Out Of The Darkness

• Jonathon Bailey, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2009

Out of the Darkness
There I was the darkness swallowing me up like a whale eating its prey. The lamp flickering vigorously, like some strange force was pushing up against it. Yet it felt so claustrophobic, but so much room. Endless corridors of cells, with the occasional charred bones. The dead silence was enough to put chills down your spine. My baggy jeans rustled up against my leg .My shoes made tight squeal against the soft, damp floor. The smell was awful, every cell smelt like a garbage dump.

Back to reality, I was scared. I wanted mum and bad. My stupid sense of adventure brought me to a dungeon, where, now I forgot where to get out. Suddenly my baseball cap swam to the ground like a piece of concrete, it landed with a cold hard thud. Instantly I turned, thinking someone was behind me. Searching for the signs of movement, in the depths of the darkness. I scooped my cap up in my hands, placing it back on my soft blonde hair. Investigating how my cap got knocked of my head; I noticed a low plank of wood with a nail sticking out. With my problem solved, I still had a big problem.

In my mind thoughts were racing through my mind rapidly like formula one. I was questioning my self; will I ever see mum or dad again? I kept walking until I saw the glow of the lamps creep up what seemed the side of the wall. Then it triggered a wall, which means I’ll have to turn back. I shut my eyes and slumped back against the wall, but the warmth coming from the lamp had dramatically stopped. I felt for my pocket, begging and pleading with myself that I had bought a replacement. Luckily it was there in my pocket. I scraped it up against the box. It soon revealed a new born flame unleashing its light to the walls around me. It looked like a sign of hope but I lighted the lamp as soon as I could. I stared at the lamp and briefly forgot about the other match in my hand, but soon remembered after a trigging burning pain, shot up my fingers. I shut my eyes for a few seconds, trying to thing about nothing. I opened my eyes to see a blinding light, brighter than the other one…

“Get up you lazy old cow, or ill pour the coldest water you’ve ever felt on your face” Shouted mum.
“Its Saturday morning and we are going to eat break fast as a family.”
I rolled out of bed my mind racing, I stuttered because in the back of my mind I could remember my misadventure. I couldn’t speak a word of it. Then it dawned on me, it was a dream, all that and it was just a dream a DREAM. Probably a good thing though, but as the weekend continued I slowly moved on and the memories disappeared.

Jonathon Bailey