Elyar and I

Chapter 11 - Digging my first hole

I woke up with a start as the bell rang in my ear. Tears still running down my face as if my tears were the runners and my face was the race track for the Olympic games.

"Hey, you okay? You look like you've been crying" X-ray said; he seemed really concerned.

"Yeah, yeah, I-I'm fine. I'll be okay." I said quickly wiping away the tears and turning my head so that nobody could see. Everyone else seemed to believe me. But Zigzag didn't seem too convinced. He looked at me with a concerned look on his face.

"I'm fine. Trust me." I said again, looking at zigzag. But I could tell that this wasn't going to be the end of it.

"You going to turn around so I can get changed?" They all turned around quickly and I pulled on my orange jumpsuit, my white socks and my black boots. To be honest, the boots probably weighed more than me - which I wasn't happy about. I didn't exactly have a choice though, I had to wear them or god knows what would happen to me. I'd probably get bitten by a rattle snake or stung by a scorpion or something like that.

"You can turn around now" I said as I began to tie the laces which were more like miniature ropes. I put my hand in my backpack, aiming to pull out a packet of crisps.

"What's actually in there?" Caveman asked. Caveman's one of those really nosey people that you don't want to talk to, but they talk to you no matter what you say to them.

"A fifty inch TV, what'd you think dumbass" everyone laughed. I pulled my hand out of my backpack. Blood ran down the back of my hand and down to my wrist.

Zigzag came up behind me and sat on my cot next to me. "Woah! How'd that happen" He took the packet of crisps out of my hand and put it on the mattress. He examined my hand.

"Must have cut it when I got my crisps" I looked at my hand trying to seem bothered about it, but I really wasn't that bothered. Infact, it didn't bother me at all.

"Ha! On what? A knife?" I looked at zigzag, the look I gave him was as if to say 'yes, now shut up!' He nodded. I think he got the message.

"Come on, need to go get our shovels" Ziggy held my hand and pulled me up off the cot. Everyone else was already out of the tent and lined up to get their shovels.

"Please, promise me you won't tell anyone." I said as I began to play with zigzag's hand. His hand was almost twice the size of mine.

"I promise" He replied as he brushed a strand of hair out of my face. "But I don't wan't to see you get hurt."

"Cheeseball" He smiled. He put his arm around me; I could have just stayed there for the rest of the day but we had to go.

When we got out of the tent, in my mind, it was still night time. But according to everyone in this shit-hole 4am is the time to start working.

I picked up my shovel from the shovel library (I always thought that a library was where they just kept books and a place I never dared to enter, but obviously not.) And I got a tortilla smothered in honey.

"The second hole's always the hardest chica" Magnet warned.

"Wonderful. So i've got to get up at this ungodly hour everyday?" Magnet had a weird laugh but to be honest, I was too tired to care. We began to walk up to the desert part of the camp with everybody else.

"Everyday, 4am" he replied between bites of his tortilla. How could he eat that? How could anyone eat that? It was disgusting!

"You've got to be kidding me! I've got to get up at 4am and dig. As in d-i-g!" I had never had to dig in my life. Especially when it was like what, 90 degrees now, and it was only 4:15am.

"You're going to dig here," Mr sir said as he pointed to the point where I was supposed to dig. "You're going to dig a hole 5 foot deep, 5 foot in diameter. Use your shovel as a measuring stick.." He began to walk away and I shoved my shovel in to the dirt below.

"1 down 10 million to go" Mr Sir was just starting to mock me. How would he feel if he had to come out and dig a hole every day?

Hours passed and the water truck came. Mr Pendanski stepped out of the front of the truck and everyone got out of their holes and began to line up.

I was having trouble getting out of my hole. "Can someone lend me a hand?" Nobody replied. "Fine, i'll just get out myself." I used my shovel to make some indents in the side of the hole and used them to climb out.

"Nikki, you come stand here in front of me" Squid demanded. As I got closer and closer to the truck, I decided to have a bit of fun with Mr Pendanski. It got to my turn.

"Hey, Mr P! You're a doctor right?" I said enthusiastically as I passed him my canteen and rested my elbow on the water truck.

"Yes. That's why my names Dr. Pendanski. I'm a psychologist."

"Then why does everyone call you Mr. Pendanski? You know what. I bet you aren't even a proper doctor."

"For your information young lady, I am a doctor. I am a psychologist, okay?" Mr Pendanski's face went red with anger and rage. But everyone else couldn't stop laughing.

"Oh really, then wheres your white coat and your stethoscope? Did you leave it in your office?" Mr Pendanski turned off the hose, twisted the top and shoved the canteen into my chest with a look of bewilderment on his face. I walked back to my hole with a smirk on my face, knowing I had just pissed him off even more.

About 30 minutes later zero launched himself out from his hole and walked off with his shovel.

"Done already?" I shouted, not that he could possibly hear me.

"Don't you know? He's like the fastest digger in the camp" Magnet said ploughing through the dirt as if he were a farmer.

"He's a mole! I think he actually eats the dirt!" Squid added.

"Moles don't eat dirt though, worms eat dirt." Armpit replied.

"Ha! You just got owned!" X-ray said. Looks like everyone agreed.

At about 1:15, I finished digging my hole, and I had to use the indentations I made to get out again. I looked around and everyone was still digging. And I began to walk off back to the tent.