Elevator Problems

• Caitlin Hunter, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2013

The way to Grandma’s apartment is a usual activity for me every afternoon. Sign in as a guest, ride the elevator, down the hallway and turn left. Pretty ordinary hey? Wrong, at least just this day. As I walked through the automatic sliding doors, away from the fierce storm outside, feeling the warmth of the heaters curling around my body, I got the slightest chills trickling down my veins. That odd feeling, which I don’t recall having ever, scared me a little. The chills vanished like when someone hands a cheese burger, but I still couldn’t help feeling something was wrong or even about to be wrong. Shaking off the thoughts and questions spinning in my head I greeted the receptionist and signed in as I always do. The short walk to the elevator seemed longer, and as if my feet were dragging ten heavy elephants. My fingers were like stiff rocks as I went to press the up button on the wall. How strange? Not just strange, extremely bizarre! The storm outside was getting stronger and stronger by the minute. The hail was bucketing down on the windows, threatening to break one. The wind was tossing people around as they struggled against it. And the rain was bitter cold and stung your body when it pelted down onto the bare parts of your skin. I felt so fortunate to be in a warm lobby, waiting for the elevator to see my beloved Grandma. The clicking elevator opened suddenly and my attention was taken away from the storm outside as I stepped in. The doors shut with a bang, and I was all alone in the small, silver box. My Grandma was on the second highest floor so it takes about a minute to reach the top, but about half way the small, silver box started slowing down. Slower than it normally should be, much slower. The lights started flickering and then it happened. Everything stopped and I was all alone in the pure darkness, no way of getting out. It didn’t hit me that I was trapped without a way of getting any help for about two minutes. When it did, I screamed. I screamed for my life. I’d never experienced anything like this before and it freaked me out completely. I had no idea how long I would be stuck in the confined spaces of four walls around me, no phone and no hope. Being scared of a lot of things such as heights, darkness and being alone didn’t help the situation and from being so overwhelmed from the sudden shock, I collapsed into a heap on the floor and went into a peaceful sleep.
Waking up from fainting was more like a nightmare to me. I was still trapped in darkness and I didn’t know what to do. So I starting screaming again at the top of my voice until it hurt my throat. Stopping for a breath, I realized, I wasn’t alone. The elevator next door was also trapped close to mine. I could hear shouting and screeching from what sounded like four other trapped people.
“Hello!” I shouted, wanting an answer to make sure I wasn’t still in a deep dream.
“Hello!”
“Help us!”
“Where are you?”
“I’m in the elevator next to you, is everyone alright in…” I couldn’t finish my sentence. My feet started getting very hot and burned like hell. Maybe when I had fainted I had hit the ground so hard that I died and now I’m in hell, getting lowered into a pit of fire. The heat was so fierce I had to jump up and down to cool my feet down. The only protection I had was the shoes I was wearing. If I wasn’t wearing them, I would have burnt, crispy feet. I was so terrified that I was actually dead. I would never see the light again. I would never get to say goodbye to my family and friends, so I had to act quickly. I pulled out my iPod and flashed the light onto the floor which was turning reddish, yellowish colours. And then it dawned on me. Just below me, under the flooring of the elevator I was in, there was a fire. A blazing fire, probably caused by an electrical problem or maybe even lightening. Turning the light from my iPod around the four walls, feet burning, I decided to climb onto the hand rail. Not thinking of my actions, as I hurriedly climbed up onto the skinny rail, I tripped over my hands and dropped my iPod on the floor. Now I had done it. The iPod melted instantly, but the real wooden case I had paid so much for, caught alight. The fire was red hot, and was flickering around my body. It started small but started progressing its way higher.
“Help! Help me! Fire! Fire! Help!” I could only scream and shout, it was my final hope. As if on cue the elevator dropped suddenly, it went as fast a roller coaster and I had to hang on for my life on the rails as my stomach turned and spun around. I came to conclusion that the machine and had stopped working altogether and something had snapped, and now it was just a small, silver box falling by it’s self to the ground below coated in fire, straight towards my death. The hard hit caused me to lose my tight grip on the hand rail and I fell into the fire with a big blow. I was so blessed that most of the fire had been put out as the elevator fell. If it hadn’t been, I would have instantly died. My arms and legs froze. My clothes were on fire. I couldn’t move at all, I was praying for something, anything. My prayers were answered. I managed to haul my scorching body onto the hand rail again, body in flames now. The doors were shoved opened and two firemen grabbed me as others put out the fire. It was over. No more elevators stopping and catching on fire. The sirens of the ambulance blasted in my ears as I was hosed down by water and then placed into a white wheelie bed. I was in safe hands now.