Trust - Part One (Sujal as main lead)

Part One - Rock Climbing

One day Sujal decides to take his class out for rock climbing so he can get closer to his daughter and patch up all the differences between them and it kindly worked like this..... .... ....

Sixty feet up the cliff, the toe of his climbing boot resting on a ledge no wider than a dime, two fingers curled around a nubbin of rock, Sujal was suddenly afraid that he would fall. "Rope," he called.
At the foot of the cliff, his daughter let out the golden line of rope that joined them. As Sujal felt the rope go slack, he raised his right knee and pressed his toe into a shallow depression. Grunting with the strain, he stood up on his right leg, than paused, uncertain of his next move.

The cliff had proven to be deceptive. The conglomerate, with its rough, gravel-like surface, had looked easy. Close to the base, there were large handholds, so that at first the climbing was little more difficult than walking up stairs. Then, unexpectedly, the surface smoothed; the places whee he could get a secure hold were spread farther and farther apart. At the same time, the numerous cracks dwindled until there was no place to set any protection. Unable to go back because of his pride, he had continued on until he now found himself dangerously far above his last piton. If he fell, he would drop twenty five feet to the piton, then twenty-five feet past it before his rope came taut and held him. There was, because of the elasticity of the rope, a chance that he would ground out.
The thought flitted through his mind that it would be like falling from the top of a six-story building. Tensing his fingers, he straightened his elbow and leaned back from the rock so that he could search for his next hold. Above him, there was a half-inch ledge. He reached up, got a good grip, then lifted his left leg higher than he had ever imagined he could and set his foot on a rough patch that would provide the necessary friction to hold his weight.

He had been scared many times but never like this. Never before had he been this close to paralysis, to a sensation of letting go so that the tension and the fear would be over. The way he felt, he imagined, was the way a wounded animal felt when it finally gave up and allowed itself to be killed.

Six inches from his left hand there was a vertical crack that seemed hardly wider than a fingernail. Cautiously, he explored it with his hand. Just within his reach it widened slightly. He ran his hand over his rack and unsnapped the smallest chock nut. He forced the aluminium wedge deep into the crack. From wedge there hung a wire loop and from that a carabiner. Catching hold of the rope tied to his harness; he lifted it up, forced open the spring-loaded gate of the carabiner and fitted the rope into the aluminium oval.

Once the gate snapped shut, he sighted with relief. The chock nut, the wire loop, the carabiner, the rope, fragile as they looked, would hold ten times his weight. If he wanted to, he could let go and simply hand in space.
"You all right?" his daughter called. "Yeah," he lied. Just resting."
He voice sounded faint and breathy. He was glad the could not see his momentary weakness. He could not control the trembling of his legs. The muscle of his right arm jerked spasmodically. Ever since his wife had left him, he had tried to compensate by providing unhesitating leadership for his daughter. He did his best to keep life simple and uncomplicated. It was, he thought, the way to provide security.

To Be Continued................................................... ......................................