Echoes of Time

Chapter 2 - The Boy with the Hourglass

The next morning, Adeline wandered down the beach, her usual spot feeling strangely quiet. The waves lapped gently against the shore, a serene background to her turbulent thoughts. She couldn't shake the odd sensation from the previous night—that strange shimmer on the horizon. It had felt like a moment out of one of her fantasy books, a fleeting glimpse into a world just beyond her reach.

Oreo trotted beside her; his usual enthusiasm tempered by her distracted pace. As they passed the weathered dock, she saw something—someone—standing further along the shore. At first glance, the boy looked as though he belonged to the sea itself, the morning sun casting a halo around his tousled brown hair. His clothes were simple—worn jeans and a white shirt that fluttered slightly in the wind. But it wasn't his appearance that caught her attention. It was the small, glowing object he was holding.

Adeline stopped mid-step, her curiosity immediately piqued. The object was an hourglass, no larger than the palm of his hand, but unlike any hourglass she had ever seen. The sand inside seemed to shimmer and swirl, shifting colors in a hypnotic dance that defied the laws of gravity. It was as though the hourglass was alive, its sands moving with a purpose beyond mere timekeeping.

Her heart quickened. She felt an inexplicable pull toward the boy, a gravitational force that she couldn't resist. Without fully thinking, she began walking toward him. Oreo barked once, his ears twitching, but he followed obediently. As she drew closer, she noticed the boy's eyes—piercing, dark, and alert. He seemed to sense her presence before she even spoke.

"Hey," Adeline called softly, her voice tentative but friendly. "That's a cool hourglass you've got there. What's it for?"

The boy glanced at her briefly, then back at the swirling sands in his hand. His expression was unreadable, a strange mix of caution and calculation. He said nothing, only turned slightly as if to move away.

"Wait!" Adeline quickened her pace, closing the distance between them. She could feel her pulse quickening, not just from the curiosity, but from something else—something about him that tugged at her in a way she couldn't explain. "I'm sorry if I startled you. I'm Adeline, by the way. Adeline Monroe."

The boy sighed, his shoulders tensing as if her presence was an intrusion he had neither expected nor welcomed. When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet, controlled, and edged with something that felt like frustration. "Keith," he muttered, barely glancing at her. "I need to go."

Adeline frowned. His evasiveness only deepened the strange attraction she felt toward him. There was something about the way he held himself—alert, as if on the verge of fleeing at any moment. It was almost as if he were hiding something. And that hourglass—there was something about it that felt impossibly... magical. Like it didn't belong in this world.

"Wait... just a second," Adeline persisted, her voice a little firmer now. "I've never seen anything like that hourglass before. What is it?"

Keith's gaze flicked to her again, and this time there was a flash of something in his eyes—annoyance, perhaps, or maybe something darker. "It's none of your business," he said, his tone sharper than before. "Please, just leave me alone."

The bluntness of his words hit her like a physical blow. Adeline's chest tightened with a mix of confusion and frustration. She had only been trying to be friendly, and here he was acting like she had done something wrong. She bit her lip, fighting the sting of rejection that threatened to well up.

"Why are you being so rude?" Adeline demanded, her own anger beginning to rise. "I'm just trying to talk. It's not like I'm asking for your life story."

Keith's jaw tightened, and for a moment, he looked as though he might snap back at her. But instead, he just turned away, his grip tightening on the hourglass as if it were some kind of lifeline. "You wouldn't understand," he muttered under his breath, so quietly that she almost missed it.

Adeline blinked, feeling the weight of his words settle over her. She wouldn't understand? What did that even mean? Frustration boiled in her chest. She had spent her entire life feeling like she was on the outside, like she didn't quite fit in with the people around her. And now, here was this boy—this mysterious, brooding boy—telling her that she wouldn't understand.

"Well, maybe if you explained, I could understand," she shot back, her voice trembling slightly with emotion. "I'm not some idiot. I know there's something strange going on here, and it's got something to do with that hourglass, doesn't it?"

For a moment, Keith froze, his body going rigid as if her words had struck a nerve. The air between them seemed to crackle with tension, and Adeline's heart pounded in her chest. She watched as his grip on the hourglass tightened, the sands inside swirling faster, glowing brighter.

"Just... stop asking questions," Keith finally said, his voice strained, as though he were holding something back. "You don't know what you're getting into."

Adeline felt a surge of anger flare up again. "Why? Why won't you just tell me? What's so dangerous about it? I've read enough books to know when something isn't right, and that hourglass—there's something weird about it. You can't just expect me to walk away without—"

"Because it's not your problem!" Keith snapped, his voice rising with frustration. His eyes locked onto hers, fierce and intense. "It's mine. And if you keep pushing, you'll only get hurt."

The force of his words stunned her into silence. For a long moment, neither of them spoke. The waves crashed softly in the background, a stark contrast to the storm brewing between them.

Adeline swallowed hard, her throat tight with a mixture of anger and sadness. She didn't understand why he was so determined to push her away. All she had wanted was to be his friend—to reach out, to connect. But instead, he was treating her like she was some kind of threat.

"I'm not trying to get in your way," Adeline said quietly, her voice now laced with sadness. "I just... I thought maybe we could be friends."

For the first time, something in Keith's expression softened, just for a moment. His gaze flicked away, his shoulders sagging slightly as if the weight of her words had finally broken through his defenses. But whatever brief connection they had shared was quickly snuffed out as he straightened, his face hardening once again.

"I can't," he said, the words heavy with finality. "I'm sorry."

And with that, Keith turned and walked away, leaving Adeline standing alone on the beach, the weight of his rejection hanging heavy in the air. Oreo whined softly at her feet, nudging her leg as if sensing her hurt.

Adeline watched Keith's figure grow smaller in the distance, her heart aching with a strange mix of sadness and frustration. She didn't understand why he was pushing her away, but one thing was clear: this wasn't the last she would see of Keith.