Me and several other bloggers have launched a brand new blog hop story. We are so excited and last week Carrie kicked off the story.
Make sure you read her portion first before reading mine. Click here to read the beginning.
And now here is my contribution to the blog collaboration story….
~
Gnat stepped through the door and when she came out to the other side she exhaled. She hadn’t realized she held her breath that long. She looked around the room. It was dark inside. Hazy and filled with shadows. From what she could make out, it was another room, but this one seemed even more elaborate than the last. She decided not to move until someone spoke to her. She can’t imagine that Freddy would have led her here without waiting on the other side.
“Naomi…” The voice made her jump.
Her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting and a tall shadowed man walked towards her. She was certain it wasn’t Freddy. His voice didn’t sound so…rich. The man stepped even closer and reached a hand to her face. Gnat pulled away.
“I go by Gnat now.”
She heard him grumble with disapproval.
“An unfitting name for someone so beautiful.”
Gnat didn’t want to hear the compliments any longer. Too often they got her into trouble.
“Why am I here?” She hoped he kept the lights down. As long as she didn’t have to meet his eyes, she would keep her distrust and strength. She needed that now. The second she met his gaze she would melt. She knew it.
“I loved you so much then…” He whispered.
Gnat felt frustration filling her. “A lot has changed since then. I’ve changed since then.” Memories of the past few years flashed threw her brain. “I’m not the girl you used to know.”
“And that’s why I think you can help me.”
Gnat heard the sounds of feet shuffling in the distance. She squinted into the dark room and found the shape of a man that may be Freddy.
“Mister Tyler, shall I put on the lights?”
“Yes, yes I think it’s time she saw me.”
As if he planned a magical display, Freddy struck a match and dropped into a fireplace near him. It roared to life and engulfed the room with a warm glow. Gnat squinted to adjust to the light and looked to her right where Tyler stood. She gasped at the sight of him.
Instead of seeing the young man she remembered from her days as a young girl, she saw a man aged 70 years. Creases spilled over his face. He stood with his back straight and his head up. Underneath the physical appearance, she could see the young boy she once loved.
“What happened? Tyler?”
He turned away from Gnat. It was then she noticed the cane he gripped and used as walked. He went towards the fire and took a seat by the flame. For a moment, he stared into the fire without saying a word.
“Freddy, would you mind bringing some coffee for us? And a spot of brandy, if you will.”
Freddy nodded. He glanced at Gnat before he left, a sadness tugging at the end of his lips. When he left, Tyler looked to Gnat. She noticed there was desperation in his eyes.
“Will you join me?”
Gnat looked behind her to consider, for a brief second, going back to her previous life. But instead of seeing the hotel room door, she saw a bookshelf that extended to the ceiling and stretched out for what seemed like miles. She had never seen so many books.
“Where am I? What happened to me?”
Tyler motioned to the seat in front of him. “Please, sit. I will explain.”
Gnat took a careful step forward. She almost expected something to come out from the dark shadows that still danced along the walls and grab her. She shuffled to the seat in front of him and sat down. At that moment, Freddy came in and set down the tray on a small table set between the two chairs.
Tyler waved him away and waited a moment before speaking again. When Freddy was gone from the area, Tyler cleared his throat to note the start of the conversation.
“The most important question for you to ask right now is not where you are…but when.”
“When?”
Gnat watched as Tyler reached for the bottle of brandy and poured them each a small amount into a glass. He handed the glass to her and she just held it as he sipped his own portion.
“Yes. You are approximately 68 years into the future.”
“…Future?” Gnat couldn’t believe this. This had to be a con, except where could she go? The hotel room just disappeared.
“When I was a young man, I became obsessed with finding you and returning to you. I became obsessed to return to a time when our lives made sense. Instead, I became this.”
“How?” Gnat wasn’t sure if she wanted to know how he discovered time travel or how he managed to become an 80 year old man. Either way she wouldn’t believe the answer.
“It’s a story I have little time for. I went back and forth over the years of my life trying to find you. At some point, I managed to make a mistake in the process and returned to this time as an old man. I’ve stopped my time travel in fear that my final journey may be my demise.”
Gnat opened her mouth to ask another one of the million questions running through her head. He held up his hand to stop her.
“Please let me continue. Aside from Freddy, you are the only one I can trust. Someone has found my secret. Everything stolen. They key to time travel is in someone else’s hands. I need your help to find them.”
Gnat finally found the energy to speak again. “Why me?”
Tyler smiled and Gnat noticed it was genuine. “Gnat in a few years time, in your real time, you will find true enjoyment in math and science in a way you’ve never learned before. You will be one of the smartest women in the world.”
This time Gnat really thought he lost it. “Tyler, I hated math in school.”
Tyler waved his hand. “You’ll see. We never understand our future until it is upon us. For that much I have learned.”
Freddy came into the room. “Mister Tyler, I hate to interrupt. Someone is at the door to see you. They claim to have information you might be interested in.”
Make sure to tune in next week to see what happened next in the story!
Oh, my. Per usual, not what I expected and it makes me so much more anxious for next week. Who put the time constraints on this thing, anyhow?
One thing – I thought his name was Tyler … 😉
Oops!! I made the change!!
I can't wait to see what happens next! This was a challenge for me because I wasn't sure where to take it! You gave it such a strong beginning,I had to make sure it fit just right!
Carrie's right. Why is there a part 2 and part 3 and so on? Can't wait… 🙂
Thanks Anne!! I can't wait too!! I'll make sure to post a link to each one as they come!
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