The Ghost and Sleepwalker

I recently caught up with my old high school classmates at our virtual reunion, and we exchanged stories about our past shenanigans and had a few laughs. One of the stories that came up was my sleepwalking escapades.

Funny thing is, I was never a sleepwalker, but none of them knew that. They still don't. Sleepwalking was a more plausible story than the real culprit – restless legs syndrome (RLS).

New environment, new school

I went off to boarding school at age 10. For the first time in my life, I had to live with so many strangers from different backgrounds and upbringings. It was somewhat exciting and scary at the same time.

Our dormitories were packed with so many people and each room housed 32 girls. We all slept on bunk beds with the junior students on the top bunks and the senior students on the bottom bunks.

Forgetting about RLS for a short time

By some stroke of luck, I didn't experience any RLS symptoms the first week. Of course, this might have been due to the change of environment, being very busy acclimatizing to the new environment and rules while also trying to cope with the fast pace and keep up with my studies.

For the first time in my life, I forgot about my RLS, but that did not last very long. Once the second week rolled along, and I started to get the hang of the routines, BAM! Hello RLS, my old friend (cue in acoustic guitar).

Tossing and turning in my bunk

I remember tossing and turning so much that the bottom bunk senior made me come down and sleep on the floor. It was so cold and uncomfortable; I cried all night long.

After that night, whenever it was lights out and all the students had gone to bed, I'd wear layers of clothing, wrap my white blanket around me and sneak outside.

Roaming outside in the cold

I'd roam outside the courtyard, and most times, I'd fall asleep standing up. Life was so hard; I was barely sleeping, barely eating, and because I was always outside in the cold, my asthma was at an all-time high.

To make matters worse, my school was an old burial ground, and ghosts were rumored to appear from time to time. So not only was I outside in the cold at night, I was so terrified.

The Ghost of Courtyard B

Soon enough, people started noticing me walking around, and before long, I became known as the "Ghost of Courtyard B."  Everyone was talking about it and students were staying awake at night to get a glimpse of the said ghost.

It was both funny and worrisome, so I stopped walking outside and I resorted to walking the halls of my dormitory. Of course, I was caught in less than no time. The person who saw me screamed so much, everyone woke up.

How to explain my midnight walks?

All the seniors surrounded me like a pride of lions ready to pounce on their helpless prey. Then came the questions:

"Why are you skulking about in the dark?"
"Are you trying to steal?"
"Are you possessed and trying to initiate others into your coven?"

How could I explain that I was walking around at midnight in the dark because my legs couldn't keep still? I didn't even know what it was then, so I had no words for the mob of angry and suspicious teenage girls surrounding me. Then a lightbulb moment happened.

'Sleepwalking' got me off the hook

I remembered a movie I had watched that summer about sleepwalking, so I blurted out, "I sleepwalk." Everyone went very quiet for a hot minute, then came a chorus of "Oh" and "I see." The movie was quite popular, thankfully, so the concept of sleepwalking wasn't alien to most of them.

They let me off the hook. It also allowed me the freedom to walk around at night when my legs became unbearable. I became the girl who sleepwalks. If only they knew. Catching up with my friends recently and talking about it brought back memories of one of the worst and traumatizing times in my life.

They didn't and still don't know I was the "Ghost in Courtyard B." Sometimes, truth is indeed stranger than fiction.