In My Reverie

This was one of the strangest dreams I've had in a while.

I found myself in a familiar parking lot. It was the mall near where I grew up in Illinois. There were cars and the vague impression of people bustling about. They weren't zombies, that much was clear. At least, not in the traditional sense. Fucking consumers.

The main entrance where I had parked was blocked off. Renovation signs pointed to both the left and the right, indicating to use another entrance found in either direction. I went to the left. Not because it was closer, but because I knew there was an employee entrance I could use. Knowing people that worked in and for the mall had its perks. The employee door was propped open, just like it always was back then, and I slipped in.

I was immediately aware that something was wrong. Doorways were covered in overlapping plastic sheeting that created a barrier so construction dust wouldn't travel. There were plenty of workers around, so there was no immediate fear that I had just wandered into a Dexter-like kill room. The entrance into the main drag of the mall was blocked off, so I backtracked outside and started off the way I had come to walk around the mall's exterior to another doorway.

Along the way, I ran into a woman from work. A nemesis, though she doesn't really know that fact. She couldn't figure out how to get into the building either, and she tagged along toward yet another entrance.

I found my brother-in-law waiting at an entryway that was open. The co-worker disappeared into the mall traffic while my BIL and I went into a restaurant. Other people were waiting for us, and we sat and began talking.

The table next to us was reserved, but only had one occupant whose back was to me. It wasn't until the party straggled in one or two at a time that the whole dream took a strange turn.

The kid at the table stood up and turned to shake the man's hand. They looked familiar and I couldn't quite place their faces. When the silver-haired man with the grumpy face sauntered in, that's when I recognized them both.

It was Harrison Ford come to have a meal with Asa Butterfield and Gavin Hood. Soon, the entire main cast of the upcoming Ender's Game film was seated at the table. When Orson Scott Card showed up, there was much applause and shouting from those gathered.

Then, I woke up.

Word to the Nerd