S t a n f o r d ' s   F i n d
by Thomas Lipschultz



     The vast expanse of the campus fades into the distance.
Boys from all over the world came here to the majestic halls
of Gordon Ivy. There, far back by the hockey rink, lies
Derick Hall, the scene where this ghastly episode took place.
Just across the way, on the other side of the field, you can
barely see the central point of the whole campus - Carnegon
Hall. It looks nice, doesn't it? You'd never guess that this
was the scene of my comrades' demise. I still think about it
sometimes. The bright light filled the room, and I saw a
human form, like a shadow. I don't remember what it did to
them.  I can't remember. I don't want to remember! If you
really want to know how this all began, I'll tell you, but I
feel partly responsible for it.
     It all happened so suddenly. My old friend Sylo
Carbunkle came up to me as I was walking to class. He pulled
me over to talk, and I ended up being late on account of
that. I don't remember which class it was, but I'm pretty
sure it was Mr. Pepla's algebra course. He was understanding,
though, when I explained to him what happened. I don't know
of anyone else who would've even believed me. But anyway, I'm
drifting off-topic. As I said, Sylo pulled me over. "Hey
Thomas," he said, "you interested in checking out some ghosts
in Derick?" I obviously said "no", as I thought he was
joking.  He frequently joked about ghosts because I wanted to
be a paranormalist at the time. I'll admit, it is somewhat
odd, but I don't think I deserved to be teased mercilessly
because of it. Anyway, it turns out that he wasn't joking
after all. He continued, "Seriously. Hailey's been
complaining about weird noises. He says he can't sleep
because he keeps getting woken up." Hailey Joseph was a quiet
kid who never even seemed to joke. It seemed logical to me
that Sylo would use him in the story, as he would be the
least likely person to speak up about anything. So I replied
in my usual fashion, "Come on, Sylo, I have to get to class.
Drop the stupidity, ya' lousy bum." I started to walk away,
but Sylo followed me and caught me by the shoulder. "Look,
just meet me in das Restaurant at 8 sharp," he said, "and
don't be late." He turned around and headed to his next
class, and I yelled after him, "But it closes at 8! What do I
do about Mr. Stephens?" I didn't quite hear his answer
clearly, as he was already halfway down the field, but it was
something about hiding under the table. You see, das
Restaurant is the code name for Ivy League, a cafeteria of
sorts where you can buy food during any break you may have.
Everyone in school who took German called it das Restaurant,
though. The guy who was down there all the time, Mr.
Stephens, was a great guy, but extremely nearsighted. You
actually could hide under a table, and he'd never see you in
a million years. I wonder what ever happened to him?
     After my run-in with Sylo, I ran to my next class.
Like I said, I think it was algebra, but I'm not sure. It was
so long ago. After that, I only had one or two other classes.
I remember that one of them was Mr. Yuick's science class,
because he told me that there was no scientific explanation
for the supernatural. Duh! That's why they call it the
supernatural! Anyway, it was around 4 when my classes were
over, so I headed back to my room. It was #324 in Derick
Hall. I had four hours to kill, so I decided to play a few
video games. My roommate wasn't there at the time, which
didn't disappoint me. He was a loud one. You could never
concentrate with him around. I believe his name was Samuel
Saurtree. I haven't seen him for years.  Anyway, a few
minutes before 8, I headed down to das Restaurant. It was
closing time when I got there, so I had to sneak past Mr.
Stephens. I hid under a table and watched him lock up and
flip off the lights. It was almost pitch black in there, as
there were very few windows. Then Sylo flipped on the lights.
My eyes didn't really have a chance to get accustomed to the
darkness, so it wasn't that bad -- at least, not for me. Two
other kids got out from another table, blinking with the
sudden light. I recognized Hailey, but I didn't know who the
other kid was. Hailey yelled a greeting to me, and I waved
back at him. Then we got down to business.  I started the
discussion by asking who the other kid was. He said his name
was Scotty Tupor. He was Hailey's roommate. "Do you ever hear
these noises?" I asked.  He said that he only heard them
every once in a while. I then got into a discussion with
Sylo. It started with me saying something like "Couldn't we
have met in a dorm room instead of in here after closing?"
Sylo responded with "What's the fun in that? Besides, this
door is frequently left open all night when some poor sap
doesn't notice das Restaurant is closed.  Stephens locks him
in here, and he has to unlock the door to get out. Why do you
think they installed a latch on the inside?" Everything he
said was true, as far as I know.
     After that, Scotty asked me if I had any paranormal
equipment. I told him that I could get the expensive stuff,
but it would take about a week. "I do have an ultra-sensitive
tape recorder and some night vision goggles up in my room,
though," I added. Sylo made a comment regarding the reason
that I keep paranormal equipment in my closet, as was
expected, then told me to go get them.
     When I got back, Hailey informed me that two other rooms
were haunted as well. I found this interesting at the time,
and wondered why Sylo never bothered telling me. Anyway, we
decided to split into groups. Sylo and I would take room
#278, Hailey would take #122, and Scotty would take #312.
Scotty got the night vision goggles, Sylo and I took the tape
recorder, and Hailey brought a camcorder. So Sylo and I
trudged up 2 flights of stairs and knocked on 278.  A guy
that I vaguely knew answered the door. His name was Stalone
Bulglass, and he was the only kid on the floor who didn't
have a roommate. The room was entirely his. He ushered us in,
and we spent about a half-hour in there with the tape
recorder on. We had to be extremely quiet, so we just sat
there. Then we heard something or another, and, being quite
stupid and excitable, we yelled with triumph. I stopped the
tape and rewound it. Sure enough, we caught the noise on
tape. I was ecstatic. It sounded like a whisper without
words. I don't know how else to describe it. We headed down
to das Restaurant to share our glory with the others.
     When we got there, however, it didn't seem so glorious.
Both Hailey and Scotty were standing in the middle of the
room, transfixed. They were just staring at the wall. Hailey
finally spoke, and I'll never forget his words:

               "The end comes closer, and one
               can only imagine what we will see."

The room then brightened. It got so bright that I had to
close my eyes. I peeked out from between my fingers, and saw
nothing but white. I caught a glimpse of something amidst the
pure brilliance. It was like a shadow, but darker. I ran
wildly, not even paying attention to where I was going. I
must have run into a wall or something, because I blacked
out.
     When I woke up, it was a week later, and I was three
blocks away from the school. I felt like I hadn't been there
for long, like someone or something had just dropped me off.
I trekked across town until I was back on campus.  I was
warmly greeted, but then I heard the news: Hailey, Scotty,
Sylo, and Stalone were gone.  They just disappeared a week
before.  Whatever I saw, I'm lucky to be alive.
     Ten years after that, a student by the name of Barney
Cupowski uncovered a false wall in das Restaurant. He found a
smashed camcorder, night vision goggles, pieces of what was
probably a tape recorder, and a blank cassette.
     There, now you know the story. I still think about it
sometimes, and I've started to remember what happened to me
during that week. I'd rather not discuss it, though. One
thing's for sure: I'm certainly not going to become a
paranormalist. I've been sticking with accounting ever since
that experience, though I may be getting a job with the FBI
soon.