Page 11 of The World She Never Knew Existed

Zeke was busy coloring at one of the tables. Dillon stopped to look at the picture that he was coloring.

“You do a very nice job there,” Dillon said.

“Thank you,” Zeke said.

“How do you like it here, so far?” Dillon asked.

Zeke shrugged his shoulders and said, “I guess it’s okay. I miss my friends.”

“I bet that when school starts you will make a bunch of new friends,” Dillon said.

“I hope so,” Zeke said.

Later that afternoon, Dillon was taking the trash out back and saw Zeke kicking a soccer ball in the café’s back yard. Dillon remembered Zeke’s words from earlier and thought about how lonely the little boy sounded.

“Hey, Zeke. Can I play, too?”

“Sure,” Zeke said, his face lighting up.

For the next half hour, Dillon played a rousing game of soccer with the little boy. Zeke won the game, but Dillon wouldn’t have admitted for the world that he let him win.

At one point, Dillon looked up and noticed that Clara was watching him from the back deck of the café. She was leaning against one of the supports with her arms crossed across her chest. She was wearing a huge smile.

Dillon couldn’t help but smile back. There was just something about Clara that had captured his attention.

“I need to get back to work, but I’ll see you later,” Dillon said to Zeke.

“Okay. Thank you for playing with me,” Zeke said.

Dillon couldn’t get Clara off of his mind, so right before it was time for the café to close, he went next door.

“I’ve noticed that since you’ve been here, it’s been all work and no play. I was wondering if you and Zeke could take some time off tomorrow and go on a hike with me.”

Clara said, “I don’t know. Sunday is one of my busiest days.”

“I got this covered,” Jamie said, nudging Clara in her side. “We have a full staff tomorrow. Go and have some fun.”

Clara thought about it for a second and then said, “I would love to go. I know that Zeke would relish the thought of getting out of the café for a while.”

Dillon picked them up the next morning and drove them to the mountain. Everyone had a backpack. Zeke’s backpack had his lunch and some water. Clara carried her lunch, water, and snacks for everyone. Dillon had his own lunch, water, and a first aid kit.

They hiked up the mountain for a couple of hours until they reached Dillon’s favorite spot in the forest. It was a huge waterfall that dropped into the river. The water was clear and pure.

“I want to go swimming,” Zeke said.

“Sorry, Bud. That would be too dangerous,” Dillon said. “The currents are very swift and would simply carry you down stream and you would drown.”

Zeke nodded and sat down, digging in his backpack for his lunch. Dillon was amazed that Zeke simply accepted Dillon’s word and didn’t throw a tantrum or question him.

“This is an absolutely beautiful spot,” Clara said.

“I’m glad that you like it,” Dillon said. “It’s one of my favorite places to go.”

“Can you go fishing in the river?” Zeke asked.

“Sure, do you like to fish?”

“I don’t know. My friend, Jack, always went fishing with his father and had a lot of fun,” Zeke said.

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