on?”
He doesn’t hesitate, “Yes.”
And he’s right. I don’t know where it came from. It’s almost as if I spent some of my childhood in England, which of course I didn’t, and the residual accent peeks through every now and then with only certain words. Other people have pointed it out throughout my life, but it’s usually when they’ve spent years around me. It’s subtle. How’d he pick it up so quickly?
“And it’s adorable,” he says boyishly smiling at me.
I blush. “Okay, well I guess I’ll leave you to it then. I’m going home straight after P.E. unless you need anything else before I go. Do you have a ride home?” I’m surprised how disappointed I feel at the thought of leaving him here.
He laughs under his breath. “Sebastian drove today, and I’ll ride home with him. Thanks for asking though, and thank you for everything today. You don’t know how long I’ve looked forward to this day … you did not disappoint, Veronica.” He smiles, winks, nods goodbye and turns toward the main building.
“See you tomorrow, Dimitri,” I call after him. My knees grow weak as I watch him walk away. How has he reduced me to mush in the span of a half-day?
“You can count on it,” he yells back without turning around.
Life is sometimes … memorable.
Chapter 2
Long ago yesterday
Revisited
The clock on my nightstand reads 4:08am. Excellent, I know what time it is. But the real questions remain: Where am I? Am I awake or dreaming?
I blink a few times and my sleep-blurred eyes fumble their way around my room. I’m awake, I decide. I sit up and attempt to rub the haze from my eyes. My dream had been so vivid, so real. I can remember every detail: see it, hear it, smell it … feel it.
I saw myself as a young child. I couldn’t have been more than eight or nine years old. I was walking down a dirt road alone. My chestnut brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail with a white ribbon. I wore a plain, pale yellow dress. It was clean, but definitely worn. My brown leather shoes had holes in them. The fields on either side of the road were a brilliant green. The sky was pale blue and the air felt thick and sticky on my skin. I could hear children laughing and playing in the distance. My heart felt content, yet anxious with excitement. I rounded a bend in the road and saw a small one-room schoolhouse in the near distance. There were six or seven children chasing each other under a huge oak tree. I started to run. I could feel the air rush in and out of my lungs. I slowed to a jog as I approached the friendly-looking woman standing at the edge of the road. She wore a simple, long, cotton dress that brushed the tops of her black laced-up boots. Her hair was pulled back in a bun beneath her white bonnet.
“Good morning, Veronica. It’s good to see you,” she said with a welcoming smile. She hugged me tightly.
“Good morning, Miss Little,” I said shyly.
The boys and girls were still chasing each other under the oak. She turned toward them and yelled cheerfully, “Children, it’s time to go inside.”
All of the children immediately stopped and ran inside the tiny schoolhouse, all except one. He turned and started running toward us instead. A strange feeling of anticipation came over me. I could feel it in the pit of my stomach. He stopped just in front of me, but didn’t say anything. He looked up tentatively at the woman, who smiled warmly at him.
“We have a new student joining us this year,” she said in a kind, motherly voice to the young boy.
As if given permission, he looked at me. He was slightly taller than me and was dressed in dark pants and a shirt that had probably been white once, but was now light gray. His clothes were too big for him and even more worn than mine. He wore no shoes. His dark brown hair was combed neatly and his cheeks were rosy from playing, they matched the color of his lips. And he had the most beautiful gray eyes.
“Hi, my name’s Veronica.”
“Hi,
He doesn’t hesitate, “Yes.”
And he’s right. I don’t know where it came from. It’s almost as if I spent some of my childhood in England, which of course I didn’t, and the residual accent peeks through every now and then with only certain words. Other people have pointed it out throughout my life, but it’s usually when they’ve spent years around me. It’s subtle. How’d he pick it up so quickly?
“And it’s adorable,” he says boyishly smiling at me.
I blush. “Okay, well I guess I’ll leave you to it then. I’m going home straight after P.E. unless you need anything else before I go. Do you have a ride home?” I’m surprised how disappointed I feel at the thought of leaving him here.
He laughs under his breath. “Sebastian drove today, and I’ll ride home with him. Thanks for asking though, and thank you for everything today. You don’t know how long I’ve looked forward to this day … you did not disappoint, Veronica.” He smiles, winks, nods goodbye and turns toward the main building.
“See you tomorrow, Dimitri,” I call after him. My knees grow weak as I watch him walk away. How has he reduced me to mush in the span of a half-day?
“You can count on it,” he yells back without turning around.
Life is sometimes … memorable.
Chapter 2
Long ago yesterday
Revisited
The clock on my nightstand reads 4:08am. Excellent, I know what time it is. But the real questions remain: Where am I? Am I awake or dreaming?
I blink a few times and my sleep-blurred eyes fumble their way around my room. I’m awake, I decide. I sit up and attempt to rub the haze from my eyes. My dream had been so vivid, so real. I can remember every detail: see it, hear it, smell it … feel it.
I saw myself as a young child. I couldn’t have been more than eight or nine years old. I was walking down a dirt road alone. My chestnut brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail with a white ribbon. I wore a plain, pale yellow dress. It was clean, but definitely worn. My brown leather shoes had holes in them. The fields on either side of the road were a brilliant green. The sky was pale blue and the air felt thick and sticky on my skin. I could hear children laughing and playing in the distance. My heart felt content, yet anxious with excitement. I rounded a bend in the road and saw a small one-room schoolhouse in the near distance. There were six or seven children chasing each other under a huge oak tree. I started to run. I could feel the air rush in and out of my lungs. I slowed to a jog as I approached the friendly-looking woman standing at the edge of the road. She wore a simple, long, cotton dress that brushed the tops of her black laced-up boots. Her hair was pulled back in a bun beneath her white bonnet.
“Good morning, Veronica. It’s good to see you,” she said with a welcoming smile. She hugged me tightly.
“Good morning, Miss Little,” I said shyly.
The boys and girls were still chasing each other under the oak. She turned toward them and yelled cheerfully, “Children, it’s time to go inside.”
All of the children immediately stopped and ran inside the tiny schoolhouse, all except one. He turned and started running toward us instead. A strange feeling of anticipation came over me. I could feel it in the pit of my stomach. He stopped just in front of me, but didn’t say anything. He looked up tentatively at the woman, who smiled warmly at him.
“We have a new student joining us this year,” she said in a kind, motherly voice to the young boy.
As if given permission, he looked at me. He was slightly taller than me and was dressed in dark pants and a shirt that had probably been white once, but was now light gray. His clothes were too big for him and even more worn than mine. He wore no shoes. His dark brown hair was combed neatly and his cheeks were rosy from playing, they matched the color of his lips. And he had the most beautiful gray eyes.
“Hi, my name’s Veronica.”
“Hi,
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