Girl at the Station

Pasts present

Charlie went back and looked for a shop. He came across two girls playing with a ballerina toy. "Oh no! It broke!" cried one girl. The knob to make it spin had fallen off.

  "Let's take her to the repair shop," said the other girl. Charlie watched them skip along to a shop with blue frames. They rang the bell. Minutes later a girl with a silver hoodie appeared.

  "My toy broke. Can you fix it?" sniffed one.

  "Let me see." She picked up the ballerina and examined it. "I think I can," she said. Charlie walked closer and realized the older girl was E. E picked up the toy and screwed the knob back on. "Here. It should work now." She handed her the toy.

  "Thank you!" she said. They walked away babbling about what happened. E smiled and went back to work on a clock.

  "You're much nicer outside of school." E looked up startled.

  "Oh, it's just you." She went back to work.

  "So, you work here?" Charlie asked.

  "Yeah, I do. Do you need anything?"

  "Yes, actually. Why are my friends telling me to stay away from you?" E was quiet. "Sorry," Charlie said.

  "No, it's fine. I get that a lot." She flashed a smile at him.

  "So, why do you live here not at Pierce?" he asked. E chuckled. "You get that a lot too?"

  "My uncle works here. He recruited me to fix things. Clocks mostly," E replied. "So I live here." E looked into the crowd of people and frowned. "Oh my gosh."

  "What?" Charlie looked into the crowd "What?"

  " I have to go." E closed the shop window and ran out the back door.

  "E!" Charlie yelled. He decided to run after her. He followed E around a corner and grabbed her arm. She looked wide eyed at him. "E. What the heck is going on?"

  "Go away. You'll get hurt," she growled. They locked eyes. "Charlie, please leave." They heard running towards them. They both turned to see seven men running at them.

  "There they are!" one said. Charlie turned around to see E flying down the hall. He ran with her. They were side by side when a man emerged. Charlie was too stunned to move.

  "This way!" E took his hand. They ran to the main railway. They looked like they lost the men in a heap of people.

  "I think we lost them," Charlie said.  He heard a scream. It was E. She was being dragged away. "E!" Charlie yelled. They were dragging her to the tracks. He ran to E. They threw her on the tracks and ran away. A train was headed right at her. He ran and ran. The train was getting closer, closer, and closer. Charlie ran on the track and pushed E out of the way. E looked like she was about to die.

  "Run!" Charlie and E ran to her room. They leaned against a wall, panting.

  "What the heck was that?" Charlie yelled. E was quiet. "Really, E. Who were they?" E looked at the ground. There were filled with tears and blood on her arm.