, I totally forgot about the library, I had gone there in the fifth period. Come on.”
I stopped. The deserted grounds and empty classrooms had really spooked me. The sky had darkened. I didn’t want to go to the library and browse among the stacks of dusty old books. I wanted to go home and watch cartoons. “It’s getting late, I think it’s better to go home” I said.
Tabby looked at my face and hugged my arm. “Please, Suzy, please come with, I’ll treat you to samosas” she wheedled. “Five more minutes. I’ll be in and out.” She was very adept at getting her own way.
“Ok, ok, “ I huffed, following her reluctantly.
The library was housed in another building that was much older than the other parts of the school. The steps were wooden and creaked ominously as we climbed them. Luckily the library doors were still open. The janitors hadn’t come around yet.
” I remember I had sat there on the left at the back. Wait here. I’ll be back in a sec.” Tabby said and hurried in.
I waited by the door. I heard her moving around and wished she would hurry up already. After a few minutes she shouted happily. “Found it! It was on the desk just as I had left-“ Her voice changed suddenly. “ Heyyy did you hear that?”
I had been looking out the window in the corridor at the swallows flying across the darkening sky, thinking of hot samosas with ketchup.
“Hear what?” I said distractedly. She did not reply.
“Hear what? “ I repeated more loudly. Still no reply.
I poked my head around the door. “Hey Tabby!” I called. “You ok?”
Suddenly she came barging out of the library, nearly knocking me over. Cardigan clutched in one hand, she grabbed me roughly with the other and practically dragged me away.
“Quick! We need to get out of here!,” She cried.
“Whoah, what’s wrong, Tabby?” Her face was white as a sheet. She dragged me down the corridor as fast as she could.
“Tabby, slow down!”. “Tabby stop!!” I yelled, running to keep up with her.
We practically fell down the stairs and burst out onto the lawn before she let me go. I put my hands on my knees and tried to catch my breath.
“What the hell Tabby!” I shouted. Tabby was trembling and gasping. She looked terrified.
“What’s the matter? Did something scare you?” I asked more gently.
Tabby nodded. “I - I sa - sa- saaww- “ She gulped.
“What, what did you see?? A rat, a cockroach, a ghost?” I half joked. She nodded and burst into tears.
I gaped at her helplessly. Alerted by her sobbing, Gulab the gardener who was working nearby, came running up.
“Hey, you two. Why are you still here?” He looked at tear stricken Tabby then at me, then folded his arms. “Did someone assault you?, Are you hurt” he asked her grimly.
“No!”I exclaimed, “Nothing like that, she- she saw something…..”
Gulab frowned “ What? Where?”
“Ghost…in the library…” Tabby whispered. “At least I think it was…”
Gulab looked taken aback.”What! Are you mental?..A ghost.! Get along you two,” he huffed, waving us away. “Go on home. See a rat and think it’s a ghost…. You girls are all the same”
He glared at us. “ You saw nothing you hear?. Don’t you go spreading rumours about this ‘ghost’ nonsense.” There was a strange connotation in his voice. His looked annoyed as hell. I thought his reaction was a bit over the top and hence suspicious.
” What do you mean ‘we girls’ are all the same?? I crossed my arms “How dare you imply that… we are idiots….. Who do you think you are….” I glared back at him. “I will report you! I will tell my father to come tomorrow and-“
Gulab gulped and immediately apologized. “Sorry Didi (sister), I shouldn’t have said that. But, but, this has become a fashion of sorts. Students are complaining that the school is haunted.”
“Oh?” I raised an eyebrow.”Whatever do you mean,? Come on, out with it.”
Gulab shook his head “ Better you don’t know- “
“No,” I interrupted, “It would be better for you, rather, if we did know.”
“Oh, alright, “ Gulab said in defeat. “But please don’t go repeating what I tell you.”
He looked around furtively and lowered his voice. “Many of the younger students are refusing to come to school because they say that they have seen things, or have strange things happen to them- Bathroom doors get stuck and refuse to open, strange laughter, doors open and slam suddenly, things go missing…there are damp patches on the wall that look like foot prints, cold draughts in the greenroom…the piano suddenly plays on its own - seems as if someone is going too far with the pranks….We suspect the older students. Parents are beginning to complain. It is spoiling the reputation of our school. If students stay away or leave how will we get paid,?
He wrung his hands and apologized again. “It’s ok, Gulab” Tabby said, wiping her tears. “We won’t say anything. Come Suzy, lets go home”.
“Oh wait Di, you didn’t mention what you thought you saw…” Gulab said curiously.
Tabby looked at Gulab. “I will tell you what I saw.. But let me also tell you that it is the truth, I am not lying or mistaken..” She breathed in shakily and began her story.
“I had left my cardigan in the library and I went back for it.” Tabby said slowly “When I entered the library, I heard a faint knocking sound. Like something knocking on wood. A rhythmic ‘thak- thak- thak’. Something like that. It didn’t strike me at first because I was busy searching for my cardigan. However as I turned to leave, the sound grew louder and seemed quite close to me. I looked around- there was no one in the library. But I could clearly hear the knocking close by. It was spooky as hell. I decided to get out of there. As I walked to the door, I noticed some movement behind one of the tables. I immediately bent down to look under the table and saw someone, kicking the the leg of the table with his foot…..”
“His foot- you mean it was a man?”. Gulab interjected, frowning.
Tabby nodded. “It was a boy. At least I think so, because he was wearing white shorts, black socks and black lace -up leather shoes that boys wear to school. And he was wearing a belt. I could also see part of his shirt. But when I looked above the table to where he was sitting, there was no one there. I couldn’t see his top half, just the lower part of his body from beneath the table. He had one leg crossed over the other and the upper leg was swinging and kicking the table leg”.
A crow suddenly flew overhead startling us.Tabby shivered and looked back at the old school building.
“Go on,” I urged.
“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.” She continued. “ I looked above and beneath that table again and again. But all I could see was the bottom half of the figure. Then soon as Suzy called my name and asked if I was ok, the knocking stopped. The- boy– the ghost -whatever it was- suddenly uncrossed their legs and stood up…and and began to -to” Tabby became agigated again, “ He, - it began to- to whistle and- and I could see the legs move. I-I could see and hear them walking quickly around the table - to - towards me. So I leapt up and ran. Oh God!”
Tabby began to hyperventilate.”Oh God, what if it followed me out!! What if it’s here listening to us right now?, what if it follows me ho–”
“Enough!” Gulab said. “Don’t say anything more.” He pursued his lips. “You are sure it was a boy?”
” Yes, he was wearing shorts that only school boys wear.” Tabby said. “ Although his knee length shorts looked old fashioned.”
I don’t know, why, but suddenly I began to laugh. The others looked at me in surprise. I couldn’t stop. I laughed and laughed till tears ran down my cheeks.
” Wait till the others hear about this! “ I gasped, clutching my side.
Tabby looked at me hurt, “ Suzy, how could you! I know what I saw…”
” Oh I believe you!” I chuckled. “ Not even a full ghost- a half ghost- in old fashioned shorts! No one could make up that story!” I whooped again.
“No, Didi, don’t make fun, don’t laugh or the ghost will get insulted and may do you harm” Gulab warned.
“Oh, so now you believe her. A boy ghost haunts the library? The rumours are now true? Seriously?” I scoffed.
“No, Di, I still think some of the rumours are exaggerated”. Gulab said.” But I do believe that Tabby Didi saw a real ghost.”
He raised his hand “Wait, let me clarify. This school was not always an all girls’ school”. Many don’t know, but initially boys also studied in this school before the management changed hands. The top floor of the old building used to be the boys’ hostel.”
I stared at him.”So how do you know all of this?”.
“I know because my father, my grandfather and my great grandfather worked here in the gardens.My family has worked here almost since the school was established” He said simply. I nodded in understanding.
“Go home,” Gulab said. “Try to forget about it ok?” He bent his head over folded hands and walked away . The sky had turned dark. It was almost 6pm. We quickly noped it out of there. We stopped at Tabby’s bus stop.
“Will you be ok?” I asked. “I’m sorry, i shouldn’t have laughed like that …”
Tabby nodded. “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. It’s ok.” She held my arm “ Please Suzy. Don’t tell anybody about this. Promise you won’t” she pleaded.
” I promise.” I said. “ But don’t forget you owe me a plate of samosas.”
Tabby smiled. “ Samosas and masala tea” she agreed.
I waved to her and went on my way.