Six year old Enrique, ever curious about the natural world, carefully lifted the heavy stone. His mama had always warned him against this, saying he would get bitten by a venomous spider or serpent, but he knew he had to lift the stone or he would never know what was underneath. His heart pounded with excitement as several centipedes, numerous legs wriggling, scurried from under the stone and dashed into some decaying leaves to hide from the harmless invader.
As he resettled the stone, sweating with effort, he spotted something ahead of him- a small but unfamiliar shadow. Brushing his thick black hair back, he crept forward, eyeing it intently Just as he'd suspected, he found a hole; and not just some old rabbit burrow. This hole was big enough for Enrique to explore, if he squeezed in just right. It was in the side of a small hill but what made it so special was that in all the times Enrique had explored the small wooded area behind his house, and even played on the hill with his brothers, he had never spotted it before. It seemed to call invitingly to him and he was only six- not nearly old enough to deny his own nature. He glanced around, making sure his mama wasn't nearby, searching him out to feed him lunch or make him take a much dreaded nap, and then knelt down to get a better look. It didn't seem deep, maybe deep enough to get his torso in and look for a snake or mole to scare mama with. He brushed leaves and other debris away from the entrance, got down on his stomach, and began worming his way in, grunting softly.
The hole had seemed shallow, but as he slithered forward, he found he could keep going. His curiosity spiked again and he continued scooting, uncaring of the filth that was being ground into his clothes. Mama would scold him, but the mystery had deepened as well as the hole. After several more minutes of straining forward in the darkness, Enrique began to worry. The hill was a very small one. He'd played on it many times and there was only enough room for three or four small boys to stand on it. This hole wasn't going deeper into the ground, it just kept going in a lateral direction. He knew he should have come out the other side by now! Unsure of himself now, he began inching backward. Maybe it was best to leave this hole alone. Maybe mama was right sometimes. He inched back some more, suddenly noticing the close confines and complete darkness that hadn't been bothering him before. There was very little space to move, and the air felt stuffy and hot. He could feel sweat trickling down his skin and he began to pant softly. Trying not to panic, he just focused on moving backward, inches at a time.
An hour later, an exhausted Enrique lay alone in the dirt, sweating and sobbing in the darkness. He couldn't understand what was happening. He had backed up and backed up but he had never backed out of this terrifying place. Suddenly he heard a faint sound. He listened as hard as he could. There it was again! His mama was calling for him! “Mamaaaaaa!”, Enrique cried. “Mama, come get meeeee!” He stopped crying, even stopped breathing, and just listened. He heard her once more, still shouting for him. She hadn't heard him. Dropping his face to the dirt in defeat, he keened softly. He wanted to go home. He wanted his mama to feed him lunch and make him take a nap. He would be a good boy and take his nap without complaint if he could only go home. He heard another sound and lifted his face. Was it Mama again? Surely she wouldn't give up searching for him until she'd found him? He heard the sound again, but the sound wasn't his mama's voice. It was something else, and it caused his whole body to quiver with fear. Something was scratching in the dirt ahead of him.
As the scratching got closer, Enrique strained his eyes, trying in vain to see in the dark tunnel. There was no light and what little air he had was still and stuffy, so when he felt hot air brush his forearms, he stifled a shriek. Something was in this hole with him, and it was breathing on him.
Enrique knew he should squeeze his eyes shut, even in the pitch black, but he couldn't. The fear that as soon as he stopped staring straight ahead that Something would get him was as palpable as the dirt on his cheeks. So he stared ahead, only blinking when he could no longer hold out. His breath came in small, soft huffs, accompanied by tiny whimpers that he couldn't control. He still couldn't see anything, but he gradually became aware of a steady warmth near his bare feet. Something was behind him, too! He grimaced and struggled to keep his screams in, afraid of provoking the creatures into action. His back was cramping from the prolonged position, lying on his stomach with his elbows propping his front half. He eased himself down slowly, feeling the cramps subside. Fear had kept his muscles tight for so long he was trembling with exhaustion and he wasn't sure he was able to go any further, even if there wasn't anything in his way. He heard more scratching sounds, and what might have been Something slithering through the tunnel ahead of him. He had to decide quickly what to do. Mama wasn't coming, his energy was low, and he was so thirsty he was tempted to lick the dirty sweat from his arms. If he stayed here, he was dead. He knew this. Determined not to die in a mysterious hole that should have been an adventure, Enrique began to move again.
As soon as he began to move backward, he heard a much louder noise than before. Chattering, but not the cute squirrel kind. This was loud and harsh and he covered his ears, choking on the dread the sound created in his chest. Thinking of his mama, and lunch, and even a nap, Enrique found the strength to move on. He scurried backwards as fast as he could, ignoring the bone deep ache in his arms and the cramps in his neck and back. He kept going and the chattering seemed to be fading, as though he was putting distance between himself and the Somethings. The one that had been behind him had somehow gotten ahead of him, even though no other tunnels branched off from this one. He was just grateful to have a “safe” direction to go and tried not to overthink the rest. He needed to get out. Now.
Enrique stopped several more times to take short rest breaks and settle his nerves, but he worked for what he was pretty sure was the rest of that day and at least part of the night. His entire body hurt now, more than he had ever hurt before. He was too dehydrated to cry tears but he occasionally hiccuped and whimpered, reminding him of a puppy they'd once had. Dizzy and becoming delirious, he giggled and barked at himself. The chattering was getting closer again, but Enrique was beyond caring, beyond fear. His only goal was to move. He focused on that and not much else. He did think it was strange that the creatures sounded angry, yet he had not been attacked. Were they angry with each other? Were they having an argument? About him maybe? He hoped they weren't discussing whether or not to eat him. He hoped they were arguing about how to get him out of their home and free! He shivered hard despite being overheated and kept scooting.
After quite some time (he wasn't sure about time anymore), Enrique felt something different. Something he hadn't felt in a long while and had not truly expected to feel ever again. He felt a breeze. At first he had the irrational thought that the Something was behind him again and that it's breath was cool somehow, but he then felt it trickle through the cramped space between his body and the hard packed earth around him and it smelled like fresh air. It smelled like heaven! He began to cry dry heaving sobs of joy and redoubled his efforts, moving backward at as fast a pace as he could manage. At last he felt space around his feet! His feet were free! Now for the rest of him! His shins scraped the rough ground at the opening of the tunnel, then his knees. He pushed off hard with his hands and backed out of the tunnel into sunlight. He squinted against the bright glare of sunshine and felt the miracle of the wind caressing his bruised, sore body. His spirit soared and he continued to sob openly. He had to get home and he knew that as worn as he was he would find the strength to get there. He would find his mama, let her feed him lunch, and beg her to put him down for a nap. He smirked as he looked down at himself. After a bath, he thought...
