“Kindness and beauty? Are you kidding me?” Sam laughed, “Everyone knows about insane asylums. They tortured people. They strapped them to tables and shocked them and stuff, they experimented on patients, gave them lobotomies and all kinds of crap.”
“No, no, no,” Seth disagreed, “Not at first they didn’t. I’ve read up on this stuff. It didn’t start out that way. There were these reformers that really did care about people that were trying to make it better for the insane. That stuff did happen, but it was much later on. You just think that because you‘ve seen too many horror films.”
“No,” Sam defended herself, “There are all kinds of scary stories about those places out there. Like this one place in Kentucky, they killed so many people that they just put the bodies in this tunnel under the building that-”
“Just stop right there,” Seth demanded. Chloe silently thanked him, “Before you get into all your urban legends and start trying to tell me about your cousin knowing someone who woke up in a bathtub full of ice missing a kidney, okay?”
Chloe snickered.
“Well, I find it really hard to believe that a bunch of do-gooders were trying to build beautiful castles of kindness for the poor old lunatics. Whatever you say, I think those places are creepy as hell!” Sam shot back.
“They may be now, and I’m sure bad things did happen in them, but they didn’t start out that way. I mean, look at this place. All the little details, the carving on the newel posts on the main stairs, the crown molding around the ceilings in the lobby, the brickwork, the arched windows on the fourth floor, and you should see these old light fixtures they have stored away in the basement, from back when there was gas lighting instead of electricity. It’s all kind of grand. It’s just a beautiful old building, and anyone can see how much care went into building it.”
“You really like this dorm, huh?” Chloe asked, recognizing, in his voice, the same tone he got when talking about the outdoors.
“Yeah. I really do. They just don’t build things the way they used to. Even the doors,” Seth nodded towards the heavy oak door of their room, “solid wood.”
“Never mind. Get back to the story. The rich guy was building this place…” Sam prodded.
“He was in the process of building it, had spent tons of his own money, and his friend in Lansing didn’t come through for him. The state gave money for them to build an asylum right down the road from here in Newberry.”
“So what did he do?” Sam asked.
“He decided to finish building the place. He thought he could open it on his own. He went way into debt to do it, but right before it was finished, some nut came out here at night and tried to burn the place down. The guy saw the smoke from his house and got a bunch of people from the town to come and put it out, but it was pretty badly damaged. He was out of money, so he couldn’t fix it, and the place just sat here.”
“So when did it become a school?” Chloe asked quietly.
“1900. The state gave funding to open it as a school because it was less expensive to fix and fit it out for that, than to build another school entirely from scratch. So the main part of the building was used for classrooms and the wings were student dorms and offices. Some of the classrooms they still use, as a matter of fact. I think they built Goodman-Harker next and then Cambel was the first women’s’ dorm.”
“How do you know all this stuff about the dorm?” Sam asked suspiciously.
“May told me,” Seth replied.
“Wait a minute, May…the waitress from the Eat?” Sam smirked.
“Yes, May, the waitress from the Eat,” Seth confirmed. Something in his voice seemed a bit threatening to Chloe. Sam cast a long obvious look towards Chloe and rolled her eyes.
“May…the waitressing guru and aspiring history professor,” Sam snickered.
“May’s lived here her whole life, she knows all the local history,” Seth voice was cold, this time Chloe was sure she heard a note of warning in it. Sam must not have heard it because she laughed again.
“Oh I definitely believe she’s never left Birch Harbor in her whole life, I mean she’s so-” Sam stopped when she realized Seth was glaring at her.
“I’d be real careful what you say about May around here,” Seth told her slowly, “May is a friend of mine…a friend of a lot of students here. I got to know her when we had a literary appreciation class together my sophomore year and I consider myself lucky to have sat next to her, because I never would have passed that class.”
“Oh my God…May goes to school here?” Sam laughed.
“No,” Seth snapped, “May is a single mother who put two boys through college on double shifts and the crappy tips that spoiled college kids left her. She always wanted to go to school herself, but there’s never been a time when she didn’t have to help someone else first. She took a class because she’s always wanted to, and some day, she might take more, but in the meantime she helps other kids who are struggling. Kids like my friend Mike. When he lost his scholarship, by partying too much freshman year, it was May who got him a job in town, and May that let him sleep on her couch until he could afford an apartment, and May who bought his books for him. And Mike’s not the only one that could tell you they owe a lot to May. So be careful what you say about her!”
Sam looked stunned.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized, “really, I am. I didn’t know all that about her.”
“Keep in mind that there’s always more to a person than the face they show you,” Seth advised.
Then he stood and stretched his arms towards the ceiling and yawned loudly. Chloe was glad his eyes were closed, he wouldn’t catch her gawking so obviously at him. She liked the way his body looked when he stretched. Tall and toned, like an athlete. She would have liked to put her hand against his, his fingers seemed so long, it would probably make hers seem tiny. His hands would be warm, she was sure, warm and rough. Like his voice was most of the time, warm and rough and kind and comforting…he had to be the most calming person she had ever known.
Seth dropped his arms to the side like dead weights and slouched over.
“I’m exhausted,” he complained, “I thought this R.A. gig was going to be easy. If you ladies are sure nothing is going to start flying around the room anytime soon, I’m going to bed.”
“Alright, we don’t need your sarcasm, go to bed Mr. Doubting Thomas and I hope nothing reaches out from under your bed and grabs your legs,” Sam threatened.
Seth rolled his eyes.
“Night, Clo,” he said. He crossed the room to her bed, bent down, kissed the top of her head, and ruffled her hair playfully. He was out the door before Chloe could say anything.
“Chloe and Se-e-eth sitting in a tree…” Sam giggled.
“Shut-up Sam!” Chloe grinned, “What the heck was that anyway? Did you see that? That’s how you would say goodnight to, like, a puppy or something!”
“Whatever. Did you catch that little stretch he did right before he went out? All flexing like ‘hey-Chloe-look-at-my-all-my-hot-muscles‘!” Sam teased.
“He was NOT!” Chloe laughed.
“Yes he was! I saw you checking out the package! He likes you, he’s just trying to play it cool,” Sam affirmed.
“What makes you say so?” Chloe asked.
“Well, remember,” Sam dropped her voice an octave in an imitation of Seth’s low, serious tone, “There’s always more to a person than the face they show you!”
Both girls erupted into the kind of laughter that only comes from staying up all night, under a lot of stress. The kind of laughter when laughing itself seems funny. Sam crawled under her mussed up comforter still chuckling.
“I’m bushed, Clo,” she said, “Let’s get some sleep. I can’t believe we’ve got to go to class in a couple hours.”
“I could go. You know, take notes for both of us and turn our papers in. You could skip if you wanted,” Chloe offered nonchalantly. Sam opened one eye and studied her suspiciously.
&nb
sp; “You are advising I skip class?” she asked.
“Sure, I mean…it’s not like it’s a big deal if you miss once in awhile, and maybe…maybe some time I’ll need you to go and take notes for me,” Chloe explained.
“I’m not buying it,” Sam warned, “I don’t know who you are or what you did with my roommate, but right now, I’m too tired to care.”
Sam closed her eyes and rolled over, as Chloe kicked off her shoes and pulled the covers down on her bed.
“Hey Sam?” she whispered.
“Mmmmm?”
“Should I turn the lights off or leave them on?” she asked.
“On!” both girls agreed at once and then laughed.
Chloe got under her covers and reached for the alarm clock on the window ledge. She set it for 7:30, wincing as she realized how little sleep she would actually get. She lay down and stared at the ceiling, hoping that she would be able to fall asleep, at least, for a little while.
After what seemed like only moments later, the buzzer on Chloe’s alarm clock went off, causing her head to buzz right along with it. She groaned and shot her arm out to smash the snooze button violently, but missed. She slapped the hard ledge of the window frame instead. Her hand throbbed as she lifted herself to reach farther, slapping at the alarm clock angrily, until the snooze was finally triggered.
“Sam,” she croaked.
Her only answer was a muffled snort and a long sigh from the other side of the room. Her head seemed to weigh a hundred pounds, and the thought of trying to sit up made it seem heavier yet. Chloe rocked herself forward a few times, trying to gather the force needed to break the pull of her bed’s gravity, and with a grunt, heaved herself up.
She took a second to get her equilibrium before swinging her feet over the side of the bed. She should shower, maybe it would help wake her up, but it seemed as though that would take an awful lot of effort on her part. It would be easier to just put some fresh clothes on, gargle some mouthwash and grab a cup of coffee on her way out. She wondered if she should risk waking Sam by turning the light on, or try to find everything in the dark. It seemed like there was just enough light from outside to see her closet and be able-
“SAM!” Chloe shrieked, suddenly wide awake. Across the room Sam gasped and sat bolt upright in bed as though she had been doused with cold water.
“WHA?” she cried.
“Sam, did you get up and turn the light off? Sam, tell me you turned the light off!” Chloe’s voice was panicky and high.
“No!” Sam rasped.
In the dark room, both girls turned to look at each other.
Sam screamed.
Chloe screamed.
Sam took a short breath and screamed again.
A loud banging on the wall next to her bed caused Chloe to shriek again and jump to her feet.
“Shut-up!” a muted voice demanded through the wall.
“Chloe,” Sam whispered, “go turn the light on.”
“You turn it on!” Chloe snapped.
“Together…alright? We’ll do it together,” Sam offered. She threw back her sheets and stumbled out of bed, reaching with one hand towards Chloe. The girls clasped hands in the dark. Sam’s grip was so tight, Chloe thought her bones might break.
“On three,” Sam suggested, “One…two…”
On three, both girls raced toward the crack of light shining from under the door. Chloe got there first, fumbling wildly against the wall to find the switch. She flicked it upward and above them the long florescent bulb flickered and popped as it warmed up and slowly flooded the room in light.
Nothing seemed strange or out of place. The room appeared perfectly normal. The two girls stood with their backs to the door, still holding hands.
“Sam…please tell me-” Chloe began.
“Please tell you what? That I actually did turn the light off? That I’m just trying to scare you? You think I’d actually do something like that?” Sam demanded.
Chloe hadn’t actually thought that, but she’d hoped for it. Hoped that it was Sam’s idea of a joke and that suddenly Sam would laugh and say something like: you should have seen the look on your face or even got ya! Anything would be better than standing there with that sick feeling of fear.
“I didn’t Chloe! I swear!” Sam cried.
“I know, I know…I just…never mind, I gotta get to class,” Chloe said, dropping Sam’s hand.
“I’m coming,” Sam agreed nervously.
“I thought-”
“You thought what? That I’m going to stay here? In this room…by myself?” Sam’s laugh was a little too high-pitched to be normal.
“Okay, get your stuff then,” Chloe said. Sam raced for the closet, yanking a sweater and jeans off their hangers, while Chloe stood guard by the light switch. She didn’t want to admit it, but she was afraid that if she walked away the light would snap back off, and then she would probably lose her mind. Sam grabbed her book bag and shoes and returned to the door.
“Okay, stand right here, don’t move,” Chloe ordered.
Sam nodded and stood hugging her clothes and backpack as Chloe raced around gathering up the same things.
“Backpack,” Sam reminded her as Chloe glanced around holding a pile of clothes.
Chloe took a step towards her desk and reached for her backpack when she heard something that turned her body to ice. It was so small, so tiny and almost nonexistent, it may not have been real at all, but it sounded like someone breathing. Someone breathing right next to her ear. Above her, the light fixture buzzed loudly, flickered twice and with a loud popping sound, went off. The room was again darkened to a shade of eerie, early-morning grey.
Chloe almost ran Sam over in her haste to open the door, both girls fought wildly to turn the knob and get to the relative safety of the hallway. After a great deal of struggling and squealing, they somehow managed it. Sam slammed the door behind them and they both ran as fast as they could for the stairs.
“Wait! Wait a minute!” Sam called as Chloe began bounding down the steps, taking them two at a time.
Chloe stopped and looked up, half-expecting to see some awful shadow pursuing them.
Sam stood at the top of the stairs grasping the handrail.
“We got to get dressed,” She reminded Chloe. They were both still wearing yesterday’s clothes.
“Let’s use the bathroom-- in the other hall,” Chloe decided.
Sam nodded fervently. Neither of them wanted to walk by the door of their room to get to their bathroom.
The girls walked quickly down the opposite hall, which was the mirror image of theirs, and found the bathroom in the same spot. They dressed in a shower stall, waiting until they were back out by the sinks to put their socks and shoes on. Chloe wished she had thought to bring her toothbrush. The inside of her mouth felt fuzzy and sour. She could still taste the after burn of redpop and vodka, and it was making her stomach churn dangerously.
The girls stuffed their backpacks to bulging with their dirty clothes and went downstairs to the dorm cafeteria. It was early enough that it was mostly empty and silent except for the gurgling sounds of coffee brewing. Chloe looked over the selection of lukewarm scrambled eggs, fried-to-a-crisp hash browns, and wads of soggy bacon, and felt her stomach heave again. She opted for a bagel and a styrofoam cup of coffee and Sam did likewise.
“I wish they had a big bowl of mints or something,” Sam said wistfully, “I bet my breath smells like I’ve been licking the inside of a port-a-potty.”
Chloe snickered. She held her hand in front of her face and breathed into it.
“It does,” she agreed. They both fell quiet. It seemed unnatural to be laughing already. Neither wanted to talk about what had happened. The sun was rising through the trees, and the light was coming in through the tall eastern windows, bringing a sense of safety with it.
Chloe and Sam took their coffees and bagels wrapped in napkins out to the bus stop. The air was cold and pine-scented, and the rising sun would soon m
elt the frost that had formed on the grass over night. Their breath and coffees steamed as they waited. Twice, Chloe glanced over her shoulder towards the window of their room on the second floor. It was exactly eight windows over, she was sure. She looked quickly, fearful still of what she might see, but each time she checked, the glass was a perfect mirror of the sky above.
At last, the bus rumbled into view, rounding the corner up the road. It stopped first in front of Goodman-Harker, although no one was waiting there, and then roared the short trip to Kirkbride and stopped in front of them.
Chloe held her breath as the oily fumes rolled around her, the clean morning air made them seem even stronger, and the girls climbed the stairs and threw themselves down into a couple of hard plastic seats towards the middle.
“That…was pretty freaking scary,” Sam said at last.
“Uh-huh,” Chloe agreed numbly.
“Of course I’m sure Seth can explain it all away as coincidence,” Sam rolled her eyes.
“So, let’s not tell him,” Chloe suggested.
“We have to tell him that the light burnt out,” Sam insisted.
“Okay. Then we’ll tell him exactly that. The light burnt out,” Chloe agreed.
“A real ghost,” Sam mused quietly, “I mean, I’ve always heard stories about haunted houses and stuff, but I never…well, I always thought people were just full of crap, you know? But this…this is real, isn’t it? I mean the stuff that happened in the bell tower, and then this morning, even if the light just burnt out all by itself, neither of us turned it off this morning. It’s just all too much to be coincidence, right?”
Asylum Page 7
