The images were whizzing by in my head. They were all the faces of my friends and family. I replayed all the memories that my friends and I had had together. I remembered the time Michelle, Timmy, Kyle, and Josh, and I had met for the first time. Michelle and I had become instant best friends in the forth grade. We had played on the swings at recess everyday back then. I met Timmy, Kyle, and Josh in seventh grade all at one time. The boys were just like brothers to Michelle and I. Timmy, Kyle and Josh were best friends that had run away from home together and ended up in the lonely town of Mexia, Texas. Michelle and I had seen them, raggedy and tired, wondering down the road. We instantly wanted to help the boys, so we ran and brought them into our apartment building for food, water, and a place to stay. The image of the old apartment flew through my head. Michelle's parents lived in the same apartment building as us and fixed up the old room next to theirs so Timmy, Kyle, and Josh could live there. Once they had all settled in, our whole group went down to the local Dairy Queen and laughed and talked over five chocolate milkshakes. I remember everyone's favorite milkshake. Mine had been a vanilla chocolate mix. Michelle's was strawberry, Kyle's was blueberry, Timmy's was carmel, and Josh's had been sherbet. We would go down to Dairy Queen every day after school, order the same thing, sit at our favorite booth (one we had called the booth of disaster, concerning the many spilling of milkshakes that occurred every day), and help each other with their homework. Soon, Josh and I had began to develop a certain fondness of each other. In fact, Josh was my first date to the school dance; Michelle had taken Timmy, but their relationship was on the down low for the longest time. Kyle had been the goofy kid who had just tagged along and danced with his friends. And, of course, there was the time that Timmy had gotten his learners permit and snuck out to give us a not-so-quick joy ride. That adventure had ended up with a totaled Volkswagen and all of us friends in the hospital. Some with broken bones, and some with minor concussions. Then there was the time we were all almost arrested for running wild in the mall. I remembered the looks of my parents' faces when they had to come and pick us up from the police station. I also remembered being grounded for two months, but it was worth it. As it turns out, my friends were most of my life, and now they're just gone. The terrible thought sent me spiraling out of sleep.
I jerked upward, but hit my head on something cold and hard. I looked around, but the whole area was unrecognizable to me. I searched for a way out; when I couldn't find one, I pounded on the walls.
"Help!" I shrieked. "Help me, please! Can anybody hear me? Anybody at all?"
"Nobody can hear you," a small, uncertain voice said.
I turned. "Hello?" I called. "Is someone there?"
"Yes. I am here," the voice responded.
"Oh good! Do you know the way out?"
"No. There is no way out."
"What do you mean there's no way out?"
"You are trapped here, with me, forever," the voice explained.
I was terrified. "W-who are you?"
"I am the voice of the trees and the bushes. Truth is, I am nothing. Just a simple voice to keep you company."
"Where am I?"
"You are under the soil. Under everything. And Lillian, you won't make it out of here alive."
"H-how do you know my name?" my staggered voice echoed. When there was no answer, I called out, "Hello?" Immediately, I started digging upward. I dug and dug and dug for what seemed like hours. Then, the dirt and mud roof collapsed, burring me up to my shoulders. I pushed up on the remaining dirt and the light of the setting sun shinned on my face. I struggled, but got out of my little hole and ran. In the confusion, I had lost the map, but by now I had memorized all my escape routes.
