Tamara Stone: TIme After Time

I can still hear her voice at the counter but now I’m too far away to make out what she’s saying. I stare down at the shelf marked with the word MEXICO, remembering the night I came in here last April.

I should have been studying, but couldn’t stop thinking about her. All day, I’d been looking for a chance to get her alone so I could tell her the second part of my secret, but I never found one. So before I could change my mind, I fed my arms into the sleeves of my jacket and walked to the bookstore.

Her face completely lit up when she saw me walk in, and all I wanted to do was kiss her. Instead, I told her I was there to pick up a book on Mexico. She led me over here to the Travel section.

At first, we talked about our assignment, but then she stopped me in midsentence and said, “I want to hear the rest of the second thing.” When I looked in her eyes, I knew she meant it. And so I told her everything. That I was born in 1995. That I’m seventeen in 2012. That I wasn’t supposed to be here. That I could visit, but I couldn’t stay.

And then, against my better judgment, I finally did what I’d wanted to do since the day I met her. I came up on my knees and I kissed her, no longer caring about my rules or where and when I was supposed to be. Just as I was about to pull away like I knew I should, I felt her hands on my back, drawing me in until we were pressed against the bookcase and there was nowhere else for us to go but closer to each other. I kissed her harder.

The bells on the door jingle, snapping me back to reality.

“Bennett?” I hear Anna call from across the room.

I duck around the corner and press my chest into the end of the shelving unit, keeping my eyes fixed on the aisle and waiting for her to walk by. I don’t see or hear her, so I stay silent as I listen for breathing and wait for her to come into view.

I’m just about to take a step forward when I feel her hands grip my sides. I jump.

“Gotcha,” she whispers in my ear. Her forehead falls against the back of my neck and her arms wrap around me. I can feel her breathing.

“That’s an understatement,” I say, bringing her hands to my face, kissing her fingers.

“I didn’t see where you went,” she says.

“Yeah.” I let out a small laugh. “Remember? I do that.”

“Just to mess with me.” I can hear the eye roll in her voice.

“Just to mess with you.”

“Maybe you should start thinking about doing more with this little talent of yours than surprising your girlfriend.”

“Say that last part again.”

She laughs. Squeezes me harder. “Surprising your girlfriend .”

I smile. “I like the way that sounds.” I loosen her grip on my waist and turn around. Her whole face is lit up so bright, I swear we could turn off all the lights in the bookstore and still see each other perfectly.

“Hi.” I twist a strand of her curls around my finger.

“Hi.” She reaches up and musses my hair. “You’re here,” she says, but something in her voice makes her sound unsure.

“I’m here.” I bring my hands to her cheeks. “I’ve missed you like crazy.” She presses her lips together and gives me the slightest nod, and before she can say anything I tip her head back and kiss her, softly, slowly, savoring the feeling of being here in this room with her again. I kiss her harder. And just like that first night, she kisses me back, pulling me into her, like she still wants me here and still trusts me with her heart, even though she probably knows by now that she shouldn’t.

When the clock reads 9:02, Anna walks the perimeter of the store, shutting off lights and adjusting books as she goes. I flip the sign on the door from OPEN to CLOSED, and we step outside. She presses some buttons on the keypad by the door to set the alarm, and clicks the deadbolt in place behind us.

I reach for her hand and we walk in silence toward the end of the block. The familiar sounds from the coffeehouse grow louder with each step, and I take a big whiff of the air, inhaling the scent. We’re about to pass the entrance when Anna stops. “Do you want to go in and get something? We could hang out for a bit.”

I peer through the window. It’s not nearly as busy as it is when bands play on Sunday nights, but it’s still pretty crowded. All of the couches are taken and the only option I see is a high table in the middle of the room. I’ve hardly been alone with her all summer, and I really don’t feel like sharing her with anyone else tonight. “I was hoping for something a bit quieter.”

She pivots so she’s facing me and reaches for my other hand. “In that case, you have two choices: my room or yours. Who do you want to face first, my parents or Maggie?”

I make the sound of a game-show buzzer. “I don’t like either of those. What’s my third choice?”

She laughs and shakes her head slightly at me. “There’s no third choice.”

“Sure there is.”

Anna raises her eyebrows and stares at me.

“We’ll bypass the parents and just sneak up to your bedroom. No one needs to know I’m in town yet.”

“Too late. I already told them you were coming tonight.”

I snap my fingers and laugh under my breath. “Damn.” Anna shakes her head at me again while I think about my options. “I’m not ready for Maggie yet,” I say, and Anna gives me an understanding nod and drops my other hand. We continue walking toward her house.

“So, how did they take it?” I ask.

“My parents?” She shrugs. “Pretty well, I guess. Mom was cooler about you being back than Dad was, which kind of surprised me. Actually, he wasn’t too upset until I mentioned that you came to visit me in La Paz. He wasn’t at all pleased about that.” Her head spins toward mine. “Oh, and I said you visited twice, not four times, so stick to that if he asks, okay?”

I silently hope he won’t ask. I’m also silently disappointed that she’s started lying to her parents. She didn’t do that before I showed up.

“I can’t tell what they really think,” she says. “The other night, my mom came into my room to tell me that she likes you, and that she’s glad we’ll get to spend our senior year together. She actually looked giddy when she started talking about homecoming and prom and stuff.” I feel the lump rise in my throat and I swallow it back down. “But then she and my dad must have talked about it again, because last night at dinner, they laid it on thick. I got this big lecture about making sure I continue to focus on my running and not let my grades slip because of you.”

“Because of me?”

“I know, right?” She winks at me. “As if.”

I raise one eyebrow. “As if ?”

She shrugs again. “Come on, you’re not that big a deal.”

“Nah. Of course I’m not,” I say, suppressing a grin.

She squeezes my hand. “You are, you know?”

I squeeze hers back. “You are too.”

We pass the hedge that lines her neighbor’s yard, and Anna’s house comes into view. It looks exactly the same as it did when I left last May, with its wraparound porch and overgrown shrubs. There’s a soft light glowing from the kitchen window like it always does at night.

Once we’re inside, Anna leads me toward the sound coming from the living room. We turn the corner and I spot her parents. Mrs. Greene has her feet curled up underneath her and she’s resting her head on Mr. Greene’s shoulder. They’re watching some old TV show. Which, I instantly remind myself, probably isn’t old at all.

Anna stops at my side and grips my arm with both hands. The movement must catch her dad’s attention, because he suddenly looks up and sees us. His eyes grow wide and he gives Mrs. Greene a little nudge that makes her sit up straight. “Hi. We didn’t hear you come in.” He aims the remote at the TV and mutes the sound.