The Hypothetical Lighthouse
The Hypothetical Lighthouse
“You never told me what you wanted to do.”
I let the rock fly from my fingers and watched as it skipped across the water’s surface just three times before sinking into its salty depths.
“Hm?” I couldn’t help that I wasn’t paying attention. She knew perfectly well I could only do one thing at a time.
“You know, after you graduate,” she stated. She picked up a rock and easily skipped it five times, landing it on the sandbar opposite the expanse of water before us. “Internship? Traveling? You never said.”
“Oh, that’s easy,” I answered. The ocean air seeped into my lungs as I took a deep breath before casting out another rock. It jumped twice, then listed sideways and vanished. It probably gave some unfortunate Perch a concussion. “I’m going to be a lighthouse operator.”
“Really?” she asked.
“Yeah.” I smiled to myself, hair whipping past me in sharp threads whirled by the breezes off the water. “Lighthouses are always in the best places. There’s a ton of stuff to see. I could swim and explore during the day, and at night I could keep boats from crashing on the rocks.” I stopped throwing rocks for a moment. “I’d get to be the girl in the tower, only I’d be the one saving people.”
“Oh, great.”
“What?”
“You’ve trapped us in a hypothetical situation!” she cried as a white mist surrounded us. I figured it was just fog.
“…a what?”
“A ‘what if’ world.” She began pacing. “Maybe if I had a knife I could cut us out-”
“Take this one!” The voice seemed to come from nowhere. It sounded just like her. A hand reached through the fog and dropped a knife at her feet, wearing a bracelet just like hers, purple and orange pony beads on a black cord lying loose around the wrist. I raised one eyebrow.
“Thanks.” She stabbed through thin air, and the white cloud instantly disappeared. I stood there, blinking.
“What was that?”
“Never mind.”
“…so…what are you going to do?”
She shrugged. “I’m going to grad school. I don’t really know why.
I smiled and faced the ocean again. “Want to come hang out in my lighthouse over breaks?”
“Yeah, sure.”
I let the rock fly from my fingers and watched as it skipped across the water’s surface just three times before sinking into its salty depths.
“Hm?” I couldn’t help that I wasn’t paying attention. She knew perfectly well I could only do one thing at a time.
“You know, after you graduate,” she stated. She picked up a rock and easily skipped it five times, landing it on the sandbar opposite the expanse of water before us. “Internship? Traveling? You never said.”
“Oh, that’s easy,” I answered. The ocean air seeped into my lungs as I took a deep breath before casting out another rock. It jumped twice, then listed sideways and vanished. It probably gave some unfortunate Perch a concussion. “I’m going to be a lighthouse operator.”
“Really?” she asked.
“Yeah.” I smiled to myself, hair whipping past me in sharp threads whirled by the breezes off the water. “Lighthouses are always in the best places. There’s a ton of stuff to see. I could swim and explore during the day, and at night I could keep boats from crashing on the rocks.” I stopped throwing rocks for a moment. “I’d get to be the girl in the tower, only I’d be the one saving people.”
“Oh, great.”
“What?”
“You’ve trapped us in a hypothetical situation!” she cried as a white mist surrounded us. I figured it was just fog.
“…a what?”
“A ‘what if’ world.” She began pacing. “Maybe if I had a knife I could cut us out-”
“Take this one!” The voice seemed to come from nowhere. It sounded just like her. A hand reached through the fog and dropped a knife at her feet, wearing a bracelet just like hers, purple and orange pony beads on a black cord lying loose around the wrist. I raised one eyebrow.
“Thanks.” She stabbed through thin air, and the white cloud instantly disappeared. I stood there, blinking.
“What was that?”
“Never mind.”
“…so…what are you going to do?”
She shrugged. “I’m going to grad school. I don’t really know why.
I smiled and faced the ocean again. “Want to come hang out in my lighthouse over breaks?”
“Yeah, sure.”