Island of the Unemployed

A SACRIFICIAL ACT

He stood at the door with the numbers '321' nailed to it. Should he knock or go home and forget the whole thing? Talking to Simon would be the first tangible step towards executing a plan that scared the hell out of him. It was a step he wasn't sure he was ready to take. He put his hand to the door, and gave it a light knock. Maybe he won't be home.

"Oh! Hello!" Simon opened the door, and took note of River's pale face. "Is everything alright?"

"Do you have a minute?"

"Yes! Of course! Please come in."

They walked to the table at the center of the room. River noticed some papers with hen scratches on it. "Are you busy? Should I come back another time?"

Simon looked at the papers, and gave them a push. "Oh. No. Don't worry about that. I was about to take a break anyway."

"A break from what?"

"Nothing." Simon looked sheepish. "I'm writing something. A book actually."

"A book? Really? What's it about?"

"Oh. Well. I'm a little embarrassed to talk about it, to be honest."

"Okay." River was hoping he would. Any diversion from what he came to talk about was welcomed.

"But, if you'd really like to know it's about a boy who had to leave home. Very sad, really, but it must be good." Simon's expression turned glum.

"That does sound sad. How old was he?"

"A year," Simon replied.

"A year? A one year old? He had to leave home?"

"I told you it was sad."

"And why did he have to leave home?" River was almost afraid to ask.

"There were things he needed to do elsewhere," Simon replied.

"I see." Of course. A one-year-old had things to do elsewhere.

"So, tell me. What can I help you with?"

River had rehearsed what he would say a dozen of times. Now his mind went blank. "Nothing really. I'm not even sure what I came here for."

"You seem to have something on your mind."

"Well...I don't know. I guess there is one thing." River paused. "It's just that...You see. I've been having these dreams."

"Dreams. I see. Were they disturbing?"

"Yes. But that's not the problem. It's what the dreams seem to be telling me to do."

"And what do they seem to be telling you to do?"

"To...go back." River braced himself. There was no telling how Simon might react.

"Back?"

"To the other island." River watched as Simon's jaw literally dropped.

"The other island?"

"I know. It's crazy, right?"

"The one you came from?"

"Yes."

Simon stood, and walked to one side of the room. He looked out the window. "No. Not crazy."

"No?"

"Sometimes dreams are a way of passing messages in."

Oh, no! Here we go. "Pass messages into where?"