AJ slows his pace, hesitant to interrupt Lu as she tosses crusts to a pair of pigeons. When he crunches gravel, she doesn’t look up, just asks, “Why you back?”
Wanted to see this hellhole one more time.” He takes a few steps toward her. “And you, Lu.”
She stiffens. “Been a long time.”
He says nothing, just takes it in —the graffitied, abandoned slaughterhouse where both their dads worked. Bulldozers, dump trucks, cranes, concrete crushers waiting til dawn when the demo officially starts. And Lu, his best-friend-first-girlfriend, until AJ’s family followed his dad’s job south, and Lu’s father stayed behind to soak in bitterness and beer.
AJ scans the perimeter. Pushes over a cement block. Steps on it. Heaves himself over the chain-link fence. Holds out his hand, hoping she’ll follow.
She hesitates, glancing at the pigeons humming evening coos. Then she hops onto the block and pulls herself up. “Ow!” Drops back down, rubbing her hands. “Can’t do it, AJ.”
“Lemme help.” He tugs off his sweatshirt, folds it over the jagged fence top. “Try again.” This time, she pulls herself over. AJ catches her, holding her until she pushes him back, mumbling, “I hate you” into his chest.
He grins. “No you don’t. C’mon. Let’s go inside.”
Her eyes widen. “There are cameras everywhere. Signs saying no trespassing.”
Shrugging, AJ pulls on his sweatshirt while moving toward the building. “It’ll be trashed tomorrow. Who gives a crap?”
She considers, then follows, stepping on broken glass, weeds, cracked cement. “How’d you hear about the demo?”
“Online. I took a train up.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Wanted to surprise.” AJ pulls at a door, but it doesn’t budge, so he starts toward the back entrance, where trucks delivered doomed livestock.
Lu pants, jogging to keep up with AJ’s long strides. Grabs his hoodie.
AJ gags. “Choking me!” he coughs out.
“You shoulda called!” Hands on hips, blinking back tears.
“Didn’t know what to say, Lu.”
She deflates. “Forget it. C’mon.” Now he’s following her to a side door marked with faded letters: “Employees Only.” Door’s locked. She unzips her wallet, slides a credit card in-up-down, clicks open.
Mildewy-rancid-urine odors push them back outside. They yelp, sucking in fresh air, pulling shirts over their noses, flicking on phone flashlights, stepping back in. “What if we find money?” AJ whispers. “Like a drawer full of cash? What’d you do with it?”
“Not gonna happen with my luck,” Lu mutters, their lights scanning the break room: overturned chairs, rusty sink, cracked vending machines, partially-chewed snack bags at the bottom. A rectangular lunch table fully intact, dust thick as frosting.
“If I find a pile of cash, I’ll take you on a trip. Disney or —”
Lu’s light lands on black, shiny eyes. Bears, bunnies, dogs — stuffing spilling out of moldy, stained bodies. “What-the-hell?” she gasps.
AJ kicks a soiled Snoopy missing an ear. It skids to a decaying box with a torn label that says Toys for. He nudges the box. “A freakin’ toy collection! Look: Rubrik’s cubes, Mr. Potato Heads, Matchbox cars — all trashed ‘n rotting.”
“Why? Why’d they get left?” Lu’s voice shakes.
AJ fake-pukes. “Didn’t deliver the holiday toy collection bin before shutting down. No damn heart.”
Rustling noises, low screeches interrupt them. AJ and Lu grab each other’s hands like Hansel and Gretel in the witch’s kitchen. No breadcrumbs, though, just rodent droppings.
“Helllllooooooo!” AJ shouts.
Silence.
Lu locks eyes with Minnie Mouse, polka-dot dress ripped, pink bow dangling, white stuffing oozing from her nose like snot. “I had a Minnie just like this. Some kid woulda loved it.”
“C’mon Lu.”
She pauses, then pulls open the door leading toward the slaughterhouse, holding it for AJ. “You think they cleaned up or —”
AJ takes a step, then jerks back, swiping a cobweb. “Lu! It’s all over me!”
She slams the door, holding up her phone’s light in one hand, combing through AJ’s hair with her other. The sticky silk clings to hair, fingers, sleeves. Like cotton candy on a hot day, they can’t shake it off. Or memories of the slaughterhouse, skinned torsos dripping, stained cleavers, bloody splatters —
“Let’s get outta here,” she sputters.
“You sure?” AJ grabs her arm. “Last chance.”
“I can’t —. What if there’s real animal bodies inside? And maggots? Dried blood? Skeletons? I-can’t-I-can’t-I-”
“Okay. It’s okay, Lu.” AJ squeezes her hand. “We don’t have to.” They retreat through the employee entrance, welcoming the dark chill. AJ pulls Lu in. “Where’s your pigeon friends?” he asks.
“It’s late. Probably asleep. God. I’m still shaking!”
“Hey! Whatsamatter?”
Lu leans on the chain link fence, face salty wet, murmuring, “Why’d they leave Minnie to rot?”
Image: the inside of a derelict factory from Pixabay.com
literally stories 
The very fact that this is set in such an establishment introduces the feeling of drama and threat and then the box of toys takes it to a different place. The characters are well drawn and I wanted to know their background and what had passed between them. All in all this was an engrossing read and when you take into account that it was a short time in an abandoned building that it darned good writing for it to be so gripping and then the final poignant sentence is masterful. Thank you – dd
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Thank you Diane for this kind and generous comment. I am so grateful … Although the story is fictional, it’s based on a weird scenario in my hometown – an abandoned meat packing plant was found to have piles of toys left behind. It captured my imagination.
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Hi Liz,
You touched on something here, the sad thing is there are countless amounts of work-places just like this!!
Well perceived!!!
Hugh
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Thank you Hugh for this thoughtful comment. It’s true – sadly. In all of our home towns.
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Liz
I worked at a similar hellhole when I was young. A few years later I read that it was razed and almost felt sad, but I caught myself.
Old warehouses are stunningly frightening, as though set aside from reality. Placing young lively people into such a scenario is highly effective.
Leila
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Wow Leila – what a poignant comment. I hope you write about your experiences. I love your sentence: ” A few years later I read that it was razed and almost felt sad, but I caught myself.” Thank you.
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The title does a lot of excellent work. The trespassing into the building. AJ trespassing back into Lu’s life. The loss of innocence that trespasses into everyone’s lives eventually. The setting is eerie, and the toys make it more so.
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Thank you so much David for this thoughtful comment! This story is fictional, but it’s based on an abandoned meat packing plant in my hometown that was found to have piles of toys rotting inside. No one knew why. It captured my imagination. Thanks for commenting.
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Really liked the phrase, “to soak in bitterness and beer.” There’s one of Hemingway’s six-word-stories, right there.
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Michael – What a generous comment – to be compared in anyway to Hemingway. Thank you!!
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Great story, Really felt for AJ and Lu.
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Thank you so much for this. I think, in a way, we are all AJ and Lu, trying to make sense of the broken world. Best wishes.
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May be a false memory, or from this evocative story, but now I’ve been in a place like that.
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Thank you for this comment. Hope you explore your imagination and write about it!!
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Cinematic. Great sensory details. I want to echo previous comments about the power of the title to highlight the physical and emotional trespassing, and well-crafted phrases (bitterness and beer – so evocative!). And of course, the social commentary on workplaces and on relationshps (interpersonal and social – the toy drive). So much packed into this flash.
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An exploration into a forbidden zone…… I expect something horror movie like to happen but the reality is enough, and goes much deeper than some kind of sensationalist happening. There’s a parallel feeling of nostalgia, esp. from Lu, and I get the sense things haven’t worked out well in both their lives. I get the feeling of…. maybe a new start now…
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