3TS: The Chances of Starting Again

Different

"Things will be different." 

In minutes, he was doing his special dance with the selected few up front. I couldn't help but stare at him as he smiled. Time slowed. The flames of the torch wobbled slowly in the air. I inhaled slowly as he moved ever so powerfully toward the boy starting to stand on the raised surface supported by other youth. Juan.

Anger boiled deep inside me. That when I had corrected myself, I had actually made a bigger mistake. The mistake of missing an awesome friendship.

And then, journal, I looked down at my feet. And instantly tripped. But for some reason, time didn't speed up to normal. Students fell like dominos in a time machine, slowly, and then the domino effect reached up to Juan.

I shouldn't have felt it. I shouldn't have stared in hunger for him to fall. But I was holding my breath as Juan started to wobble. And then, my gut feeling realized something.

The angle. The way he wobbled too much to the left. Ria's words came into my head.

"Things will be different."

Suddenly, the torch fell. Nearer and nearer until it hit its unsuspecting target. It hit his head, knocking down its victim with it.

I whispered that single word. But that couldn't stop it at all. 

"No." 

No one could hear me. Everyone was too busy running to Trent. The torch had started to burn away his shirt at the shoulder. But Trent didn't even jump away. 

Because he was knocked out cold.

My hands started to shake, as I sat there. Frozen to the spot. But my best friend was even running to see if anything had happened. The people in the crowd were craning their necks for a look. And the drums faded away as some students ran to get a better view.

I felt like electricity had run through me, leaving me in a state of aftershock. 

Trent was hurt. 

Trent hadn't seen the torch coming since it had struck him at the back of his head once the torch slipped out of Juan's fingers.

Juan was probably hurt too. But I looked over to see Juan standing up, barely shaken up. Juan had fallen on another student, but was otherwise unhurt as he stepped up to Trent and knocked away the torch that had fallen onto Trent.

Maybe Trent wasn't that bad. Maybe he had just fallen and was just trying to get up right now. That piece of thought gave me enough courage to stand and walk toward the growing throng of people. I rubbed my arm fiercely as I saw Trent seemingly frozen over.

I felt like I couldn't breathe. He wasn't moving.

"Everybody move!" A teacher shouted and students began backing away as a teacher came into view near Trent's side. It was getting serious. He was probably dying from that blow on the head.

Come on, Trent, wake up! Come on...wake up. Please get up.

My heart pounded. 

Yes, that was what I was saying in my head, journal. Over and over and over again until he actually did.

When he did, I could finally breathe. I could see the shock in his face as he found a circle of hundreds of faces surrounding him. I guess he felt relieved when Juan and the teacher finally broke up the circle and pulled him out, because he never looked back as they led him away to get bandaged up (and a new shirt).

I gulped and said nothing as I sat myself down next to Arlene. She was munching on our packed lunch silently, which meant something was bothering her. And I guess she didn't have anything to say to me. She had seen me trip. 

She had seen it all.

She was silent. And journal, if you were in her shoes, what else could you do?

Accidents happen. But not on purpose...right?

**

After the rough day, students all around me were silent, whispering about the events. They were all mostly confused. They were too busy on their parts of the dance to really notice I had really started it all. And in a way, that was a relief to me. It was an even more relief to me to know that Arlene hadn't spoken about it to anyone.

As we loaded our things into the school bus, I kept my head down. Hoping the rumors would not be found true that I really had caused our downfall. We didn't even made it third place out of the school performances.

But when I heard the soft roar of a familiar engine, I glanced up. Ria was there. Riding slowly, to look at me. Her sunglasses were on top of her head like a headband. Staring intently at her eyes, I could see that her eyes were cloudy. Sad for me.

I shook my head a little. I couldn't cry. Not right after I had made the decision to come back in time again. And now, in this third cycle, journal, I didn't know what would happen.

Everything was going crazy. And I had to find a way to stop this.

I slipped around the corner of a building to catch up to Maria as she started to pick up speed down the road.

"Ria! Ria!" I yelled over to her, but she didn't turn her head. I started to run down the road as she grazed the corner, catching her bike handle. "Ria, please help me. This wasn't supposed to happen! I...he-" 

She gently tugged off my hand and pulled me into a hug. 

I blinked, surprised at her warm move. Then, finally accepting it, my eyes clouded up as I tightened my arms around her. I choked on my words, "He's hurt. He's hurt because of me..." 

She knew what happened. But at that time, I needed someone to know I was hurt. That I felt guilty. That I felt like I was alone in all my problems.

She was silent for a minute, as if she knew how hard it was. As if she knew the twisted feelings that were knocking within me. Then she whispered, "There are far much worse things that could have happened, girl." Then she held me at arm's length and looked at me. "For now, you have to deal with the problem in this cycle. Other problems are coming up in the cycles of time-"

"What problems?"

She sighed, rubbed her forehead, put back her sunglasses in place, and revved up her engine again. As if problems were nothing. But I could tell from her silence that she had to sort things out. For a while. "I'm sorry. I'll check back with you later."

I felt numb when she let go of me. Her words couldn't comfort me. He was still hurt. I folded my arms tightly around myself as Ria drove away. I couldn't turn back time. For now.