Read Online Survive the Night by Danielle Vega - Free Book Online

needles.
    The manhole cover’s made of iron, with a City of New York logo stamped over the center. Someone has painted a neon pink X over it. Woody digs his fingers around the sides of the cover and yanks.
    â€œAre you sure that’s the right . . .” Julie starts, but she lets the end of her sentence trail off when Woody grunts and shoves the cover to the side of the hole.
    â€œ X marks the spot,” he says, wiping his hands off on his costume. Shana grabs my arm and jumps up and down, squealing. Together, we all peer into the darkness.
    A rickety metal ladder descends into the black. Far below, I can just make out flickering candlelight and hear the distant sound of drumming. Something drips against the bottom of the tunnel, and the sound echoes toward us.
    â€œWell,” Sam says, leaning back on his heels. “Who wants to go first?”

SIX
    I LOWER MYSELF DOWN THE LADDER. THE RUNGS chill my fingers even though the day’s heat still lingers in the air.
    â€œGross,” I say. “It smells like fish.”
    â€œIt’s an adventure.” Julie climbs onto the ladder above me. Her Doc Martens combat boots clank on the rungs, making the entire ladder tremble. She got the boots from her mom, who was way into grunge in the nineties and had written Pearl Jam rules across the leather in silver Sharpie. “Adventures aren’t supposed to be clean.”
    â€œThat’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever said,” Aya mutters. She crawls into the opening next, carefully placing one blackened foot onto the ladder’s rungs.
    â€œYou didn’t care about being smelly when you were playing Queen of Garbage earlier,” I say. Julie pokes Aya’s foot and snickers.
    Aya tries to kick her. “Hey, stop shaking the ladder,” she says. A nervous laugh bubbles up in my throat. We’re kind of high up, and this thing doesn’t exactly feel steady. I glance down, but I can’t see past Shana’s blond head. My leather flat slips from my heel, and I curl my toes to keep it from falling.
    â€œDon’t tell me you’re scared.” Shana’s voice echoes up from below me. I tighten my grip on the ladder rungs, feeling dizzy.
    â€œI never get scared,” I shoot back. Something icy and cold slithers down the back of my shirt. I shriek, nearly losing my grip on the ladder. My shoe slips off my foot and spirals into the darkness.
    Shana cackles. “Yeah, you’re a badass.”
    I rock back and forth to make the ladder jiggle. Shana screams with laughter and hugs herself to the rungs.
    â€œShit!” she shouts. “I take it back. Don’t do that again.”
    I laugh as we climb deeper underground and the subway tunnel slowly comes into focus. A giant laughing clown face stretches across one wall, orange spray paint dripping down the tile. Candles flicker on the ground. Distant music echoes through the tunnel and pulses up from the floor, making the wicks tremble.
    Excitement floods through me. I can already hear voices and laughter coming from deeper in the tunnel. It sounds like the party’s in full swing. I lower my foot and my toes hit wet concrete. Chills shoot up my leg.
    â€œEwww.” I giggle, balancing on one foot. We’ve reached a narrow platform overlooking a single row of grimy train tracks. A water-stained poster reads SERVICE CHANGES . I flatten the edge of the paper, but it’s too faded to read.
    â€œThat’s hella old,” Woody explains, stepping up behind me. “These tunnels have been closed since Hurricane Sandy.”
    â€œCreepy,” I say, and another thrill of excitement shoots through me. I turn, still balanced on one foot. “Has anyone seen my shoe?”
    â€œThis it?” Sam holds up my shoe, turning it so the candlelight catches the studs on the toe. Even in the dark I see the little dimple in his cheek.
    â€œYeah,” I say. I clear my throat, annoyed at