YesterWorld (Book 2 of the Down World Series)

Original Edition: Chapter Forty-Six

The cement floor struck my head with such force, I was temporarily blinded. I shook my head violently, trying to clear away the stars that overtook my field of vision. Adam had been more fortunate, having crashed on top of me so that my body had shielded him from most of the blow.

I moaned with the encroaching pain as I grabbed my head.

"You okay?" he asked frantically, grabbing my head between his solid hands. He applied a slight pressure as he massaged my temples. "Open your eyes. Can you see?"

"Yes."

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Twelve."

He smiled, and a relieved grunt escaped his lips. "Well, you're being a smart ass, that's a good sign."

He pulled himself up, reaching out a hand for me. As I stood, I could finally make out the scene around us.

We were in the anteroom at the base of the spiral staircase. Behind us, the door to Today was wide open and glowing yellow. But as we both turned to stare at it, the yellow began fading to gray. Adam slammed the door closed again.

"We should lock it up," I suggested.

"I don't have any more coins."

"We'll have to do it later then," I conceded, shaking off the last of the stinging pain in my head. Looking around, I could only see that the anteroom looked right, meaning it looked the same as always. But that didn't mean we were really in the right time period. This room hadn't changed much in decades.

But then my eyes landed on something in the corner of the room—a glint of light reflecting off of glass.

"Adam," I smiled.

"What?"

"We're home."

I pointed to the glass. It was a bit of the beaker that Adam had smashed when he created the portal to the lake. God, was that only four days ago? That had been first thing Wednesday morning, so today was Saturday. At least no one would be in the school.

Adam leaned down and gingerly picked up the glass to examine it. Before the last of the glowing light from the Today door died, I could see him looking up at me with a warm expression in his eyes.

"Come on." I turned and walked up the spiral staircase, Adam close on my heels.

Once we made it into the science lab, I saw the familiar markings on the chalkboard—the image that looked like a sun being attacked by its own rays.

"I told you," Adam whispered gently behind my back, "Today always leads home."

I sighed in relief, turning to him with a smile. He was looking at me very tenderly all of a sudden. There was something in the expression on his face—something that I could only describe as a fatal knowingness—that scared me half to death.

"Should we head up?" I asked, ignoring the sudden ball in the pit of my stomach telling me that I knew exactly why Adam had that look on his face.

"Marina..."

I shook my head, knowing suddenly and completely that whatever he was going to say, I didn't want to hear it. I wasn't strong enough to hear it. But he powered on.

"You know I can't stay, right?"

"No," I refused to even let him speak. "Don't, Adam. Don't say it."

"I have to go."

"We said no more portals," I all but yelled at him. My stomach was suddenly hurting more than my head, and my heart was threatening to burst out of my ribcage. "We promised."