It didn't take long for Alex to become best friends with Tom. Despite warnings from his father, Alex still ventured out to the cornfield, bringing a wheel-cart full of his toys with him. They would play till sun down – till Chris comes searching for his son who was always making aeroplane noises, laughing by himself.
Chris didn't thought of anything until today. He supposed Alex talking to himself was just a normal phase of childhood that he needn't worry. But today was different. Today, Chris was genuinely worried.
It began during breakfast. Alex woke up without much hassle and as he shuffled into the kitchen, he dragged an old stool from behind the washer and placed it beside their usual battered dining table that only sat for two.
"Why did you do that for?" Chris asked, holding out a piece of toast towards the stool.
Alex replied, "It's for my friend Tom. It's not nice for him to sit on the floor while we have breakfast."
Chris was stunned. "I'm sorry – who?!" He leaned forward, dropping his toast back into his plate. He scanned the room but saw nothing.
"Tom!" Alex said exasperatedly. "Sheesh Dad, sometimes you just don't listen!" Alex jumped off his seat, opened the drawer and withdrew a plate. He placed it on the table and began to load it with two pieces of toast. Then he clumsily slathered them with jam and butter.
"Eat!" he commanded to thin air, pushing the plate forward. The entire time, Chris gaped. Alex took no notice of it. He did the same to his toast and started to bite into them. Chris couldn't help but stare at the plate and the empty stool.
"Dad," Alex said, washing down his toast with orange juice. "It's rude to stare!"
Chris bit back a retort. He wanted to assure his son that there was no one there and the toast will be breakfast for the flies but he decided against it. He had read somewhere that kids usually have imaginary friends but couldn't remember how to deal with it. He made a mental note to ask around and then shuddered at the thought of that. It wasn't like Chris was socially awkward. Ever since Coraline's death and the cause of it was revealed, everyone had seemed to look at him differently – treated him differently. Like he was some disease.
The clanging of utensils on the other side of the table snapped Chris back to reality.
"We're gonna go upstairs and play Dad! Tom wants to see my aeroplane collection!" Alex chirped, bouncing off his seat and ran up the stairs.
Chris gulped as he stared at the untouched plate of toast – he needs to know more about Alex's behaviour. Period.
Tom couldn't help but chuckle at Alex's dad. Chris seemed mortified when Alex announced his presence. This happens every single time with every one of his cases. The parents will widen their eyes in horror as they try to see something that is invisible to them and stare at the supposed space, waiting for things to move. And Tom enjoys every minute of it because it's fun to watch their funny faces.
Alex was no different from any of the children that Tom had met. He was in desperate need for attention and loved talking about his toys and playing pretend.
"I'm sorry about my Dad just now," Alex said sheepishly to Tom. "He can be… weird sometimes."
Tom shrugged but was surprised as well. This was the first time someone apologised to him on behalf of their parents. Usually they would complain and resent the fact that the adults couldn't see him. He couldn't help but smile. Alex wasn't an ordinary 7 year old after all.
"Hey. No worries about that. I'm used to it," Tom assured him. He took a small aeroplane which was painted blue and white and started to make noises. He stretched out his arm and made the aeroplane narrowly miss the one in Alex's hands. Alex giggled and dodged. "You'll never crash into me!"
They played for a few more minutes before they heard Chris coming up the stairs.
"Alex? Get dressed. We're going grocery shopping."
Tom stayed behind and assured Alex that he will be fine. On their way to the town's Walmart where Chris and Alex had always did their shopping, Chris stopped by the playground.
"Go and play there. I need to settle some stuff before we go to Walmart."
"But why?!" Alex cried, immediately regretting his decision to leave Tom behind. The kids in the town hated him. He has no idea why but nobody wants to talk to him at all.
"Alex. Please. Besides you can play with the swing and the slide. It's not often that you get to play with all that," Chris pleaded, trying hard to mask his desperation.
"Well, if you built that swing set on the tree Mom told you to last year, I wouldn't have to do this," Alex countered, folding his arms. Chris took in a cleansing breath and exhaled slowly to calm the rage in his blood. He needed to be patient with him.
"Please. Just this once," he said quietly, his voice laced with menace. Alex blinked at his dad, genuinely scared. He hadn't used that voice for a very long time.
"Yes, dad," Alex obeyed, unbuckling his seatbelt, getting out of the truck hurriedly. Chris sighed and banged his head on the wheel. He hated having to threat Alex. He hated it when his own son doesn't feel safe with him. But what has to be done, has to be done.
Chris clambered out of his truck, locked it and strode towards the town library. He pushed the door open and was immediately greeted by a young gentleman behind the polished counter. He nodded at Chris before giving him a one over.
"Can I help you sir?"
"Uh yeah... Where're the computers?" Chris asked, shoving his hands into his pockets.
"Turn right, walk straight till you see the sign."
Chris thanked the guy and made his way there. He felt out of place, awkward, sticking out like a sore thumb. The library was empty except for a few who chose to read the newspaper here instead of buying one. Chris took a seat in front of a desktop and wiggled the mouse to start it up. He doesn't use much IT and wasn't exactly IT savvy but he could do the basics.
Chris opened an internet browser, opened a search engine and immediately typed 'Imaginary friends'. He got more than a million hits. This is what he truly hates when it comes to 'researching'. It's the sifting through the results that turned him off. He scanned the list, reading the descriptions.
Clicking at the first link, he began to read.
"Hey Chris!"
Chris turned to the sound of the voice. "Ellie! Hey!"
Ellie was an old acquaintance of Coraline in high school. She was one of the few left who spoke to Chris. Despite that, he knew nothing about her personal life. Chris never believed in probing. Minding his own business and steering away from others was just his way to survive in this town.
"Grocery shopping?" she asked. Ellie tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear as she looked up. She was almost a foot shorter than Chris. The summer heat had passed and a gentle breeze was blowing.
"Yeah..." Chris shrugged, gesturing at the bags he was holding. He usually does shopping for the whole month so he doesn't have to venture out to town often. He almost forgot – "You too?"
Ellie nodded. "Yeah... I –"
"Mom!" A carrot topped boy around the same age as Alex raced from behind Chris and halted in front of Ellie. "Hey kiddo! Ready to go?" The boy nodded.
Ellie smiled at Chris. "It's good to see you, Chris."
"Yeah..." They waved goodbye and headed towards their respective vehicles.
Chris didn't think much about Ellie but then he remembered the article he read on the net. Scrambling to the box where Coraline had kept her old contact book, Chris searched for Ellie's number and hurried to the phone.
Chris jabbed the numbers to the phone and listened to the monotonous drone as it dialed.
"Hello?"
"Hey... Erm can I speak to Ellie please?" Chris cleared his throat and shifted in his seat.
"This is Ellie speaking," Chris her shuffle and cover the mouth piece.
"Yeah, erm Ellie, this is Chris. Chris Hemsworth? We met just now?"
There was silence at the other end and Chris grew uneasy as he heard shuffling.
"Hello? Are you there?"
"Yes!" Ellie breathed hurriedly. "Yes, I'm here."
"Good. Uh... I... Well, you remember my son, Alex, right?"
"Yes..." Ellie said, uncertain of where this conversation was going.
"Yeah... Uh... You have a son too." Chris could hear Ellie stifle a giggle and he shrugged. Was he that awkward?
"Yes Chris. I know you have a son," Ellie affirmed. Chris could almost hear her smile at the other line.
"You know its summer and uh... Alex doesn't have much to do and I'm kinda busy with the farm and all..."
"Oh, you need me to babysit him?"
"Not exactly," Chris said, shoving his free hand into his pocket. "More like a play date? Alex has been quite lonely. It's his first summer without his mom so..."
"Oh… I'm happy to let Alex make friends with Luke."
Chris let out a sigh of relief. "That's good. Is it okay if I drop him off tomorrow at 11?"
"Sure. I'll see you two then!"
"Thanks Ellie. I really appreciate this."
"Don't mention it."
Tom sat on Alex's bed as he watched Alex putting on his socks followed by his shoes.
"Where are we going?" he asked.
"My dad said I'm going for a playdate," Alex replied, clumsily running a comb onto his wet hair.
Tom made a face. "I hope this new friend is fun!"
Alex grinned at him through his reflection. "I hope so too!"
"Alex? Are you ready?" Chris stood at the door, leaning against the door frame. He took the comb out of Alex's hands, led him in front of the bed where he sat at the edge and began to comb his hair. Tom watched curiously. Throughout his job, it was rare to see a father taking care of his son like Chris did. Perhaps it was because he was a single dad.
"Dad," Alex said, rubbing his eyes. "What's the name of this... Play-"
"Play date," Chris finished his sentence. "Remember mom's friend, Ellie? It's her son, Luke."
Alex shrugged in response, tugging his shirt. "There. Now you look handsome." Chris smiled.
Tom who was behind Chris the whole time waved at Alex. Alex waved back and caused Chris to frown and look back. At the same time Tom stuck his tongue out and blew a raspberry, causing Alex to giggle loudly. Chris clicked his tongue and stood up. He hoped Alex would stop this nonsense soon enough. It was getting tiring to accommodate to his behaviour.
"Come now Alex. We're going to be late," Chris said sternly, prodding his son along the hallway.
Alex pouted. Chris was about to prod him out of the house when Alex turned.
"Can Tom come with me?" he asked timidly, wringing his hands. Chris felt himself mellowing. He couldn't bear to break the boy's heart. "Oh alright!"
Alex let out a squeal of delight. "Hurry Tom! We're going to be late!" He ran towards the truck, opened the passenger door and jumped in. He waited for several seconds and then closed the door.
"Seatbelt," Chris reminded as he climbed into the vehicle before pulling his own across his body. Tom wiggled in his seat, getting comfortable. He never rode in a truck before. He began to touch the dashboard, the truck's roof and rubbed his feet against the truck's floor. Alex grinned at him whilst watching him.
The trip to Ellie's house only took 20 minutes. The entire time Tom was looking out of the window, getting used to the vibration on his seat and the engine's quiet hum. Alex in the meantime, interrogated Chris about his play date.
"How old is Luke?"
"Should be the same as you."
"Seven?"
"Mmmmm"
"What does he look like?"
"Uh… He's a little taller than you… Red hair…"
"I bet he has freckles too," Alex interrupted.
Chris pursed his lips before responding, "No matter what he looks like, you two can be friends."
Alex wasn't sure what Chris meant by that but whatever it was, he was just excited to make a new friend. Tom is fun to play with. And if this Luke is as fun as Tom, then this summer would be awesome.
When they arrived, Ellie and Luke were already waiting for them on the porch.
"Hey guys!" Ellie greeted them. Chris returned her smile. Alex shyly held out his hand to Luke and they shook hands. Within seconds, both started to warm up to each other and ran into the house, squealing and giggling.
"Thanks for this," said Chris, following Ellie inside to the kitchen.
"It's no problem. Luke was getting bored as well," Ellie replied, searching for mugs. "Coffee?"
Chris nodded to her. "No milk. Just sugar thanks." Chris drew a chair from the dining table and sat. He watched Ellie fix him coffee and was reminded how Coraline always stood by the counter to wait for the coffee machine.
"I was getting worried for him."
"Why?" Ellie asked and almost regretted it. She wasn't sure whether it was appropriate for her to ask. As far as she knows, the Hemsworths had been very private about their personal lives.
Chris shrugged. "Alex kept saying he has a friend named Tom and I can't see him." He was genuinely worried that Ellie would think that Alex had gone bonkers and might need psychiatric help. But seeing the fact that Ellie was a mother to a boy of Alex's age, she might understand. And he was right.
"Oh that," she said, tucking in a loose strand of her chestnut hair behind her ear. "He just has an imaginary friend, Chris. Luke used to have one too."
"Luke too?" Chris accepted a hot steaming mug of coffee from Ellie.
"Oh yes. He's called 'Rooster'. The imaginary friend I meant." Ellie smiled at the memory of having to put out plates of food on the table and eating it after when Luke had gone.
"I did look it up in the internet," Chris mused. He wasn't entirely sure if what he read was true. "Which is why I brought him here. It said the problem usually stems from the fact that he's lonely and without friends."
"You did the right thing," Ellie assured him, drinking her coffee. "But for Luke, it only last a few weeks. Best thing is to just play along."
"Play along?" Chris felt uneasy. He didn't like playing pretend and encouraging Alex to believe in things that are made up. "Just now he asked me if he could bring 'Tom' along and I said yes."
"I bet he'll say 'Tom' is playing with Luke and him now."
Chris sighed and set his mug down. He hated this. If Coraline was around, this wouldn't have happened. Or maybe it would and she'd know what to do – just like Ellie.
"It's been going on for a week now. At first it was creepy but then it started to be a tad ridiculous." Chris rolled his eyes. Ellie shrugged as she eyed Chris. Even though he looked washed up and badly needing a haircut, he looked good – real good. She had to fight the strong urge to touch him. Turning away from him to distract herself, Ellie began to shuffle things into the sink. She heard the chair drag against the floor as Chris stood up.
"I'd better get going. Thanks again for your help Ellie."
Ellie turned hastily towards him and crashed into his hard rock chest. "Oh my god. I'm so sorry."
Chris backed away. "It's alright. You didn't know I was near." Chris gave her his lazy half-smile and began to walk towards the door.
"I'll pick him up at 5."