not Normal

“This is it then,” I announced. The entrancehole was so small compared to the sheer size of the Cave, and yet it all looked so majestic. I realized I wasn’t breathing. Light and heat were creeping from the hole, along with grotesque echoes, something halfway between a song and a scream. We arrived there after an excruciatingly long journey, cold and hungry.…

“I think my shoe melted”–I yelled to Donnie. “I can still walk, thankfully the freezing wind immediately resolidified it, but it’s not exactly comfortable.” It was cold, real cold. Except when we happened to walk over the grates, then a scorching hot spray of air would pound through our bodies. Donnie turned around without stopping. “So you’re fine?” he yell…

“I’m not going to fuck it up,” Donnie said. “Well, that’s reassuring,” was my response, but I’m not sure he caught the sarcasm I had sprinkled on top. I’m not even sure he cared about my opinion. But seriously, how can someone think of walking into something this dangerous with such a weak mindset? “You know that almost everyone who tries this ends up gettin…