Aurora Magazine 2018

Ghosts After Dark

K A R E N M U Ñ O Z

Steph heard the stories about some of the ghosts that prowl Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College after dark, and she was no stranger to apparitions, but recent events had definitely creeped her out. It’s always a good time sharing ghost stories and spooky tidbits about the school’s own history of the para- normal and otherwise unexplainable moments, but when it happens in person, the enjoyment of sharing with the compa- ny of friends is immediately replaced with the fear of experi- encing it alone in the dark. This is exactly what Stephanie felt this semester with each new paranormal development, espe- cially because it always happened when her suitemate, Karen, was off campus, spending time at home with her family on the weekends. The first incident occurred during the weekend right after Christmas Break, kicking off the start of the new semes- ter with a few bangs, quite literally. Karen had gone home that Friday after syllabus week, a name Steph had given the first week of each new semester, seeing as it always started out with the handing out of the syllabi and going over classroom rules and expectations. Stephanie sat in the middle of her bed at two in the morning, with her back against the wall and worked on her computer. She happened to see the string on her fan swinging in circles out of the corner of her eye, which was unusual. So, she looked up and watched it swing for a while before saying,

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