Tracking Back

A pair of friends searched for keys along the hall.
“Run that back. I missed the point of what you said.”
Jimmy frowned and spun about to face a far wall.
Then he sprinted backward and fell over a ball,
Clothes burst about while a basket fell upon his head.
Jimmy tossed it off and rose beside the rack.
Sebastian groaned. “What? Repeat it, but slow.”
Jimmy glanced about and resumed his backward track.
Then he crept into a cart and knocked over a stack.
“That wasn't helpful, I took it slow. What else should I know?”
“I wanted you to start from the top and make it clear.”
Jimmy saluted, then bounded toward the stairs.
He faced the wall and raised a hand. “Can you hear?”
Before Sebastian answered, Jimmy tangled in nearby gear.
Sebastian grabbed his friend inches from the chairs.
“Go back to where this all started,” Sebastian cried.
Jimmy pulled free, then backed through the open door.
He clipped the chair and crashed onto his side.
Sebastian hauled his friend up, his patience fried.
“Your keys are in your pocket. Shall we search some more?”

Poem Card


Tracking Back
Tracking Back follows Sebastian and Jimmy through one increasingly literal misunderstanding.

Scene Images


Scene One
Jimmy takes “run that back” as a direction and sends the hallway into chaos.
Scene Two
Slowing down does little to improve Jimmy’s backward progress.
Scene Three
Another attempt at clarification leaves Jimmy tangled and Sebastian scrambling to help.
Scene Four
Sebastian helps Jimmy up as the search reaches one final, painfully obvious conclusion.