it was cruel that now , when the door was finally opened , the steps should no longer be walls to him , but cliffs . ahead , i could see the end of the tunnel and a small paved path that cut through the trees . it would n't end of course until the judges weighed in . the boy beamed when he gave it back . except that i do n't want it to ! he murmured into my ear as he led us through the steps that turned out to be easy and natural . 