I checked my watch. It was 9:00 on the dot. Friday the 13th. I went over to my calendar and wrote another “X” through another day. On today’s day, it was written, “Launch day.” Today was the day we were going to launch the Diana 13. It was a total coincidence. We all joked and laughed with each other how often 13 kept coming up. We were scientists after all. We didn’t believe in superstition. Well, I knew something they didn’t.
I was drinking my morning coffee in my office. I just booted up my computer and it was taking a while. I went over to the microwave and I adjusted the butter knife sitting on top of it. It had been there since I moved in. I had never moved it. Every time I moved it, well, I tried not to think about it.
In walks Dr. Fred Johnson. Everybody’s least favorite boss.
“Eric, you’re looking fat. How are you doing?” said Johnson.
“Thanks Johnson. You’re looking idiotic.” I couldn’t think of a better come back. “You know, I have a lot of work to do today, so I’d appreciate it if you don’t bother me. Today’s the big day after all.”
“Oh pish. That thing can launch itself. There’s no more work to do. Either it works today or it doesn’t. There’s nothing you and I can do from back here. “
But I knew he was wrong. I eyed the butter knife nervously. He noticed. I don’t know what possessed him, but he decided now was the best time of all to grab the butter knife.
“oh uh, yeah that’s… mine” I trailed off.
“i’ll just borrow this if you don’t mind”
“I do.” I said meekly.
“What? You’re not superstitious are you?”
“Ha! What? No! Me? I mean, that would be preposterous. I’m the chief engineer of propulsion.”
Jonhson laughed along with me. “Yeah, preposterous is right. Alright. Toodledoo. See you after the launch.”
As soon as Johnson was out the door. It happened. A horrible screaming sound like thousands of people getting their fingernails ripped off at once echoed in my head. Before me appeared a dead man, pasty white and hovering above the floor. His flesh draped off of his bones. His eyes were all black and too large for his head. His mouth was unhinged and stretched. Teeth like a row of ice picks.
“NOOOOOO! My knife!” The voice was like a thousand winds howling.
“I’ll get it back. I promise!”
“You must! Or there will be consequences!”
Visions of the rocket launch played in my mind. A heat resistant shingle came loose and fell off. The rocket launch seemed normal until it was a hundred miles in the air, and that’s when it exploded. Killing everyone on board and raining down flaming debris on the spectators.
I snapped back to reality. I couldn’t let that happen. I had to get that knife back.
I went over to Johnson’s office and knocked on the door loudly.
“Johnson, are you there, Johnson?”
“Yeah come in” was the reply.
Johson was spreading peanut butter on his bread at his desk. Crumbs were flying every which way and falling gracefully into his keyboard. He was nonchalant about it. His feet were kicked up on the desk.
“I need my butter knife back.” I said
“Yeah sure. Come back after lunch.” He put the butter knife down and bit down hard on the sandwich. It was gooey peanut butter and jelly. It oozed over his hands. He wiped them on his khakis.
I checked my watch. It was now 9:44. The launch was at 10:45. It was in one hour and one minute. Coming back after lunch wouldn’t work. I thought about the nightmare scenario playing in my head earlier. It flashed in my mind. I thought of all of those innocent astronauts killed and the innocent bystanders in the blast radius. I had to avoid that disaster.
“I need it now actually.”
“What for?”
“It’s um. Important.”
“It’s just a butter knife.”
“No, you don’t understand. I need it to sit on my microwave in my office.”
Johnson’s jaw dropped. “You’re superstitious aren’t you? You son of a gun. You think this knife is magically going to do something for you, don’t you?” He laughed at his own joke. incredulously. “Don’t make me laugh. Now get out of my office. I have work to do.
I went back to my office and sobbed. I was inconsolable. The mission would be a failure and it was all my fault. It was all because I didn’t have that stupid knife sitting on the microwave. It was there this morning. I didn’t expect anyone to come get it. Now it’s gone and there was nothing I could do about it.
I looked out the window. The rocket was blasting off. It was a volcano of hellfire. It was loud and bright. It was like adding baking soda and vinegar times a thousand million. And a little tiny spec came floating off of one of the wings. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It drifted down like a discarded leaf. That was their doom. They would all die. The rocket lifted up. Slowly at first, and then all at once. It achieved lift off. It was now a hundred feet off the ground, and all seemed well except that the wing was now on fire. Just as he had seen it would this morning. All because the knife was missing from on top of the microwave. I knew this was my fault. I just knew it. If only. The guilt washed over me like a tsunami. The rocket turned into a fireball. It was an unholy explosion. It was like the sun going supernova. The heat and light washed over me and any shred of hope of happiness was washed out of me. I was just a shell of a man now.
It was dark in my office for some reason. The spirit appeared before me. Its gaping mouth a black hole and hovering in the blackness were red dots like little candle lights. It screamed into appearance.
“You have betrayed me! You promised it would be there today!”
“I know, I know. I’m sorry. There’s nothing I can do about it now. That prick, Johnson, took it and won’t give it back. ” I said.
A long slender knife appeared before me, hovering in space. It was steel with a full tang and serrated. I grabbed it, seemingly out of thin air. But it felt solid to me. I could feel the grain of the handle on my palm. I ran the blade over my thumb to feel the sharpness, and sure enough it was sharp.
“You know what you have to do.”
The ghost was right. I had to take back what was mine. I would do whatever it took.
I got up, and marched back over to Johnson’s office. I didn’t even knock. I just turned the handle and threw the door open. I held the serrated knife in front of me, pointed straight at him.
“Johnson!” I cried.
“Oh nice! That’s even better.” Johnson said to me. He was sawing into a bagel with the butter knife with much strife. He held the bagel in one hand and the butter knife in the other and he was squishing the thing into a doughy blob. He put the bagel down and stood up. He approached me. He got up and handed me the butter knife back and took the serrated one.
“Thanks a bunch!” Johnson said cheerily.
I returned to my office. I was in shock. I was in disbelief. It was that easy. I put the knife back on the microwave and looked out the window. I couldn’t believe it. I checked my watch. It was 11:45 on the dot. The rocket was taking off again. But this time, there was no speck of falling heat shield. It was entirely intact. I could hear the crowd chant down from 10. The rocket took off without a hitch.