stone walls will fall {tom}

Judas Crowe

Tap. Tap. Crack.

I never liked coal. I never liked mining. I never liked the dark.

Tap. Tap. Crack.

Dust gets under my fingernails and coats my skin in a thick layer of grey.

Tap. Tap. Crack.

It's too repetitive, too monotonous.

Tap. Tap. Crack.

At least I can have my peace and quiet today. They've sent me to the deeper part of the mine, where the light all but disappears, the dust fills my lungs, and any sound from up above is all but entirely cancelled out. I can still hear them, the miners, shouting instructions back and forth. There are lots of things I don't like about the mines. The only good thing about them is the near silence. Well, except for the

Tap. Tap. Crack.

Bare hands haul the rocks into wagons next to me, waiting to be pushed back up to the light, where folks will use them to keep their homes warm and to cook their food. Some of them can't even afford the stuff.

I reach up to wipe my forehead with the back of my hand, sweat mixing with dust and falling down my face in miniature black streams. It's still cold outside, but there's plenty of warmth in here, with all of us working together and heating up the place. My canteen ran out of water half an hour ago and I haven't had time to go refill it. I'm nowhere near finishing my quota for the day.

I pause, turning to lean up against the wall of rock. It's cool on my back, contrasting the muggy air that's been filling my lungs for the past couple of hours. My brothers and sisters will be heading home right about now. We've got some bread in a box on the counter, and there's some greens that Lennie has been collecting. They should be fine for tonight. But of course, that doesn't mean I can stop working.

A sigh escapes my lips and I return to chipping away at the wall.

Nobody likes working in the deeper part of the mines. It's cramped, hot, and at times difficult to breath, but it pays well. It's where the most coal is, which means I can collect more and hopefully earn a little extra money. We need all the help we can get. It was hard, when Mom was the only one working and we were all younger, but I'd venture to say it's even more difficult now. Sure, we have two steady-paying jobs, but we also have bigger stomachs to feed, and more of them at that. I don't mind though. Of course I don't. I was always happy to have Adeline and Marcus as part of the family, and I will never regret letting them in. I just need to work harder, that's all.

Tap. Tap. CRACK.

I freeze, hand poised slightly behind my head, holding tightly to the pickaxe with one hand, the other resting against the wall of the mine.

"Hey...hey, watch o--"

Too late. The words of a well-intentioned miner are drowned out by the sound of crumbling rocks, sliding against each other and falling, falling, all at once and too fast to control. I jump back and scramble away, feet shuffling against dust I can no longer see because what little light I had is now disappearing. And then just like that, it's gone. A blanket of darkness wraps around me, coal dust fills my nostrils until I'm sure it's trying to choke me, and I can no longer determine where anything is. It's all gone, blocked out by the wall of rocks in front of me. The noise settles down and then, all at once, the world goes silent.

I never liked coal. I never liked mining. I never liked the dark.

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Word Count: 615