Part 2 (2/2)

”So it's us two guys alone with three girls, huh?” Grinning, the boy cuffed him lightly on the shoulder and Peter flinched. Then he sighed and looked up again.

”What ... what's your name?” Peter said.

”Oliver.” He turned and stepped lightly over to the empty flight, sat down, resting his elbows on a step behind, and looked around at them again. ”Two guys and three girls,” he went on. ”So far. And n.o.body knows a thing. Including me. There I am, just leaving the locker room to go to soccer practice, and they call my name over the loud-speaker to come to the office, and then they blindfold me, and bring me to this ... this this crazy place.” crazy place.”

”The same thing happened to all of us,” said Blossom. ”And we're all orphans, and all sixteen.”

”Really? No kidding! Me too.” He chuckled briefly, shaking his head. It bothered Abigail a little. He was taking the whole thing too lightly; somehow it didn't seem real.

”Well, I I think they're going to come and get us out pretty soon,” said Blossom. ”I mean, they have to. I don't deserve to be here. That other girl, Lola, thinks they're just going to leave us here, and maybe that's what they're going to do to think they're going to come and get us out pretty soon,” said Blossom. ”I mean, they have to. I don't deserve to be here. That other girl, Lola, thinks they're just going to leave us here, and maybe that's what they're going to do to her her, but-”

”But she might be right,” Abigail interrupted, turning from Blossom to look Oliver briefly in the eye. ”It couldn't be a mistake, it's all too crazy and coincidental. Don't you think so? I'm really kind of scared. It's so ... uncomfortable here, and who knows what might happen next? What ... what do you think?”

”I don't think anything yet,” said Oliver. ”Who can think in this place?” He looked casually over his shoulder at the empty s.p.a.ce below him. ”But it sure beats solid geometry by a mile, I can tell you that!”

”But,” said Peter, ”but what if ... what if they leave us here for a long time? I ... I don't think I could stand it. I mean ... I mean, there's nothing to lean against, nothing that feels safe. I just can't stop thinking that ... that....” He stopped.

Abigail had never heard him say so much at one time.

”Stop thinking what?” Oliver said. ”Come on, you can tell us.”

”I ... thinking that I'm going to fall,” said Peter, and looked down at his feet.

”Yeah, and who isn't?” said Oliver. ”But you're not going to fall unless you want to-or unless somebody pushes you, and I don't think think I'm going to push you. And I don't think these girls want to push you either, do they?” I'm going to push you. And I don't think these girls want to push you either, do they?”

”I wouldn't mind pus.h.i.+ng Lola,” Blossom murmured.

”Say, where is this Lola, anyway?” Oliver asked.

”She went to find a toilet,” said Abigail. ”She thought if there was a food machine, there would probably be a toilet somewhere. And water. It makes sense. Somebody should have gone with her, I guess, but I was so tired of walking around.”

Oliver was watching her. ”And what's your name?” he asked.

”Abigail.” She forced herself not to look away from him.

”And I'm Blossom.”

”Blossom, huh. And my buddy there, what's your name?” He was still watching Abigail. When no answer came from Peter, he looked over at his face.

”Peter.”

”Uh-huh. So it's Oliver, Abigail, Peter, Blossom, and- don't tell me-Lola!”

He was making it all seem like a game. Abigail couldn't understand how he could be so jaunty about the situation, but she was beginning to accept it, to drift with the mood he was creating. Peter, after his brief look of despair, now seemed more alert than he had ever been, gazing at Oliver in that doglike way. And Blossom now seemed to be relaxing. Abigail sensed that he met with her approval.

”Yes, Lola,” Blossom sighed. ”If only she wasn't here! Everybody else is nice.”

For a moment no one spoke. Abigail wished Blossom would stop talking that way, it was embarra.s.sing, and so pointless.

”Well anyway,” Oliver said, ”here we all are. We might as well enjoy ourselves while we're waiting.”

”Well, maybe we should try to make the food thing work,” said Blossom. ”Maybe it would work for Oliver.”

”Sure, why shouldn't it?” said Oliver. ”They don't want to starve us. Actually, I think it's kind of fun here, like a dream in a video show. We should probably all be dancing and singing.” He stood up suddenly and jumped down to the landing. Spreading his arms, he began to sing, smiling at each of them as he turned in a small circle. ”Just singin' my cares away,” he sang. ”On the happy little steppy steps. Just singin' till my heart goes-” He stopped suddenly and reached out for Abigail's hand, pulling her to her feet. ”Come on, you too,” he said, swinging her arm and swaying back and forth. ”Let's give them a little show.”

Abigail had never been touched by a boy before, and though she felt a bit frightened and embarra.s.sed, nevertheless the pressure and warmth of his hand were strangely thrilling. And he began singing again, funny nonsense words that made them all laugh, that made Abigail almost forget where they were.

Chapter 6.

Their voices, when Lola heard them at last, meant that something strange was going on, that much she could tell as she made her way up the spiral flight. (Somehow she had ended up below them.) There was a lot of chatter, as though they were all talking at once, and laughter. The nerve of them, laughing! She had been thinking hard as she wandered, and was in no mood for laughter herself. Even Peter seemed to be talking a lot. Or singing. The unlikelihood of Peter singing was what made her begin to think that there was an unfamiliar male up there, and that he he was singing. was singing.

She stopped just below the hole. ”Happy little suns.h.i.+ne, baby boo,” came the singing voice. ”Gurgily goo, Boppity boo. Strange flowers, growing in my garden of love, my garden of love love love.” Mystified, Lola took a deep breath and stuck her head through. It was a new boy all right, and good-looking, she supposed, in a kind of chiseled and yet puckish way. He was shamelessly showing off, singing some stupid song, and they were all adoring him. Especially Abigail, who was standing beside him and actually holding his hand. It was awful, grimly watching them have fun, feeling out of it, but afraid to interrupt and spoil it all.

But he noticed her right away. ”Lola!” he said, stopping suddenly. ”It is is Lola, isn't it? Welcome to the funny farm.” Lola, isn't it? Welcome to the funny farm.”

In two bounds she was up on the landing, standing an inch away from him, and glaring up into his eyes. He was at least four inches taller than she, and grinning at her in this maddening way. ”Yes, it is Lola,” she said, ”and this must must be the funny farm. What the h.e.l.l's going on?” be the funny farm. What the h.e.l.l's going on?”

”We were just having fun,” Blossom piped up in her nasal whine. ”There's nothing wrong with that.”

Lola put her hands on her hips. ”Who said there was anything-”

”Yeah,” said the boy, turning his head to look at Blossom. ”She didn't say there was anything wrong.” Blossom glared at him, but he didn't seem to notice, turning back to Lola. ”I've been working,” he explained good-humoredly. ”Entertaining them. Keeping their spirits up.”

Lola looked quickly around at the others. All the laughter had gone out of the situation. ”Oh,” she said, still an inch away from him. She wanted to say something slightly nasty, for it wasn't very pleasant to have ruined their fun. She felt like an old grouch. ”Oh,” she said again, and looked down; then she slipped quickly past him and over to the empty stairs across from Blossom. She sat down and lit a cigarette, forcing herself not to notice how few were left.

”So why the silence?” said the new boy, turning from one to the other of them and shrugging slightly. ”Why the long faces? We were having fun.”

”Why don't you ask Lola?” said Blossom. ”She's the one who ruined it.”

That did it. ”Yes, why don't you ask Lola?” Lola said, ripping the cigarette from her lips. ”Ask Lola, because she knows; she knows where we are. If any of you spent one second using your feeble brains to think about it, you'd know it too. We're in a prison, do you realize that? A prison. And it's not just an ordinary prison, it's a torture chamber. Get that? A torture chamber. But it doesn't torture our bodies, it doesn't do easy, obvious little things like pulling off our arms and legs or sticking red-hot knives under our fingernails. Oh, no. It's worse. It's supposed to make us go insane, don't you realize?” She waved her cigarette over her head. ”All these stupid stairs going nowhere, no flat place, no walls, nowhere to hide, no way to get out, no explanation. Don't you realize? They made it on purpose, it's all for us, they're doing doing something to us. It's so obvious. And you sit around laughing and singing stupid songs. Think about it.” She paused for breath. They were all staring at her as if she really were insane. ”And,” she went on, ”and ... oh, h.e.l.l! And I found a toilet. And I guess we've gotta drink out of it too. I couldn't find any other water.” something to us. It's so obvious. And you sit around laughing and singing stupid songs. Think about it.” She paused for breath. They were all staring at her as if she really were insane. ”And,” she went on, ”and ... oh, h.e.l.l! And I found a toilet. And I guess we've gotta drink out of it too. I couldn't find any other water.”

For a moment no one spoke. The new boy's face had loosened, the high color draining from his cheeks; but almost at once he pulled it back together, looking at her now with angry determination, and no humor at all.

Abigail spoke first. ”A toilet? You really found one?”

”Yes,” said Lola proudly, partly mollified. ”And wouldn't you know, it's right in the middle of one of those lousy bridges. The worst place it could be. Don't you see what that means? Doesn't it tell you something? Why are we being forced to drink out of it it, why in h.e.l.l should it be there there, except to be unpleasant and frightening to us?”

”I-I guess you're right,” said Abigail. ”I'm sure you're right, there's no other explanation. But we ... for a minute we forgot. For a minute, we were almost having fun. That's all.”

”I know,” Lola said less fiercely. ”I'm sorry. I didn't want to spoil it. But I was so upset about all this.”

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