Averting my eyes from the holographic projection of my mother standing in the middle of the room, I peered down and swallowed hard. I had to give it to Gran for being so insightful. She’d pegged down both my mother and me perfectly. My father’s death three years ago had devastated both of us. Neither my mother nor I had expected him to die so soon while on a photographic assignment for a nature magazine. He’d gone off to work in dangerous places before and returned in one piece, but who could have predicted he’d be bitten by one of the rarest poisonous insects in the world and die?
Not wishing to hear anymore, I shut my door quietly so Gran wouldn’t know I’d been eavesdropping on her conversation. I climbed into bed, pulling the covers high up past my shoulders and commanded the lights to turn off.
Once again, my thoughts went to the restricted beach I had found earlier today, and to that strange boy I had met. How could someone disappear into the ocean like that? It was an impossibility that anyone could survive for hours without surfacing to breathe. Maybe his crazy sea-space suit had a regulator and ample oxygen attached. No, that didn’t make any sense. The outfit was too tight fitting to contain such accessories. Something was weird about Dylan and maybe the beach too.
It didn’t matter.
I’d keep returning to that beach until I ran into him again. If what he said were true, he would definitely return. Yes, he was bound to return and when he did, I’d be there. I didn’t care how long I had to wait. One thing was certain…2276 was going to be one weird year.
Chapter 3
The next morning, I returned to the restricted beach as early as I could, but Dylan wasn’t there. To kill time, I built sandcastles and re-examined the tidepools, attempting to identify the creatures I saw the previous day. Whenever the brutality of the sun became too much, I swam in the ocean, all the while watching for any signs that Dylan might reappear. After a while, I simply sat on the sand and waited.
He never showed.
Days began to pass, and watching for his return became a routine for me. Every day, I left Gran’s house around nine a.m. and biked to the beach using the old, decrepit bike Gran rustled out of the labyrinth of a garage for me. A small backpack held everything I would need to endure my agonizing day of waiting: a water bottle, snacks, lunch, a beach towel, and a t-shirt to throw over my swimsuit and jean shorts.
For a week, I waited and saw fish, dolphins, sharks, sea turtles, jellyfish—everything except Dylan. I enjoyed my time at the beach, but I couldn’t shake being confused about Dylan’s disappearance and lack of return. Was it because of me? Or was it all just an illusion of a sunbaked brain? Was I so desperate for a friend my age that I had imagined everything?
I decided that today would be it. If he didn’t appear, he must have been a figment of my imagination. I dug my feet into the wet sand, feeling the grains seep between my toes. Using my index finger, I traced pictures in the sand and thought about life back home where I grew up in San Antonio.
“Hey, Allie!”
I turned to see my best friend Marcy running at full speed in my direction, her reddish-brown hair blowing wildly around her like a veil in the wind. “Hi, Marcy. What’s the rush?”
Grinning, Marcy rested her hands on her knees as she caught her breath. “I was just wondering what project you’re choosing for history class? We’re all supposed to come up with a few prospective topics by tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” I exclaimed, my eyes bulging out of their sockets.
“Yeah, weren’t you paying attention in class? You bolted out of the classroom so fast that I guess you missed Mr. Draycott telling us.” Regaining her breath and heading with me towards the gate to our school, Marcy continued, “So, since it has to be something that occurred from 2000 to 2200, I’m thinking of the mass extinction event.”
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. “No…it’ll bore everyone else in class during the presentation.”
“Well, what do you suggest then?”
I glanced over at my best friend’s caramel eyes, shining a little less brightly with my denial of her love of animals being her topic. “Well, we both know most of the guys in class are going to choose The Great Plague.”
Marcy rolled her eyes in conjunction with mine. “Of course.”
“And I’m sure that Mallory will do hers on the development of organ regeneration science. She always chooses medical related stuff whenever she can because she wants to be a doctor.”
“So, should I do mine on the social media craze of the early 21st century?” Marcy smirked.
“Oh, gosh no, you know how badly that ended!”
We both laughed.
“How about you do it on the sea levels rising a lot faster than most people predicted?”
“Hmm…that sounds like a good one.” Marcy playfully smacked me across the back. “Good idea, girl!”
Laughing, I pulled my new omniphone out of my pocket, and saw a holomessage from my mom flashing on the screen.
Marcy noticed it. “Is she still bugging you?”
I closed my omniphone and stuffed it into my pocket. “Yeah, she keeps saying she needs to talk to me about something important.”
“Then you should probably call her.” Marcy started backing away from me, waving with a grin on her face. “Holocall me tonight and we can discuss which topics we’re interested in. Bye!”
With a
