AJ, an overworked, sleep-deprived college student on the tail end of an all-nighter, pushed through the rusty turnstile, entering the platform on which he would wait for the 7:38 AM train heading west. He walked along the cracked, mouldy concrete, sat down on a bench, and listened for the rush of the train arriving at the station. He lived with his aunt in the suburbs, which required him to commute across the city to get to his classes. Normally, the commute was his least favourite part of the day, even worse than the lectures he had to sit through on four hours of sleep. He often had to squeeze into a packed subway car in order to arrive on time and do the same to return home. 

 

Today, however, the subway station was eerily empty. As the train arrived, AJ was the only one around to get on. He glanced down the aisle of the train as the doors shut — nothing but empty seats all the way down. It was an unexpected but welcome relief.

 

AJ took a seat as the train accelerated. He looked out the window at the pipes and bricks that lined the subway walls rushed past him. Something was out of place, and it wasn't just the empty subway station or the empty train. The objects on the walls looked peculiar, as if the tunnel had been rebuilt overnight. 

 

This tunnel was darker than the others that AJ was used to, and its walls were narrower and nearly touching the edges of the train, as if they were attempting to entrap its sole passenger. From the horrendous noises the train was making, it almost seemed as if the train was stretching apart in order for this tunnel to accommodate it. The train descended deeper into the ground and gained speed. Beads of sweat formed on AJ's forehead. He must have gotten on the wrong train. If only he had paid attention to the signs at the station instead of just running on auto-pilot like usual. Where was this train going? He was going to be late to class. He'd miss the lecture! He'd flunk the course! If only he had focused, he would be in college by now, safe. Now, he was stuck in a train diving down, down, down into the earth without any clue as to its destination.

 

Without warning or bells, the train jerked to a stop, brakes squealing and hissing. AJ lurched forward from the sudden halt. He realized he had been holding his breath and took a minute to get it back. He stood up slowly, legs trembling, and looked out the window to determine where the train had stopped. 

 

There was nothing but darkness and his own reflection. He whispered an expletive. Should he stay on this train? Was it out of service? Was this where the trains went when they stopped for the day? His chest tightened and his nails dug into his palms. He was beginning to panic. He took a deep breath, sat, and waited. Nothing happened. He paced. He called. Still nothing. He needed to leave now, or he would have no chance of making it to class. The train obviously wasn't going anywhere. He pushed the button to open the door, not expecting much. To his surprise, the doors slid apart for him. He hesitated for a second, probing the void before him with an outstretched foot. To his surprise, there was no subway wall in front of him. So, he steadied his nerves, closed his eyes and... jumped, landing on rough, rocky ground.

 

Now out of the lights of the train, his eyes adjusted and he tried to orient himself within this new dim world. He was in a long, narrow space with a low ceiling. There was a faint light above him, almost blocked out by the light of the train. It seemed like the sky above was almost breaking through into this place. He inferred, by the distant echoes of his footsteps, that he was located in some sort of large underground cavern. With nothing but his bag, AJ ventured out toward the light and hoped with all his mind that there was a way out.

 

Feeling his way through, he tripped and stumbled, finally falling face first, into a pool of water. The water was shocking, and its iron tang hit his tongue and nostrils unpleasantly. Immediately, he was being dragged down by his jacket, shoes, and backpack. He wasn't a strong swimmer, only taking lessons when his primary school had forced him to do so as a child. Instead, he slapped at the water, trying to pull himself to the surface, and finally relinquished the backpack and his college ambition to the pool's unexpected depths. The weight gone, he was able to pull himself awkwardly onto dry land. 

 

By now, AJ's eyes had adjusted enough to see walls on either side of him. Behind him, the light of the subway train was still visible. The area he was in was a partially flooded tunnel. Was it a subway tunnel at all? The cables and pipes had vanished. Was it something else? These questions almost made him miss the ladder hanging down from the ceiling. He glanced upward and realized that this ladder led to a brown manhole cover. He was in a sewer. He hesitated before grabbing a rung. He'd come this far already.

 

Dripping, sweaty, and red in the face, he finally emerged from the tunnel and onto the street. What he saw rattled him to his very core. Before him, a gaping rift in the middle of the street had opened and was rapidly increasing in size. Police sirens echoed off the buildings as the ground below the asphalt caved in. Down inside this crevasse, AJ thought he could make out the tip of a subway train. In a blaze of fear and confusion, as he gazed down into the depths, frozen in place, he could think of nothing else but, "Perhaps college isn't so bad."