One Afternoon by Kathryne Courtney 11/3/14
Macie
I wake up and it’s colder than usual, that’s when I remember I’m in New York City today, and it’s a lot colder here than Florida, where I live. I hear my little sister’s quiet breathing next to me, and I figure she must have gotten scared in the night and climbed in bed with me. I debate forcing her to go to her own bed, but decide against it. Mom and dad will be up soon, and Delaney will have to get out then anyway, because today we get to go on a walking tour of the city. So far I’m not a huge fan. The city is crowded and dirty, and the only ‘wildlife’ here are sewer rats and cockroaches. I hear mom and dad moving around; they’ll be in here soon. I hope today is more interesting than yesterday. It felt liked I’d be fourteen before we got done looking at all the museums my mom wanted see.
Tommy
I wake up and feel pleasantly warmer than usual. Spring in New York City is always nice. Hunger is always easier to ignore when you aren’t freezing as well. My stomach growls loudly, hoping I haven’t forgotten it. I know today I need to eat; I haven’t in several days. It's been rainy recently, which means no tourists out walking around in the fresh air, and locals are difficult to steal anything from, much less enough for a good meal. Tourists, on the other hand, are easy money. I hate that I have to take anything from anyone, but what else am supposed to do. Anytime they try to lock me up in a children’s home I run away, because living creatures aren’t supposed to be caged. When I turn sixteen I can get a job and save money to get an apartment and food and not have live on the streets anymore. “9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16,” I count my next birthdays on my fingers till’ I get to sixteen. Eight more years to go. I sigh, and get ready to start gathering my next meal.
Macie
We leave the apartment, off on our ‘adventure’ as mom insists on calling it. I think that is totally cheesy and stupid, but I was clearly outvoted, and now Delaney keeps saying “going on a a-venture, going on a a-venture” over and over. We turn a corner, trying to find this little book store my mom used to go to with her friends when the came here so many years ago. I think it’s gone by now, and now we’ve walked into an alley that looks pretty sketch, and I’m about to turn around and tell my parents what I think of this whole thing, when I feel something grab at my bag, which I have slung over my shoulder. “Hey!” I yell.
Tommy
“Hey!” the girl yells, her blond bun bobbing up and down as she starts to chase me. I take off, knowing the drill. She’ll chase me for a minute or two and then get tired, running back to mommy and daddy, crying about losing her lipstick or whatever junk she keeps in this thing. I glance behind me, hoping she’s gone and I can go through the bag and see if there’s anything good in here. Surprisingly she’s still chasing, and gaining on me quickly. Her parents are chasing her now as well as shouting at her to come back. Suddenly I have an idea. We are nearing an abandoned subway tunnel. I plan to duck in there; surely she’s not stupid enough to try to follow me, and it’s too boarded up for an adult to make it through the tunnel. I slip through the boards, but to my surprise, she follows me!
Macie
I duck through the boards, not thinking about anything but how much I need to get that bag back. He has stopped running and is looking behind me with wide eyes. I turn around in time to see the tunnel collapse, my parents right next to it. I run back over to it. “Momma!” I shriek, knowing she can’t hear me. The blockage is thick, packed tight with rock. I will myself not to cry, but it isn’t working, and before I know it I’m sobbing. I don’t know where the boy went, because it is pitch black dark down here. I just know they won’t be able to rescue me and I’m gonna die down here, and I still don’t have my bag!
Tommy
I hear a noise after the entrance closes, and I realize she’s crying. She’s going to use up all the air that might need to last us weeks! “Shut up, will you?” I snap, to which she cries harder. “Shut up, do you want to use up all the air that’s left in here?” I reprimand her as forcefully as I can, but the truth is I’m terrified, and I just want to cry as well. She quiets down and get up to walk over to me. I expect her to hit me or something, after the way she was chasing me like she wanted to rip my throat out. I brace myself for whatever might come, knowing it would be foolish to try and run. I have no way of knowing what lurks down here. “Can I please just have my bag back?” the girl asks weakly. I toss it to her, and she begins ruffling through it. “Hallelujah, it’s still here,” she says, and a light shines, illuminating the dark. I lean in to look at what I guess to be her phone, and to my surprise she doesn’t pull away. Instead, she just stares at me.
Macie
He leans in, entranced by my phone. That’s when I get my first good look at his face. I can’t help but stare at his dirty blond hair and sad green eyes. I can’t believe how young he is. Now I’m glad I didn’t hit him for taking my bag. He’s incredibly skinny and I’m sure he only took the bag because he was hungry. He looks scared now, and I’m thankful I’m not alone down here. “Okay, I have two packs of crackers, six sticks of gum, three water bottles, and a chocolate bar in my bag. How long do you think it’ll take them to get us out?” I ask him, trying to figure out how long my stash will last us. “What?” he mumbles, and I wonder if he’s become stupid living in the streets. “How long do you think it will take the police and such to get us out of here?” I repeat, frustration evident in my tone. “I understood the question,” he snaps, all of a sudden looking less scared and more annoyed. “I don’t understand why you’re going to share with me. I tried to take your bag. You should be mad at me. As for getting out, there’s no telling. We could be here for hours or weeks, depending on the thickness on rock,” he says, leaning back against the smooth, cold wall of the subway.
Tommy
Her face falls when I tell her how long it may take, but she quickly regroups. “How could I be mad at you for simply trying to stay alive? Besides, you’re like, seven,” she answers. “I’m eight!” I say indignantly. “Whatever,” she rolls her eyes. After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, she speaks again. “What’s your name?” she asks. This time I roll my eyes. “‘What’s your name?’” I mock, “We are trapped in an abandoned subway tunnel with very limited food and water, and you want us to sit around and get to know each other with pointless questions like ‘What’s your name?’ Well guess what? Names won’t matter when we die here,” I’m shouting by the end, because honestly, I’m done with the girl. I don’t care whether or not we make it out of here; even if I make it out her parents will have me arrested for sure. I decide that the best way to deal with the cold and dark is just to sleep through it, and I’m all laid down when I hear her crying, again. I do feel bad I made her cry, but I don’t know what to do. She needs to realize that our survival rate is not high.
Macie
I’m crying harder now than I was earlier. I was just trying to be friendly, and he had to go on about how we’re going to die here anyway. I knew that was likely, but I was trying to ignore that thought. I don’t know what I’m gonna do now. I think he’s gone to go sleep over on the other side of the tunnel. I feel something touch my shoulder and I shriek. “Shhh, it’s just me,” he states and sits back down beside me. “Tommy. That’s my name,” he tells me. “I thought you said it didn’t matter,” I sniff, and wipe at my nose with sleeve. “If it’ll get you to shut up, I’ll tell you my favorite animal too,” he remarks sarcastically. I giggle, and answers his unspoken question. “Mine’s Macie,” “Your favorite animal is a macie?” he wrinkles his brow as he speaks, and waits just long enough to grin so that I think I’m gonna have to explain what I meant. “Gotcha,” he giggles now, and I remember the kid is only eight. “You’re thirteen,” he says, and I’m surprised he guessed right. “How’d you know?” I question him. “I heard your mom yell, ‘I’ll ground you till’ you’re fourteen,’ when you ducked through the boards,” he admits, and I look at the ground, feeling tears pricking in my eyes. I just want my mom and dad and even Delaney! “Who’s Delaney?” Tommy asks. “Oops, I guess I said that out loud. My little sister, she’s five,” I tell him, and this time he looks at the ground. He doesn’t speak for a long time.
Tommy
What would it be like, I wonder, to have family? I know I used to have a mama, until she didn’t come home from work one day. I don’t know if I have siblings. No one will miss me if we don’t make it out of here. And even if we do, my life still sucks. I can feel Macie looking over at me, and I realize I do have one person who cares about me, at least a little. “So, what time is it?” I ask, trying to move on. “One fifteen,” Macie answers, pulling out her phone again. “Do you want to eat?” I ask. “Sure, how do you want to divide up the food?” Macie looks at me and then at the food. “How about we each eat three crackers now, each drink a little out of a water bottle, and chew a piece of gum to keep us busy,” She suggests, and I agree. We eat in silence, both of us realizing how hungry we actually are. After I drink the water I decide to go to sleep instead of eating gum. “You can just go to sleep in the middle of the day?” Macie looks confused. “You aren’t cold or hungry when you sleep. I sleep quite frequently just to escape those things,” I explain, and she decides to sleep as well. It’s colder laying down, but I ignore it as best I can and soon I’m asleep.
Macie
I don’t dream much, but it seems like not much time has passed before I’m awaken by a rumbling noise. “Macie, Macie,” someone is calling. Only one person would be calling me. “Tommy,” I shout and look around. I can’t see him anywhere. I do see my mom, she’s the one calling me. The tunnel is open, but rocks are falling all around. “Mama,” I call out, and take off running to her, any thought of Tommy leaving my mind. I run in to her arms and hug her, and only then do I think about the boy I’ve left behind. I whip around in time to see the rocks all collapse once more, further in this time, and I’m certain they crushed him. “Tommy,” I shout again, and I push my mom off of me. I run over to the pile and just cry. I know I’ll have to explain to my parents what happened, but for now I just cry. It’s strange, how someone you knew for such a short period of time can make such a difference. I know he’s happier now, and even though I’m sad, I am glad he doesn’t have to be homeless anymore. I just wish I could have given him a home.
Tommy
I open my eyes, and I notice I’m not cold anymore. Also it isn’t dark. I can’t see much because my eyes are still adjusting to the light. I can see the outline of a figure in the distance. “Macie?” I call out. She walks to me. “No, Tommy, mama,” she whispers quietly. “Mama,” I cry excitedly and wrap her in a hug. I know everything is going to be okay now. I just hope Macie is okay down there.
That's it for today. I'll have something else up Wednesday. Till then, Xoxo.
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