Time Tracks

Time Tracks Chapter Two, Answering The Call continued

Sophia stood very still as she watched T.C. walk, with an even steady gait as though he had all the time in the world, toward the mountain. There was a new hush in the air that she had not noticed before and she could now hear the steady rush of water from a nearby stream. She took a moment to breathe in the clean mountain air and felt more invigorated right away. Sophia replayed the day's events over in her mind and as she did so it came clear to her why she had been hesitating... she was afraid that if she boarded the train she would not only lose her life as she knew it now but her identity too! She needed to face it though, she needed to change. Recalling that awful moment back at the park pavilion, it became painfully clear to her that she actually did need to lose herself, at least whatever version of herself she had become with Daniel. That person was going through life timid and afraid and Sophia no longer wanted to live as though she were only a spectator living out someone else's life.
She did not know how or why, but she was being given the chance at a new start and she was going to take it!

Feeling a rush of excitement she now knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what she wanted to do... she was going to answer destiny's call! Having finally made her decision, Sophia was anxious to get going and headed off right away towards the mountain with determination. Her pace was slow at first, but with each passing step, she seemed to be gaining momentum. She was not sure however, just how long it took for her to arrive at the railroad tracks, especially since she had long ago lost any sense of the passing of time, but now she was here!

The train station was small consisting only of a metal enclosure with a roof overhead and an unmanned ticket booth. A row of wooden benches were lined up and ready for people to sit on as they waited for the train. Sophia glanced uneasily around her disappointed that she saw no one else at the station! Digging into the front pocket of her blue jeans she pulled out the train ticket, it was a bit wrinkled but still usable and its golden color shimmered and glittered in the sunlight. Sophia held onto the ticket tightly, as though it were a lifeline, before sitting down on one of the benches closest to the empty ticket booth. It was starting to really bother her that there was no one else at the station, she no longer wanted to be alone! Impulsively she looked at her watch startled to see that just like T.C.s watch, it was now telling the time again! She put the watch up to her ear and sure enough she could hear the battery ticking away!

The time now said two o'clock although Sophia had no idea if that was the real time. She fought back a twinge of panic realizing that her concept of time, at least as she had always known it, had been changed forever! If entering a time portal caused her watch to stop, did that mean she was no longer in the time portal since her watch was working again? Sophia had never thought much about such things before and she sighed under the weight of so many unanswered questions. Sophia was so absorbed in her thoughts about time and time portals that she nearly fell off the bench when a loud voice boomed out over the loudspeaker! "The next train is scheduled to arrive at two-thirty! Have your ticket ready!"