Midnight. The end of Saturday.Got a message, day before yesterday, from a girl I'd had dinner with a few nights earlier. Her name was Linda--good looking girl, a bit energetic, seemed to have a head for adventure. She'd asked me if I could pick locks; I told her I'd learned how years ago, and had kept at least somewhat in practice, but wasn't the best in town. I didn't think much of it at the time. Seemed like just one of those things.
Then I got the message.
It wasn't long. Just said to meet her at midnight, in front of the offices of the newspaper. So, I headed out into the cold night, in just a yukata and japants, the last remnants of the day's piratical festivities. I made my way to
Parrish Hall, the center of campus, and oldest building for miles. Full of strange passages and underground tunnels. I'd explored it a bit, but never in any real detail. I knew the newspaper's offices were on the fourth floor, so I headed for the staircase--one of those wide rectangular spiral ones, where you can look down from the top and see just how far it'd be to push someone down through the middle.
As I walked, I remembered the conversation about picking locks, and realized that had either been an elaborate innuendo or a call to adventure. Either way, I thought, it was going to be an interesting night.
As I reached the fourth floor, and pushed my way through the wide double doors and into the hall, I saw Linda standing there. She was in an all-too-appropriate tan trenchcoat, hands in the pockets, waiting for me. She grinned, and turned to the doors to the office.
They door looked just like you'd want it to--one of those doors with the frosted-glass window in it, and a little logo saying "THE PHOENIX." That door opened easily enough. The one she wanted picked was in the anteroom, and led to... well, she didn't know where. She'd brought me a kit of paper clips and hair pins, and after some brief pleasantries, I set to work.
Unfortunately, despite my best efforts, the lock was too new and well-made for me to pick with just that. I tried for a good twenty minutes to no avail. I managed to get around the lock, through a gap in the woodwork, and knock one of the pins that way, but the middle pin was offset a hair, just enough to make it impossible with a paper clip. With a torsion wrench, proper tools, I could do it.
Linda was sad, but still decided to reward me by showing me a secret. She went to a corner and grabbed a ladder, propping it up against the wall near the door. The door to the newspaper offices proper didn't quite lock all the way--a strong push of the handle popped it open. Inside was a mass of computers, all lined up and quiet. The ceiling was high and the windows dark. She gestured for me to climb it, and I did, stepping up to the window a good ways off the ground. Unlike all the other windows, it had no screen--and was already open.
I leaned out, onto the roof of Parrish Hall. I looked around, enjoying the cold night air on my face and neck, and smiled. Sometime, I thought, I'd have to come back here and watch the sun rise over campus.
For now, though, I pulled back inside, to find Linda grinning up at me. I told her I was going into Philly, to do some already shading shopping. I promised I'd keep my eyes out for a proper lockpicking kit. And we agreed to meet again, some other midnight, for more exploration and mystery. I walked back down the stairs, spinning the paper clips around my finger, grinning. The night may not have been long or dangerous, but... the atmosphere had been just right, and sometimes? Sometimes the right atmosphere goes a long way.
I headed out through the night mists, yukata swirling around me as I passed through the dim glow of streetlights, satisfied with my night.
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100% true story. Life at Swarthmore. Amazing place.
~Duk
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