Two Thai schoolchildren have revealed how they miraculously missed the unhappy journey of their football team at Thamg Luang Cave because one of them had not finished his homework and the other had taken a drive home from training with his mother.
Songpol Kanthawong and Tsaweechai Namsang, both 13, had to walk together through the tunnels with 12 other boys and their football coach.
But the boys came out at the last moment and now they can only watch and hope as the rescuers run against the clock to save their teammates.
Songpol told MailOnline, "I should have made the trip to the cave, but I did not have my bike, so I could go there or else I would be stuck."
Tsaweechai added, "I went into the cave, but I had not done my homework, so I had to go home to finish it."
At the Maas Sai Prasitsart school, where most wild boars are students, the youths said they had lost their teammates and prayed for their safe return.
Songpol said, "When I found out they were trapped, I was so sad and angry that I cried and I could not sleep that night, I can not stop thinking about it, I was very worried about them.
"My mother would have been worried that if I had been with them, she would have been hospitalized."
Tsaweechai added, "When I heard the news that they were trapped, I did not believe it, but as more and more reports came out, I realized it had to be true.
The boys drove in a carriage after training for a four-hour walk through the caves.
However, they were dragged to shore and finally found themselves 9 days later when two British diver heroes overtook them on Monday.
In statements to the school, the couple showed confidence that their soccer coaches keep their friends safe and pray for their prompt evacuation.
"The trip to the cave was planned for a few days, it was a pleasure," said Songpol.
"We all like the coach and I would have been happy to follow him in the cave and I know he would do anything to get us safe."
Tsaweechai was introduced in Thamg Luang once, describing it as "scary but beautiful".
He told Mailonline: "It's really, really dark, it's scary, but it's also beautiful, the walls glow in the dark ...
"If I could send a message to my friends, I would tell them, be strong, I would tell them that I miss them and I can not wait to play with them again.
He added: "I know that the army and even foreigners have come to save them."
Songpol said that children would not believe that their experience has captured the attention of the world.
He told Mailonline: "Do not wait to tell the children how they are the center of attention, I will tell you how everyone in Thailand and other parts of the world have prayed for them ... I will be very happy when they leave ...
Meanwhile, more details have come to light about the harsh underground test of the stranded.
The group was forced to leave the Pattaya beach area in the cave where they were discovered and enter the mountain about 200 meters after the rising tide flooded the rocky promontory.
The boys and their coaches are now enthroned on a ledge carved into the rock, known as "women's tits," according to the governor of Chiang Rai province Narongsak Osotthanakorn.
The governor revealed that the children had completed their first day of diving training to prepare for their evacuation.
He said, however, that young people should undergo a thorough medical examination to determine if they are fit enough for the arduous escape.
He added that the children and their coaches are in good spirits and that their health improved after the first meal in a few days.
Governor Narongsak said authorities would not underestimate the youth's challenge and that it would have taken six hours to reach the children and five hours to re-negotiate through the complex cave system.
But he said: "The water level is still the main concern and urgency."
