Zipped

4: The Landing

Thomas

The fall wasn’t as long as I expected it to be. In everything you see on TV, or anywhere, they make falls look like long things. I thought I had time to think about the meaning of life before we hit the bottom.

A short time after jumping, and still not knowing the meaning of life, Molly and I hit something. It came so quickly that neither of us had opened our parachutes. We hit it full on.

Or did we?

I felt a slight bounce underneath me, like I had landed on a trampoline that pushed me back up once I hit it. But, there were holes everywhere, like they were ropes tied together. Maybe they were. But, it was pitch black when we landed, though, so I couldn’t see what had really happened.

“Molls?” I called, reaching out in the direction I thought she was.

I was wrong. “Don’t call me that,” her voice rang out from the opposite direction.

“I thought you fell in on this side,” I said and sat up.

“Well, I didn’t,” she said plainly. Then she spoke again. “Wait, which side are you talking about?”

“This side,” I said and moved my right arm. I wave it in the air until Molly decides to remind me of the obvious part in the situation.

“What side is that? I can’t see, you idiot!” Molly yelled at me.

“My right side!” I sighed. “We need some light in here, as soon as possible!” I said.

As if somebody was answering my request, I saw a light in the distance flicker on. It slowly got bigger as they moved closer to the two of us. But who else could be down here?

Every small distance, the light multiplied into a lot of different little lights along the way. I watched the lights as they multiplied and I was incredibly confused. Who else was down here?

I heard a small voice talking as the lights came closer. She sounded nervous, but determined at the same time if that was even possible. “Neil is gonna kill me…but I don’t care. I should check on who this is. But what if they’re dangerous? And why am I even talking to myself? I sound insane.” The voice sighed. “Come on Celia. Just shut up and find out who these people are.”

Then the light finally came around us. The room lit up, and I finally could see where my sister was, and what we had landed on. It was a rope trampoline-like thing, one that would catch us and let us not be harmed. It was nice, but who would have set it up? That young girl who had been talking to herself earlier?

I finally saw the young girl. She stood by a large cavernous entrance lit by torches. She was petite, with slightly curly blonde hair. She was also dressed in slightly tattered clothes, with a hint of dirt on her face. She held her own torch in her hand, staring at us.

“Uh, hey,” Molly greeted with a half-hearted wave. “What’s your name?”