Snack Food Hero

Chapter 24: Sounds of the Night

The bus landed so hard it jumped back into the air and landed on its side. Dust flew into the bus and Bash began coughing. He could hardly see through the thick dust but he crawled on his hands and knees to a window and hoisted himself out.

They helped each other crawl out of the bus. The only injuries were scrapes and bruises.

"Come on," said Arnold. "We just have to dust ourselves off and keep going."

Bash wiped dirt off his arms and looked over at Rainbow. She was also trying to clean off a bit, but she was oblivious to the mask of dirty covering her pretty face. Suddenly Bash realized he probably also had a mask of dirt covering his face.

"Going where?" Asked Bash.

Arnold walked closer to Bash and said, "Well we can't go back, she'll kill us for sure".

"Oh yea, no kidding. We can't go back."

"We just go in the direction the bus was going," said DA.

"What about when we come to a fork in the road?" Asked Lance.

"We take it," said Arnold.

Lance and Rainbow laughed.

"Oh Brother," said Bash. "Left or right? We won't know if we should take a fork in the road to the left or the right."

Arnold sat down on a rock and folded his arms. "Then what do you suggest?"

"Sleep," said Bash. "Let's rest. Maybe things will become more clear."

Bash heard sobbing. "Who is that? Look, we're getting out of here together."

"It's DA," said Keesha.

"Shut up!" Yelled DA. DA tried to stifle her sobs.

"Sorry," said Keesha.

"Have you ever seen that movie?" She asked between sobs. "Where the plane crashes in the Andes Mountains?"

"Yea!" Said Duncan. "And they eat each other!"

"We're not going to eat each other," said Bash.

"Speak for yourself," said Lance. "Trust me, kids, you do not want to be the first one to fall asleep."

Bash laughed really hard and Lance joined him.

"Aw, I'm joking," said Lance. "I won't eat you. Not tonight."

"Oh my gosh," said Rainbow. She picked up a can of food beside the bus. "Ms. Frizzle was hogging the pork and beans!"

"Give me that!" Said Duncan as he lunged for the small can of food.

Rainbow jumped out of the way and Duncan landed on the ground.

"We have to split it!"

Duncan picked himself up. "You're gonna split a can of pork and beans like ten ways? What's my share, three beans?"

"If you run at me again," said Rainbow, "you won't get any beans."

"I hope he does," said Carlos. "More for us!"

"Carlos!" Said Keesha, and then she started laughing with Carlos.

While Rainbow divvied up the can of beans, Bash heard a splash of water somewhere in the distance. He listened closely, trying to hear it again. He received his scoop of beans in the palm of his hand and stepped away from the crowd. Had he really heard anything? No one else seemed to have noticed the sound.

Rainbow tossed the empty can back into the crashed bus and yawned loudly.

"Me, too," said Duncan. "I'm so tired."

"Me three," said Carlos.

"Wait," said Keesha. "We have to take turns keeping lookout."

"I'll be the lookout," said Bash. "I don't think I can sleep anyway."

Soon the silence of the underground was met with further yawns, "good night", and "sweet dreams".

Bash sat with his back against a cave wall and stared into the night. After a couple of hours, while everyone else slept, he heard footsteps approaching. They were maybe 100 yards away and getting closer.

I can't believe it, he thought. Ms. Frizzle somehow tracked us? What's she going to do, kill everyone?

Then the footsteps stopped and after a while, he once again wondered if he'd really heard anything at all. He rested his head on a rock and closed his eyes, focusing all his attention on the little sounds of the night. He wondered if his mind was playing tricks on him, and if so, why, and then — he was asleep.

In his dream were the same footsteps, but they sounded much closer.