Still though I want that cheese

It’s been another horrible day. I’m exhausted and everything hurts from the tip of my nose straight through my hind quarters. My head is still ringing although I’m glad my vision has cleared up. I’m hungry. I’m so hungry. It’s been three days of this and I want to sleep but I’m almost to terrified to close my eyes.

I still don’t understand what’s going on. I’ve been removed from my family and more or less starved. They took me away one day when I was just milling about playing. There was no explanation. I tried to squirm away and fight back but I was too small and they were too big. They took me away and locked me up and I haven’t done anything wrong. At least I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong.

In the passed two days I’ve hardly gotten anything to eat. There has been water sure, but I’m so hungry. Yesterday I was in this big enclosure and there was no one else in there with me. I sniffed around a bit and just sat. Nothing seems safe these days. After a while I noticed there was this thing hanging down in the middle of the enclosure. It was like two pieces of rope hanging down with little planks across it every so often. It looked like some of the walk ways on the playground but this one went straight up into the sky.

Eventually after I was left alone long enough and it didn’t seem like I decided to go up to this walk way to the sky. I couldn’t really make sense of it, but when I walked near it food fell right out the sky and landed in front of me. It was as if it rained a piece of food. I was startled by this at first. I was scared of the food. I tried to leave it alone. I didn’t trust it but I was so hungry and finally I gave in and decided to eat it. Even though I don’t know where this mystery food came from I was grateful it had appeared. I wish I could say that I rationed it, but no I devoured it as soon as it I gave in.

I stayed by the walk way to the sky wondering if another piece of food might rain down. I looked up and tried to see where the food had come from but everything above me just looked like a dismal black. The sky looked like how I felt inside. I was confused and I missed my family. The little bit of food helped but I was still hungry.

After a while I got frustrated and out of my frustration I decided to hit this stupid stairway to the sky and the strangest thing happened. Another piece of food fell down from sky. It was bizarre and it didn’t make any sense to me. Why was food falling from the sky? I was hesitant again but this time not as long. The last piece was safe and so without much more investigation I assumed this piece was safe to.

Today I was dropped into a new place. It was different from the last place. I suppose they’re all different. Today had some new awful design to it. I was trapped. Although I didn’t look trapped. I started in a corner where I was fine. I could smell cheese. None of these brown packages of food from the sky. Actual cheese! It seemed pretty straight forward though there was just a lump of cheese on the other side of the room I was placed in. The only problem was sometimes when I would step I would experience this awful pain surging all through my body. All my muscles would lock up and I’d sort of seize in pain. My vision would blur and I thought I was going to die. With a bit of a struggle I’d be able to step back and stop. It was miserable. Sometimes when I stepped though nothing would happen at all. So some steps were safe and others were would feel like I was going to die. At first I thought it was how I was stepping or maybe I was just going to die, but then I realized no it was where I was stepping.

That’s when I put together that the room was divided into many different squares. Some squares like where I was placed in the room were safe. I could stay there and not experience any pain, except of course the pain of smelling a beautiful lump of cheese when I’m starving. Seeing that lump of cheese straight across the room with no visible deterrent at all. I could stay where I was, but who knows how long I’d be in this room. I wanted that cheese!

The awful bit was that some of the squares weren’t safe. Some squares when I’d step on them would create that awful pain that shot right up through my leg and into my soul is what it felt like. My vision would go fuzzy and I’d feel all woozy. Like there was a buzzing bursting out from inside my brain.

Still though, I wanted that cheese so I decided I’d try figure out which squares were safe and which squares were bad squares. There really wasn’t a great way to do this. I had to touch them. It’s always painful. It didn’t matter how light or hard I seemed to step. Once my foot hit the ground I’d either struggle to pull my leg back or breathe a sigh of relief.

You would think that there might be some straight line of safe steps to get across the room, but no. The squares appeared to be randomly placed. Once I thought I was doing well. I had made it half way across the room, but then the buzzing squares cut me off. I didn’t want to back, but there were squares that took me away. After a bit I was able to move about the room with a little bit of confidence. I knew how to get back to where I started and be safe. There was enough safe squares there for me to lay down. Then I could venture out on the other squares but usually there wasn’t enough safe squares for me to lay down and rest. So I spent my day going back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. Until I was finally getting close.

I was only a few squares away. I was sniffing about. I’ve been trying different legs all day. Working from front left to front right to back right to tail to back left and then back to the front. I thought to lick a square once. I almost did it because my legs were exhausted and I couldn’t imagine touching another square. But I thought, no, I better not. No point in getting all the way across this room and not be able to eat the cheese because my tongue is too sore. Or even worse be able to eat the cheese but not be able to taste it. I decided to go back to where I started and rest for a bit and then try again.

So across the room off to the left is the cheese. From where I start I go left a three squares, then forward two squares. To the right three squares, forward two, right two, back three, right two, forward five. This is all just madness. Sometimes I think I could skip ahead by jumping, but I’m afraid of over shooting it or under shooting it. So instead I just play it safe. I go where I know I won’t get hurt until I get as far I can.

I continued on. Left three, back two, left two, forward four, right five, forward two, left three. There was a row squares between me and the cheese. I’m so close but none of the squares seems safe. I’ve tested them all looking for the next good square, but they seem to just end. No! No! No! That can’t be. There have been good squares that have gotten me all the way here and now there are no good squares left! How could this be?! Who would design such an awful thing. I started to think I lost my mind. I frantically tapped squares but it was no use. They all had that awful buzz. I was losing my mind. I was losing my place.

I could go back to the beginning. I could rest and come back again and double check things. Make sure I haven’t missed anything, but there are so many squares and I’m so close. The cheese is right there!

I know what I have to do. I’ll back up. Three squares I have three squares to get a running head start I only have to clear two squares and I’ll just land. Where will I land? I don’t know if any the squares near the cheese are safe. Surely some of them must be safe, but there is no way of knowing. I guess I’ll just land, I’ll land, I’ll land. On the cheese? Yes maybe I can I’ll run and leap and I’ll land on the cheese I might be able to do it. Yes that’s my plan. Okay on the count of three. One, two, three…

Stars, I suppose that’s what they are. I’m seeing stars. It’s a turn of phrase I’ve never really understood. I’ve never actually been outside. The last thing I remember was leaping. I couldn’t turn back. I couldn’t tell you if I touched the cheese. Landed on it. Fumbled around or just missed completely. All I know is that at some point I felt the wretched and familiar pain of that zap once again. I panicked and ran. I thought maybe I’d scramble for a safe square, but no. Instead I found every other square there is and now I see stars.

Tomorrow they’ll put me in a new room. Who knows what awful danger awaits me. My paws hurt, my vision has gone wonky. I’m exhausted and hungry. Still though, I want that cheese.