Saturday, October 18, 2025

At night at school

 I was born in 1980 and lived in the USSR for 11 years. It was a special time. It was kind of easy. Everyone knew each other, the same people lived in the same apartments for many years (or maybe they still live, dragging the past with them). I remember the old cemetery, where many of the grandmothers and grandfathers I knew from the yard, kindergarten teachers, and school teachers were buried... I lived in Ukraine, in the city of Donetsk, and although I have been living in Moscow for many years, I consider Ukraine to be my home. I go there once a year to see old friends and relatives. It seems that nothing has changed there — the same old neighbors, the same old sellers in the shops left over from the Soviet era. Everyone is already in their 50s and 60s.

What I remember most from my childhood is my school. It was an unforgettable time. I went to a very good school with quite interesting people. My first girlfriend was there, and my first friends were there... I remember the younger grades the most. It was fun; we didn't have phones, set-top boxes, or anything else yet. The fun of modern children is nothing compared to our fun. These walks all day long... It was a great time. But I also had one unpleasant experience there. It was the first and hopefully the last time in my life that I encountered the supernatural. And I still can't forget it...

I was probably in the sixth or seventh grade when I was 12 years old. As always, we walked late with the boys (then everything was lit up and quite safe, the parents let us go). The time was about half past ten in the evening. We sat in the yard and told ghost stories. I had little faith in all this and was not particularly afraid, and youthful maximalism made itself felt, I was not afraid of anything. Well, somehow an argument started between us. There was a school not far from my yard. She was in very poor condition, and the learning conditions were also terrible. The goal was to get into the school from the front door, pass the guard, run to the third floor of the school (there were three in total), open the window and look out of it. At the same time, the school was pitch dark. It was all done just "weakly," and since I really didn't like feeling weak or giving others reason to doubt my courage, I volunteered to go there.

As soon as I agreed to this, I immediately felt my credibility among the guys grow (we had a company of seven people). At the same time, I could also tease others, saying that you are a coward, a weakling, and you are afraid. And this gave me a pleasant feeling of superiority (despite the fact that in the first grades of school I was the victim of severe bullying). And I went to the old school on this wave.

Standing on the veranda near the door, I looked out the window. The watchman was sleeping at his desk, and very soundly. I carefully opened the door and made my way into the lobby. In the prone position, I crawled past the guard, went behind the wall and got to my feet. My friends were already waiting for me in the courtyard near the window. I had to act. I was currently on the ground floor near the director's office. It was very dark, and I didn't have a flashlight with me. I felt my way to the stairs to the second floor. Three minutes later, I was already there. I walked very slowly, because one wrong move and I could fall or stumble, because the darkness was pitch black. I reached the second floor, and ten minutes later I went up to the third floor.

As soon as I stepped onto the third floor, one of my friends screamed from below.: "Run away quickly! Run down!" I felt uneasy. As soon as I started to go down, I heard a scream from the courtyard, from the opposite side (several windows were open). The friend who had just called me back was shouting, "Stop! Don't go anywhere! Stay where you are and don't move!" That's when I wasn't just scared anymore, but, roughly speaking, I pissed myself. It was pretty damn scary. There was another shout from below: "Run faster! I'm here! Don't listen to anyone!" I didn't know what to do, who to trust, or where to run, climb down, or jump out the window. I didn't know where my real friends were, I just stood there and cried.

There was another scream from below: "No one is standing in the courtyard! We're all standing here!" Immediately, the voice of several other guys from our company was heard: "We're all downstairs! Don't go near the window, don't! We're going up!" Suddenly there was a wild roar, and the whole company shouted in unison: "Run!" I screamed hysterically and just ran forward, not looking out the window. I did not go down, I did not listen to both sides, but acted contrary to both sides. Someone was coming up from below. "Don't go near the window! Don't go ahead!" they said from there. At the same time, a shout was heard from the window: "Jump!" I've hit a dead end. They were coming up from below, and I was screaming and crying.

Suddenly I felt the door handle—there was a door at the end of the corridor! I opened it and quickly slammed it behind me. I ended up in some kind of back room. There were steps to the attic and a descent to the basement. Without thinking twice, I climbed into the attic, and through it I climbed onto the roof. And then I almost had a stroke: our whole company was sitting on the roof. I yelled, "Don't come near me!" One of my friends ran up to me and punched me in the shoulder with all his might, hissing, "Shut up! Are you a complete jerk? We climbed up the fire escape here as soon as we heard someone calling you at school." I was surprised: "Wait, but who was standing by the windowSuddenly I felt the door handle—there was a door at the end of the corridor!ned it and quickly slammed it behind me. I ended up in some kind of back room. There were steps to the attic and a descent to the basement. Without thinking twice, I climbed into the attic, and through it I climbed onto the roof. And thenost had a stroke: our whole company was sitting on the roof. I yelled, "Don't come near me!" One of my friends ran up to me and punched me in the shoulder witht night forever.



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