I’ll start the story and someone else continue it and so on. Hope it works (although with cross-posting I fear it will not)…
*Daniel reached inside his coat for the pack of cigarettes which were not there. He had successfully quit smoking three months ago, yet the habits of the habit continued. *
*His hand closed instead around a Slim Jim, the last one in his pocket. “Uh, oh,” he thought, “I’d better run out and get some more!” He left the house, thinking that if he had a job, he could afford to buy Slim Jims in bulk, instead of by the dozen. He began the long walk to the convenience store. When he passed the construction site near his house, however, he saw something that made him forget about cigarettes and Slim Jims completely.
A rude gash in the oozing, orangish mud had been opened by a backhoe which stood nearby in repose, sunk several inches into the muck. The hole emitted a dull, repetitive noise, which struck him as odd, since it was late at night and there were no workmen about. Willfully ignoring their monotonously repeated CAUTIONs, Daniel ducked under some yellow tape to investigate, keeping back from the edge of the hole lest he slip and tumble in. At the bottom of the hole, perched upon some pipes and conduits, was a girl who looked younger than her nine years. She was smeared with sticky clay, obviously wet and cold, but she was not crying out for help, nor did she say anything when Daniel peered down at her. She simply continued kicking her heels against one of the pipes, which resounded hollowly.
*“Hello?” shouted Daniel into the hole.
The girl did not respond at all, not even to acknowledge Daniel’s existence. Daniel looked around for some help, but the streets were vacant. He could just move on, convincing himself that it was none of his concern. Instead, he climbed into the hole, ruining his shoes in the process.