I would like to wish you all a very spooky eve of all Hallow’s eve. With the very haunting holiday coming up, there will undoubtedly be campfires lit in the backyards of many student’s homes. S’mores will be eaten, laughter shared, and of course some spooky stories to liven up the night a little. Stories of mummies, zombies, grim reapers and headless horsemen. Yet there’s one story more haunting than them all, a story only told in hushed whispers among X-Hall teachers. A tale rarely told, who’s impact lives on in its legacy.
This is the story of the ghost of the X-Hall Sticker Jump. One dreary Tuesday, a disgruntled young teen was bored of his science class and caught up with recent early 2000’s trends wanted to make a statement. The student climbed over the railing, scaled the side of upper X and gave a leap of faith. His heart in one hand, a sticker in the other. Then, the sight of sticker hitting wall, and legs hitting tile. Crack. Many believe the story ends here, living merely as a cautionary tale for Physics teachers to tell. Some say if you wander around Upper-X, on days such as these, strange things occur: floating postit notes, inexplicable gusts of wind, and, most curiously, a hooded shadow with no person to make it. The sticker jumper roams the halls to this day.
Ever since the sticker trend, other trends have taken a hold of school: planking, bottle-flips, the mannequin challenge, devious licks. Yet the delinquents and rapscallions who adhere to these fads were guided by something—no, someone—larger. A voice, a whisper, a suggestion. It beckons one to steal that soap dispenser, to plank against the sink, to flip the water bottle over the roof. It tells Eve to eat the apple. Yet, his actions are not limited to words alone. A couple weeks ago, when doorstops seemed to be disappearing left and right, faculty pointed to students as wrongdoers. However, it was the spirit at play, working in the background. His spirit still haunts the halls and dean letters alike.
I understand if this all sounds ludicrous. Dear reader, I welcome your skepticism. In fact, in preparation for this piece, The Flipside staff required further investigation. Last Friday night, Noah Meyerhoff, Yaokai Yang, Connor Vishnoi and myself embarked on a spiritual voyage. We snuck into the school and underwent an otherworldly experience. The time was 11 p.m on the dot, the place was the hallway leading from the courtyard to lower X hall. We drew a pentagram, placed a sticker at each vertex, and chanted various phrases familiar to the spirit, such as various My Chemical Romance songs and early 2000’s hits from Panic! At the Disco. As we chanted, the stickers rose and hovered in the air. Lights flickered. Then CRACK: the sudden sound of legs hitting the floor. We shared looks of disbelief. In the center of the pentagram were two footprints from what seemed to be Heelys.
This is the haunted tale of the sticker jump. Spread it as you will. Tell it in your backyard gatherings or slumber parties. But tread lightly dear reader, for if you disrespect the ghost of X-hall past, this will soon become a dead man’s tale and you will be left in a sticky situation 👻.
