Emerald was sitting on her bed deep in thought. She was thinking about the boy and girl she had seen with Kasen yesterday. Every time she had a spare moment to think, she thought about that diner. Chase’s diner. And the calendar on the wall. That was 89 years ahead! It was not the first time she had thought that thought. But then her thoughts wandered back to the two kids, the ones who had ordered ice cream. Something felt familiar about them, but it was just out of reach.

She sighed and got off her bed. It was Saturday, so she didn't have to worry about school, but she still had to do chores. She went outside the house and breathed in the fresh air. Why me? Us, I mean. The question went unanswered.

…

“KASEN!”

Kasen jumped up from the book he was reading. “YES?” He called. There was no answer, so he went downstairs to see why someone had called him. He went into the kitchen.

“Ah, Kasen, there you are,” his father said. “I need you to help me at the train station today.”

“Okay.” Kasen was hoping to read his book today, but helping at the train station was alright because after he helped his father he usually was allowed to read on one of the benches. They had already eaten breakfast, so they would leave quickly.

Soon Kasen was walking beside his father to the train station. Luckily it was close to their house, so they didn't have to walk far. I wonder if I will see Emerald. He shook his head. That was unlikely, she would probably only come back to the train station when her father returned, and he would definitely be gone for more than a single night. It’s okay, I’ll see her at school on monday… He got lost in thought as they kept walking, and before he knew it they were at the train station.

“You can start with sweeping the platform. After that, wash the windows with a cloth, and then you can read.”

“Yes Father.” Kasen went over to where his father kept cleaning supplies. They included the broom, some old cloths, and a bar of soap. He grabbed the broom and started sweeping the platform. He went fast, but also made sure to do a good job, because if he didn’t he would have to redo it.

As he swept, he thought about ‘Chase’s Diner’. Specifically, he thought about the black and white checkered floor. It was odd, but also interesting. The train station would be much more interesting if it had a checkered floor.

He stopped sweeping and looked around the train station, imagining if the floor was checkered and the benches were bright red instead of boring brown wood. The future is so interesting, He concluded as he started sweeping again. Much more interesting than this time.

After he finished he returned the broom to its place and grabbed the soap and cloth. He scrubbed the soap against the cloth until you could see little bits of it, and put the soap back. Then he took the cloth down the stairs and dunked it in an old rain barrel on the side of the train station. He took the cloth back to the train station and scrubbed all the windows in the train station, which wasn’t a lot. He was done pretty quickly, and once he put everything away he sat down on one of the benches to read his book.

…

It was monday, and Kasen was walking with his sisters to school. “Hup two three four, NOW MARCH,” Ruth said.

“MARCH,” Allen and Velma echoed.

“Come on, hurry up,” said Kasen. He wanted to get to school early so he could talk to Emerald. Ruth looked at him and smirked. She didn’t hurry up at all. Kasen frowned at her. She grinned and said

“Have patience, Kasen.” Kasen frowned harder. He remembered how he had told her that last week. Of course she would use that against me. If it wasn't so annoying I would be proud. He sped up his steps a little, so Ruth sped up too so that she wouldn’t get left behind.

When they got to school it was almost time to start. Kasen looked around but he didn’t see Emerald anywhere. She must already be inside. He sighed in disappointment and went inside the classroom.

…

The door creaked as it swung open. Emerald and the entire rest of the class looked back to see who had arrived. It was Kasen. He was the last one to arrive, and made it just before class started. Mr. Henson frowned but didn't say anything, and started the lesson.

As he droned on, Roselle leaned into Emerald. “Don't be obvious, but Kasen keeps looking at you,” she whispered. Emerald nodded slightly to show she understood, and leaned backwards to look at Kasen out of the corner of her eye. After a few seconds he glanced at her, but didn't notice her looking at him. A minute later he did it again. Emerald leaned back forward.

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“You’re right,” She told Roselle.

“Of course I am,” Roselle responded. “What are you going to do about it?”

“Nothing. What else can I do? It probably doesn't mean anything anyway.” Roselle raised her eyebrows.

…

Lunch time came, and Emerald walked with her friends outside to eat. They sat down and Emerald was about to start eating when Kasen walked up to her. The other girls all wiggled their eyebrows except for Roselle. “Hi,” he said, “can we talk, Emerald?” Alma said ooo under her breath and someone giggled, but Emerald didn't know who.

“Sure, “ she said. They walked a little ways away from the rest of the students, but still in sight of them.

“Sooooo,” he said. Emerald stared at him. “I'm sure you've noticed that something weird happens everytime we see each other.” Emerald nodded.

“Yeah,” she said. “It's everytime we touch.” Kasen seemed to be thinking.

“Everytime we touch,” he murmured. He looked at Emerald.

“Kasen,” she warned, “whatever you're thinking don-” before she could finish her sentence Kasen reached out and grabbed her hand.

FLASH

A bright light hit Emerald's eyes. She shut them tight. Then it was quiet. She rubbed her eyes a little and blinked them open. They weren't right outside the schoolhouse anymore. Instead they were in a forest. Soft sunlight dappled through the trees, and the leaves rustled softly. There were bird noises in the distance.

She looked around. So much… green. She couldn't remember ever seeking so much green in one place. From the leaves to the plants on the forest floor to the moss crawling up the trees, nearly everything was green. Beside her Kasen spoke.

“Emerald?” He said. Emerald jumped a little. She had forgotten he was there. Snapping out of her surprise and wonder at her surroundings, she grew more alert.

“Yes?” She responded to Kasen.

“So it really is every single time we touch,” he said. Emerald said nothing. He looked around. “I wonder what time we are in this time,” he continued. Emerald looked around too for any clues, but could see nothing but forest. Then they heard some low voices. They glanced at each other, and walked to where they heard the voices, further into the forest.

Soon they walked into a clearing, filled with flowers and even some stone benches. Emerald could see a path on the opposite side of the clearing, probably leading out of the forest. By one of the benches, two people were standing and talking. Emerald and Kasen went closer, to hear what they were saying. It was a boy and a girl. They only looked a little bit older than Kasen and Emerald.

They seem familiar, Emerald thought. She studied them, and blinked when she realized who they were. “The kids with the ice cream,” she said. Kasen stared at them and nodded. As they watched, the boy handed the girl a flower. “This is for you, Melanie,” he said. The flower was a white lily. Melanie. That means darkness in Greek. I think it also means noble and in the biblical terms. Which is odd because they are two opposites

Emerald watched Melanie hold the flower. She was smiling. Then Emerald saw a strange flash in her eye. It was gone as fast as it happened. Goosebumps ran up and down Emerald's arms and a shiver ran down her spine. Then a bird trilled, and it was back to the peaceful forest. “Thank you,” Melanie said. They were back at the school.

Kasen was still holding Emerald's hand. She yanked it away. “Why did you do that?” She asked. Kasen shrugged.

“Emerald are you ok?!” Roselle ran up to them. “You were just standing there, looking at nothing…” Emerald turned to Roselle.

“I'm ok,” she paused. “I'm not sure what happened,” she said after a few seconds. Roselle grabbed both of Emeralds' hands.

“Well, if you're sure you're ok…” she tried to guide Emerald back to where they were sitting. Emerald pulled away.

“Wait for just a minute, I need to finish something.” When Roselle looked unsure, Emerald added “I'll be back in a second, don't worry.” After a pause Roselle nodded and walked out of hearing range, though she still didn't go back to where they were sitting.

“Why is this happening?” Asked Kasen.

“I have no idea,” answered Emerald. “Like, why us? Why is Melanie important? And that other kid too.” Even though the other kid doesn't seem as important as Melanie, she thought.

“I don't know,” said Kasen. “All I know is that everytime we touch we go forward in time, and we see the same two people.” They were silent.

“Well, I have to go and eat lunch now.” Emerald took a few steps backward. Kasen nodded. Emerald turned around and walked to where Roselle was waiting. Together they walked back to where the other girls were. They finished lunch quickly and then it was time to go back to class.

…

Later that night Kasen was up in his room reading. Ruth and Velma burst into his room suddenly. “My friend’s sister said you have a thing going on with Emerald,” she announced.

“No, I don't.” Ruth planted her hands on her hips. “You shouldn't listen to gossip,” Kasen said.

“Kasen likes Emerald,” Velma said in a singsong voice. Kasen scoffed.

“Honestly, I can't believe you think that,” he said. Velma ignored him and kept singing. Kasen rolled his eyes and went back to reading his book. Or he tried to, it was hard with his sisters distracting him. “Alright,” he finally said, “you have to leave now.” Ruth stuck out her tongue.

“No we don't,” she said.

“Yes, you do," Kasen countered. He got up and lifted Ruth up.

“Put me down,” she squealed. Kasen carried her outside his room and put her down. Then he looked at Velma. She laughed and ran out. Ruth pouted at him as he closed the door.

He shut the door with a click. Sighing, he went back to reading his book. But, sadly, he just couldn't focus. His mind just couldn't stop wandering. For some reason though, he kept thinking about Emerald.

Frustrated, he shut his book and put it away. No point reading if I can't even remember what I am reading, he thought with a frown.

RING RING RING

The old grandfather clock continued to ring. Kasen counted up to eight before it stopped. He didn't usually go to bed until later, around nine. He flopped back onto his bed and looked at the ceiling. He thought about the forest, about how peaceful it felt. He had never been to a forest before. Well, unless you counted today, but now he wanted to visit a forest he could actually touch.

His door creaked as someone opened it. “Kasen?” It was Velma. He lifted his head.

“Yes?” he said. Velma walked in and sat on his bed without asking. She didn't say anything for a few minutes. Finally she spoke.

“When you grow up, what are you going to do?”

“I don't know.” She looked at him.

“Well, I know what I want to be.” He raised an eyebrow.

“And what is that?” She lifted her chin.

“It's a secret.” Silence. “Are you going to leave?” Kasen blinked.

“I don't know,” he said again. Velma looked at him with wide eyes.

“I don't want you to leave.”

“Well,” he said, “even if I do leave, it won't be for a very long time.” She nodded, and they just sat there quietly. After about half an hour, Velma got up and left without a word, and Kasen went to bed. His mind raced, and when he finally fell asleep his dreams wandered.