The Giant Forest - COMPLETED - True to life adventures of preteens.

In a Tight Spot

Sybil couldn't see where he was. Looking up, down, right and left, he could see nothing but darkness, save for a small glimmer of moonlight that peeked in. He had fallen into a hole in the ground. The surface of the ground was now above where he found himself. He reached down to try to learn what it was that was rubbing up against his leg. The rubbing stopped. In fact the rubbing actually moved away from him!

"Uh. Um. I am not the only living thing down here," Sycamore said to the darkness.

The ground above started to close in over him, but not so much that it didn't leave him an air hole so he could breathe.

"Where'd ... it ... go? It ... was ... here ... one ... moment. Now ... it's gone. Um, I wonder what it was. I wonder if I really want to know," he creepily said to himself.

Sybil could see one of the giants above straddling the hole he had just fallen into. He couldn't make out what the giants were saying to one another. The giants' voices had become more muffled as one's foot dragged across the hole Sybil was in and moved farther away from where he was. The other giants were already too far away.

Sybil's eyes began to adjust to the darkness. He could vaguely make out a series of tunnels leading to and from where he was. He didn't know which way was north or south and couldn't really even tell which way was up or down. Nor did it matter. He couldn't tell if one tunnel led to where he had just come from or was leading away to his escape.

He tried to move. HIs head turned to the right but his body didn't respond accordingly. He turned his head to the left. His body stayed in position. He was sitting with his back up against a wall of dirt. His chubby legs were pinned to one another. Had he been laying flat on his back he would have looked as if he were dead and ready to be laid out in a coffin. He whispered to himself, "If a rut is a grave with no ends on it ... yet, then what's a tunnel? Or a hole in the ground called?"

There was movement at his feet.

Sybil wanted to stand up so he could shift his position. But he couldn't. He was being hugged by dirt walls that would not release their grip.

"I'd better not. What if my head sticks out and one of the giants see it?" he asked himself but didn't answer. Like many people tend to do, he still didn't want to admit to himself that he couldn't move even if he wanted to.

He found a bit of resolve. "Staying stuck like this is not an option. Neither is having my head lopped off." Sybil laughed at his predicament but knew it wasn't funny. Then he began to cry. He was careful to not sob so loud as to be heard.

"Where are mom and dad when I need them? Where are they ever when I need them? Dad'll send me money whether I need it or not. But what I really need now is a dad to tell me it's okay, that I am not going to die, to give me a hand, to help me out. Help me to roll over for Go... sake!! He stopped himself though he wanted to swear.

"I don't need more money .... And apparently I definitely don't need something else to eat. Mom thinks if I am eating I am happy. And my new dad ... his voice wavered a bit ... I hate calling him my dad, new or old. He's not my dad. But mom makes me call him that. Mom is busy with her new husband and has no time for me. The new dad doesn't care about me either. I could star in a Cinderella movie if it were about boys.

"Oh, God!" Sybil said too loud for his own good, not catching himself as he did moments ago. It wasn't a prayer but perhaps should have been. "Who should I call for help when there is no one to reach out to?" It would have made a good prayer.

"Crying doesn't help. Being stuck sucks. I guess I'd better take my chances on standing up."

Sybil tried to shuffle his feet but he didn't move. Both arms were free in front of him but he could just barely lift them up in front of himself and though he could the chances of him doing a pull-up were nil.