July 15th, 2020
The three friends just stared at the stranger, not sure what else to do in the shock they endured. They somewhat expected an unwanted guest after all they have experienced in the past few hours. Nothing could be too big of a problem for them after time travelling into the future as such.
But then again, how were they supposed to explain themselves to the unknown girl? Their faces were all over the news, so they must be down in history books as well. They looked different: they had seemed to have unique clothes compared to the young visitor. The state they were in gave it all away though: dirt on their hair, faces and clothes, the exhausted looks on their faces, the unpleasant stench they were carrying.
A full-on staring contest took place between the girls before the unfamiliar girl started shrieking once again. Somehow Serena, the closest to the outsider, found the strength to slowly make her way over to her and put her hand to her mouth. The screams became quite subtle than, but could still be heard.
Once she had quieted down, Serena led her to the corner she had occupied before and sat her down slowly. The foreigner still looked panicked, looking between each of the three girls who sat either side and in front of her while they held a blank expression on their face. Silence hung in the air uncomfortably, none of them knowing what to say.
The three friends got a chance to examine the stranger closely: she looked around their age, with wavy brunette hair and dark coloured eyes. She had a medium build and very pale skin; they could easily tell she was a native here in the town, possessing the looks most locals had. They noticed that in the pocket of her sweatpants was some thin gadget with a touchscreen. They eyed it suspiciously, none of them sure of what it was. The girl fumbled her fingers and looked down at the wooden floor; she had been too busy to notice how the three friends were examining her.
After a few but long moments, the stranger tried to formulate words. "You--you--"
"It's not what it looks like!" Keisha tried to ensure, but confidence lacked in her voice. The two other girls looked at her with narrowed eyes. 'Let her speak' they communicated before they turned back to the girl. Once the attention was focused on her, she took a deep breath and spoke once more with a quivering voice.
"You--you guys are those--girls?" She looked up finally and concentrated her attention on Serena, who was kneeling in front of her. She gave a subtle nod, her face full of sorrow and misery. The stranger's face still showed disbelief, but her expressions started to soften as if she felt almost sorry for them.
There was no way to hide it; they were the vanished. They couldn't deny it, to themselves nor others. For now, there was no way they could get back home. They had to face reality. They needed help though. If they wanted to survive in this unfamiliar new time, they needed someone to guide and inform them. The three girls looked towards the stranger, who's head was now down in her hands again. It seemed it would be hard to explain to her, but it was worth the shot.
Mahnoor tapped her shoulder gently and she looked up once more. She looked at her intensively before asking softly "What is your name?"
"Carmen." She replied with a shaky voice while rubbing her nose.
The three girls glanced at each other before Mahnoor looked back at her and determinedly said "Carmen we need your help. But I think we have a lot of explaining to do first."
*****
"So, last night was 1990 for you? And the next morning you're thirty years in the future?" The three girls nodded, somewhat relieved after an hour of explaining Carmen finally grasped what they explained. They had managed to inform her with great difficulty as they weren't entirely sure either what happened to them over the past few hours. It was a lot to process, for both the girls and Carmen as they realised the extent of the situation.
They all remained silent, each of their heads swirling with questions. This was too much to comprehend for children like them; they couldn't take it all in at once. But then again, who could?
It wasn't a good time to ponder, they needed a plan to keep themselves safe. How to hide their true identities and fit in, where to stay, catch up on the times and learn the ways of this new century.
Most importantly though, figure out how to get home.
They all knew Carmen was the help they needed. Although she had reluctantly come on board to help them, she still needed time to process the appearance of the three girls, and they were willing to give her time.
Carmen's face was expressionless, her arms hugged her knees as she rocked back and forth. After what seemed like an eternity, she slowly got up for her spot and made her way towards the frame. Before she left, she turned to the girls once more and contemplated what to say. Finally, she decided to go with the classic "I'll be back" and ran off. The girls stared at where Carmen was once stood, none of them knowing what to say.
They all silently agreed this would be a good time to get some rest finally. It was all they could do, for now, they couldn't even think of risking going out to get anything. The three of them drifted off, sleep taking over their weary bodies.
A few hours later, Mahnoor jolted awake, a loud moan disturbing her slumber. Her eyes flickered before she turned her head around to the source of the noise. In the middle of the room stood Carmen, who was now fully dressed and looking a lot calmer and more content than earlier. Mahnoor roused herself awake and sat up, her back aching from sleeping on the wooden floor. She watched Carmen haul over a large bag from the entrance of the treehouse, and it looked as if she were carrying a body inside. Slowly, she removed the contents from the black duff bag, which ranged from blankets to extra clothes to random snacks. Mahnoor scooched herself over and sat behind her as she finished removing the things. She sprawled herself on the floor quietly, exhausted from her journey back to the treehouse from her house.
Mahnoor glanced over at the weary girl, eternally grateful for the kindness she had shown them. Carmen turned her head over to Mahnoor as she was staring at the items in front of her with yearning. With a slight nod of Carmen's head, Mahnoor carefully grabbed things she desired: a Nature Valley bar, a packet of Lays chips and the only set of winter clothes while Carmen scooched to the side.
Mahnoor retreated to her corner and ripped open the granola bar, greedily grinding the food. She had been experiencing a gnawing hunger since that morning and although she knew the feeling of not being able to eat, the hunger she experienced was one she had never felt before. Content, for now, she put the packet of chips and the set of clothes to the side.
While Mahnoor experienced this, Carmen intensely stared at her with curiosity. It was indeed a strange situation these girls had gotten themselves into, and once she had also involved herself in. Since she was going to help them now, she may as well befriend them and get to know them a little more. Their first encounter had certainly been very eventful and unpleasant. If she were to help these girls, she wanted to be friends them at the very least. After all, it's not like you hear of people getting to know girls from the nineties that often.
Mahnoor had become more comfortable and relaxed, cosy in their corner. An awkward silence hung in the room, the two of them unsure on how to break the ice. They were quiet by nature and used to other people striking up a conversation.
"You took the only set of winter clothes," Carmen remarked, looking Mahnoor straight in the eye. Mahnoor shifted in her spot and explained to her "Yeah. I'm Muslim and it's compulsory to cover-up, hence why I'm wearing these clothes." She pointed to the outfit she was wearing. "I'm used to wearing such clothes, especially in the summer. My family and I usually can't find suitable summer clothes here, this is the only other option."
"I understand that. There are quite a few girls at school who are like you, but I've never really gotten know why they have to cover-up like that."
"Did you say there's quite a few?" Mahnoor asked, amazed. Her family was one of the only families she knew in the dainty town who were Muslim, for that reason she was quite surprised.
"Yeah. There must be at least three of four in my grade alone. Why?" Carmen asked curiously.
"There were not many Muslims living here in 1990. I assume things have changed since then?"
"They must have. A lot of things have changed since your time."
They sat in blank silence once again. Mahnoor, unsure of what else to do, averted her eyes around the wooden room, observing every wall with interest as her memory brought herself back to their old hangout spot in 1990. Her memory was a bit hazy for some reason, which was a bit weird as she knew she only saw the treehouse of what she thought was a couple of days back.
Starting to get a headache, she focused her eyes on the pile in front of her, filled with a million things, some of them that she didn't notice before. A few moments later, at the bottom of the pile, she noticed a book. It was a book she didn't seem to recognise, the cover looked almost modern than what she was used to seeing.
Wanting to get a closer look, she crawled towards the pile, eagerness filling the inside of her as she desired book to read right then. She had regrettably left her copy of 'Pride and Prejudice' behind in 1990 as she expected that they would have made it back, but there was nothing she could do about it now. As she neared it, Carmen watched her. Her insides bubbled with joy: this would be a perfect topic to bond on, Mahnoor seemed to enjoy books as much as she did.
Mahnoor finally grabbed the book after a long few seconds of staring at it. She read the title with enthusiasm: 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerers' Stone'. It was something that she hadn't heard before, let alone read.
Wanting to start a conversation, Carmen spoke with caution but had a hint of desperation in her voice"It was published in 1997, a few years after you guys um, you know." Mahnoor turned towards her, her eyes showing she sought more information on the book. Carmen understood this and she rambled on "A famous writer named JK Rowling wrote it, as you probably saw on the cover." She gestured towards the book, and Mahnoor glanced at it before looking back up at Carmen again. "It's like one of the most well-known books in the world, literally everyone talks about it. You'd be crazy if you had never heard of it before."
"Wha- what is it about?" Mahnoor stammered, a little scared to speak.
"It's about a boy named Harry Potter, hence the title, who learns on his eleventh birthday that he is the son of two powerful wizards who died when he was a baby and has magical powers of his own. His life changes after he starts attending Hogwarts, a boarding school for wizards, which is in England. You'll have to read to find out about his parent's mysterious deaths and other stuff. Personally, it's one of my favourites. I've read it countless times and it never gets old. Of course, it does depend on your preference of genre. It is mostly a fantasy."
"It does sound pretty interesting," Mahnoor commented, turning the book over to read the blurb. "I really do love Fantasy, although my favourite genre has to be classic. What about you?"
"My favourite is dystopian, but I do love a good classic. What your favourite?"
"Pride and Prejudice of course. I had to leave my copy back in Serena's old house though, which I'm kind of bummed about."
"Oh, I love Pride and Prejudice! But my favourite has to be Anne of Green Gables."
"That one is pretty good as well." They smiled at each other, happy to find a friend in each other.
"Can I borrow the book, just for a little while?"
"Of course. There are six other books in the series. If you want you can borrow them all."
"Thank you so much, and thank you for you know, all of this." Mahnoor gestured to the dump laying in front of her. Carmen smiled warmly with a kind 'no problem' back at Mahnoor. Mahnoor enthusiastically opened the book and started reading, happy to be back in a fictional world. Carmen took this time to think. The girls and her might have had an eventful and rocky first meeting, but after speaking with Mahnoor, it seemed as if they could truly be good friends. On that note, she went on her phone while Mahnoor read and Keisha and Serena started to stir.
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Word Count: 2296
After more than a month, I finally found the words to write and complete the chapter. You guys don't know how many times I had to redraft this chapter. I'm still not fully content with it (I think it can improve a lot more), but it's great for now.
So, a new character is introduced. What do we think? Do you think she can get along with the girls despite the time gap between them?
As usual, votes and comments are appreciated. I would also love some constructive criticism and tips on how I can improve my writing!
Thank you all <3