Orphan

I had a teacher in junior high who was just the right mixture of handsome and cool. All the girls had crushes on him and all the boys hung out with him. Everyone loved Mr. K. Even me. Although my fascination with Mr. K didn't manifest itself with schoolgirl crushes or fraternity-style jokes. No, I wrote a story and the teacher that everyone loved was much more sinister in the pages of my notebook.

There! Megan groaned in relief as she spied the doors at the end of the hallway. She felt like she had been running for hours, turned around in the darkened rooms and dimly lit halls of the high school. Throwing a hand out to lean against the nearest locker, she was surprised to see a red scrape across her knuckles. She had thought she had cut it when she shimmed under the gate at the library, but surprisingly it didn't hurt. She flexed her fingers for a moment and watched as a sluggish drop of blood ran down the back of her hand.

"That looks like it hurts." The soft voice came from so close behind her that Megan could feel his breath blow through her hair. She whirled, her hand flying out to push him away as she started to run.

"No. No. Nononononono." Megan chanted breathlessly as she careened down the hallway. She had come too far to let him get her now. With a burst of speed she aimed for the push bar on the door, hoping to get through before he could catch up. She ran, her aching lungs straining in her chest and with a cry she hit the doors.

And they hit back. There was a metallic rattle as she pushed against the bars and Megan looked through the window to see a chain wrapped around the handles. Thumping her head against the window, she felt a few tears escape her tightly clenched eyes. She could hear his footsteps behind her, slow and steady. As terrified as she was, she refused to keep her back to him now. Turning, she raised her chin and tried to meet his eyes.

"Oh, very good." He nodded as he stopped in front of her, his hand reaching out to tap her chin with one finger. "This bravery is almost believable."

Megan flinched and tried to clear her throat before speaking. "W-w-what are you going to do to me?"

"That would spoil the surprise. But I promise it'll be fun." He leaned in, his breath tickling her ear as his hands tightened on his shoulders. "I wouldn't lie to you, would I?"

With an almost silent whimper, Megan closed her eyes as he pulled into the nearest classroom.

That's actually it. It isn't part of a larger story at all. Just that one orphan scene. I've always wanted to write more of it, figure out just what Mr. K was going to do or why Megan was running, but it never materialized. It's forever just this orphan scene inspired by Mr. K grinning and whispering "I wouldn't lie to you, would I?" when he refused to tell us anymore about a special project for the next class. Even though I really liked the teacher, it sounded so wonderfully sinister that I couldn't help jotting down the snippet that popped into my mind. It's a story that's always haunted me, unable to be expanded on or finished for well over ten years. But the story and the whispered phrase still gives me the shivers.