Memories of Time

Chapter 1

Just keep breathing, just keep breathing" Alice told herself as she leaned against the cold brick wall. There was no sound other than the occasional hoot of an owl or the meow of a cat, but definitely no sign of dogs. She let out the breath that had been holding. She had finally lost the trail of the pesky junk yard dogs. She squeezed the wrench she held in her right hand, then squeezed the left which held a bag of random items she managed to pick up on the go. She put the wrench into her backpack and continued down the alley that leads to her home. It was nights like these that she loved. The nights she didn't have to think very much or even worry. She chuckled, a normal girl would be too scared to walk down the streets she walked, and didn't blame them it was these that there was the most chance of being attacked, yet she has never been endangered here before. 

She took a couple of turns to the left and right before doubling back to a completely different route. She couldn't let her home's location be discovered by anyone that could be pursuing her. She climbed a tall fence and headed in a direction far from her home. A routine almost every night and day just in case, even when she knew she wasn't being followed. Alice didn't take her longest route home because she knew she was safe. Within an hour she was home. Alice's home wasn't what most would call homely. She lived alone in a train car that started to move around 6:00 am and returned at 9:00pm. She went to the door and listened to see if there was anyone inside and heard nothing. 

Alice carefully opened the door a crack before slipping in, she instantly went into a fighting stance and looked around to see that nothing had been touched and once again no one was inside. She smiled and sat on her holed up bean bag chair that she had stolen from the junk yard. She let out a groan as she stretched out; Alice then pulled off her back pack and pulled out what she had received today. She set aside the wrench and dumped out the contents of the bag she got. A few cockroaches skittered out and ran away and were followed by some interesting what she called loot. 

"A makeup mirror" she whispered and picked it up, the one side was cracked but the other was perfectly fine. She gave herself a little smile and her dimples showed. Her mother had always told her that in Chinese culture that means she is a loveable person. She rolled her eyes at the thought, she knew her mother meant well but she often lied one too many times. By the time Alice was six she didn't know what to believe when her mother spoke. 

She put down the mirror and looked at the other things, a comb that had a little flower on it, tweezers, a curling iron that she wasn't sure if it still worked and a ruby red lipstick that she wasn't going to wear. Happy with her rewards she pulled out her hair from its bun, the release tension was bliss. She slipped outside again and climbed the ladder at the side of her caboose. She wasn't surprised to see a familiar face on top of the car next to hers. 

"Hello Ace" she said, he looked in her direction and flashed her his teeth. 

"Hey Alice" he said in his soothing deep voice. It made him sound ten times manlier than he looked. 

"Wonderful night" Alice said looking up at the stars, Ace shook his auburn hair and then ran a hand through it before replying 

"I like it when your hair is down" he commented. Alice smiled slightly 

"You've told me this before, and that happens to be whenever you say that I don't see you for nights" 

"Well as much as I do enjoy my chats with you, I cannot visit every night." He also looked up at the stars. Alice closed her eyes momentarily, 

"You are the strangest friend I have" she said omitting the "and my only friend" part. 

"As you are mine" he said leaping over to her box car. He didn't even make a sound when he landed. 'Just like a cat' Alice thought. His shadow loomed over her and she looked up into his green eyes that always made her have a small pang of jealously whenever she saw him. 

"You're blocking my moon light!" Alice complained and he let out a playful laugh before sitting down. They laid down in silence looking at the stars. Alice had only known Ace for a year now but she felt like she had known him forever. She had learned he is very understanding and when it came to her 'work' he was the best support and help at times. She had never asked him to come along even though he had offered. She didn't want him in danger of any kind because of her. 

"You have school tomorrow" he finally said breaking the silence, Alice moaned and rolled over 

"Can't we just stay up and talk? And what about you, don't you go to school?" She questioned, he nodded 

"I do go to school but I don't sleep through it because I had a late night" he said. Alice let out a sigh 

"You're more like my parent then a friend right now!" she said with a pout. 

"You don't have any parents here and what kind of friend would I be if I didn't worry about your wellbeing?" he said with a forgive me smile. Alice went to the ladder with a frown 

"What are the chances of me seeing you tomorrow?" she asked, he chuckled 

"Slim to none." 

She climbed down the ladder, went inside and closed the door. She laid down on her little memory foam that she stole from the junk yard, and listened to the sounds of Ace jumping off 

Her box cart that he purposely made to let her know he's leaving. She thought of a bunch of questions she wanted to ask him for the next time they would meet knowing she would forget them the next day. As she fell out of consciousness she stared at the shiny metal by the bean bag 

"I forgot to give him the wrench"