An Intimate View Into My Mind

Improv Writing in Class

Also written in Fundamentals of Outdoor Rec:

I'm walking through the basement of the gear factory. It's only 22:45, so I am not terribly spooked. But I have a wrenching gut feeling that something will go badly. Stewart is on the walkie talkie with me, everything is going to be fine.

Ok.

I take a breath.

Stew is giving me instructions to turn the electricity back on so we can continue painting back upstairs.

"There should be a big red switch at the end of the hall, you gotta walk there"

"Ok, got it."

I'm a little nervous. I can do this.

I put one trembling foot in front of the other. After my fourth step, I pause. Do my ears deceive me? To my left, I hear a retching sound. Oh gd, what?

"Stew, I think I hear something" I rasp into the walkie talkie. "I'm gonna go investigate"

I crane my neck leftward and I see a closed door. My headlight shines on a deep maroon door that looks like it belongs in a Victorian castle. I gulp. I did not know we had this door in the basement; I've been here a billion times and never noticed it. Probably because I have never heard sounds coming from behind it.

I describe the scene to Stew, and he tells me to go for it and investigate. He's also unfamiliar with this door.

I really wish I could stop my hand from shaking as I reach for the doorknob. I twist, and it's not locked. It seems that the instant I began to turn, the retching stops. I hold my breath as I slowly open the door.

"Closer" by the Chainsmokers is now playing at a surprising volume.

I am confused. How did I not hear this before? This is definitely better than retching. In front of me, a scene I could never have predicted unfolds.

Across the room is a stage. Everything is dimly lit, with colorful Christmas lights strung around the room. At least 70 college- age people are present, and they are all in costumes of a similar theme. 

To be continued...