9
Josh lay flat on the ground, face-down inside a flimsy sheet of a tent. Only a thin layer of aluminum shielded him from the inferno consuming the entire world. A blast furnace raged outside. He was going to die. If he so much as lifted one elbow, the shelter would flip up and leave him completely exposed. The fire would melt his flesh from his bones and suck the air from his lungs.
Don’t do it. Do it. Don’t do it. Do it.
He fought the reckless compulsion to try it out—just see what happened—how bad could it be?
Do it.
Then the tent was being ripped away and he was completely exposed to the elements, so he curled up in a ball and rolled under the bed. Voices peppered the air with accusations and jabs, louder and meaner and…Stop. Stop it.
Josh woke up gasping, drenched in sweat. He s
