The wheelchair
by Lynn WL
I was born in an Asian country and lived there until I was seven when my family and I moved to the US. I still remember how I used to be spooked whenever I went into a hospital as a kid because most of the hospitals back there were old and had dark corridors.
Our family and my aunt's lived like a couple of miles apart, and we were pretty close to each other. We would often visit each other and hang out together. One day my aunt was tied up at work, and my uncle was out of town, so she asked my mom if she could pick up my cousin Robert (who is a year older than I am) from school and bring him to our house until she got off work which would be pretty late.
It was a gloomy day. It had been drizzling on and off since morning. It was in the middle of October, so the days were starting to get short. We arrived at Robert's school at around 4:30 and it was already kind of dark. There was a thin fog blanketing our town. Most of the kids had gone home, so there was hardly anyone around.
I had goosebumps as we walked into the school building which was old and rather poorly lit. It kind of reminded me of the old hospitals back in Asia.
"Why is it so dark in here, mom?" I asked.
"I don't know, Lynn. Maybe because people don't work here after dark so they don't feel the need to put too much light on. To conserve energy, you know."
We were walking towards the administrative office where Robert was waiting for us. The hallways were dark and there was a little bit of a musty odor. Suddenly I saw a wheelchair parked on the side against the wall. It was old and a little rusty. My heart skipped a beat. Why was there a wheelchair in a school building? An old one too. Are we in the right place? Could this actually be a... hospital? I shuddered as those thoughts went through my mind.
My mom and I were holding hands, and I tightened my grip as we walked by the wheelchair.
"What's the matter sweetie?" She asked.
"Do you see that wheelchair, mom? Why do you think it's in here?" Mom turned around to look at the wheelchair as she wasn't paying any attention to it earlier.
"Oh, I don't know sweetie. Maybe they just have one available in case someone needs it."
"It kinda reminds me of a hospital. It gives me the creeps," I replied. Mom just chuckled as we walked on. Soon we arrived at the administrative office. There was a bench in front of it, and mom told me to sit there while she knocked on the door and then stepped in.
There was a large courtyard in front of me with big trees around it. It was almost 5 o'clock, and it was getting darker yet. The fog had thickened a little. I was lost in thought when suddenly I heard a squeaky noise. Like old wheels turning. I was startled, and looked towards where it was coming from.
In the distance, at the far end of the hallway I saw a wheelchair, and there was someone in it. As it moved slowly but steadily towards me I could see it was a girl, maybe about my age. She had dark brown hair and was wearing a white dress which looked very dirty as if she had just fallen in the dirt. As she got closer yet, I could see her face. It was pale and expressionless. Her eyes were dark around them.
At this point I was really scared. So I ran to the door and banged on it, calling for my mom. The door swung open and my mom came running out, and I hugged her tight. Robert and an older lady who was the principal were standing by the door.
"What happened, Lynn!? Are you ok?"
"The... the... wheelchair!" I replied with a shaky voice and pointed towards where it was. But... there was nothing there but an empty, dimly lit hallway. Mom told me to calm down and tried to convince me that everything was ok. She thought because I was a little spooked seeing the wheelchair earlier, my imagination was running wild.
Mrs. Smith the principal got curious as she walked out with Robert and asked me to tell them what I saw exactly. When I finished telling them, I could see her face turn pale, and her mouth partly opened. She looked petrified, but quickly got hold of herself. Mom noticed that too, and asked her what she was thinking.
"Oh... it's nothing, really," replied Mrs. Smith. "We do have a wheelchair set up front near the main entrance. It used to belong to a disabled girl who was a student here many years ago. She had an accident while playing and fell into a hole they were digging in the front yard. She had serious injuries and uh... she later died. Her family wanted the wheelchair placed at the school as a memorial to their daughter and as a reminder for everyone to be careful."
I almost fainted when I heard that. But everyone was saying goodbye to each other, and we were soon walking towards the front. We passed by the wheelchair again, and I was terrified. But of course, it was empty. There was no girl or anything else in it.
On the way home in the car Robert told us that all the students knew the story of the girl in the wheelchair. Once in a while, especially when it was dark and quiet, a student would see her riding her wheelchair. They would run and scream in terror, but the teachers and staff would always dismiss it and say it was their imagination. Robert himself had never seen her, however.
Later that night I had a hard time sleeping. What I saw earlier at Robert's school was still vivid in my mind. The night was cold. Although I was sleeping under a blanket and a comforter I was still shivering.
I finally dozed off, but was awaken not long after by a familiar noise... the squeaking of wheels. At first I thought I was dreaming. But I opened my eyes, and still heard it. It was right outside my room. I broke out in cold sweat. I turned on my night light and looked at the clock. It was 3 AM. The squeaking noise got louder and closer to my door.
I couldn't hold it any longer. So I screamed as loud as I could, calling my mom and dad. My parents' room was right next to mine, and they both heard my scream and rushed into my room. I told them what I heard. They tried to calm me down and told me I was just having a bad dream as there was no wheelchair or anything else outside my room. But I knew it wasn't a dream. What I heard was real. Very real. Just like what I saw at the school was real.
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