The Time Traveler's Wife

The Reunion

August 2012

Carmilla rubs her temple and winces. She'd just returned from a time travel trip last night to her teenage years.

The only thing worse than being a teenager being shoved into a locker and not being let out until some custodial cleaner finds you after hours?

Watching your teenage self be shoved into a locker and not being let out until some custodial cleaner finds you after hours.

She didn't arrive back to August 2012 until past midnight, to find she'd been gone the entire weekend and was scheduled to start the week with the opening shift. At 8am.

Luckily, she got a hold of her friend Mattie to cover for her. Except that meant she had a long double shift ahead of her. Alone.

Good thing the library allowed her to have a flexible schedule. The fact that it was managed by her best friend Mattie, who could cover for her mysterious lateness and absences helped, too.

"Rough day?" a cheery voice asks from the other side of the circulation desk.

Carmilla doesn't bother to turn around from the cart she'd just loaded some books onto.

"Yes. So. If you don't need actual help, please go find a table and sit there. Quietly."

There's a pause and Carmilla thinks for a second that the girl really did just leave.

But, no— instead she hears a sharp inhale.

"C-Carm?"

Carmilla frowns and turns towards the unfamiliar voice.

The young lady on the other side of the desk's eyes widen and her mouth drops open. "Carm!"

It was weird for someone to call her that instead of 'Carmilla.' Let alone a complete stranger. "Uh. Yes?"

"Holy Hufflepuff. You don't recognize me."

Carmilla stares at the girl and sighs. "Should I?"

She looks like she's in total shock for a moment before she examines Carmilla. "This is the youngest I've ever seen you look..."

Carmilla clenches her jaw. She can't be talking about what I think she's talking about. "And yet, this is the oldest I've ever been."

The girl giggles and shakes her head. "Silly as ever." She grins at Carmilla. "I'm Laura. Laura Hollis."

Carmilla looks her up and down. "Okay. But I still don't know you."

"Well, I should hope not," Laura replies smugly. "What was it you once said to me? 'I'd never forget a cutie like you, cupcake.'"

Carmilla swallows hard. She can't be talking about what I think she's talking about, she thinks again.

"Got somewhere we can talk privately?" Laura asks. Carmilla eyes her warily and Laura huffs adorably. "Unless you want me to publicly blurt out about your Chrono-impairment?"

"My what?" Carmilla asks.

Laura rolls her eyes. "Your time traveling."

How does she know? Carmilla's eyes widen and she feels like the world's been torn away. All she can hear now is the heart pounding in her ears, and her vision starts to blur.

She can barely make out Laura's concerned face, and an all-too-familiar feeling starts, as if her tether to her current moment is being frayed.

Then, Laura reaches out and gently grabs her arm, grounding her.

"Carmilla." Laura's warm voice rings through. "Carm. Employee break room?"

Carmilla manages a frantic nod and Laura drags her away from the scattered patrons in the public area.

Laura finds the room and sits Carmilla down on a couch, before running off to fetch her a cup of cold water. Carmilla gulps it down before burying her face in her hands and taking a deep breath.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to... make you panic or almost travel," Laura mumbles sheepishly. "This is pretty new territory for both of us."

Carmilla stares up at her, unsure of where to even start.

"I've known you for like, a decade and a half," Laura says slowly. "You... Well, an older you, appeared one day in a park and you introduced yourself and explained that you travel through time without being able to control it. And ever since, every so often you'd appear to me and I-I get you clothes and food and stuff until it's time for you to disappear again."

Carmilla continues to gawk at her, barely processing. Sure, she'd met people on her travels before. But never before had it been such a common occurrence. And she'd definitely never trusted anyone enough to tell them about her situation. "H-How often?" she stammers. "How many times have we met up?"

Laura bunches up her face in concentration and Carmilla resists the urge to tell her how cute it is. "Uhmmm... about a dozen times?"

Carmilla's mouth drops open. "A dozen times?"

Laura nods. "So you can kinda understand why I wasn't prepared for you to totally freak out back there?" she asks shyly. "I'm really sorry. Like I said, I'm not used to you being so... uhh."

"Fragile?" Carmilla supplies grumpily.

Laura chuckles. "So lost and scared." She sits down beside Carmilla, taking care to give her some space. "It's just... I've known you since I was six years old. You were always so sure of yourself and so cool and unaffected and blasé."

"Sounds like you had quite a crush on me," Carmilla teases.

"Yeeeeah..." Laura laughs nervously. "Anyway, the last time we saw each other was a couple years ago. And I mean, you did give me a heads up that the next time I saw you, you wouldn't recognize me. It was just still... weird."

Carmilla hums and looks at her apprehensively. "So... you're not... freaked out by this? By me?"

Laura laughs. "Carm, you've been my best friend for pretty much my whole life. I honestly thought time traveling was a common thing for an embarrassedly long amount of time." She shrugs. "If anything, since you've never met me before today, I'm pretty sure you're the one with the validation to freak out."

Carmilla takes a deep breath and looks into Laura's understanding eyes.

"If, uh, you don't mind... Can I have some time to process all this? I mean, you seem like a really, really nice girl. And it's great you know all about me-- probably more than I even know about me-- but it's just... a lot."

Laura nods with a smile. "Of course. I definitely didn't want the first time you meet me to be an ambush and I'm sorry it felt that way. I promise that wasn't my intent. Take all the time you need." She pulls a small scrap of paper out of her book bag and scribbles on it with pen. "But if you ever wanna talk... here's my number."

Carmilla chuckles as she takes it. "Smooth, sundance."

Laura grins. "Learned from the best." She checks her phone and quickly slings her backpack over her shoulder. "Welp, gotta go. Gotta get ready for the first week back at university. But anytime you wanna talk, go ahead and call or text. I'll answer."

"Anytime?" Carmilla asks teasingly.

"Anytime. Cross my heart and hope to die," Laura nods.

Carmilla watches as she runs off and is unable to hold back an unabashed smile.

A normal girl who knew Carmilla's secret and accepted her without reserve.

A girl who knew how to handle Carmilla's freak outs and didn't treat her like a monster.

A girl whose number she now had.

And already she felt a little less alone in the world.