The Boy and The Rabbit Hole, Chapter Five

When the boy went back to school the following Monday, he had a sudden realization of just how lonely he was. It felt like something had happened to him over the weekend, as if he'd lost every friend that he had in the world. See, he was still being chased by girls, but no one really talked to him. He was still kind of on the outskirts of the social pyramid. He was just...sad.

In each of his classes, he noticed that one or two seats were empty. In his school, it was strange to have space in classes because of how jam packed it was. So it didn't make sense to him that so many places in classes went all year without being filled. Whatever is making me think like this, it doesn't matter. I've got a magic hole that makes my problems go away, and I love it.

However, in two weeks, he was singing a different song. His life was no longer complicated, but it was like watching a play that had no conflict, or a movie with no plot. The boy went from one thing to the other, getting exactly what he wanted from it. It was too easy, but he just couldn't stop. He had enjoyed this in the past, but was now getting to the point where he realized just how important challenging himself was. If he forgot about studying for a test, or telling The Rabbit Hole that he had a test, he failed astronomically. His grades were slipping, and it seemed like The Rabbit Hole wasn't having as much of an effect as it was in the beginning. For example, when "Failed a test" used to turn a thirty into a hundred, now "Failed a test" turned a sixty eight into a seventy, almost like his life was developing an immunity to repeated changes from The Rabbit Hole. He was starting to become aggravated with it.

But that's not all he was upset with. His parents were noticing the fact that his grades were slipping, and constantly calling him out on it. Eventually, they made him quit his extracurricular activities to stay on track. When the boy had used The Rabbit Hole, nothing had happened. He was frustrated and getting depressed, as he couldn't leave his house much anymore (which also made going to The Rabbit Hole difficult). One night though, after getting a rather harsh verbal lashing from his parents, the boy crept out of his window and ran to The Rabbit Hole, holding a single slip of paper in his hand. When he got there, he paced a little bit, as he was nervous about what he was about to do. With a deep sigh, he looked down at the paper that read "Overbearing parents" and dropped it into the blackness.

He went home and laid down in bed, wondering how The Rabbit Hole would make his parents less overbearing.

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The following morning, the boy didn't wake up until almost ten thirty, as he had forgotten to set his alarm. When he bolted from his room, he screamed "MOM, WHY DIDN'T YOU WAKE ME UP?" No response. Arriving in the kitchen, he saw no breakfast was waiting for him like it usually was. Later on, when he got out of the shower, there was still no sign of his mother anywhere in the house. She probably went to go visit Dad at work today. She does that a lot.

Before he went outside, he noticed something that caught his eye. The family picture that normally hung over the mantle of his fireplace had changed.

It was just the boy.

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At school, (which he still found himself going to despite what had just happened), he asked one of his teachers about his parents. The entire class laughed at him. Soon, he heard people whispering behind his back in the halls. That's when it hit him like a train. I've turned into Anthony Maxwell.

He ran. He ran from the school. He ran from his house. He ran from his old life. He ran to the only thing that made sense.

He ran to The Rabbit Hole.

When he got there, he screamed down into the depths of it. "GIVE IT BACK! I WANT IT ALL BACK! GIVE ME BACK MY PARENTS!"

No response but the wind blowing through the leaves above him.

The boy began to cry as he sat there, just staring into The Rabbit Hole, waiting for something to change. That's when another thought struck him.

What actually happens to things that get thrown down The Rabbit Hole? Are they waiting for you at the bottom? What would happen if...

With that the boy stood and walked to the edge of the hole, just looking into the black abyss below him. He sighed. There's nothing better to do. I've already thrown almost all of my life down The Rabbit Hole, there's just one thing left to go.

And he jumped.

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A teenage girl had been walking aimlessly around the forest. She was just ending one of the worst days of her life, and needed to get some air. However, walking aimlessly was not safe for her, as she suddenly found herself almost falling into a huge hole. When she dropped her backpack to look at it, she found a letter stuffed into the roots of the tree, with To Whom it May Concern written on it. She opened it to find two pages covered in writing. She flipped the back of the second page to see who had written it. In scribbled handwriting, she read

Be cautious,
----------*

She gasped, letting the paper drop into the hole. ---------- was an orphan boy who had all but lost his mind and then just disappeared last year. The case was going cold, as there was almost no evidence that he had even existed. When the girl realized that she had dropped the page, she shrugged. It probably wasn't that important anyways. She began reading the front of the first page.

To Whom it May Concern,

It is doubtful you know who I am, but my name is ---------- If you have found this, then I have no doubts you have found the Rabbit Hole as well. 

She was too busy reading to notice hear faint voices shouting out "No! Turn around! Forget you saw this hole!"


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*: If you though that you were going to get his name after ALL THIS TIME, I'm sorry, you're sorely mistaken. The idea is that he can be anyone. I don't want to tie him down with any kind of name. Heck, for all you know, he could be you.



Final Thanks:

First off, the idea to write this came from Aaron Koehne, so I still have to give him props on this.

Second, a thanks to everyone who was listed as one of the boy's close friends. While I would never make you disappear, you really are some of my closest friends, and I figured that you needed to be in this.

Third, to all of you. If you're still reading this, that means that you've probably (hopefully...?) stuck around since the beginning. If you want me to write another story, just leave comments and I'll work on my next topic.

Thanks guys! I'll see you again in the ward. <3