Legends of Hillwood
By Rainbow Haunting
Chapter 1: Legend of the Bathroom Ghost
It started like all urban legends do, with a rumor. The rumor at P.S. 118 was that the ghost of a former 4th grader, who had died after tragically drowning in the second stall toilet some thirty years ago, haunted one of the boy's restrooms. Anyone who visited the haunted bathroom witnessed toilets that flushed themselves, lights that mysteriously turned on and off by some invisible force, and most chilling of all, reports of someone or something breathing down the boys' necks when they were all alone. Needless to say, the restroom was avoided by nearly every boy at school; even the sixth graders exchanged nervous glances at one another whenever they passed by that lonely corner of the building. If there was indeed a ghost haunting P.S. 118, no one at the school had the courage to face it.
Sid was fascinated by the legend. Like most of his classmates, he was drawn to the local myths and folklore of Hillwood. When he wasn't pulling pranks or hanging out with his best buddies Harold and Stinky, Sid was busy reading up on ghosts, monsters, and anything else that went bump in the night. After exhausting the paranormal resources in his school's library, Sid turned next to the library's computer lab and searched the internet for whatever information he could find. If he found any stories that were scary or gruesome enough for his tastes, Sid printed them out so he could pour them over at home, away from any prying eyes. He was proud that he knew stories that not even Gerald knew, although the other boy was quick to point out that he would always be the Keeper of the Tales of Hillwood and not of the vast and ever endless internet. Even Fuzzy Slippers, Gerald's legends informant, had limits.
However Sid had a hunch that Fuzzy Slippers knew more about the bathroom ghost than any of the kids at their school, so when the bell rang for lunch, he headed straight to Gerald. It was easy to spot the tall haired boy among the crowds of hungry children. Like most days, Gerald was walking alongside his best friend Arnold and the both of them were talking and laughing as they made their way to the cafeteria. Sid slid in line next to them while they picked up their trays and had their meal of the day ladled out to them in thick grey lumps. Sid took a quick sniff of the food, his large nose wrinkling in disgust, before he spoke to Gerald.
"Hey Gerald! How's it going?"
Gerald picked up a carton of chocolate milk and looked up at Sid with a shrug. "Nothing much. Not too happy with all the homework Mr. Simmons gave us."
"It's not that bad," replied Arnold with that charming smile he had whenever he tried to convince someone otherwise. "I like creative writing assignments."
Not that the smile convinced Gerald. Even for a fourth grader, Gerald was more grounded and a little more jaded than his peers. "Arnold, did you see the word count? No way am I gonna write five hundred words for an essay, even if we get to write whatever we want. Just thinking about it kills my creativity already!"
Sid squeezed in between the two, glancing from Gerald to Arnold and back to Gerald again. "Hey Gerald, I got to talk to you. Just for a second! You'll be back for lunch before you know it!"
Gerald raised a hand to let Sid know that he heard him. "Alright Sid, just calm down man. I'll be there." He placed his tray on the cafeteria table and turned to Arnold. "I'll be right back. And don't let Harold drink my chocolate milk."
Turning away, Sid ushered him to the now quiet hallway outside the cafeteria. Leaning back on the wall behind him, Gerald folded his arms. "So what's up Sid? Is something spooking you out?"
Sid shook his head and paused for a second. "Nothing is spooking me, but...you know that legend right? The legend of the boys' bathroom near the gym?"
The other boy nodded. "The one with the ghost right? Everybody knows about it. Even principle Wartz knows about it, even though he keeps on tell us that there's no such thing as ghosts." He then shook his head. "Noooo way am I peeing in a haunted bathroom. You couldn't get me in there even if you triple-dogged dared me."
Balancing on the tips of his boots, Sid leaned in, his voice barely rising above a whisper. "But has anyone seen the ghost? Like really seen it?"
Gerald thought for a moment. "Fuzzy Slippers told me that no kid has seen it. No grown-ups either. Not even any of the janitors that've worked here. Actually that probably explains why it stinks so bad every time I walk pass it. That place really reeks."
"Gerald! You know what that means right?" Sid leaned in even closer, his sausage-shaped nose almost touching Gerald's.
"That we need better janitors?"
"That we need to go see the ghost!"
With wide-eyes, Gerald backed away. "Oh no, no, no, Sid you are crazy, man! There is no way I'm going in there!"
Sid threw his arms into the air. "Aw come on! Maybe there's no ghost! Maybe it's just a bunch of baloney! But we gotta see if it's true! If you're too chicken we can even take Harold and Stinky with us!"
His pride now wounded, Gerald pointed a finger to Sid. "Hey man, I am not chicken! Look, Fuzzy Slippers told me that no one should go into that bathroom and I'm gonna listen to him. Anyways, you're more chicken then me."
"No way!"
Something sudden and shrill rang behind Sid and with a high-pitched scream, he jumped into Gerald's arms. "See what I mean?" said Gerald, cocking an eyebrow.
With a nervous laugh, Sid crawled out of Gerald's arms and brushed himself off. After composing himself and adjusting his hat, Sid said, "I'm still gonna see the ghost, no matter what. And I'll even prove it! I'll bring my camera with me and take a picture of it."
Children began to trickle into the hallway after the bell and Gerald spotted his friend's familiar head shape in the crowd. "Alright Sid, if you prove it then I won't call you a chicken. I might even call you a bold kid. But if you wanna see the ghost, my man Fuzzy Slippers said that it only comes out when the school is closed at night."
Puffing up his chest in pride, Sid stood as tall as his short frame could muster. "I'll be there. And I'll take it's picture and show it to the whole school!"
Gerald put a hand on Sid's shoulder. "Good luck my friend. You're gonna need it."
He walked away, shaking his head when he was out of Sid's view. "That kid is a dead man."