Home: A Land of the Lost (1974) Story

Chapter 3

The next morning, everyone was seated around the breakfast table as Holly, Will, and Jack recapped the past two years for Rick, who was curious about how the Land of the Lost was after the earthquake that forced him through the time doorway home. Jack managed to find some of his old clothes that still fit, while Will found some of his and Holly borrowed some things from Melissa, as they were about the same size. Finally, Rick spoke up.

"It tore me up inside that I wasn't able to be there with you or bring you back home with me," he said to his children.

"You couldn't help it, Dad," Will replied quickly.

"Yeah," Holly added, "and we made it okay."

Jack chimed in, "I tried my best to keep them out of trouble and it wasn't easy," he said with a mock-serious look toward Will and Holly.

"I bet," Rick answered with a smile.

That afternoon, Rick had fallen asleep in the living room while watching TV, while Will had gone to talk to Jack. Holly began to grow bored, causing Melissa commented with a smile, "I think I know just what you need. C'mon. We're going for a drive."

"Where to?" Holly asked.

"You'll see."

About 15 minutes later, they were walking into a nearby mall. After a few seconds, Holly recognized it as one she used to go shopping at with Will and their parents, and later with just Will and Rick. She couldn't believe how much it had changed since she was last there only (to her) a few years earlier. Sure the building itself looked mostly the same, but many non-anchor stores were now gone, replaced by others she'd never seen before. There were kiosks set up for various wireless carriers, which reminded her of how glad she was that Melissa had explained smartphones to her the night before. It seemed they were a key part of life, now.

Holly also noticed how different many of the mall customers looked, from what she was used to. This was to be expected, she knew, but it was strange going from seeing bellbottoms and other '70s fashions to some of the more...interesting styles she was seeing. Not having experienced the changes through the '80s, '90s, and '00s, this was quite a shock to her.

As they continued walking, Melissa noticed Holly was beginning to settle down and enjoy herself. For her part, Holly was much more comfortable, but she still didn't quite feel in her element.

"I don't believe this," she thought, "I'm actually more comfortable running from dinosaurs than walking around the mall."

Regardless, it was fun to just be a normal teen for a change.

Jack and Laura were glad to have some time to catch up. It was difficult for each, after being separated for what to Jack was three years, but for her 40. After a somewhat awkward start, they began warming up to each other.

"I felt so bad leaving you and your mom while I was stranded," Jack admitted regretfully, "I tried my best to get back−we all did."

"I know, especially now. For a few years, I was angry with you. I felt like you'd abandoned us. Then, as I got older, I thought something had happened to you when you went rafting in the Grand Canyon and, like you said, fell into the same portal Uncle Rick, Will, and Holly did. You were listed as a missing person for a long time. They wanted to just give up and declare you dead, but couldn't find any evidence, so they just left the case open."

He explained, "Yeah. My raft and supplies all went through with me. I probably disappeared into thin air. I'm just glad none of the people searching hit the waterfall, too."

Laura half smiled as she replied, "Probably because they actually made sure to stay away from it."

Both laughed at this before continuing the conversation.