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…recognize Dwayne’s age, if he had of done perhaps Dwayne would be toasting marshmallows right now with his father indoors.

Dwayne figured that there was no way the old man knew about his age... or about the miraculous healing that had taken place two days ago. There is a great amount of curiosity that comes with being a nineteen year old who hasn’t walked in two years. If the old man knew about such things would he have told Dwayne about the boat shed? Who knows? Maybe he did know! Whether or not the old man recognized his age was probably irrelevant, old men do what old men do and he did seem pretty keen to get Dwayne alone. Maybe he knew all too well... Dwayne thought about the way the old mans eyes lit up when Dwayne’s mother mentioned the photograph of the boy in the wheelchair. “Could the old man have received a similar healing experience as the one Dwayne received?” Dwayne shook his head and focused on the running... it was no time to fantasize; he had to tell his parents before the old man spoke to them.

Dwayne wondered what his parents would say when he arrived. Would they be mad? Probably not, they’d probably be in bed. They were exhausted and rightfully so; it’s not everyday your oldest child receives a miraculous healing. If they thought the media attention surrounding Dwayne’s accident at scout-camp was emotionally draining, it would be nothing compared to the hundreds of Aussie reporters wanting the first interview with Tassie’s favorite hero.

Dwayne laughed “...hero...” It was hard to do while running but he couldn’t help it. Dwayne didn’t see himself as a hero, not after the last two years in a wheelchair, two years reflecting on what really happened that night. And did this healing make him a hero? All Dwayne had done was opened a bloody letter...! He could see why his mum and dad wanted to get away for a holiday though; it really was all a little hard to process. Still, even his parents probably didn’t foresee what sort of “holiday” they were in for; otherwise the reporters might have been appealing. Dwayne hoped they were resting… if they were he would not interrupt them.

As he came up the pathway that led from the boat-shed to the shack Dwayne hoped that the old mans bicycle would not be present, that he would run up to the house and every light would be turned off, just as he left it. No such luck though! The old mans bike was not only present, but the old man and Dwayne’s father were engaged in a very long conversation outside, no doubt the one that Dwayne was hoping they would never have. He watched them converse as his father put his shoes on, they both had flashlights. This did not look good from Dwayne’s point of view, so he ducked behind a tree to catch his breath.

As Dwayne crouched behind the tree, he wondered what the old man had told his father. He also wondered what he would have told his father had he have been the first one home. Dwayne was confused, who was this old man anyway and why did he seem so interested in Dwayne? Dwayne shut his eyes and began to give up. No sooner had Dwayne shut his eyes though, and he felt a hand on his shoulder. Dwayne looked up and couldn’t believe what he saw. There, on this strange island, standing in front of Dwayne, was the last person Dwayne expected to ever see again.

She looked at him knowingly, like an old man knows a dog. She was drenched and muddy but Dwayne recognized her. After all they both shared a secret. Only they knew who the real hero was two years ago and she was standing there in front of Dwayne. “Where had she been?” Dwayne wondered. A better question might have been “...what was she doing there now?” Dwayne fumbled for words but she beat him to the punch. She spoke quickly, but with authority...

TAG TO: JAKE