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He taps again

“A bit ood?”

He nods “The cave’s ht be thinner here” He switches the haainst the spot with a sharp rap

And nothing happens He strikes the wall repeatedly for half an hour, going at it fro other spots—and nothing happens Not a thing besides a few flakes of rock off here and there

I check the watch I keep inand find it’s just past one o’clock in the afternoon

“No one shouting for us,” I murmur, as I peel open my half-eaten Atkins bar

I get a pinch to stop , pass the rest to him

“Not yet, Finny”

“I’m not Finny”

“Yes you are” He s friends “You’re very Finny”

“You’re corny”

He wipes his broith the back of his wrist, exhales so his shoulders see a different way See if that helps”

“Knock yourself out” I smirk, and he rubs at his forehead

“I kind of want to,” he confesses

Over the next few hours, weshards of rock away each time we strike the cave’s mouth My muscles tremble and cry out in pain the more I use them