Astrophile

Chapter 1 Dépaysement

" I guess that's what saying good-bye is always like — like jumping off an edge. ..."

She closed the book, as she thought to herself Hopefully me and Noah won't break up, I don't think I could handle anymore goodbyes. She set the book down on her desk next to her bed and took out her phone, she was scrolling through instagram looking at her cousin's picture of their cute dog, she went to comment saying how adorable the dog is, but before she could hit send she got sucked into time.

In a time one would think passed long ago, she fell onto a path, a dirt path. She had no memory of what just happened, she knew who she was, she just didn't know WHERE she was.

She looked around quickly and found nothing but trees and blue skies, and the path in front and behind her.

She took out her phone and dialed 911, yet it didn't go through, there was no service. She put her phone in her pocket, but then took it back out, it was the only defense she had. She began to slowly lift herself from the ground and decided to walk forward, however a couple minutes after walking she began to think to herself. I must have gotten kidnapped, they must have drugged my food and it put me to sleep, no that wouldn't make sense...someone could have knocked me out! Yes! No, no one was in my room.. All she knew is that she wasn't home. As she walked along the pathway she didn't know of, it split into two directions, one going left, one going right. She didn't know which one to choose, so she chose right. It was silly but she was always told "If you don't know what direction to go in, always go right, because it's right!" Her grandma used to tell her that, although her grandmother was a bit out of it sometimes, but she loved her to death.

As she walked further her legs began to ache, she could feel where the bruises would begin to form on her arm and hip; she was startled as she heard squawking, calming down once she sees it's just birds in the sky. If only she could be a bird and see her way through these trees. I must be in a forest she told herself. As she walked to what she assumed to be the end of the path as it expanded further to a plot of land, she felt relief when she saw a tiny house from afar starting to come into her view.

She ran, although it ached to run, she ran, tears ready to stream down her face, she opened up the gate and ran to the door, when she arrived there she looked around and realized I'm not in the city anymore.. She slowly turned to face the door, feeling a knot in her throat, she gently knocked on the door, she just needed to see someone's phone or use their wifi to call home and everything would be back to normal. What if it's a grown man who kidnaps children and eats them or enslaves them to work on his farm, what if- her train of thought had been disrupted when a girl who looked about  her age, with long suburban hair, freckles that reached across farther than the see, and blue bell eyes smiling at her through the screen door.

The girl just stared, the knot in her throat weakening knowing it was a girl her age. the red haired girl smiled at her. "Hello" "..Pho-" "Ida, whose at the door? We are in the middle of cooking supper!" The girl was interrupted by a older woman, she'd assumed to be the the mother of..Ida, her name must be Ida. She's looking at me, her mom is looking at me, say something, ask them for their phone. "Can..phone.." The older woman just stared at her like she was a crazy woman. The girl shivered as it felt like early spring. It's summer time, it shouldn't be this cold she told herself. A wave of wind blew against her making her spine crinkle. The older woman saw this and waved her in saying "Well come in" Ida opened the door with the smile she had before, she looked like a sweet girl. She stepped inside as Ida shut the door. "Can I use your phone..please" She was able to get out, but the mother turned around and asked her what a phone was. They must live secludedly she thought, she pulled out her phone, and waved it side to side. Maybe see if they have wifi she was on the verge of tears, she just wanted to go home. "..Um do you have wifi, if you do can I just use it please I don't know wh-" "I haven't the slightest clue what your muttering about child." The woman piped up.

Ida was now at her side seeing how the girl was starting to choke on her sobs, and the tears won, she lifted her hand to her mouth, to try and hide the cries. "Eliza.." Ida said, as she held onto the girl and Eliza moved a chair out so she could sit in, and she did, she felt as if her legs were about to give out. She hadn't realize how long she had been walking for, with the stress and paranoia adding onto the weight she carried.

The older woman kneeled down telling the girl to calm down and breathe then to tell them what she needs, and the girl tried. She breathed in and out and started to count to ten, then backwards, she finally could focus after doing this a couple times.

Although tears were still streaming she began to speak, with a voice so quiet she didn't recognize it to be hers. "I'm lost, I don't know how I got here, I was in my room on my phone and I got sucked into this portle thing and I ended up on a dirt path and and.." She hiccuped as she felt the tears burning at the brim of her eyes, she swallowed and tried to continue "You don't know what a phone is and don't have wifi and I can't call my family and tell them where I am, and.." Her eyes were traveling to anything in the room to help her concentrate as she didn't want to look at the woman's eyes because she thought she was probably thinking she was mad as a hatter.

Her eyes landed on a paper in the trash bin.

There was just enough of it peeking out where she saw an article about fertilizer and tips for raising better crops, to the top right of that showed the date, and THAT is what caught her eye. She sat up and walked over to it, picking it up out of the trash, pulling it close to her, she shook her head back and forth. It's impossible she told herself.

She slowly turned, facing the two women, not taking her eyes off the paper. "What in the heavens is the matter child? Have you never seen a newspaper before, my my you are a loon." Eliza muttered, concern for Ida's safety in her voice, the girl looked at her and said only one sentence "I'm not in 2020 anymore.."

Eliza looked at her surprised to hear something so absurd. It was only 1876, this woman must have ran from the loony bin and ended up here.

As she thought this, the girl started pacing back and forth with the paper in her hand talking to herself, not noticing a man walking in the room confused as everyone else of who this girl might be and where she came from.

"No no no I can't be over 100 years back in time, it's it's not possible, it can't, it can't be, can it? The- the portle, I know what I saw, it sucked me in and it.. it it spit me out here, how did this happen, why did it happen."

"They would have announced they'd figure out time travel on the news, you'd think it would be a big thing-" She stopped talking and stood still, feeling a burn in her body, feeling the piercing gaze of three sets of eyes on her. She looked up, they were all gawking at her.