Trapped In (2)

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I didn't realize I fell asleep until I wake up to the sound of metal grinding. My eyebrows furrow tightly together in annoyance as my ears scream at me to make it stop.

"Ugh." My head falls to the side, my muscles screaming painfully, and my eyes shoot open as I scan my surroundings. Dakota snores softly, his mouth agape. "Dakota." I croak with no luck. He remains unmoving.

I jump slightly when the sound starts up again and my attention is drawn to the elevator doors, but that's not where it's coming from. The loud scraping seems to be surrounding me on all sides. That's when I realize we seem to be slowly ascending.

"Dakota." I hiss again, falling onto my hands and knees, a sharp pain stabbing me in the back from the inside out. My eyes squeeze shut and I shuffle over to where he's lying. My hands smack at him, patting his face to wake him up.

Slowly but surely, his eyes flutter open, thick brows pulling together. "What? What time is it? Five more minutes, Sam." He mumbles quietly, his breath breath hitting my nose. It scrunches from the stench.

"Ew, Dakota. When we get out of here, you're brushing your teeth." I laugh when his eyes fling open as he seems to feel the movement of the shaft.

"What? What's going on?" He sits up to fast and I see it on his face, the blood draining from it as it becomes significantly pale.

"I think we're getting out of here." I bite my lip to contain my smile.

He grins back before his face contorts in pain and his palms cover his ears. "What's that sound?" He winces.

I look around, doing my best to ignore the screeching of the metal. "My guess is that they couldn't get the elevator cables to work so they're doing it manually? Maybe it's more serious than a power issue." I shrug, feeling anxious.

"Maybe." He says absentmindedly. "And I have a headache that hurts like a mother."

A laugh escapes me but I quickly groan, my hand shooting to my side as a sharp pain overtakes me once again. "You'll have water soon, it'll be fine. You're just dehydrated."

"Are you okay, Lillian?" Dakota rushes to my side, his hand wounding awkwardly around my forearm as he assists me.

I nod, my face pulling together in pain as I struggle to my feet. "Yeah...I'm fine. I have really acidic kidneys and I've gone too long without water. Usually it's not a big deal but it just hurts right now." I tell him, breathing slowly out of my mouth.

"Okay well...don't go passing out on me again. We're almost out of here." Dakota jokes with a crooked grin as I lean against him, the shaft coming to a sudden stop.

I fight to stay focused on him, the stabbing pain becoming more intense. "I'll try my best." My words stumble out quietly. "Just a few more minutes and I'm sure they'll have these doors open." I tell him, my eyes locking onto the large doors that begin to shift slightly.

"Yeah, you're right." Dakota says, holding me up with surprising strength considering his own weakness at the moment. "Listen...Lillian," Dakota pauses, "I was thinking and maybe after we get out of here and after we go back to our normal lives, we could...I don't know - be friends? Maybe?" He scratches the back of his head with his free hand as he avoids me gaze.

I feel my eye lids grow heavier and heavier while the pain in my back grows more intense. "I get the feeling..." I pant, "that I couldn't get rid of you if I tried." I breathe a laugh.

He chuckles and I sense some relief in his tone as he says, "Good. That's uh...that's good. I'd like that."

I think for a moment, asking myself if there's anything else I'd like to say before these doors get pried open and I most likely go to the hospital. The truth is, I don't know that Dakota and I will be close. In fact, I don't know if we'll even really end up being friends. Mostly because real life happens and sometimes the boy you meet in the elevator doesn't end up being who you thought he would be. Truth be told, I have no clue how this will end up.

"Lillian!" A familiar yell is muffled by the two doors.

A new burst of energy flows through me as my fist pounds the door, my arm pulled away from Dakota's grasp. "Amelia?" I holler as loud as I can but the sweat on my forehead shows the effort I'm using just to remain standing.

"We're going to get you out of there, sweetie. Everything is going to be okay." She tells me sternly.

"Okay." I reply, nodding.

"Are you alone in there?" She asks me and I hear a small crack in her aged voice, my heart tugging at her concern for me.

I look over at Dakota and he gives me a small smile and a reassuring wink. "No. I'm in here with a customer that was in the store last night."

"Oh thank God. Are you hurt?" She asks me as I lean my head against the warm metal.

"I'm fine." I swallow dryly. "My-my kidneys really hurt but other than that, I'm great."

"I'm going to need you to step away from the door." A deep voice emulates from behind the doors and I instantly stumble backwards.

"Okay we're good." Dakota hollers, placing his hands on my shoulders to keep me at his side. As if I'll run off or something.

"Alright, guys." The man says, "I'm from the fire department and I've got some men ready who are just as concerned for your safety as Amelia here. Now, what we're going to do is just pry these doors open and you're going to walk out carefully one by one." He says slowly and carefully.

I look over at Dakota, giving him a questioning look but he shrugs in reply. "Why?" I ask him.

There's a pause before he finally replies, "There's something wrong with the cables. We're not one hundred percent sure what caused this but those cables were so badly installed that this elevator should have shut down a long time ago. We're concerned that one of the main cables could snap, sending you two plummeting down to the car garage below the building." The fireman speaks loudly and clearly as to make sure we don't miss a single syllable.

My eyes widen and I suddenly tense up, feeling Dakota's fingers squeeze my shoulders slightly. "It's going to be fine, Lillian." He whispers to me. "Just don't think about it."

"Okay." I nod dumbly, my mouth slightly agape as I do the exact opposite of what he just told me to do.

We stand still for a few more moments before the doors open quicker than I thought they would and I'm met by the concern expression of my elderly manager and a tall wide shouldered group of men in matching uniforms.

"Hello." I squeak, earning a slightly baffled chuckle from the group. "Can I come out now?"

The fireman, whom I'm guessing is the man who was informing us moments ago, nods grimly. "Walk slowly and take my hand." His gloved hand is reached out to me carefully as I take a step forward, looking back at Dakota, not taking another step until he gives me a reassuring nod and sends me on my way. "We have a paramedic standing by." He tells me curtly and I nod to acknowledge that I've heard him.

As soon as my foot steps over the opening of the elevator, I fight to keep my eyes open, the sharp knives in my side becoming more and more prominent. I hiss, falling into the arms of the fireman involuntarily.

"Lillian!" I can't tell if the worried voice belongs to Amelia who rushes to my aid and yells for some help or the boy still standing in the elevator with a scared expression, his own face looking pale and sickly.

"I-I just need water." Are the words that cross my lips before I pass at for the second time in the last twenty four hours.