Leona Charles: Awkward Moments

So, Followers, here I am, as of last week, officially a Silent Falls resident.

Well, first impression.... this place is a little hidden treasure. Just a train ride away from Glasgow, but why would I even venture there, when it seems I have almost everything I need here? It's a peaceful little village. There are no huge, disgusting sky scrapers, but lots of little cottages and some big houses converted into flats. My little flat is just perfect and right beside the beach, and compared to the house me and Mum were living in, I'm paying buttons in rent!

Now, don't get me wrong. It hurt, packing away all of our things, saying goodbye to our memories together. But it really wasn't the same without her. I have her box of research, of course. The first person I met of course, was the landlord, Mr Henry. Not the most talkative person I've ever met. He showed me around my little flat, pointed out of the window the directions of the nearest supermarket and doctor's surgery, took the rent, and left.

My first stop was obviously the supermarket. I did wonder if there were any good Chinese takeaways here that I could go to instead, but I didn't find any on the way there. They must be somewhere, but it wasn't worth the search.

I got the first glimpse of the locals here. As I wandered the aisles in search of quick and easy meals for one, I couldn't help feel that something was odd. Others wandered up and down, looking at the shelves. The odd member of staff could be seen stacking them. I was in desperate search of some chicken Micro Noodles, an old, unhealthy favourite. Eventually, I found them on the top shelf. As I reached up to grab one, it tumbled to the floor, hitting a member of staff on the way down, landing with a dull thud.

“Oh! Sorry!” I said, scrambling to the floor to grab the little pot. And then I realised what was so odd. It was silent. No one was talking, as they wandered around, even couples and families shopping together. My falling noodles and apology was like an explosion, and now everyone was looking at me, clutching my basket, my face going red.

The boy who'd been stacking the shelves smiled at me, and told me quietly that it was okay. Everyone got on with their shopping, my racket forgotten. I scurried around, trying to remember anything else that I might need. I wouldn't be coming back here in a hurry. I reached the checkouts, where the few operators working stood like zombies, the only sound was the beeping as they scanned the items through. The girl serving didn't offer to pack my bag, and only spoke to tell me how much my shopping had come to.

As I drove back to the flat, I looked at the few people who wandered the streets. And they just walked. No one stopped to say hello to one another. No neighbours gossiped over the fences. Nothing. What a lonely little place.

I sat up late that night, looking over Mum's research. There was so much of it, I wondered if I'd ever finish reading it all. A few stories came up again and again. The doctor who'd poisoned fourteen children, although no one found that out until after he had died in a mysterious car crash. The school bullies who had been murdered by their victim's dad, who completely vanished with his teenage daughter, leaving behind a house full of their things. The little boy who'd been found dead in his cupboard after talking about his friend who lived there. I planned to go to the library the next day, start this research properly. At least the quiet wouldn't be as startling there.

I was on my way out of the building the next day, with my folder full of papers as I bumped into someone on the stairway, my folders contents spilling onto the stone steps. The boy apologised bending down to help me pick them up. As I looked at him, he smiled.

“You again?”

It took me a moment to remember that I'd dropped my Micro Noodles on him the day before.

“Oh...” I said, blushing. “Hi.”

He grinned, scooping up the last of my papers. “I hope that they're not in any specific order or anything.”

I shook my head as he handed them to me and I stuffed them back into my folder.

“Looks pretty gory,” he said, nodding towards the newspaper clipping that was sticking out. It was another murder, I realised.

“Yeah... it is.”

There was a moment of silence, and I wondered if I should introduce myself to him. He looked about eighteen. His parents would probably remember a lot of this.

He broke the silence. “You're not from here, are you?”

I shook my head. “Is it that obvious?”

“It's a small place,” he said. “You get to know everyone's faces.”

“I get that feeling,” I said.

“Well, I'm Chris.”

“I'm Leona.”

“So, are you a journalist?” he asked, nodding down at my folder.

“Not quite,” I replied. “I'm actually a teacher. I start work at the primary school next week.”

“Oh, that'll be good,” he said. “I hear it's a nice school.”

“Didn't you go there?” I asked. It's the only school in the village.

He shook his head. “My parents sent me to stay with my aunt, actually, when I was about five. I only came back here last year.”

“Oh.” I didn't start to ask any personal questions. “Well I'll see you around. Would be nice to meet your parents actually. I'm doing a bit of research on the history of this place.”

“Yeah, good luck with that,” Chris said. “My parents are dead.”

And there, Followers, is my first (or second) awkward moment in Silent Falls.

“Oh, I'm sorry to hear that.”

Chris shrugged it off, not looking too upset. I resisted the urge to ask for more details on the matter. I thought about telling him about Mum, but that could just make things more awkward.

I waved goodbye to him, informing him that I was off to the library.

“You're really researching the history of this place?” he asked, now at the top of the staircase as I was opening the door to the building.

I nodded, holding up my folder.

“Why?”

“Well...” I almost told him about Mum then, but I stopped myself. I didn't know her connection to this place. “Just seems odd... lots of weird stuff happens here.”

Chris nodded in agreement. “Maybe weird stuff should be left alone though,” he said as he continued walking away.

And it just gets weirder, I thought, making my way to the car. The library wasn't too far away. It wasn't particularly big, just a little cottage really. Directly across from the school where I'll start working next week. For now, the playground is deserted, but next week, I expect it'll be busy. There's not much to the little red building. The long windows have curtains closed, but next week we'll start covering them in some lovely art work. I'm really looking forward to it.

I stepped into the library, and was not surprised to find it silent. The room is small, book shelves squeezed in with narrow little passages between them. A square table sits awkwardly in the centre of the room. The woman behind the desk looked at the computer screen and did not notice me approaching. She seemed startled when she saw me.

“Oh,” she said, with a smile, but I could see the confusion. It was because she didn't recognise me. “How can I help you?”

“I'd just like to join,” I said politely. She could be someone with a lot of information.

She gave me the forms to fill out, and I handed them back over to her, completed. “So I'll give you a card,” she said, typing the information into the computer. “And you can have any four books out at a time. Would you like me to show you around?”

“No thanks. Do you have anything on local history?”

The question seemed to fluster the woman. “Like, Scottish History?”

“No, the history of Silent Falls.”

She shook her head, abruptly. “We don't have anything like that here, I'm afraid.”

It was odd. Everywhere has a history. “Where would I find it?” I asked her.

She shrugged her shoulders. “I don't know if there is any, really. It's just, there's not a whole lot happens here.”

So, this place is even weirder than I thought. The history is there. Fair enough, some of Mum's research is scribbled notes, but what about the newspaper clippings? These things have happened, but the whole town just pretends like it hasn't. Maybe Chris is right, and weird should be left alone. But I've already moved here. I have to find out something.

Guess I should get to know the locals.