“Simon,” Maria said, tapping her foot impatiently. “It's been two hours.  Are you finished yet?”

Simon didn't respond.  The sun beat down on his body, making his exposed skin darken and glisten with sweat, and draining him like a parasite.  He was looking for something and had been meticulously sifting through random bramble in the woods to find it.

“Why did you bring me along if you meant to ignore me the entire time?” she asked.

“Fine, fine.  We'll go,” Simon said to the girl.  “I'll come back by myself tomorrow.  Go get in the car.”

Maria sighed as she walked back and got into the passenger seat.  She watched her friend take one final look around and have a sigh of his own before starting his short journey to the car.

“You know,” he said, defeated and drained, “You  could have stayed home.”

“You said this would be an adventure.”

“And you believed me?” Simon said with a laugh and a turn of the key.  He stepped on the gas pedal and backed the car out of the small grassy space  between the road and the grove of trees where he had been investigating.  

Finding an opening in the heavy traffic, the car sped away.

#

A robin was tittering softly around the ground.  An earthworm had caught its attention, but before the bird could finish pulling the annelid from the ground, a man approached and startled the bird into the sky.
  
Simon saw the bird take flight and thought of how he longed to do so himself.  He stuffed his hands in his pockets and stared at the ground, continuing his walk. There was something drawing Simon to this site.  He had hoped to find that someone else could feel it too, but  Maria had only whined the entire time.  

Now, he was on his own once more and he was not expecting much to come out of this particular expedition, much like the others.    He hadn't really expected anything, though.  His parents had always told him that he had an overactive imagination.  This wasn't the first time that his mind had led him on a wild goose chase, and there was no doubt that it wouldn't be the last.

“I should just go home,” Simon said to himself.  “Maybe get something to eat..”  And, that's exactly what he did.

#

“I told you not to go out there again,” Maria said to her friend. “It's just a big waste of time.  You could be mowing the grass or something useful.”  

Simon nibbled on the grilled-cheese sandwich that he had  asked Maria to cook for him.   

“I told you I would mow the lawn when I got back,” Simon said.

“Then why are you eating?”

“I want you go back with me tomorrow,” Simon said, casually ignoring the question.  “I know you didn't enjoy it, but it would me-”

Feeling irritated, Maria said, “Fine.  We'll have a picnic.  It's your last vacation day.  We may as well enjoy it.”  

Simon smirked triumphantly, making Maria's blood boil.
#

An entire colony of ants swarmed over the red and white checkered blanket.  Maria flicked one of them away from her.  Simon had been gone for almost an hour.  The ice in the cooler was melted; the potato salad was getting warm.

“There is no way I'm chasing after him again,” she said to herself.  

An ant had begun its ascent up Maria's pant leg.  Putting her hand onto her thigh, she let the ant crawl onto her hand.  It moved to the tip of her  index finger, and, when it did, she ground it on her thumb.  

She wiped her hand on her jeans and laid on her back, thinking of all the useful and productive things she could be doing at that moment.  

#

Simon had completely forgotten about his waiting friend.  He had been waking to and fro in the same area for almost an hour.  He hadn't found anything, and, really, he hadn't expected to.

The wilderness was oddly untouched here, even though there was a highway less than a mile away.  Even the sound of the passing cars was drowned out by the silence.  

Rabbits hopped in and out of sight and birds flitted from branch to branch. Simon felt at peace immediately. He wandered about, trying hard to make himself blend in with the trees. Failing miserably, he stumbled over a tree root, falling to his stomach. Simon noticed a small something next to his head. He picked it up and eyed it carefully. Deciding it was a rock, he tossed it over his shoulder.

#

It was not known how it had come to be there. Rather, it was never given any thought or speculation. Nature had taken her toll as decay set in and the earth had claimed what she could from the body. Animals had picked and fought at the flesh, leaving only bones scared with teeth and beak marks. The wind scattered the bones that were light enough to move, and soon the remains were gracing every corner of the world.

#

Feeling compelled to return to what he had tossed, Simon once again picked up the object he had found.  He felt an unknown power run through him as he explored its every nook and cranny.  He could not bring himself to drop it.

#

An hour and seven minutes had now passed.  Maria was growing impatient.  Simon had said he would be back in fifteen minutes.  He had only wanted another quick look around, he had said.  

She had long since given up on eating the picnic she had quickly bought rather than prepared.  Instead, she stood and walked away, silently admonishing herself for wanting to have fun, for believing in adventure.  Maria made her way to the road and began her journey home.

#

Simon's eyes were glued to whatever he held in his hand.  Slowly, he felt something drawing near.  He felt more complete than necessary.  It was obvious to Simon that he had finally found what he had been looking for.

More objects similar to the one in Simon's hand assembled themselves together as if pulled by an invisible puppeteer.   A small skeleton  was formed at Simon's feet.  Bending down, he placed the last remaining bone into place and watched as flesh and fur formed from midair.  The more complete this animal seemed to become, the lesser Simon felt.  

As muscles formed, Simon's atrophied.  The small heart muscle inside the animal started beating and Simon's slowed.  Lungs began to function and lungs ceased to work.  Simon slumped onto the ground, but never felt himself hit.

The rabbit got to its feet and wiggled its ears.  It hopped away towards the smell of food.  Nose wiggling in distaste at the up-close smell of potato salad and human girl, the rabbit jumped away, ignorant to the meaning of sacrifice.