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The original was posted on /r/nosleep by /u/False-Cow-9158 on 2024-11-27 23:53:01+00:00.
My dad had recently lost his job and moved us across state to his childhood town. It was small farming town, not really ideal for anyone wanting to do anything with their life but we were in a tough spot. My dad claimed he wanted to move back to see his parents more but we werent close to them. I knew that it was because housing was so cheap in the area and it made sense why. Everything was so behind in the times. Easily dating back at least 10 years.
My sister and I were both in middle school. So you could imagine the transition of changing schools halfway through the year. We were 2 years apart grade wise but 3 years apart in reality. My little sister was very smart for her age which made things interesting considering that I had to watch after her. Ever since the accident, I had to take on the role of our mother which is something no 14 year old should have to do.
I dont know what exactly happened and dad doesnt like to talk about it but I pieced enough of it together that our mothers passing was a violent one. I was so young when it happened that it almost feels like a memory that doesnt belong to me. Something merely implanted from someone elses experience. The one thing that got me through such a tough time were my friends and seeing how I had to leave them, I felt as if I was leaving apart of myself. Leaving the safe and familiar harbor for more treacherous seas.
The living room was still full of boxes as Sandra and I got ready for school. Our outfits were so mismatched as we tried our luck opening unmarked moving boxes to hopefully find something remotely suitable to wear.
“Alright guys, let’s pick something quick. I need to take you guys to school and I am already late for work.” My dad said defeatedly. Sandra shot me a look before diving back in to retrieve an outfit. What I had on wasnt exactly fashionable but it would do. Despite all the chaos my life had given me so far, there was one thing I did have to look forward to. I try to be optimistic with most things and I saw this new chapter in my life as a fresh start. A clean slate, that hopefully I could try my luck at being popular here. I wasnt popular at my old school but I think I could be if I had the right start here.
Sandra and I hopped in the car and dad routed us to school. As we pulled up to the location routed on my dads phone he was surprise that the town had a new middle school. One different than the one he went to as a child. “Huh”, he said. Looks like they got rid of O P Evans.” The school was rather nice despite the clear setback that the town had on it. The two store building stood out amidst the old buildings that were in the near area.
“Man, its probably a good thing they got rid of that school. That place was old even when I went there. I could see a look on my dads face as he reminisced of old memories. A slight smile began to crawl across his face….”Aww man thats right!” He whispered to himself. “You ok dad?” Sandra said front eh back seat. “Yeah yeah… Im good. You guys hop on out and Ill tell you a good scary story when you get home tonight.” We jumped out of the car and waved as he took off out of the parking lot. The small crowd of kids funneled their way inside as they were being guided by teachers and we went to class.
As I walked the halls of school. I couldnt help but think what my dad was smiling about. What could his scary story possibly be?
It didnt take long for me to forget the morning as I was doing my best to try to make new friends at school. I wasnt having much luck considering I was probably trying too hard. I did however eventually make a small group of friends in one of my drama classes. They were not popular but we had enough in common that I was able to make it work.
It wasnt the outcome I was looking for but I was just happy to have made a small group of friends. They were al nice although some of them were kinda weird but that was fine. I took that win for the day as a smile plastered across my face. The rest of the day after that seemed to fly by.
School eventually ended and I met Sandra outside of the school as we waited for dad. “Hey Sandy”, I said. “How was your day?” I asked as a smile still lingered on my face. “Pretty good all around. All my classes have good teaches.” She said while nodding. “Did you make any friends, meet any cute boys?” I egged her on. She brushed briefly “uhhh no… not yet”. Sandra was as smart as she was shy. We got along pretty well and she would oftentimes just join my group of friends by association, which I didnt really mind. Normally, something like that would have probably bothered me but ever since my mom died, I made sure she was included with things.
Dad eventually pulled up, clearly tired from work. He faked a smile as we hopped in the car. “Hey Girls, how was school?” It was good, how was work… I replied… “Work is work” he said while chuckling. He always said that which made himself laugh which I found amusing.
We pulled out of the parking lot and started driving home when Sandra piped up from the back seat. “Dad, tell us that scary story you mentioned this morning.” My dad shot me a look and that mischievous grin returned… “Oh… Do I have a scary story for you.” He said in an eerie voice. “Wait… let me see if I can find the place first.” My dad then drove through town peering down old streets as if he was looking for something. As we drove he told us this story about his old school he used to attend. How the school O P Evans used to be a prison before being turned into a school. He took us down a couple of back roads, kinda tucked away from the already slow backstreets that the town seemed to have an endless amount of. Sure enough we eventually found it. An old building about maybe three to four stories high. A tall chain linked fence surrounded the once school. Razor wire was tangled in a mess above the fence, making sure no one was getting in by climbing over it. But ironically, the front gate to the school had since been rusted and withered and now sat askew, leaving large gaps near the gates frame that one could easily crawl through.
“Aww yea… there it is. So the story about this school is that it used to be a prison. Certain sections of the building were closed off as they were no longer needed or too dangerous to have kids around. They took out most of the cells obviously but they left a few that were built into the actual building. Anyways, so what we would do when we were younger was that we would sneak in here after soccer practice and try to explore certain sections that were forbidden. The staff would make up rumors like ghosts haunted the sealed off sections or that some terrible monster would grab you. Once time a buddy of mine, Mike snuck into to the basement. Now the basement didnt have any cells but it had old piping and areas unknown to even the staff. Now he swears he swears he saw something down there that changed him. He use to be fun loving and a rambunctious child but after that event he always seemed on edge.
Sandra and I looked at the old school with mixed emotions of bewilderment and awe. The schools appearance alone looked terrifying. If I didnt know better, this was clearly a place that housed some forbidden terror. Tormented spirits or other creatures of the night certainly dwelt here. We sat parked for a couple of minutes as my dad looked at the building that certainly housed many memories for him.
We all eventually came back to reality and drove back home to our sad lives. Today was a disappointment in someway but also successful in others. I wasnt with the Popular group but I did make some friends. It was also good to see my dad no longer his sad miserable self but able to see a brief glimpse into the inner child that he once was.
Not much changed after that day. Despite my best efforts, dad continued to just get by, my attempts to be popular never resulted in anything meaningful and the sad state of the town slowly began to drag us down with it. I got by in school but it was difficult. My new friends were the only thing that seemed to keep my head above water. My friends and Sandra that is.
The five of us eventually became pretty close. Rebecca,Stacy and Jared slowly became a common sight around my house. They were quirky but polite which my dad seemed to enjoy. I think he was just happy that Sandra and I had something to look forward to. Since the town was so small, we had to come up with new ways to entertain ourselves. Video games were a go to but it was hard since there were five of us and only 4 controllers. What we normally would like to do would be to go to the small playground and try to “Parkour”but None of us were any good. But that was the fun thing about our group. We alway found a way to make something out of nothing.
Oddly enough, the small town had a rather large cemetery. If we were feeling up to it we would play ghosts in the graveyard at night however we eventually got caught by the police. Which we werent allowed back.
One day after school we sat in the drama room discussing what we should do tonight. It had been awhile since we played ghosts in the graveyard but we were all dying to play. We tried playing a few rounds in our new school but the few staff that had stayed late that day got mad at us. We sat there discussing other places to play when an idea popped into my head. “I think I know where we can play but ……” The group looked at me as I paused. “ … But the place is a bit …
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