Five year old John stares at his army men, lined up all in a row on a shelf above his bed. Perfectly still and in formation. Someone opens the door to his bedroom, causing one of the army men to fall down. John frowns and looks at the door. His mother stands there with a plate of food in her arms. She smiles and sets down the tray on his bed.
"You're still not dressed sweet heart?"
"Mama I don't want to get dressed today!" He crosses his arms stubbornly.
"Hmm." Says his mother, "Well. I guess papa-"
"Papa's coming home today!?" John jumps up, throwing off his pajamas and dressing quickly. He jumps on the bed excitedly.
"John! Stop that, you're going to loose your food in between the sheets!" John ignores her and keeps jumping.
"Daddy's coming home! Daddy's coming home!" His mother rolls her eyes and giggles a little at her little boy. Then she leaves his room, knocking down another one of John's army men on her way out. But this time he doesn't care. John keeps jumping until he can't jump anymore, that's when his best friend Sherlock walks into the room with a pirate hat on his head and a telescope in his hand.
"Ahoy John! John! Why on earth are you doing that? You look like a buffoon!" John giggles and sits down on the edge of the bed.
"My daddy's coming home Sherlock! He's coming home today!"
"That's nice John. We haven't finished the case of the black pearl yet though! Have you already forgotten! Our voyage must be completed!"
"I haven't got time though Sherlock! My daddy's coming home!"
"There's always time for pirates!"
"Well why can't we just play soccer while we wait for my daddy then? Then we won't get in trouble."
"Pirates get in trouble. That's what pirates do!"
"I know...but I don't want to get in trouble when my daddy comes home. Please, why can't we do something that I want to do today?"
"Because soccer is dumb. And all you ever want to do is play soccer. All you do is chase around a ball. You...well at least I can find a better use of my brain than to play a pointless, childish game. Soccer is for children John."
"We are children Sherlock."
"No John. You are a child. I am a pirate."
"But my daddy's coming home Sherlock!"
"Yes I know. You have repeated this multiple times. Fine. We can play...soccer."
"Yay!" Squeals John. John grabs Sherlock's hand and pulls him into the backyard. He kicks the ball to Sherlock and Sherlock stares at it like it's a ticking time bomb.
"Kick it back Sherlock!" John instructs. Sherlock picks up the ball instead.
"Hey! In soccer you can't pick up the ball!" Sherlock puts his pirate hat on the ball and smiles crookedly. John frowns and sits down in the grass. Suddenly, his mother comes out of the house and walks over to Sherlock and John.
"John sweetheart." She picks him up out of the grass and into her arms."Your daddy can't make it home today. He's very sad that he can't see you, but he had to stay for a little while longer." John starts to cry and pushes away from his mother, she sets him down and he scrambles in to the house. Sherlock follows with the pirate ball in his hands. John lays on his bed, crying softly and sucking on his thumb. Sherlock pulls his thumb out of his mouth and sets the soccer ball beside him. He lays down next to his friend and sighs quietly.
"I don't suppose that maybe now you want to play pirates."
"Maybe tomorrow Sherlock." John yawns. "You won't leave me right? You won't..."
"No I won't John." John smiles and drifts off to sleep. Sherlock puts his pirate hat behind him on the bed and settles in next to John.
"Goodnight John. I'm sorry about your daddy. If it helps...my daddy didn't come home today either."