I work security at Disney World... well, I mean I did.

I work in security at Disney World, the happiest place on Earth. Most nights it's an enjoyable job, watching the evening fireworks, making sure that everyone has a good time. We're not like regular security guards, we don't really have much to worry about. No one ever thinks about committing a crime here, there's too many cameras, too many other people. Honestly I think they recruitment team just goes out and finds the happiest most cheerful people they can, slaps an incredibly colorful uniform on them and then lets us loose.<br><br>I love it. I wouldn't trade my job for anything, even if they didn't pay me. The only downside is the night shift though, I'm a bit of a creepy cat and I don't like being out after dark. But it's a small price to pay for getting to work at Disney World.<br><br>Like I said though, tonight was my last night. I won't be working here anymore. Tonight was the last night that I'll be wearing that silly uniform, tonight was the last time I'll get to watch the fireworks. I'll never get to see the smiling face on a little kid when they meet Mickey, or watch a couple get engaged on the it's a small world ride while some guy dressed up as Goofy holds a little sign and covers the ring. <br><br>I'll never get to do any of that ever again, and honestly... I'm okay with that. In a few minutes this post will be live, and about half an hour after that my phone will be turned off by the authorities and my user deleted by the mods. But I just have to get this story out, I have to tell someone.<br><br>It started when I got to work about half an hour ago, a few of my superiors were huddled together talking about something, they kept glancing over at me every now and then. I wondered what they were talking about, and I could tell that I was the subject of the conversation. It wasn't long before I found out though, one of them walked up to me while the other two made a hasty exit.<br><br>"You're not gonna like this." He said. "But you've been chosen for the tunnel crawlers tonight."<br><br>I hadn't done tunnel crawlers in about three years, it's one of those jobs that everyone has to do, but it's not very fun. Basically you just crawl through the tunnels and make sure that there's no blockages or anything in the way, that the costumed characters can easily get around. The tunnels are incredibly narrow, you have to be skinny to do the job. The higher ups try to switch people out every now and then so that people don't get too big to do the job, in reality though they just choose the skinniest people they can.<br><br>When I first started working I had to do them a lot, I'm 6'3 and I weigh 170lbs, I'm skinny enough that you can see my ribs if I'm seated and my clothes are tight. I don't mind it that much though, it's enough to get a good paycheck and live comfortably.<br><br>"I can't though, I've been moved to the late shift." Is what I told him.<br><br>He just shook his head. "Not anymore, you've been reassigned. You're going with Ally down to the tunnels."<br><br>I groaned inwardly, I hated crawling through those narrow corridors even more now than I had when I first started. It was a long, lonely job, but someone had to do it. I headed towards the locker room to change, dreading the whole experience.<br><br>Ally was already there, changing into the black jumpsuits that we had to wear, she looked up and smiled as I walked in. Ally was probably the skinniest person at Disney World, she was short, but she looked even shorter due to the fact that she was missing a large portion of her torso, it had been removed in an accident when she was a kid and she had to do drainage treatments for it on a regular basis. Obviously she never let it stop her, and apparently she had been doing tunnel crawlers since before I even got the job.<br><br>"Hey there, haven't seen you down here in a long time." She said, smiling. <br><br>"Yeah, I know. I don't really miss it honestly."<br><br>"Oh. I love it. Air's so much better down there, and I can walk around without having to do these pesky drainage tubes. Plus I feel like I'm doing something important."<br><br>"I can see that. But I'm just here for the paycheck."<br><br>We finished getting changed, I tried to help Ally as much as possible but I don't think she really needed it. I'm not sure why I even offered, she looked like she'd had a lot of practice with the drainage tubes over the years. We were both pretty much ready to go when one of our superiors came over the intercom.<br><br>"Alright guys. It looks like there's a bit of a problem down there, apparently one of our costumed characters is missing. We think she might have locked herself down there, she's not responding to any of our calls and we can't track her phone's location, so it's either off or it's dead. Please be careful down there."<br><br>I gulped. "Did they tell us which character it was?"<br><br>"Yes. It's Tinkerbell."<br><br>Ally and I set off towards the tunnel we had to go through. We walked in silence for a while, my mind wandering to the missing costumed character, Tinkerbell had been a real person once, I'm sure of it. I don't know what they do to the people who play characters here, I don't know what kind of contract they sign, but Tinkerbell didn't sound like the kind of person who would just wander off down into the tunnels.<br><br>"So how have you been?" I asked Ally, breaking the silence.<br><br>"I've been good, I've missed you down here, you're always so nice." She replied. <br><br>We walked for another couple of minutes before we reached the tunnel. It was small, we had to squeeze through on our bellies, the concrete was damp and it was pitch black, I fumbled in my pocket to turn on my flashlight.<br><br>"You know, I used to explore these tunnels all the time when I was a kid." Said Ally. <br><br>"When you worked here?"<br><br>"No. Before that, my dad worked here. I would explore the tunnels and go to all the secret rooms that the characters go into. It's a really cool place, there's so much more to it than what you see on the surface."<br><br>"I know what you mean." I replied. I had also explored the tunnels as a kid, I really loved the feeling of being somewhere that I wasn't supposed to be, somewhere that I didn't know many other people had been.<br><br>We continued crawling, the tunnel opened up into a larger room. In the center of the room were a couple of canteens filled with water, a table and a couple of chairs, there was a small door which I assume led deeper into the tunnels and another one on the other side of the room which I'm sure led back to the surface. I stood up, looking around and stretching my back, even though it had been a while since I did tunnel crawlers I remembered this room.<br><br>Ally stood up too, I turned around and saw that she had something tied to her waist, two small water bottles and a folded up piece of red cloth. I assumed it was for her drainage tubes, she saw me looking and looked away.<br><br>"So where do you think Tinkerbell is?" I asked her. <br><br>She pointed to the small door. "I think she went through there. She was probably scared and wanted to be alone."<br><br>"I see." <br><br>We walked towards the door, it was locked, but I knew where the key was. There was a small box in the floor, it was buried beneath the concrete of the larger tunnel, but you could feel it through the dust if you knew where to look. I reached into the box and pulled out a small rusty key, it was greased to keep it from rusting and I had to wipe the grease off on the leg of my pants. I jammed it into the lock and turned it, it creaked as I pushed the door open and we stepped inside.<br><br>It was tight, tighter than I remembered. I wondered if they had shrunk the tunnels down since I last did this job, or if I had just forgotten. Ally didn't seem to be having any trouble, she fit through the tunnel with ease. I had to wriggle my way through it though, it took a lot of work and I had to stop and take breaks every now and then before finally reaching the end. I collapsed onto the cold concrete, trying to catch my breath before looking up at Ally.<br><br>"Thanks for waiting." I said. <br><br>"It's fine, I knew you'd take a while." She replied. <br><br>"What's that supposed to mean?"<br><br>"It means that I'm skinny, I can fit through tight spaces. You can't though, and you also know that this tunnel is tight, you've been down here before."<br><br>"I know." I said, confused. She paused for a while, looking at me before answering. <br><br>"Then why did you come?"<br><br>"I have to, I was assigned to this job."<br><br>"Why?"<br><br>"I don't know." I said, frustrated. <br><br>"Well I know why you were assigned to it." She said. <br><br>"Why?"<br><br>"Because we need to talk in private, and we can only do that down here where there's no cameras."<br><br>"Oh. What is it that you need to talk to me about?"<br><br>"I need to tell you about what Disney really is."<br><br>"What?"<br><br>"It's not what you think it is. You see... this place... it isn't even on Earth."<br><br>"What