There had been silence for hours, each woman lost in her own thoughts. Each found the situation a complete disaster. Each imagined people they would rather be stuck in the lift with, making deeply unflattering comparisons to the other woman in her mind. Each regretted that the smallness of the space made proximity unavoidable.
Suddenly a stomach rumbled. They looked at each other.
'I'm so hungry,' Rachel said, 'I missed my lunch.' She'd been too busy to stop for lunch and she hadn't had any breakfast either, preferring to sleep a few more minutes. Now it was way past dinner.
'I'm starving too,' Emily said. She opened her rather large and unfashionable bag and brought out a chocolate. Of course she would have chocolate, she was practically addicted to the stuff, Rachel thought. Snapping it in half Emily passed one half to Rachel.
'No I can't, pimples.'
'Suit yourself,' Emily said. She started eating the other half. Rachel couldn't help watching. Emily noticed, and handed her the half she'd offered before. This time Rachel took it and bit into it.
'Thanks.' Rachel wondered whether she should be rationing it but by the time she'd had that thought, it was too late. There was none left. She felt the need to wash the taste out of her mouth and said to Emily,
'You wouldn't happen to have any water in that bag of yours would you?'
'No. Do you really think that drinking water would be a good idea?' Emily asked.
'Why not?' Rachel asked. Emily looked around eloquently. 'Oh.' What they were going to do when one of them needed to go to the toilet was something she didn't want to think about. 'You don't have anything in that bag...'
'I don't have any suitable containers no. Let's hope it doesn't get that bad.'
'I don't know,' Rachel said despondently, 'I don't have much hope of getting rescued any time soon.'
'Do you think we could be stuck here until Monday?' Emily asked, appalled.
'I don't know. They have no urgent need to fix this elevator. There's another one and they wouldn't want to call them out on a weekend. They probably charge extra for weekend calls.'
'So our only hope is that the other lift breaks down?' Emily asked.
'Yeah. Maybe that could happen.' The elevators were that bad, maybe one would.
'If we don't get rescued then people will think we're missing.'
'They might think we've been kidnapped,' Rachel said.
'Or murdered,' Emily said, putting her head in her hands. 'I wish I had a mobile.'
'A what?' Ducks hanging from the ceiling of the lift might be interesting to look at for all of five seconds but Rachel didn't see how it would help.
'A cell phone I think you call it.'
'The reception isn't that good in here anyway. They do it on purpose,' Rachel added sourly. That was to interfere in their social lives.
'Do you think the police will be looking for us?'
'Not yet. We've only been gone six hours,' Rachel said.
'Six!' they both felt it had been much longer than that. 'Poor Ross, I was supposed to be meeting him. And I suppose the others will be wondering where you are.'
'I wonder if they've talked to each other?' Rachel said.
'You mean if they all know that we're both missing?' Emily asked.
'Yeah.'
'Would that make them worry more or less?'
'Maybe more. Maybe they'll think that you killed me.'
'Why?' Emily asked.
'Well you don't like me. You can't even stand to see me.'
'As if I'd go to gaol because of you, you're not worth it.' Emily said. 'You'd be more likely to kill me. You're the one who wouldn't let go.'
'Hey, I wouldn't do time for you either,' Rachel said. 'I've got better things to do with my life.'
'Like shopping.'
'Oh very funny, what's your hobby? Eating chocolate?'
'Oh is that the best you can come up with?' Emily sneered.
'Well I don't know you very well.'
'That isn't my fault is it?' Emily said, 'You never wanted to talk to me.'
'Hey, you didn't want to talk to me,' Rachel said.
'That was after you ruined my wedding,' Emily said, 'Before that I'd have been happy to get to know you better but you kept away from me.'
'Well I found it kind of hard,' Rachel said. 'At the time.'
'I suppose you did,' Emily said. They lapsed into silence before Emily said, 'I've got a magazine in this bag. At least there's something to look at. Why don't I rip it apart and give you one half to read and I'll take the other half?'
'Like the chocolate?' Emily nodded and brought out the magazine. 'No don't spoil it. We can look at it together can't we?' Rachel asked. It was a fashion magazine and each could look at a page without disturbing the other too much.
'What happens if one of us wants to turn the page?' Emily asked.
'Well whoever it is can wait. It's not like we're short of time.'