In Between Time

In Between Time Written by Rebecca Lee Illustrated by Katharine Taddei

Part 1: I’m sitting after hours in one of the empty classrooms. There were people here. I know because the chairs were slightly off from perfect rows. They’re never completely aligned. I chose a desk on the outside of the classroom to settle into. I’ve plugged my computer into the wall and I’m working on a homework assignment. I’m trying to finish an essay on a mural artist I chose. The light clacking of my keyboard echoes faintly through the room.

Without a flicker of warning, the lights go dark with a thunk and I look up at them in confusion. I remember that the lights are motion-activated in this part of the building and I wave my arms above my head. It doesn’t change anything. I start to stand up in case the wall light switch is turned off but the lights come back on with my movement. I sit back down and continue my work. The lights go off again, and once more I wave my arms. I feel the inevitable helplessness in the dark as it stops recognizing my space. The lights go off. I sigh and wave my arms for the third time. The lights are on and my computer is charged.

Suddenly, there’s an unfamiliar tickle on my neck trailing upwards towards my chin. I pause and lift my hand to the movement. I brush my fingers against the spot and bring it back in front of my eyes. It’s not hair brushing my neck as I expected, but an ant, walking slowly across my hand. I flick it away and sit blinking. I pack up my backpack and laptop to leave. I stand up and the chair moves behind me, slightly out of alignment as the rest of them. The classroom door closes behind me and the hallway is lit by the spaced lights. The stairwell is empty. It’s dark outside. An agile cat watches from the bushes as I make my exit.

Part 2: I take the back stairs down to the first floor. They’re rarely used because they’re out of the way. They are the same as the front stairs. They are reversed and when I get to the bottom of the stairs, there’s an extra door. The doorway is open and the light is on. I look through, and it’s another set of stairs going downwards. They are bare and gray and thin. I poke my head in cautiously and look downwards. There isn’t anything on the stairs and I can’t see the ending but there are two flights. I back up and look at the sign. It says “B - Basement.” I turn towards the exit doorway on my left and begin moving. I get a few paces away before a muffled grinding metal noise sounds from behind me. The sound raises hairs on the back of my neck and my shoulders come up as I tense. It’s coming from the basement stairs, I know it. I don’t think about it and move quickly. It’s bright outside and the people passing by are unaware. I become one of them.