Drive-In Movie: Stefano's Diary, Hallows Eve 1970

[Stephen Torelli]

Wiji’s house caught on fire or so we thought. She had one window without curtains that was ice water clear and you could see into the frosty dark room that had a shining black Singer sewing machine atop a wooden table, wooden cabinets with sparkling brass knobs, gleaning hardwood floors and darkened wooden walls, but only that one window was unclouded, like she wanted you to see everything.

Anyway, Billy Shepherd and me passed by one night after smoking cigarettes at the corner store and we could see lights glaring from her bottom floor window, a two story place at the corner of Carson and South Clark Street. We walked closer and saw flames like the floor and walls were on fire, so we ran to a nearby firebox and pulled the lever to alert the fire department and ran back to the house to figure out if she was alright.

Well, the fire blazed but hardly any smoke, and when we knocked on her door we heard laughter, like a cackle and a cat meowing and cat paws scratching or even fingernails, but the heavy door was bolted shut, so we climbed the firescape to look into other windows; but they were locked and too dark to see through so we waited for the trucks to arrive, yet by this time we didn’t even hear sirens like you usually do when fire trucks roar. Then we returned to the blazing window and smoked our remaining Lucky Strikes peering into the fiery mix waiting for that Singer sewing machine to melt and watched till midnight, flames but no smoke, then the fire went out like the end of a drive-in movie and everything went dark.

 

[Stephen Torelli]

Years ago firetrucks and even the cops didn't show up in certain neighborhoods. Regardless, I am glad you liked this tale.

Wiji was a real person, yet I do not know what became of her.

[Gita]

I almost did not catch this before it slid off the front page! Wow. This is GOOOD.

Not only is the fire inexplicable but so is the fact that the firetrucks never showed up. Last line is a killer-diller.

 

[Angela]

Wild.  Like serious black magic going on.  Good read.

[Jamie Hogan]

The moment where they knock on the door and hear laughter is crazy spooky. Good stuff Stephen.

[Kristine_ES]

ugh! poor folk trapped inside. but eeriest part was was watching the thing burn.  LOVED "like the end of a drive in movie, everything went dark." 

[Diana E. Backhouse]

A phantom fire for Halloween! Intriguing!