Through the Storm

Chapter Three

Tuesday, August 4, 2009, 12:25 pm

When I opened my eyes again, Kevin was standing over me.
"Scott?"
"Dude, you need a breath mint," I mumbled, shoving him to the side.
"You were a zombie for one-point-eight seconds. I was almost correct. Pretty soon I'll have enough data to make exact calculations. You didn't have any injuries this time, did you?"
"Nope."
I know why he asked. Last week, I just a few hours back, lost my concentration, and ended up in the middle of traffic instead of my apartment. A huge semi truck ran over my leg. When I jumped back to home base, I felt this sharp pain shooting up my thigh and then it was gone. A light purple bruise appeared, but besides that my leg was fine. Even though that truck should have shattered my bone.
I stood up and dusted the back of my pants. "Apparently we had a class together. But I totally pissed her off just now. Well, in the past. You know what I mean. So, if the theory is wrong and I did change something, she'll be annoyed when she sees me again."
"Let's find out." Kevin waved to Mitch. "Hey, Mitch, we'll be right back."
I grabbed the little boy (the kleptomaniac) who was inching his way off the grass and toward the pile of abandoned backpacks--looking for some loot to stash in his pocket, no doubt. "Come shopping with us, little dude."
The three of us walked through the door as the girl at the register was dumping a box of key chains into a plastic container. I stopped and stared at her, playing dumb. "Weren't you....in my economics class?"
Her eyes lifted and she actually started to smile. "Yeah...Professor Larson."

Ding, ding, two points for Scott Hoying.

She didn't remember me pissing her off. Just like I said. Nothing changed as a result of my jump thirty minutes into the past.
"Tracy, right?" I said.
Her eyebrows lifted. "And you're Scott, the French poetry major, right?"
Kevin groaned and shoved past me. "Don't see anything I want in here. Let's go."
I ignored Kevin and lifted the kleptomaniac kid onto the counter.
"English lit, too. I have a double major."
Even though my little excursions to the last didn't change anything in my home base, there were some advantages, like, getting info. So, I guess, in theory, time travel to the past actually did change something.
It changed me.
Kevin, the kid, and I left the store and all of us stopped outside and came face-to-face with Mitch.
He had a handful of garbage he was dropping into a bin outside the store. I took his hand and pulled him over to a tree that we could hide behind.
"Kevin's got a thing for that chick in the store. I was trying to help them hook up."
Mitch laughed and I nudged him backward so he was leaning against the tree. "Did the klepto boy steal anything?" He mumbled, but my lips were already on his, preventing him from speaking clearly.
"Not that I know of." I kissed him again and felt something wet land on my cheek. We both pulled apart and looked up just as the sky opened up and rain came down in huge sheets.
"Damn! I thought it was supposed to be nice all day," Mitch said.
We left our tree and made a run for the grassy area where Kevin and the other staff were already lining up the kids.
A few of the little ones screamed when a loud clap of thunder boomed through the campground.
"Are we getting on the bus?" I asked Kevin. "Yeah," he shouted over the storm.
All the kids started running in jagged lines, pulling backpacks over their heads. Mitch and Kevin ran up to the front of the line and I hung back to push along the stragglers as we jogged to the exit.
Luckily, the bus was parked right in front of the entrance. By that time, my clothes and tennis shoes were soaked.
Just as I lifted the last kid on the bus steps, I saw a red-haired girl, about ten or eleven, standing outside, alone. Her back was to me and all I could see was the hair and the blue jeans and the long-sleeve shirt. Water dripped off the end of her long braid.
My heart pounded all the way to my ears as the theories spun through my head.
It couldn't be her.
But what if it was?
I moved toward the girl and heard Mitch shout through the rain, "Scott, where are you going?"
"That's girl isn't with us," Kevin said. "Come on. Let's go!"
My steps got longer and faster until I finally reached her. I tapped her shoulder and she turned around instantly. Her eyes widened for a second and then her expression smoothed into a smile. If it was her...would she even recognize me?
The rain pounded against the pavement and a bolt of lightning lit up the now-dark sky.
"Scott!" Mitch shouted again.
My heart sank back down. The little girls eyes were brown. Not blue. It was both a relief and an utter disappointment. "Um...sorry. I thought you were someone else."
I turned around and ran back towards the bus. Dozens of little heads were watching me through the windows. I walked up the steps and shook the rain from my hair. All the eyes had moved from the windows to me, standing in the aisle. Mitch's gaze locked with mine for a second, but I stepped right around him and slid into the seat next to Kevin.
I felt a bit of guilt when Mitch took and empty seat, alone, without asking any questions. And I knew he wanted to. The way everyone was staring, it must have been quite a scene.
"What was with the kid you were chasing?" Kevin asked.
I had to look away from him.
"Nothing...she just looks like someone. False alarm. No big deal."
Kevin leaned his head closer and and spoke again after a minute of silence. "She looks like Courtney, right?"
I sighed and finally nodded. "It's stupid, I know."
"It's not stupid. It happens to people all the time." He drew in a quick breath before whispering, "Wait.....you don't think.....hmm...it's an interesting theory, but way too many logistical problems."
"Just forget it," I said, before he could drill me with questions. "Please."
There was no way around it.
My twin sister was dead. Four years later and it still haunted me.
Mostly because I missed her so much.
When we were filing up to get off the bus, Mitch waited for me and stepped in my path.
"You okay?"
I stared into his eyes, which were full of concern, then shrugged. "Yeah, why?"
His face fell and he turned his back on me. "Nothing...never mind."
Okay, so I totally sucked at the personal, boyfriend shit. Mitch never came right out and said that, but I knew he was thinking it.
I took his soaking-wet backpack off his shoulder and threw it over mine. "So...you want to come over...maybe dry off before we go out anywhere?"
He jumped off the last step and onto the sidewalk before facing me and smiling. "Sure."
I ran one hand through his dark hair and lightly squeezed some water out the tips. "I think you're going to need a blow dryer."
He reached up and rested his hands on my face, his beautiful brown eyes turning serious, like Kevin had a few minutes ago. "Are you sure you're okay? What were you--"
"I'm just a little bit of a freak sometimes. That's all." I forced a grin and turned his shoulders toward the front doors of the YMCA so we could get out of the rain.