Sometimes...

I wake to the world on a sidewalk in front of a burnt down orphanage, getting drenched as rain pours down buckets at a time.

A teddy bear lies next to me, missing an arm and a thin shawl full of holes is draped over me.

My name is Charlotte. And that's all I know.

I don't know why I'm here. I don't remember owning a one-armed teddy bear. I don't remember anything before waking up just now.

It isn't possible God just dropped me from the sky, is it?

Wait, how do I know about God if I just arrived on earth?

Or why can't I remember the past?

Or maybe I'm in Heaven? No, that can't be it. I'm cold and scared and the sounds of sirens and crying are all around me.

Well, I can't be a newborn. I have the body of somehow around twelve years old and knowledge about the world of someone much older. I'm not just talking about math either. 'Cause who needs math anyway? No, I mean I have the knowledge of someone who's been lost; looking for herself for years. Knowledge of someone who truly knows what it's like to hurt. Knowledge of someone who's been on cloud 9, only to hit rock bottom.

I can remember emotions...

So then, why don't I know anything about my own past life?

Too confused to think, I simply stare at the one-armed teddy bear and daydream. I dream up impossible adventures with fairies and dragons--the kind of stories that leave you quite literally on the edge of your seat, waiting for what's going to happen.

I don't know how long I lie on that sidewalk.

The rain stops although the clouds are having trouble moving on from this spot.

I'm just a girl with a teddy bear and no past.

This is probably a dream. I'll probably wake up and the world will make sense again.

That's what I thought, anyway. Until a tiny voice pierces the silent air and I hear the slosh slosh sound of boots colliding with puddles.

A deeper voice resounds from afar, yelling, "TRACY!!!" over and over just as two tiny, pink rain boots land right in front of my face.

I bring my gaze up and am immediately met with a set of big green eyes staring into mine. Her eyes are brilliant and a stark contrast to her dark brown, nearly black hair that flows down her back in waves.

"Tracy, I told you to- Oh my word..."

The source of the deep scolding voice reveals himself. His hair color and round face are identical to the little girl's.

"Matt, Matthew, do you see? Do you see? I told you I saw a patient for for Dr. Mcfluggintin!" the girl--Tracy--cries.

"For the love of all that is good and holy in this world, she's not going to play doctor with you and your stuffed lion," Matthew grumbles as he gets on his knees next to me.

"Yes she will! When she's all better in real life, she can pretend to get sick again and then get healed again!" Tracy announces in a way that makes a smile play on my lips.

"Tracy, I swear, get back in the car."

She firmly crosses her arms over her pink and green rain coat. "No!"

"Forget it," Mathew mutters before turning his attention back to me.

"Hey," he whispers, as if speaking too loudly might injure me. "Are you ok?"