A Journey Through Time

My dreams that night were plagued with fuzzy images of Ruth, Dale, and Cameron but after what they’d helped us through, it didn’t really surprise me. I was worried that they’d end up in trouble for helping us so I didn’t worry so much about the frightened looks I’d seen on their faces. I told myself it was just my imagination messing with me. Of course that didn’t stop me from waking up ridiculously early the next morning. Tommy’s room was illuminated in a faint grey light so I knew that the sun was just barely coming up. Tommy slept on, oblivious to everything, snoring softly in my ear. His arm was warm and heavy around my waist and I could still fell his hand in mine, meaning we’d held hands all night. I smiled and turned my head slowly to look at Tommy. There was just enough light in the room to cast off of his sleeping figure. He was on his stomach, his head turned towards me, and his mouth was open slightly. His left arm was slung across my waist while his right hand held tightly to my left. Tommy looked so peaceful, and it was relieving to stare at him without anyone noticing, but he must have felt me watching him because his eyes fluttered open. When he saw me watching him, a small smile filled his lips and he yawned widely.

“Hey” he muttered. His voice was still gruff with sleep and I had to hold in a squeal. I just smiled back and squeezed closer to him on the bed. He released his hold on my hand and I felt his arm slither under me so he could pull me even closer.

“How long have you been awake?” he asked. I reached up and brushed a loose curl off of his forehead before putting my hand against his cheek. He made a low noise of content and my smile grew.

“Not long, a few minutes maybe” I whispered back. Tommy yawned against and I felt his arms tighten around me until I was forced against his chest. I sighed deeply and pressed my ear right over his heart so I could listen to it. I was surprised to find that his heart was beating faster than mine was. So Tommy had liked me for a while then. I smirked and buried my face in his t-shirt.

“So what do you want to do today? Lie around and relax; stay in bed all day; go for a walk? Personally, I like the second option” he said. I chuckled lightly and smacked his chest playfully, making him laugh.

“We need to go by my place so I can get some clothes, but besides that I don’t care what we do” I said. Tommy took a deep breath and I felt his lips meet my forehead.

“Alright, I’d better get dressed then” he said. I reluctantly let him climb out of bed and cross the room to his closet. I’d never spent more than a few minutes at a time in Tommy’s room before and now I’d spent the night with him! I pulled the blanket up over my mouth to cover my excited squeak. I watched Tommy pull a short sleeve button down out of his closet and then fish a pair of black jeans from his dresser. On his way to the bathroom connected to his room, he caught me watching him. He winked and blew me a kiss before disappearing into the bathroom to change. It took a few seconds for me to compose myself enough that I could climb out of his bed. It was right after that when I realized I didn’t have any clothes to change into. Matilda had insisted on throwing away the clothes we’d been wearing when we reappeared yesterday and I didn’t blame her, but now I had nothing put the pajamas to wear now. Tommy emerged from the bathroom fully dressed while I was still staring down at my bare feet.

“Ness, what’s wrong?” he asked. He didn’t sound concerned like he normally would have, just curious. I looked up at him and his eyebrows shot up on his forehead. My eyes caught the top of his shirt and the two open buttons. Once against, Tommy was leaving the entire top of his shirt open. How very distracting. I shook my head slightly to clear that thought.

“I don’t have anything except these pajamas to wear” I said. Tommy pursed his lips and I watched his eyes slowly travel over the pale pink silk. I unconsciously pulled the blanket back over me to shield myself from view and he smirked.

“I guess you’ll just have to wear those then” he said. Even without looking at him, I could hear the smile in his voice. I finally looked up and sure enough, he had a huge grin on his face. I tried my best to glare at him, but I could have been a pouncing kitten for all the effect it had on him.

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” I asked. His grin shifted into another smirk and he half shrugged while he watched me climb out of his bed. I could feel the flush spread along my body, following the path of his eyes, until it finally hit my cheeks. He snickered lightly.

“Maybe a little bit” he answered. I rolled my eyes and lunged across the room to grab his hand. We were out his door and halfway down the hallway before I finally found my voice.

“Let’s just get to my place, I want to change into some real clothes” I said. Tommy didn’t say anything but for some reason I knew he was still grinning. He slipped his shoes on and grabbed his keys off the peg by the door before taking my hand again. The ride from his place to mine was quick and he followed right behind me as I sprinted barefoot up the walk to my front door. It didn’t sink in that we’d really been gone two years until I stepped through the door and flipped the light on. First thing I noticed; no electricity. Nobody had been here to pay the bills. That meant no gas or water either. Second thing I noticed was the layer of dust over everything, even the furniture.

“Woah, it didn’t really sink in until now” I murmured. Tommy wrapped his arms around me from behind and I leaned back against him. He pulled the string on the blinds to let some light into the living room and I actually cringed against him. The place looked so alien now. Along with the dust, there were also cobwebs everywhere.

“It looked better in the dark” I mumbled. Tommy squeezed my shoulder gently and leaned over to kiss my temple. He went around me, without moving his arms from my shoulders, and tilted my chin up so I was looking at him.

“This is the perfect excuse for you to move in with me and my parents. And before you freak out, this was actually my mom’s idea” Tommy said. My mouth had dropped open at his suggestion but now I forced it closed. I couldn’t find anything to say in response so Tommy continued.

“My mom has wanted you to move in with us since your parents died, Ness. She didn’t like the thought of you being on your own so young. And now that we’re finally together, it’s only going to fuel her. So what do you say?” I dared another tiny glance around my eerie living room before I turned back to him and nodded my head.

“Okay” I said. Tommy grinned and swept me up into his arms before swinging me around. For a few seconds, the deserted house was filled with the sound of our laughter, until Tommy set me back on my feet and promptly pressed a kiss to my lips. My laugh cut off with a startled squeak and I immediately slapped both hands over my mouth. Tommy just laughed lightly and kissed me on the forehead.

“You’re so adorable Ness, come on let’s get your clothes packed” he said pulling me across the living room towards my room. I overcame my embarrassment easily enough and dug my two rolling suitcases out from under my bed.

“You get changed and get some shoes on, I’ll pack for you” he said. I was stunned for a second before I remembered that’s just how Tommy was. And he’d always been extremely sweet to me. I kissed him lightly on the cheek before gathering up a complete change of clothes and escaping to the bathroom. By the time I was finished getting dressed and had my converse on, Tommy was finished with my closet and half-way through my dressed. I walked back into my room just as he reached for the drawer that held all my underwear and bras. I caught his hand before he could pull it open.

“I’ll do that one. Can you get my stuff out of the bathroom, please?” I asked. He smiled and slid his hand through mine before grabbing the smaller bag I’d brought in and heading to the bathroom. I sighed deeply and quickly stuffed all my panties and bras in the open suitcase before zipping it closed. Tommy came back in my room just as the front door swung open, flooding the living room with sunlight.

“Tommy? Vanessa?” Cayla’s voice echoed throughout the empty house and I felt a shudder run the length of my spine. Tommy gave me a sympathetic look.

“In here Cayla!” I called. I heard the front door slam shut and a few seconds later; Cayla was standing in my bedroom doorway. Her eyebrows shot up when she saw the suitcases on my bed.

“Are you going somewhere?” she asked. Despite what should have been a serious situation, Cayla had a grin on her face that spread from ear to ear. I sighed and rolled my eyes while Tommy chuckled lightly. I turned to face Cayla, leaving Tommy to pull the two heavy suitcases off the bed. He barely had to try.

“Cayla, I’m moving in with Tommy and his family” I said. Cayla’s grin widened, although I didn’t know how that was possible, and she gave Tommy a high five. Tommy shook his head and continued out to his jeep with my suitcases. Cayla clapped her hands and bounced a little.

“Good, now I don’t feel as guilty telling you that I’m moving back in with my parents. After what happened, they want me back where they can look after me” she said. I smiled and hugged Cayla tightly.

“That’s great Cayla, at least now neither of us will be on our own” I said. Cayla looped her arm through mine as we slowly made our way towards the front door. Before either of us could say anything, Tommy rushed back through the door, his phone to his ear.

“Paul, Jesse, and Leigh-Anne are down at the park with Moira. She’s freaking out, we gotta go now!” he said. Cayla and I sprinted out the front door and Tommy swung it closed after us. Tommy and I ran for his jeep while Cayla slid into her little black car.

“What’s going on?” I asked as Tommy shoved his jeep into gear. He kept quiet while he listened to whoever was on the phone but as soon as he pulled onto the highway, he ended the call and tossed his phone to me.

“Apparently Moira is still upset about Sean and something made her flip this morning. Jesse and Leigh-Anne found her at the park screaming and crying” Tommy explained. I grimaced lightly and Tommy reached over to squeeze my hand gently. Cayla managed to beat us to the park somehow and when we finally caught up with the rest of our friends, they had Moira pinned against a tree. Her long dark hair was tangled and hung in mats down her shoulders. Like she kept grabbing handfuls of her hair in frustration. Her eyes were wide and tears streaked down her cheeks. Paul, Jesse, Leigh-Anne and Cayla had formed a semi-circle around Moira, forcing her against the tree. When she saw Tommy and I join the group in front of her, Moira cringed back against the tree and screamed as loud as she could. Leigh-Anne and Jesse covered their ears but the rest of us just gritted our teeth until she fell silent again.

“She screams every time one of us tries to get close and she won’t listen to us. We don’t know what else to do” Leigh-Anne said after she’d uncovered her ears. Her dark blue eyes were wide in concern for Moira but I could also see a hint of annoyance in her expression. It wasn’t like Leigh-Anne to get annoyed at someone, especially her friends, but Moira wasn’t acting right either. I pushed my way between Cayla and Paul until I stood in front of Moira. She jerked back against the tree and I sighed deeply.

“Moira, you need to stop this, it isn’t fair to your mom. You need to be strong for her” I said. More tears cascaded down Moira’s cheeks and she reached behind her to grip tightly to the tree she was leaning against.

“No, Sean’s gone, he’s not coming back. I’m on my own now. Nobody knows how to help me” she rambled. I glanced back at Tommy with an eyebrow raised, he shrugged his shoulders. What the hell was Moira talking about?

“You’re not alone Moira, you have us. We were all there, we know exactly what you’re going through” I said. Moira turned around slowly to face the tree and I heard her sobbing quietly. She leaned against the tree and sniffled lightly before suddenly whipping back around to face me.

“Nobody can help; no one can see the things I can. They don’t understand” she breathed out. I looked back at Tommy again and this time his expression was the mirror image of mine. Moira wasn’t making any sense at all. I turned back to her and raised my hands in a placating gesture before taking a step towards her.

“Look Moira, we’re your friends, you can talk to us. But whatever it is you’re going through, whatever it is that you’re seeing, it’s not real” I said. Moira looked up suddenly, her eyes fixing me with an ice cold stare. I felt Tommy come up behind me but Moira’s eyes never left my face.

“And you need to get a hold of yourself because falling apart like this isn’t going to bring Sean back” I finished. Moira’s eyes blazed and she inhaled sharply before slapping me hard across the face.

“You’re the reason Sean got trapped there in the first place! This is all your fault!” she yelled. Tommy moved passed me quickly while I hunched over in an attempt to comprehend the blindingly white waves of pain rolling through my cheek and down my neck. Tommy put one hand in the center of Moira’s chest and pushed her back against the tree while Jesse and Paul grabbed her arms. Cayla and Leigh-Anne both wrapped their arms around me. Moira wasn’t normally a violent person so I had no idea she could hit so hard. My cheek was burning and waves of pain that made me sick to my stomach were traveling through my cheek, down the side of my neck, and into my shoulder.

“Vanessa, are you okay?” Leigh-Anne’s voice only registered to me the third time she asked the question and I felt her and Cayla’s fingers biting into my arms as they held me up. I struggled to find my legs so I could stand up straight again but just as I got my feet under me, another wave of pain flowed through the entire left side of my body.

“Damn, she hits hard! Yeah, I’m okay” I said. I found a faint red tinge to my vision when I opened my eyes but whether it was from pain or anger, I didn’t know. I brushed off Cayla and Leigh-Anne’s hands and stumbled forward until I was standing behind Tommy.

“Tommy, let her go” I said. He shot me a look over his shoulder and I nodded my head. He pulled his hand off of Moira’s chest but Jesse and Paul kept hold of her arms. I didn’t bother making them let go, I’d just wanted Tommy out of the way.

“I understand that you’re upset and you want someone to point fingers at, but if you’re going to blame anyone, you better blame your brother. This was all his doing, I had absolutely nothing to do with it” I snarled. Jesse and Paul cringed away from me but Moira didn’t even blink.

“We should’ve stayed, we should’ve tried to rescue him” Moira whispered. I growled in frustration and Jesse and Paul immediately released their hold on her arms. It didn’t matter though; my anger was keeping Moira still now.

“What do I have to do to make you see!? If we had stayed there, we would have ended up trapped just like Sean! We only got away because we left when we did!” I snapped. Moira sniffled lightly and her chin dropped onto her chest. I took a deep breath to try to calm myself down.

“He’s my brother” Moira whispered. Three words from her and my anger snapped, flooding my body in a red hot wave of pure fury. But this wasn’t the yelling, screaming, throwing things type of anger; this was the deadly calm type of anger, where my voice was soft but it gave the impression of dripping acid into an open blister. This was the type of anger that even Tommy wouldn’t try to stop, which meant Moira was in enormous trouble.

“That seems to be your only excuse when it comes to him Moira, have you noticed that? Every time Sean did something stupid, or dangerous, or disgusting to me or one of your friends; you stuck up for him instead of us. Being your brother is the only redeeming quality that boy had. You need to stop blaming me for this because this is all your brother’s fault” I hissed. Moira sank down to the ground and buried her face in her hands. I turned away from her and instantly my anger faded. Tommy wrapped his arms around me and I felt his lips press gently against my throbbing cheek.

“Was I too hard on her?” I whispered in his ear. Tommy’s arms tightened around me and I pushed the uninjured side of my face into his chest. My arms wound around his waist and I grabbed a handful of his shirt in both hands.

“No honey, you weren’t. Especially after she hit you; none of us were surprised. And at least you got her to calm down” he whispered back. Hearing Tommy call me ‘honey’ sent a flash of warmth through me that chased away every trace of anger. I sighed deeply and closed my eyes for a moment. Tommy had a talent for being able to calm me down or cheer me up, but it had never worked so quickly before.

“I want him back” Moira whispered. I turned around out of Tommy’s arms to drop down on the ground and gather Moira up into my arms. She leaned her head against my chest. Cayla and Leigh-Anne dropped down with me and wrapped their arms around Moira as well.

“I know Moira, I know you miss him and you want him back but acting hysterical like this is not going to help. Sean is our friend too, you’re not the only one hurting” I said. Moira sniffled and shook her head against my shoulder.

“You don’t even like Sean” she said. I felt Cayla tense up in preparation of my anger but I just laughed. The warmth Tommy had flooded me with was still keeping me calm. Cayla’s arms relaxed.

“No, you’re right, I don’t like him. But he’s your brother and the last think I want is for you to lose part of your family. That’s a pain I wouldn’t wish on anybody, so I will help you find him Moira” I said. Moira looked up at me, her tear filled eyes wide and I smiled slightly. She threw her arms around my neck and hugged me tightly. This time when I laughed, everyone else joined in. Tommy pulled me to my feet and I dragged Moira up as well. She was smiling happily through her tears and when Tommy turned me towards his jeep, Moira grabbed my arm.

“When are we going to get Sean?” she asked. I looked back at her, my eyebrows high on my forehead, and her smile vanished. I sighed deeply and put a consoling hand on her shoulder. Moira shook it off.

“Look Moira, I meant everything I said but we’d be no help to Sean if we got trapped there as well. Whatever we do to help him, we’re gonna have to do from here. We can’t go back” I said. Moira sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. I somehow knew what was about to come out of her mouth and I cut in before she could get a word out.

“Moira, if you go in there on your own, the only thing you’ll succeed in doing is landing yourself right next to your brother. Wait until we know more about what we’re dealing with. Now promise me you won’t go back in there by yourself” I said. Moira’s mouth dropped open in a pout and she looked over at Cayla. Cayla just shook her head.

“Promise me, Moira!” I snapped. Moira’s arms shot down at her sides and she stomped her foot in the grass. I raised my eyebrows again, Moira wasn’t usually one for throwing fits.

“Fine! I promise I won’t go back on my own!” she yelled before storming across the park in the direction of her house. Jesse moved to go after her but I flapped my hand at him. He cocked an eyebrow in question.

“Let her go, she’s just upset that we can’t do anything sooner” I said. I rubbed my hand across my forehead in exasperation before gently rubbing my left cheek again. It still stung a little bit and I definitely wasn’t forgiving Moira for that any time soon. Tommy put an arm around my waist and pulled my hand away so he could kiss my cheek again.

“What are we going to do to help her, Vanessa?” Leigh-Anne asked. I turned to look at the others and took a deep breath. Tommy pulled me against him and I felt his chin rest on the top of my head. I smiled and rolled my eyes.

“I don’t know yet. Until then we need to be on our guard. The photographer told us what to look for. The D.D.S. are still after us and they’re not gonna stop until they find us. Look out for each other, look out for yourselves, and watch out for that symbol” I said. They all nodded and Tommy and I turned to leave again.

“ What do we do if we see the symbol?” Jesse asked. For a few seconds, I was at a loss for words, until I remembered what the photographer had told us. “Watch for this symbol, it will tell you when they are close.” I finally looked up at them and found all their eyes on me.

“She just said that we’d see the symbol if someone from that world were close, so keep an eye on it but stay away from it” I said. They all nodded and we all went our separate ways. By the time Tommy and I got back to his place, Matilda was up and in the kitchen.

“Mom, we’re back!” Tommy called. He motioned me inside before him and pulled my suitcases in behind him. Matilda appeared in the kitchen doorway, her hair up in a messy bun and her flowery apron tied around her waist. She held a dish towel in her hands.

“There you guys are, I was wondering where you went. What’s in the suitcases?” she asked. Tommy grinned and stopped at the bottom of the stairs to answer his mom.

“Ness’s clothes; I talked her into moving in with us” he said before thundering up the stairs, the suitcases in his hands. A huge smile broke out on Matilda’s face and she made her way across the living room towards me.

“That’s great Ness! I never liked the thought of you living by yourself after your parents died. I’m glad you decided to stay her” she said pulling me into her arms. I laughed lightly as she rotated her upper body, spinning us in a half semi-circle. She pulled away and looked down at me just as Tommy came back downstairs. Matilda’s smile faded and she ghosted her fingertips across my left cheek.

“What happened to your cheek, Ness?” she asked. I frowned in confusion for a few seconds until I realized what she was talking about. While my cheek had finally stopped hurting, Moira must have left a mark.

“Oh. Moira slapped me” I said. Matilda’s eyes widened and she stared at me for a few seconds before looking over at Tommy. He closed his eyes and nodded his head. Matilda’s eyebrows furrowed and turned back to me, a look of disbelief in her eyes.

“Moira……………………………………………………..Moira slapped you?” she asked. I chuckled lightly at the confusion in her voice and nodded my head. She turned to look at Tommy again and even he couldn’t keep back a laugh.

“Moira was freaking out about Sean being missing and Nessa said something that set her off” he explained. Matilda rolled her eyes and turned to head back into the kitchen.

“That boy disappears every other day, she had no excuse to hit you” she said. Tommy and I locked eyes and he raised his eyebrows. I copied his actions and sighed deeply. If only she knew the whole story. I turned my head just slightly and a shock of white caught my attention. In the far corner of the room was a standing fish tank in the shape of an island. The top of the tank was open, and in the middle of the water, floating on a round white dish, was Bailey. I chuckled lightly and crossed the room to watch Bailey float around on top of the fish tank. The water itself was empty of fish but the cat was entertained quiet thoroughly. There was a deep red treat in between her paws, easily the size of a golf ball, and Bailey was completely engrossed in it. She turned it over and over with her paws, running her nose along every inch of it. I was beginning to wonder if this was normal behavior for a cat when I saw the shape stamped into one side of the treat. My breath caught in my throat and my eyes widened.

“Tommy” I gasped. I didn’t have to look at him to know he’d seen the symbol too. Together we lunged for the treat at the exact moment that Bailey finally bit into it. Tommy faltered and froze with his hands outstretched but I didn’t stop. As soon as the treat touched her tongue, Bailey began seizing. Her lean body tensed up and all her limbs started twitching randomly. I forced my hand into the midst of the flying paws and tried to pry the treat away from her but Bailey had sunk her claws into it. Her body seized harder, sending her crashing against the sides of the tank and causing waves of water to spill over the sides. I jerked my hand away as soon as her claws came free of the treat and she thrust all of her paws out. I didn’t know how I knew, but something told me if she scratched me right now, I’d get sucked back into the other dimension.

“Bailey!” I whimpered in horror. Tommy had finally come out of his stupor and he wrapped his arms around me. We watched helpless as the small cat thrashed, drenching herself and the portion of carpet where the fish tank stood. Her bright green eyes were wide in surprise and her mouth was gaping, though she made no sound. I didn’t think it could get anymore horrifying, but I was wrong. Just when I thought it was almost over, Bailey’s tail rose into the air behind her, a thick grey whip-like limb. Despite Bailey’s thrashing, her tail was quite still. It wavered in the air slowly, and then we watched as it grew. Each segment added was as wet as the rest of her tail but there was no twitching or other sporadic movements from it. And then finally when it was long enough, Bailey’s tail wrapped around her own neck once, twice, three times; until it looked like a rope coil. I slapped my hands over my mouth and turned my face into Tommy’s chest. He watched, open-mouthed, as Bailey’s tail tightened until it strangled her. I turned back to look just in time to see the treat with the other dimensions symbol on it sink to the bottom of the tank and dissolve in a cloud of grey mist. The sobs hit at the same time that Tommy folded me tightly into his arms so any noise I made didn’t travel to the kitchen. We’d just watched Sadie’s cat strangle herself with her tail because of a cat treat with the dimension’s symbol stamped on it. I sobbed into Tommy’s chest and he held me tightly, his own eyes clenched shut against the sight in front of us. How the hell were we going to break this to Sadie? I pulled away from Tommy and he looked down at me. His face was pale and his eyes were still wide. I could read the horror and fear in his irises.

“Tommy, we’re going to have to tell your parents” I whispered. Tommy forced himself to look over at Bailey, where she lay soaking wet but completely still, on her floating white dish. He shuddered slightly and I wrapped my arms tightly around him.

“Tell them what?” he asked. His voice wasn’t much stronger than mine. I took a deep breath and pulled out of his arms completely. He had an intense look in his eyes when he finally turned them back to me.

“Everything. It’s gonna be kind of hard to explain our way out of this one” I said. We both turned to look at Bailey’s limp body this time and I shivered so violently, I felt my teeth chatter.