dust coated the floor. There was even a door that led directly outside, not onto a balcony, just outside to a thirty-foot fall and a broken leg or two.
“Is that the door to the hospital?” Lori asked, dead serious.
“What? No, it’s….” And then I realized she was joking. Door to the hospital, ha, very funny, Lori.
“Yeah, because if you walk through it, you’re going to the hospital.”
“I know, Lori, I get it.” I had to admit that it was a pretty funny joke, especially for a six -year-old. “I guess we’ll just have to call this ‘the door to the hospital, e h?’”
“Huh?”
“Never mind. It was your joke. If I lost you, that’s your own fault. Hey, why don’t you take that room down there?” I pointed to our left past what must have been the smokestack from the wood-burning stove.
The room I chose was at junction of the L , just past that “ door to the hospital , ” or as I would think of it, “the door to nowhere.” It had green wall paper covering broken plaster. I had never seen a house this old, and I had no idea before moving in there just how strange old houses could be. The windows, too, were strange. Everything looked wavy, as if the glass was defective.
I threw down my bag of clothes. There was a bed set up in the room already, and by the looks of it, it had been in t here for quite a while. The covers were neat, the pillows fluffed, but a cloud of dust billowed into the air as I sat on the bed. Gross, but tolerable , I supposed . I laughe d out loud as I thought about how disgustingly awful it was .
I could hear footsteps coming to my door . They were a bit lighter, so naturally, I assumed they were Lori’ s. “Lori, check this out.” I stood and went to the door, but there was nobody there.
Strange. I felt hairs sticking up on my head and my neck, and my heart started beating faster . I wouldn’t exactly say I was scared, but….
“Amanda, hey look at this!” Lori said, jumping out of her room directly to my right. The smokestack blocked most of my view of her room.
“Lori, you scared the bejeebies out of me. Is there anyone else up here? ”
“ I don’t know, but you gotta l ook at what I got in my room!”
My heart-rate s lowed a bit as I entered her room. It was a lot like mine, except with pink walls instead of green. But most noticeably, there was a white pipe running from the floor to the ceiling. Lori jumped on it as if it were a fireman’s pole and attempted to climb it. She managed only a foot or two, but then slid back down. “Isn’t this awesome?”
“I wonder what it is,” I said. “Looks like some sort of plumbing.” I thought for a second. What room was directly below this one, wh ere that pipe might have come from ? Being so new to this house, it took me a second to remember that it was the bathroom. “Lori, you know what that is?”
“What?”
“It’s the main pipe for the bathroom.”
“It is? Ew. Does that mean there’ s poop and pee in it? ”
“ Sure thing. A lso has farts. ” I heard from Mom later that day that it was a vent stack , sometimes called a stink pipe , that carries gases from the septic system to the outside so that it doesn’t back up into t he house. T hese pipes we re usually in the walls, not jutting up from the floor in the middle of the room.
“That’s gross. I don’t think I want this room anymore.”
“Tough luck, chum. You gotta play the hand you’re dealt.”
“Huh?” she said with an exaggerated look of confusion.
“I don’t know. Just sounded good.”
I turned to leave Lori’s room but paused as I saw a dark shape walk past the door. “Lori, did you see that?” I cried. It wasn’t your regular shadow. T his had more substance to it. “It was like a—”
“Ghost!” Lori screamed, finishing my sentence .
I don’t know what came over me, but before I knew it, I was rushing out into the hall to get a better look at whatever it was. There was a man walking away from me, toward
“Is that the door to the hospital?” Lori asked, dead serious.
“What? No, it’s….” And then I realized she was joking. Door to the hospital, ha, very funny, Lori.
“Yeah, because if you walk through it, you’re going to the hospital.”
“I know, Lori, I get it.” I had to admit that it was a pretty funny joke, especially for a six -year-old. “I guess we’ll just have to call this ‘the door to the hospital, e h?’”
“Huh?”
“Never mind. It was your joke. If I lost you, that’s your own fault. Hey, why don’t you take that room down there?” I pointed to our left past what must have been the smokestack from the wood-burning stove.
The room I chose was at junction of the L , just past that “ door to the hospital , ” or as I would think of it, “the door to nowhere.” It had green wall paper covering broken plaster. I had never seen a house this old, and I had no idea before moving in there just how strange old houses could be. The windows, too, were strange. Everything looked wavy, as if the glass was defective.
I threw down my bag of clothes. There was a bed set up in the room already, and by the looks of it, it had been in t here for quite a while. The covers were neat, the pillows fluffed, but a cloud of dust billowed into the air as I sat on the bed. Gross, but tolerable , I supposed . I laughe d out loud as I thought about how disgustingly awful it was .
I could hear footsteps coming to my door . They were a bit lighter, so naturally, I assumed they were Lori’ s. “Lori, check this out.” I stood and went to the door, but there was nobody there.
Strange. I felt hairs sticking up on my head and my neck, and my heart started beating faster . I wouldn’t exactly say I was scared, but….
“Amanda, hey look at this!” Lori said, jumping out of her room directly to my right. The smokestack blocked most of my view of her room.
“Lori, you scared the bejeebies out of me. Is there anyone else up here? ”
“ I don’t know, but you gotta l ook at what I got in my room!”
My heart-rate s lowed a bit as I entered her room. It was a lot like mine, except with pink walls instead of green. But most noticeably, there was a white pipe running from the floor to the ceiling. Lori jumped on it as if it were a fireman’s pole and attempted to climb it. She managed only a foot or two, but then slid back down. “Isn’t this awesome?”
“I wonder what it is,” I said. “Looks like some sort of plumbing.” I thought for a second. What room was directly below this one, wh ere that pipe might have come from ? Being so new to this house, it took me a second to remember that it was the bathroom. “Lori, you know what that is?”
“What?”
“It’s the main pipe for the bathroom.”
“It is? Ew. Does that mean there’ s poop and pee in it? ”
“ Sure thing. A lso has farts. ” I heard from Mom later that day that it was a vent stack , sometimes called a stink pipe , that carries gases from the septic system to the outside so that it doesn’t back up into t he house. T hese pipes we re usually in the walls, not jutting up from the floor in the middle of the room.
“That’s gross. I don’t think I want this room anymore.”
“Tough luck, chum. You gotta play the hand you’re dealt.”
“Huh?” she said with an exaggerated look of confusion.
“I don’t know. Just sounded good.”
I turned to leave Lori’s room but paused as I saw a dark shape walk past the door. “Lori, did you see that?” I cried. It wasn’t your regular shadow. T his had more substance to it. “It was like a—”
“Ghost!” Lori screamed, finishing my sentence .
I don’t know what came over me, but before I knew it, I was rushing out into the hall to get a better look at whatever it was. There was a man walking away from me, toward
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