Abandoned by Abigail Livinghouse (distant reading txt) 📕

Tessie swallowed, closing the notebook and sitting back in the chair. Whoever had written this, she found no reason why it had not been published. If it was a true story, than it was even more amazing that a child had written it.

Thump! A book smacked loudly on the floor, causing Tessie to jump. She really couldn’t take the anxiety of this room any longer. She got up, and left the room quickly, taking the notebook with her.

She slipped the notebook into her backpack as her parents drove home. They were too busy discussing what walls they were going to tear down and what materials they were going to pick out to notice.

“So what did you think, Tessie?” Her mother asked, looking over her shoulder.

Tessie shrugged. “It’s a school, Mom. It’s not that special.”

Mrs. Porter looked aghast at her daughter’s comment.

“Tessie, this school is special to your father and I. It should be special to you too.” She scolded, turning around and crossing her arms.

Tessie rolled her eyes. It was nothing special to her, if not a bit strange or creepy. She wasn’t sure if she was happy that the place would be remodeled or not.

She headed up to her room once they got home, where she shut the door and sat down at her desk, taking the notebook and placing it on her desktop. She opened it up and read the rest of the first page.

The little girl Cynthia grew up with her mother, father, and little sister. She was born in 1881, but it said nothing more about when she was born except that it was in July.

Her little sister’s name was Lily, but she died from pneumonia when she was only two. She told about how the pain of losing her sister had affected her and her family so much. The girl said she felt so terrible, so heartbroken, but her parents had it worse.

Her mother and father became so depressed they rarely got out of bed at all. They were fired from their jobs for missing so many days, and soon Cynthia was no longer welcome at the school she was currently going to for all the absences she had.

Her parents never had truly gotten over her sibling’s death, but they had to join the rest of the world eventually. They were able to retrieve their old jobs, however Cynthia was not allowed back at her school.

Her parents searched for another place to give their daughter an education, and they found Chester Elementary School, a new and shiny school at the time. It was the only school in the area, plus, it was very appealing to her parents to have their child go to a new and very highly talked about educational facility.

Cynthia started the school when she was six, she was in first grade. She was known as the new girl, and most of the children disliked her. She had very little friends, and was often bullied for her stick straight blonde hair and clear blue eyes.

She told later about how when she was seven she came down with leukemia, lung cancer that made it very difficult for her to breathe. The doctors told her that she wouldn’t live to eight.

 She wished that she could just live to her eighth birthday, hell, she wished she could live way past her eighth birthday. Cynthia just wanted to live period.

Her parents had been fighting a lot, they wanted a divorce. She wanted to help them. She had to live to help them. They said that when she turned eight they would split up, and decide who kept her.

Maybe she could help them. She thought that she could help them. That was the end of the book. The other pages had small drawings of unicorns, fairies, and bunnies. The rest of the pages were blank.

Tessie sat back in her chair, taking a breath. Cynthia must’ve died from the disease before she turned eight and could try to help her parents.

A single tear rolled down Tessie’s cheek. She wished that Cynthia had been able to live, she was so young. She did not deserve to die. 

Tessie stood in the middle of Room 15 where all the desks had been removed, the chalk board stripped off the wall, and the floors reduced to dirt. It had been turned into an even worse state than the previous one.

The whole day she had felt sick, dizzy, and very lightheaded. She had a feeling that it was not a normal ailment. There was something about the room, whoever or whatever was in it did not want it changed.

“This is where the kitchen will go.” Her mother instructed, wearing a white hardhat.

They had all been told to wear them, Tessie’s was too big, and slumped over her eyes. She sighed, lifting the hat up once again so that she could see.

Her mother gave Tessie a one arm hug. “It’s going to look gorgeous. What do you think?”

Tessie shrugged, looking around with more disgust than awe like Mrs. Porter. “I suppose.”

Her mother patted her on the back before she returned to the contractor, electrician, and plumber. The plumber stooped down near Tessie, examining an area on the wall where the sink would go.

“What do you think, little lady? You excited for the remodel?” The man spoke with a sort of Southern drawl. He looked up at Tessie with lazy green eyes. “Eh?” He asked her.

She shrugged again. “Sure.”

Tessie headed out the door, away from Room 15. All the floors were hard-packed dirt, marks had been spray painted on the walls where they were to be ripped down or repainted. The whole place was reduced to shambles. Tessie never thought she’d say it, but she wished they hadn’t even touched the school. Why not just leave good enough alone? Whatever is in this building was content, before the Porters came along and ruined its peace.

 A sense of dread slowly washed over Tessie as she walked down the destroyed halls. The uneasy feeling was back again, telling her to get out, and get out now. She quickened her steps, scanning the halls for the nearest exit. Her heart thundered in her chest. As she hurried along, her breathing quickened. Tessie’s chest was starting to tighten, it was getting harder to breathe as she began to sprint.

An exit sign that her parents had not ripped away shined like a beacon of hope down the hall. Tessie slammed into the door and burst into the midday sun, where she gasped for breath, taking huge gulps of blessed oxygen. She placed her hand over her heart, feeling her thundering pulse. She doubled over, her hands on her knees, trying to get her breath back.

“Hey!” A voice called, causing Tessie to jump.

One of the demo guys had called to her from a window. He waved. “Hey you! Girl! You okay?”

 Tessie straightened up, wiping sweat off her brow.

“I’m fine!” She shouted back.

The man ducked back inside the school, a few seconds later, he poked his head out the window again.

“Your mama wants you in here girlie!” He yelled.

Tessie rolled her eyes, brushing herself off.

“Tell her I’ll be there in a few minutes!” She shouted.

 The man went inside hopefully for the last time. Tessie refused to go back into that building. There was something in there that did not want them there. It terrified Tessie. She could not imagine what it would be like when the remodel was done, she just hoped that things would calm down with whatever was in there. If things didn’t relax, then there would be hell on earth. Tessie just knew it.

*          *          *

       “It’s definitely an improvement from its previous condition. I’m just afraid that you might’ve downgraded your profits rather than increased them. Are you planning on selling this building?” The realtor, Mr. Houston spoke with Mr. and Mrs. Porter six months after they had bought the school, which was now completely remodeled.

 With six bedrooms and four bathrooms, the house was now the Porters’ dream. At least, it was Mr. and Mrs. Porter’s dream. Mrs. Porter shook her head, grabbing Mr. Porter’s hand.

“Oh no, we’ve invested so much in this property.” She looked around lovingly. “It’s our dream.”

The realtor nodded, his face expressionless. “It’s never smart to become emotionally attached to a home.” He chided.

Mrs. Porter stared at him coolly. “I’m terribly sorry, but we do love this home. It’s ours, and we’ve done everything we’ve ever wanted to. It’s perfect.”

Mr. Houston nodded again. “Yes, I see.” He touched one of the dark wood cabinets. “It is very taste specific.”

Mr. Porter cleared his throat, getting the realtor’s attention. “Mr. Houston, with all due respect, we are very much attached to this property. It was our old school, and we love it very much. We could not bear to part with it.”

Mrs. Porter nodded, her expression a bit smug. “Yes.”

Mr. Porter hesitated, seeming to not want to upset his wife. “We would however, like to know the value of the home.” He said.

Mr. Houston observed the kitchen, tiled floors, and the pastel walls. “How much did you pay for the home?” He asked.

Mr. Porter jumped in, suddenly animated. “A bit over three hundred thousand dollars. It was in very poor condition.”

The realtor considered before answering. “Well, I should say, if my estimate is correct with the market here in Chester, your home is probably worth, after the remodel about two to three million dollars.”

Mrs. Porter clutched her chest where her heart was, gasping. Mr. Porter looked equally surprised. Mr. Houston did not bat an eye at the high price tag of the newly redone home. After they shook hands and said thank you Mr. Houston left, leaving the Porters ecstatic with the value of the old school.

“This is wonderful, Jane! Just wonderful!” Mr. Porter exclaimed. Mrs. Porter was nearly jumping with joy.

“It’s just perfect, Matthew! It’s amazing! I never would’ve thought we would be able to attain our dreams. This is a dream. Oh goodness, this is amazing!” She squealed, repeating herself often because she was so flustered.

Tessie leaned against the old chain link fence in the yard, watching the realtor get in his car and drive off. She knew that the assessment had gone well. She could see her parents jumping through the window. She had almost hoped that it would not go well, so that they wouldn’t want to stay there. At least they would be able to sell the home and get it out of their hands. But