An Unexpected Turn

Reconciliation

Just as my leg pulled free, we heard a chirp, and I thought the button on my car’s FOB may have been hit. “Get down”, I yelled and pushed Ian to the ground and fell on top of him! There was a loud explosion on the other side of the wall. Some dirt and a few rocks dropped on us, but we were otherwise unscathed. We waited as we heard things settle on the other side of the wall and for the dust to settle on our side. “Glad you warned me about my phone”, Ian said, then added, “Your head is bleeding”! I could feel the blood running down my cheek and the lump growing where the rock had struck me. Then we noticed the water had begum flowing faster and it seemed to be filling the chamber. “Shit Steve! Now what”, Ian yelled? “The explosion must have filled the other side with water. It’s finding somewhere to go”, I said. “And I just made the hole larger”, Ian said. We were able to stand and held ourselves in place as the water rose. It came up to Ian’s chest before it started receding. We breathed a sigh of relief when it went back down. It still flowed faster than it had been, but we were no longer in danger of drowning.

Ian ripped the bottom edge of his t-shirt off and used it to wrap my head, then asked, “How’s your leg”? I moved it around a bit and replied, “It feels ok. The feeling is back. I have a couple bruises, but it’s ok”. Ian grinned and said, “Good thing. I hoped we wouldn’t have to cut it off”. I just shook my head and said, “Thanks stud”. We then realized our phones only had a limited charge and Ian’s was already at fifty percent. We decided to only use the flashlight app when necessary and then discussed what we would do going forward. “Do you think they’re even going to attempt to rescue us Steve? I mean after that explosion, they probably think we’re dead”, Ian asked? “Good point. I doubt anyone would have expected us to survive that explosion. I’m really glad you got to this side Ian. They may just decide to make it a recovery now and not a rescue which means they may not rush it”, I agreed, then added, “So do we wait here and hope we don’t starve to death or run out of oxygen, or do we search for another way out? This water shot in here quickly, but it also seemed to recede pretty fast as well”. “Fortunately for us”, Ian said, then asked, “So what if it’s just an underground stream and doesn’t come out anywhere”? I thought about his concerns and said, “That’s a possibility, but it’s also possible that it comes out somewhere. If it does, it may have a large enough opening that we can get through. I propose we follow it for a bit and keep an eye on our phones. If the state of charge begins to get low before we find an opening, we head back here and hope for a rescue. What do you think”?

“Sounds like a plan Steve. Oh fuck”, Ian suddenly exclaimed, feeling my hand on his damp underwear! He was hard in an instant. “I thought maybe we could use some protein before we head out”, I said. “I like the way you think Steve”, Ian said and even in the dark I could tell he had a big smile on his face. I leaned in carefully and found his mouth with mine and kissed him deeply. Our tongues danced passionately. Breaking the kiss, I made my way to the nape of his neck and kissed and licked it, then nibbled a little on his right ear before slowly making my way down his chest. I licked and nibbled a bit on each of his nipples and heard him groan and his breathing grow faster. I slowly made my way down his washboard abdomen, stopping to lick at his belly button. I felt his hardness brushing my chin through his damp briefs and he let out a sigh, “Fuck Steve! If you keep that up, I’m going to cum before you get it in your mouth”. I grinned and then grabbed his briefs and pulled them down to his knees. His hard cock smacked into my face. I began licking from his balls to the tip for a while before taking him into my mouth. Another deep sigh and I tasted a flood of precum as it gushed from him. I savored its flavor as I used my tongue to lick around the head and then slowly began moving deeper on it, taking it in until my nose pushed into his abdomen and brushed against his pubic bush. “Oh, fuck Steve. It feels so good”, Ian groaned. I began speeding up and soon Ian cried out, “I’m gonna cum Steve”!  I felt his cock grow harder and then I was rewarded with blast after blast of his warm, sweet cum. I stayed on him until he had emptied the last drop into my mouth. I swallowed most of it, but held a little in my mouth. I slowly stood back up and finding his lips again, kissed him and shared the small amount of his cum with him. After a few minutes, we broke the kiss and Ian quickly dropped into a crouch and began opening my pants. Even in the dark, his nimble fingers had my pants open and down to my knees in no time. He slid down my briefs and immediately began licking at my stiff rod. “Fuck yeah, Ian. That feels so nice”, I said. He was soon bobbing on my cock as if it was his last meal and for all we knew, maybe it was. I soon felt my impending orgasm and alerted Ian, “I’m getting close stud”. Amazingly, he sped up even more. “Oh, fuck yes Ian, take my load”! My cock pulsed as it fired my seed into his hungry mouth. He continued bobbing and swirling his tongue around my throbbing cock until I was drained. I had to hold onto his shoulders to steady myself. He slowly pulled his mouth off my still rigid cock, and I heard him giggle a bit. “Fuck, Ian, you know what that does to me. If we weren’t in this situation, I’d turn you around and shove my cock in you right now”. He giggled again and said, “I’d enjoy that”. Then he stood up and we kissed again and shared some of my cum he’d saved.

Before we separated to pull our pants back up or rather my pants and Ian’s briefs, I palmed his marble bubble butt cheeks and hoped I’d get to see them again soon in better lighting or any lighting as I couldn’t indulge myself and waste my phone battery. We compared phone charges and decided to use Ian’s phone first until it got down to twenty-five percent. We decided to attempt to light the area just for a few moments and then make our way in the dark as far as we could safely. It was slow going. We were able to stand for some of the way, but then some parts were low and narrow, and we were soon walking in the water as the passage narrowed. “My feet are freezing”, Ian said as he walked barefoot in front of me. “I’d let you wear my sneakers, but they’re too big and they’re not helping. My feet are cold and wet too”, I replied and then yelped, “Ouch”, as I bumped my head. I had to catch Ian a few times as he slipped on the slimy rocks under his feet. We came to a spot where the passage widened again, and we could get out of the water. We decided to take a break and sat down to relax and warm our feet for a bit. We ended up dozing off leaning on each other. We must have been exhausted because when we awoke, nine hours had passed. We’d now been down here for about two days.

As day broke on that morning there was a debate going on as to whether to continue considering this as a rescue mission or changing it to a recovery mission. They had already decided to bring in the big machinery which would begin hauling away sections of the collapse. Carl, Chad, and the others were insisting that due to their new findings, they should continue it as a rescue operation. Greg was sympathetic to them, but he was no longer in charge. The state had taken charge of the operation, so even though Greg had some input, he wouldn’t be making the final decision.

As Cindy awoke that morning, she recalled her vivid dream. It seemed so real. She had awakened by her name being called, “Cindy. Cindy honey, wake up”. As she opened her eyes, she looked up at the man standing beside her bed, “Daddy! I miss you so much”! David smiled, “You’re helping take care of the boys very well Cindy. I’m so proud of you. I can’t stay but a moment, but I wanted to tell you to not worry about Steve and his friend Ian. Their fate is not yet written”. Suddenly he was gone. It had seemed so real, but here she was just now waking up. It must have been just a dream. Suddenly there was commotion in the hallway and Cindy heard her little brothers yelling, “Mom! Mom! Dad came to visit”! Cindy opened her bedroom door and walked toward her mother’s room. Catherine was sitting up in her bed with Davey and Greg standing at the edge excitedly trying to explain to tell their mother about what they’d seen. As Cindy approached, Catherine said, “Ok. Calm down and only one of you speak”. They both began rattling on simultaneously. Catherine yelled, “Stop! OK. Davey, you tell me what’s going on”. “Daddy was in our room. He came to visit”, Davey said excitedly and added, “Greg saw him too”. Greg stood there nodding his head wide-eyed. Catherine looked over at Cindy and noticed she had a look of shock on her face and the blood had drained from her face. “Cindy? Are you ok? What’s wrong”, Catherine asked? Cindy hesitated before saying, “Mom, could I talk to you alone”? Catherine turned to the boys and said, “We’ll talk more about this at breakfast. Now go brush your teeth”. “Ohhhkayyy”, Greg said, rolling his eyes and he and Davey walked out of the room. Catherine then turned to Cindy, “What is it Cindy”? Cindy drew a deep breath and then said, “Mom, I had a dream, at least I think it was a dream. I heard someone calling me and when I opened my eyes, daddy was standing there smiling at me. I told him we missed him so much. He must be looking over us because he said he was proud of me”, tears began running down her cheeks, “he said not to worry about Steve and his friend Ian, something about their fate not being written yet. That’s why I didn’t want to tell you this in front of Greg and Davey. I know you don’t want them to know about the accident that happened until we know whether or not they’re ok. But when I heard them say daddy was in their room, I’m wondering if it was just a dream or if he was actually here mom”. A tear fell from Catherine’s eye as she reached out and hugged her daughter, “Oh honey. I’ve dreamt of him too and sometimes it seems so real. I don’t know if it was just a dream or not. If it was a dream, it may have been your subconscious wanting so much for Steve and Ian to be ok. You were right though about talking to me alone about this. I don’t want the boys dealing with another tragedy so close to losing their father”. Cindy sobbed, hugging her mom, “I miss daddy so much”. Catherine hugged Cindy harder and said, “Me too honey”. Later that morning, Catherine called Greg and told him what the boys said they’d seen and then told him what Cindy had said as well.

“The evidence you’ve shown me is compelling to some extent, Greg”, Mark, the state engineer in charge said, then continued, “The jeans show that at least one of them survived the collapse and from your witness’s statements, they belonged to the same individual who’s burnt shoe we found. The fact they were found so far apart and considering the jeans were soaked with gasoline and were not burnt means they were in a place the flames hadn’t reached. The question is, when did he remove the jeans and where was he at the moment of the explosion? He had obviously removed the jeans at some point, and we have no idea where he was when the explosion occurred”. “Exactly my point”, Greg said, “He could have been somewhere safe at the time of the explosion”. Mark replied, “Or he could have gone back to the location of the explosion. You said yourself, when you called down the hole that was uncovered, you received no response”. “Yes, but they may have been asleep or in a different area where they couldn’t hear”, Greg countered. He knew telling Mark about what his niece and nephews had seen and heard wouldn’t help in convincing him, so he was searching for any reasonable explanation, but that was all he had. Mark looked Greg in the eye and said, “Look Greg, I know you knew these guys personally and I’ve heard about some of what they’ve done. I’d really like to believe that they’re still alive, but I have to make a decision based on the evidence. I’m going to have some guys come down with some equipment which will test for noise being produced underground. They may be able to pick something up. Your friends will have to stay clear during that time. We’ll let you know if we come up with anything”. “Thank you, Mark”, Greg said, “I’ll let them know”. Mark continued, “After testing, we’re going to try to clear some of the debris and secure the site structurally. Tomorrow morning though, we have to start the recovery process”. “Understood”, Greg replied somberly and then left to relay the decision.

“One day isn’t enough, especially if we have to wait while they use those instruments”, Carl complained while the others nodded their heads in agreement. “I’m sorry, but I couldn’t convince them to delay any longer. We’ll have to do what we can with the time we have”, Greg said. “I’m sorry you lost one of your men Greg. We appreciate all you’ve done”, Cad then said. Greg smiled slightly and replied, “Jason wasn’t dead. They thought he was, but the blast must have stopped his heart. The ambulance crew was able to get it beating again. He’ll be in intensive care for a while, but they say he should make a full recovery”. Carl brightened up a bit and said, “That’s great to hear Greg. Sorry I’ve been such a dick, but Steve and Ian are down there somewhere, and I just want to find them”. Greg looked at Carl, “I know you do Carl. We all do. Yesterday, after the explosion, I was sure we had lost them both. Today I have some hope, even if it’s just a little”. “After finding Ian’s jeans and then Tony exposing that hole makes me want to believe they’re still alive”, Mike added. Scott looked to his friend and smiled. They’d been through a lot together recently up to the point of the end of their friendship. It seems this tragedy may have saved that, but at what cost? He asked Greg, “Do they know what caused the explosion”? Greg looked around at all Steve and Ian’s friends gathered around him. There were quite a few from Bruce and David’s Celebration of life and others he didn’t know at all. He wasn’t surprised at how many had showed up, over a hundred so far wanting to help. The police had stopped any more vehicles from the highway, but many had walked to the area anyway. He took a deep breath and said, “Initial reports of the explosion were that it happened suddenly, without warning. After talking to those in the immediate area, it seems those reports were wrong. We didn’t get a chance to talk with the people who were closest to the incident since most of them required immediate medical attention. The people closest to the explosion reported there was a slight movement of the ground and then a sound like metal on metal. Just before the explosion, there was a sound which we later determined was an alarm going off from one of the cars due to the movement. The engineer who was killed decided to get closer instead of heading the obvious warning signs”. “Shit”, Tony said and everyone turned with questioning looks. Tony tried to explain his outburst, “I was hoping Steve was trying to send a signal to us that he was alive”. “Let’s hope not. If he was close enough for his FOB to work to set off the security alarm, I doubt he would have survived. I think he would have been smart enough, given the fact that there was a gasoline leak that he wouldn’t have done that. If either of them were indeed behind that slab of stone, indicating the slab they’d found when digging, then the signal wouldn’t have been strong enough to get through to reach the vehicle”, they had all turned to the speaker which turned out to be the lead engineer, Mark. He continued, “The only thing our instruments have picked up so far is a random tapping sound. This randomness means it is not something mechanical, but it seems to be almost three-quarters of a mile from here, so it could be just someone hammering or chopping wood in the area, so I don’t want to get your hopes up. We’re going to start using some of the smaller equipment to remove some of the debris where it is safe. It will probably take until dark and if we don’t turn up anything, we’ll start the recovery process in the morning”. Mark then turned and headed back. The group remained quiet for a while, then began talking amongst themselves. Some of them were encouraged by the news while others despaired.

Ian and I checked his phone and found the charge at only thirty percent. We’d been using it sparingly to light our way, but we now had to make a choice, continuing on for a little or turning back now to be sure we had enough power in my phone to reach where we’d started from. “What do you want to do Ian”, I asked? “We still have some power left in my phone. We could try going a little further and if we don’t find a way out, we could head back then”, Ian said. “So, at what point do we decide a little further is. Do we wait until your phone is dead and then rely on mine, or do we choose a level of charge on your phone”, I asked? Ian surprised me with the tone of his response, “I don’t know Steve. I really don’t want to be the one to make that decision. I don’t want to be the reason we die down here”. I embraced him, knowing tears were running down his cheeks by the sobs and shaking I felt. I held him tightly. I didn’t want him to feel like he was alone in this decision, “Ian, I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to pressure you. I wanted your opinion. We’re in this together, always. How about we try to use even less light from the phone. Continue until your phone is at ten percent and then if we still don’t see a way out, we head back”? I felt Ian begin to calm down and he embraced me back, “I’m sorry Steve. I need to be stronger, for us. I just feel a little tired even after we slept”. I thought about what Ian said, and he was right. I still felt like I could sleep for hours, and I wondered if the oxygen content may be an issue. I didn’t say anything to Ian about it. He had enough pressure on him already. We slowly continued on our way, following the flow of water, mostly in the dark and getting more bruises and lumps on our heads as a result. When we finally found another open area, we were both out of breath and had headaches. Ian’s phone had an eighteen percent charge. We sat down to catch our breath and I wrapped my arms around him so my body heat could help warm him.

I awoke suddenly and had no idea how long we’d slept. We were still locked in an embrace and I was surprised to find my headache was gone. I nudged Ian, “Ian, wake up”. Ian stirred, “Morning Steve”, he said as he stirred awake. I couldn’t help smiling at his groggy response. Then he was awake and recalled our predicament, “Fuck! How long were we asleep Steve”? “I have no idea. Check your phone, Ian. Do you still have a headache”, I asked? As he pulled his phone out, he replied, “Actually, it’s gone and other than the lumps and bruises, I feel a little better. It’s two-twenty AM and fifteen percent charge left”. We made our way to the water and felt a slight breeze from the direction of where we’d been. “Do you feel that Steve”, Ian asked? “I sure do. Maybe that’s why our headaches are gone. Maybe we’re getting some fresh air from somewhere”, I replied. “Maybe we should head back now. Maybe they dug a hole to rescue us”, Ian suggested. “Maybe”, I replied and then said, “The water level is down a little, so maybe where the water is coming from is carrying some fresh air in with it. I think we should stick to the plan and continue on until your phone gets to fifteen percent. It’s not that much anyway”. Ian replied, “I guess you’re right Steve. Let’s go”. We took a quick look ahead with the flashlight on the phone and then made our way through the cold water. We made good ground for a while and stopped at another open area to rest and warm our freezing wet feet. Ian turned off his phone and said, “Fifteen percent and five-twenty AM”. “Guess we’ll take a break here and then start heading back”, I said, disappointed we hadn’t found a way out.

Carl, Chad, and the rest of the crowd watched and waited throughout the day as they dug through the debris. They found the wreckage of the two vehicles, but there was no evidence of either Steve or Ian. As the sun set and the machinery came to a halt, they had removed and separated the dirt and debris completely back to the slab of stone. Mark walked over to where Carl, Chad, and the others were waiting. Greg was by his side. “Well, the good news is we found no evidence of either Steve or Ian, so there’s still an outside chance that one or both of them are still alive. I’ve decided to continue this as a rescue operation given the evidence we’ve found or not found thus far. There was also this annoying noise in my ear all day”, Mark added nudging Greg in the side. Shouts of jubilation sounded throughout the group. Mark then continued, “Now I must caution you that there will be a guard on duty presumably to keep people away from the area. The area could be dangerous if you’re not careful. Greg here has assured me no one will sneak into the area unless they are under professional supervision”. Protests then began ringing out throughout the crowd. Mark just smiled at Greg and then walked toward his vehicle. The state construction workers and engineers slowly headed out. The crowd sat around looking dejected, except for Greg who announced, “Don’t look so defeated guys. They didn’t find anyone which means there’s still hope”.Tony spoke up, “Yeah, there’s still hope, but we can’t just sit around here and wait until they return tomorrow. Every second may count”.

Greg grinned and said, “Yes, every second may count, but who says you have to sit around and wait for tomorrow”? Carl and Chad were sitting quietly consoling each other and were a little surprised when Mike spoke up and said, “Why didn’t Mark leave yet? I thought maybe we could sneak down anyway and start digging like we did last night. The guard won’t say anything”. Greg spoke up, “You heard what Mark said. I promised him no one would go down there without professional supervision”. Just then some vehicles pulled up, some of which were from Greg’s station. As they got out, Greg said, “Ok guys, let’s get to work”! Everyone looked around in confusion. “What’s going on”, Scott asked? They then saw Mark get out of his vehicle and begin walking back down to the site. Greg grinned and repeated, “Ok, let’s get to work. Our professional supervision is on site and some of my guys have come to help”. A loud cheer rang out and people began scrambling, rounding up shovels and pick axes.

They began their focus at the left side of the slab, about thirty feet left from where Tony had exposed the hole on the other side of the slab. They were told to stay away from the hole as the ground may be too unstable there and could cause a collapse which could jeopardize anyone who may be below it, not to mention the safety of those digging. They dug in shifts and suddenly a yell rang out from the crowd. As Chad, Carl, Greg, Tony, Scott and Mike ran up, one of the firemen was holding Ian’s other sneaker. An underground creek was exposed which ran under the stone slab. Ian’s sneaker was found at that location. Mark walked up and inspected the area where the water was flowing and said to one of the other firemen, “I need you to slowly and carefully dig here where the water is flowing. Let me know if you find anything. Greg, could you bring those five over here. I need to talk to them”. As Carl, Chad, Tony, Scott and Mike gathered next to Greg and Mark, Mark somberly said, “Look, I needed to get you away from there before we continued digging. I want you to understand something; finding that sneaker there may be a good sign, or it could mean something else, and I want you to be prepared for that. There is a possibility that your friend Ian may be under that debris. He could have been caught in the collapse from the explosion. I’m hoping that is not the case, but I need you to be prepared if it is”. They all nodded somberly. The rest of the crowd had been digging out along the rest of the rock slab, hoping to find a break somewhere. Since work at the sneaker find was going very slowly, it gave the others something to keep them busy. As it turned out, they all came up against a solid slab which was at least a foot thick, probably a lot more which stretched into the side of the mountain. The six of them sat there in silence waiting for the news and hoping it wouldn’t be bad. It was after one AM when a firemen came over to Greg and said, “Chief, could you come with me. Mark wants to talk to you”. Greg immediately got up and followed him. “That can’t be a good sign”, Scott said.

Greg walked over to where Mark was standing, “What is it Mark”? Mark replied, “I didn’t want to get the guys’ hopes up, but they’ve reached the other side of this rock and from the looks of things, before the ground collapsed around this spot, it looks like the bed of the stream was dug out, possibly to get someone through the hole. It would have been tight, but it’s possible that someone crawled through. The problem is that it’s going to take a while to make this hole large enough to safely check the other side”. “That’s great news Mark. I understand that you don’t want any false hope, but this is good news”, Greg said. Mark smiled, “It is good news Greg and I thought maybe you should be the one to deliver it. Have them get some rest and let us continue with working on this. I’ll let you know as soon as we find anything significant”. Greg shook Mark’s hand and said, “Thanks Mark. I appreciate your doing this. It means a lot, not just to those boys, but to me as well. I have a personal stake in this as well. Steve was the one who tried to help my brother in that highway collision months ago”. Mark smiled, “I’m well aware of that Greg. I watch the news. That guy’s pretty special and his friend as well. Aren’t three of those guys the one’s from the auto accident”? Greg smiled and said, “Yeah they are Mark. They won’t give up hope until we find them one way or the other”. “We’ll find them, or they’ll find us Greg. I promise you that”, Mark said, and Greg was sure he saw moisture in Mark’s eyes before he turned and walked off. Greg walked over and gave the news to the five and then asked them to let Greg and Mark’s men do the work and that they should try to get some rest. “Get some rest? Who can sleep right now”, Mike exclaimed? Greg laughed and said, “Either way, please stay out of the way”, and then he headed off to tell the rest of those who had showed up to help.

It was almost sunrise when they had made a hole large enough to insert some camera equipment through to the other side. It revealed the underground stream flowing along the rock wall with about a two-foot area above the water giving someone possible breathing space to crawl through. Mark was now hopeful that at least Ian was down there, somewhere, alive. He did not feel comfortable sending anyone in that hole at this point though.

Carl and Chad were sitting together almost drifting off when they heard Tony say, “Where are they going”? Carl looked up to see Greg’s fire crew loading up their equipment and pulling out. Then they saw Greg approaching. He stopped in front of them and said, “My crew are done for the night. They need to make room for the state’s equipment on the way. I’m staying. I left my lieutenant in charge for the day. I understand that you’re on edge. Hell, has any one of you had any real sleep the past couple days? You have to at least try to get a little rest. They made good progress last night and things look positive, at least for Ian. We’ve still had no sign from Steve”. “Thanks Greg, but you should have left the last part out. You had our spirits up until then”, Tony said. Greg looked at Tony and said, “I’m sorry. I have to be honest with you Tony”.

They were extremely tired, but Mike pulled Scott aside. He wanted to talk to him one on one. “Look, Scott, we’ve been friends since grade school. We did everything together. You, me, and Tony. We were inseparable. I never saw this coming, I mean you and Tony, doing things together. It was a lot to handle. I still don’t want to think about it, but you’re my friend, and so is Tony. Whatever you guys are into, I’m still your friend, no matter what Scott. You’re like my brother and no matter what, I still love you dude”. Scott smiled at Mike and said, “I’ve never seen you get this mushy dude. I think you’re so tired, your punch drunk”, and then laughed. Mike punched Scott in the arm and said, “There’s your punch, drunk”. “Ow!”, Scott howled and then grabbed Mike in a hug and said, “Thanks Mike. It’s good to have you back. Love you dude”. Mike patted Scott on the back and said, “Love you too bro, but don’t get any ideas. I don’t love you like Tony does”. Scott pulled back and then saw the grin on Mike’s face and they both laughed at his pun.  Tony glanced over and saw the two of them talking and laughing and thought that things may turn out well between he and his friends and then hoped the same would come of Steve and Ian as well.

In the darkness, I leaned in and kissed Ian softly on the lips and said, “Ready to head back”? Ian sounded disappointed in his response, “I guess. I was hoping we could find our way out this way. Guess we’ll have to hope they find us instead”. I replied, “Sometimes you have to rely on others to help you out. I guess this is one of those times”. Ian turned on his phone so we could get our bearings. It immediately turned back off, “Shit! Guess we’re using yours now Steve”, Ian cursed. I hit the power button on my phone and got nothing.

End of Chapter 38