The air was close, stifling. The culvert smelled of metal and rot. The heat was slowly cooking me in my own sweat. Every muscle in my body screamed at me to move but I couldn’t, he would find me.

I heard a scream—Johnson. He was new, raw. He didn’t know the lay of the land and it had cost him.

I wasn’t new. This was my third year. I knew the best places to hide, lay low. You had to become part animal to survive, to find a safe hole.

Another cry, closer now—Smith. How much longer could I do this, survive? I thought of Mother and cookies and milk. Of Father and mitts and baseball.

I could hear him breathing now. His footsteps right above me. Would this be the time I failed, got caught?

More footsteps, heavier ones. Had he brought reinforcements?

“Did you find him, Billy? Class is about to start.”

“No, Mrs. Harrison. He’s too good at hide and seek. I never catch him.”

The bell—recess was over.

How many more until I could go home?