Escape

The night was as long as a century, finally the sun came out. Alice and Luis still didn’t know where the kidnapper was taking them. They could hear each other’s heart beating violently. Alice was thinking nervously of what would happen to them, until Luis talked to her quietly.

“What are we going to do? How can we escape?” whispered Luis.

Unfortunately, this was overheard by the man. “Haha!” he laughed. “Don’t feel afraid. I’m a good guy and I’m going to take you to a place called Happy Land. That farmer told me that you two ran away from home because you didn’t like school and your parents. I didn’t like school either. I am going to help you.”

Luis was shocked for a few seconds. After a while, he answered with his voice shaking: “Thank you for helping us.”

Although he said that, he didn’t believe the man’s word. He was absolutely sure that the man was a kidnapper, and he started to regret running away from home. Also he found that he couldn’t talk to Alice anymore because the man could hear all their conversations. “What should I do?” he thought helplessly.

Magic

Many hours passed and they were still on their way to the unknown place. Luis was so tired and began to feel dizzy, and just before he fell asleep, he heard Alice say: “Why are we following a kidnapper?” Luis turned to her, frightened. He saw Alice was still sleeping. “She must be talking in her sleep,” he thought, “but why didn’t the kidnapper respond? He should have heard that.” Luis was lost in his thoughts. Just then, he suddenly remembered something that he read in a book before.

It said that when a man talked with his eyes closed, only the person he liked could hear what he said. That might be the reason why the kidnapper couldn’t hear what Alice said. Luis was so excited. He wanted to try whether he had that magical power. Closing his eyes and thinking of Alice, he said softly: “Alice, try to close your eyes and speak to me.” His voice woke up Alice.

Happy Land

After hours of driving, they finally arrived at Happy Land.

“Wow!” shouted Luis, after seeing the amazing front gate of Happy Land. Through the gate, he could see it was so colorful and fascinating. There were miniature worlds of “Star Wars,” “Hogwarts Castle,” “Transformers” and “Cars.” Everything he loved was in this magical place.

He forgot about all the worries about the kidnapper and couldn’t wait to go inside.

“What are you thinking, Luis? Just go inside and play! There are many kids like us inside Happy Land. We don’t need to worry anymore. I think I have dreamed of this place before. It’s like a dream come true.”

So they went inside.

Alice wasn’t a fantasy girl. She didn’t like princesses, barbie dolls or Merry-go-rounds, but she did like karaoke and games. So Alice and Luis went to the game center.

Instead of a game center, it was more like a gambling center, because all they saw were exactly the same as what would be in a gambling house. There were thousands of different kinds of recreational machines. In the middle of the game center was a gigantic stage — the karaoke center. Many teenage couples were singing together and dancing on the stage. There was also a changing room on the right side of the stage. It was for the kids to dress up. There were many beautiful dresses for girls and fashionable suits for boys. On the left side of the game center, there was a huge restaurant called “Just Eat It.” There were many different kinds of food and drinks. All the kids here were so cheerful. They had nothing to worry about and they could have fun all the time.

Alice and Luis went to the “Just Eat It” restaurant as they began to feel hungry.

“I think it looks very much like the McDonald’s and KFC. The food here is actually the same,” shouted Alice.

“Yep. I’d like two pieces of Kentucky fried chicken and a hamburger,” said Luis.

“Well, I want a box of french fries and a hotdog.”

“Do you want some drinks? You must be thirsty. Actually, our coke is very popular among kids. It’s very delicious. Wanna have a try?” said the waitress encouragingly.

“Oh, sure. I forgot to order some drinks. All right, two cups of coke, please,” said Alice.