crizzikhsan
- Dec 28, 2022
- 2 min read

The strange and eerie...

I was bored sitting in my room. My dorm mates were not around and there was nothing much on television. I noticed there was a cinema not far from here. I got dressed and went to Cottage Road Cinema on my bicycle. It was around 8 or 9 pm.

Photo of Cottage Road Cinema — Cottage Road Cinema - photo from https://www.cottageroad.co.uk/press/

If I am not mistaken Dangerous Liaisons was playing. Dangerous Liaisons had Michelle Pfeiffer, John Malkovich, Glenn Close, Uma Thurman, Keanu Reeves among others. It was a movie set in 18th century France. I studied French history so it was quite interesting to see high society intrigue on the big screen.

It was almost midnight by the time it ended. The roads were devoid of vehicles. I had to cross Otley Road.

I crossed the road and to get to the main gate was quite a distance. It was closer if I took a shortcut to Beckett Park. I took St Chad's Drive and cycled uphill. From there, I had to cross passing St Chad's Church,

St Chad's Church, Headingley - photo from https://stchads.co.uk/

To get to my dorm I cut through a churchyard. I noticed a small path when I cycled earlier. Far easier compared to riding uphill. I got to the gate and decided to push my bicycle through the churchyard.

Photo of St Chad Churchyard — St Chad's Churchyard - photo from https://stchads.co.uk/gallery-eco-st-chads/

As I pushed through the churchyard, I noticed that there were a crowd in the churchyard. In the beginning I thought they were holding a late-night burial. Strange time though, past midnight. I continued to push my bicycle, nodding at the crowd as I went by, and they smiled at me. As I went pass, I noticed something a little odd. I noticed that they were wearing period costumes. They had top hats on while the ladies wore crinolines.

19th Century Clothes — 19th Century clothes - photo from https://wangsnessfashionhistory.weebly.com/19th-century.html

I was just watching a movie set in the 18th century. my eyes must be playing with me. It must be my imagination. I must be dreaming. But I wasn't. In the 18th century, they wore differently.

18th Century Fashion - photo from https://www.behance.net/gallery/43960793/Fashion-Timeline18-th-century

I pushed my bicycle through the crowd, and they were smiling at me. I couldn't see any funeral, so they must be having some period gala, party or shindig. I continued my path to the next gate and as I reached to the end I turned around for another look. The crowd now shimmers as if they were disappearing. And by the time I passed through the gate, they have disappeared altogether.

I quickly got on my bicycle and started pedalling like crazy back to my dorm. The dorm seems so far away. It was pitch dark as I made my way pass all these old buildings that is part of my college.