1 A Twilight Chase

I first saw the orphan boy out of the corner of my eye. I mean, I've seen him a lot of times before, but never this close. Sometimes he weaved and darted in between crowds at the park. Sometimes he stood quietly at the corner of the street when I stepped out of the campus. Sometimes he ran carelessly down the highway as I headed home, hands outstretched, feeling the cool night wind whipping his scrawny cheeks.

But today, he's heading right for me. His gaunt frame, no more than 8 years old, bounced uncontrollably as he covered the last few feet.

"Hey, play with me!"

I closed the book I had been reading. He jumped up and down in front of me.

"Play with me!"

"I… don't want to!"

At that, he lunged forward and grabbed the book. He effortlessly tore it away from my hands, and dashed away to the gathering dusk.

I tried to follow. The book was on loan from the city library, and I can't afford to lose it. It was as if the boy knew this, too. He glanced back at me with a wicked smile as he rounded the corner of another block. The neat rows of stores and apartments flashed by. After about five minutes, I felt like our chase had taken us from one side of the city to the other.

Finally, my legs gave way and I tottered over to lean on the trunk of a nearby acacia. It seems we've reached the far corner of the city park. The tall, unkempt grass sent a mild itch up my calf. Several paces in front of me, the boy also stopped.

"Hey, don't stop yet. We're almost there!"

"Almost… what?!", I breathed through my pounding heartbeat. I tried so hard not to curse him at this point.

The orphan boy smiled, and pointed a finger. Behind him, about a hundred feet away, were two rows of towering granite columns. The columns supported a spiraling concrete ramp, reaching up to the heavens, and disappearing against the softly sailing sunset clouds. Between these two rows was an opening in the ground, set against the green grass and brown earth. The opening led to another concrete ramp, reaching as far down as the eye could see.

Before I could utter another word, the boy took off like a bullet and dove down this descending ramp.

On impulse, I stood up and followed suit.

Every nerve in my body was screaming for me to stop as I neared the ramp. Every possible scenario of what will happen next -- none of them good -- flashed through my mind. Downstairs, the sun was shining brightly, and I barely caught a glimpse of fluffy white clouds before the dazzling blue blinded me. Still, my legs continued to move.

A few seconds later, my sneakers touch down on hard concrete. I lost my balance against the shock, and gravity seized the chance to propel me forward.

In front of me, I can hear the boy's shrill voice scream in joy and excitement.

This is the stupidest thing I have done in my life.