The basic scene is a giant ship kind of setting, but it's still docked. My family and I are living on it, paying for our rooms. The telephone in my mom's car is ringing, and we're on the top floor of the ship, floor four. Jimmy and I try to convince Washington Sanders (a character from a book) to come with us on the "express" elevator but no, he's afraid of elevators. It goes to the second floor, where we have to get off and run across the ship to the other side to get to the bottom. My dad intercepts us and follows us. By now it's too late to get the phone and we just want the message they left. Washington wouldn't say anything but "no. no." and stare off into space.