Zoom Out

"It vexed him to get lost like this in front of his son, especially since the fault lay with the lousy map the Academy had sent him, but Owen was in one of his trances and didn't seem to notice." "Nightengale" Our Story Begins p. 337 Tobias Wolff

"I cannot believe this map that the Academy sent us! It's terrible!" cried Dr. Booth.

"Un hun" mumbled Owen in a trance.

"You can clearly see that it's not my fault we are lost."

"Un hun" Owen grumbled vaguely.

"I just cannot believe this." His father ranted.

"Dad, this map clearly represents what the Academy is like. It's going to be just as confusing and un-useful as this silly map." Owen exclaimed.

"You know what Owen, this one faulty map means nothing of the sort Owen. Do not even try to change my mind. It's just that this foolish map keeps getting us lost..." His father replied, taking yet another wrong turn.

"Un hun" Owen muttered, returning to being in a daze.

When Owen was first born, Dr. Booth and his wife wanted him to have a good life. Owen was a good boy. He did well in school, and did what his parents asked him to. When the brochure for Fort Steel Academy arrived in the mail, Dr. Booth knew that his son would go there. He wanted his son to grow up, and be mature. He did not want his son to be humiliated after loosing class elections like he was. After so many arguments with his wife and son, he would not change his mind. Owen was going to Fort Steel Academy. 

After his time at the Academy, Owen finally came home. He was not the same boy that his father dropped off. He had, in fact, grown up. He didn't say anything without being spoken to, and completed every single task his parents asked of him.

A few years went by, and Owen got married to a girl he met through his old friends. He still acted as though he was at the Academy, still only speaking when his wife asked him a question. They had a son, Carl, and Owen sent him to Fort Steel Academy to follow in his footsteps. Even though his wife and son disagreed, he would have it no other way. Carl was going to Fort Steel Academy.

As Dr. Booth and his son drove to the Academy, it started to drizzle. They both heard the "tap tap tap" on the car as they rode along. While they were not speaking, they could hear the deep hum of the engine, and the faint whirr of the fan. The birds were not making a sound, and stayed bundled up in their nests. It was getting colder outside, and the side windows started to fog up near the two warm bodies. The rain stopped, and the sun peered over the trees. Every so often, a few drops would slip off the tree branches, and echo off the roof of the car.