This past 24 hours has been.....honestly just unreal. Let me begin with when I went in to the school yesterday evening to get things prepared for my first day. I dont have much time to type, so I will try to make this fast.
So after copying down the rules and a few main questions besides, I gathered the supplies I had acquired over the last few weeks since first being offered the job. I was actually pretty excited to finally be getting use out of a teacher tote I had bought years ago in anticipation of this very day. It was beginning to get dark outside, which added to my apprehension, and curiosity of why it was necessary to come in so late, under guard no less, vs., showing up extra early tommorow morning. I loaded my car up and drove the half hour it took to get to the long winding road to St. Benedict's. Despite being worried and still a tad bit freaked out, I was super excited and in high spirits, scream singing Lizzo (baby how you feelin GOOD AS HELLLLLL) at the top of my lungs, windows rolled down to welcome in the crisp evening air. The first thing I noticed as I drove through forest (woods?) On each side of the road, was that I didnt see any animals. I turned my music down hoping to hear a chorus of night insects, maybe an owl or two. It was so still. The air itself seemed stagnant. The usual fragrance of pine, wet leaves and wild animals was missing. In its place was a smell I can only describe as rot. I grew up around areas such as this. I knew the usual sights, sounds and smells. One of the reasons I eagerly a accepted this job, was it's closeness to nature and the nostalgia I felt when I first traveled this road during broad daylight. I strained to hear even a rustle of leaves maybe indicating a deer lurked nearby, but what I heard instead froze my blood. An unearthly, guttural yell filled the silence. I idled and looked in my rearview mirror and saw a dark blur, moving at an inhuman speed cross the road behind my car. Immediately I floored it and sped the rest of the way to the school, no longer eager to see wildlife.
I arrived at the gates and was buzzed in by Jack the grounds guard, which also happened to be the only staff member I knew by name at this point. I rolled to a stop as he lumbered to my window, icing smeared on his smiling cheeks, flashlight out shining into my window.
"Hey there dolly! How ya been? Ready for your big day tommorow?" I smiled and got my temporary staff I.D out.
"Hey Jack! I see you made it to the bakery before your shift". He smiled and wiped his face.
" Gotta get sugar in my system. Helps keep me alert, bright eyed and bushy tailed. You never know what will come out o' those woods". He winked at me but a sinking feeling in my stomach told me he was only half joking. I winked back and drove off to park. At night the building seemed more imposing than it did in broad daylight. The grounds seemed to go on forever. Buildings I didnt even notice during the day stood tall and prominent almost as if they popped up over night. I unloaded the few small bags and boxes I bad and walked up the path to the front door. I walked in and stopped at the office assuming that was where I'd wait to be escorted. Only no one was in there. The main lights were off and the only lights I could see came from, several doors down the hall. I put my load down and got my flash light out following the soft music I heard coming from the same direction. A soft, husky alto voice came sailing down the hallway. I stopped walking. The sound was so warm and inviting. It seemed to wrap itself around me in a velvet soft blanket. The voice reminded me of rainy days with my mawmaw, sipping hot chocolate, listening to her jazz records. It reminded me of the large arms of my dad, who, up until the day he died would wrap me in a secure cocoon of his embrace. I wanted more. Before I knew it I was walking unaware of anything but that lovely voice. Suddenly the voice changed directions, and instead of coming from the lit classroom at the end of the hallway, it began drifting up from the door that led to the stairs. Quickly I pivoted and began walking as fast as I could in the new direction. I opened the stairway door and began descending. My heart thundered in my chest as I got closer and closer, the warm voice pulling me forward as if it were a magnet. Finally I reached the bottom of the stairs, and the door before me. Suddenly the voice stopped. My heart broke. I was too slow. I felt bereft, as if someone I loved had deserted me. Before I had the chance to ponder this feeling, i turned the flashlight on and shined it at the door. My lungs shriveled. My heart stopped cold. On the door was the letter B. For basement. I had reached the basement of St. Benedicts Academy...
