In just a blink, p.1
In Just a Blink, page 1
In Just A Blink: Book One
Copyright © 2023 by V.K. Miller
All rights reserved
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reviews, without prior permission of the author.
First Edition
Hardcover ISBN: 979-8-8229-1567-1
Paperback ISBN: 979-8-8229-1568-8
eBook ISBN: 979-8-8229-1569-5
To my family, who through their love and support has made me who I am today.
To my sister Cookie and my son, Lance, who see the world as full of mysteries and see the possibilities in the impossible.
To my sisters, Pat, Cookie, and Kathy, who through their encouragement has brought me to a conclusion.
To all the long talks of what could be or what is and just can’t be seen because our eyes are closed. Here’s to opening our eyes and seeing the impossible. Maybe then we can start to solve some of the mysteries of the universe.
Contents
Introduction
Chapter One: Saturday
Chapter Two: Movie Night
Chapter Three: The Stranger
Chapter Four: Brad
Chapter Five: Manhandled
Chapter Six: Meeting Family
Chapter Seven: What the Hell
Chapter Eight: Seductress
Chapter Nine: The Letter
Chapter Ten: What Happened Now?
Chapter Eleven: Seeing You Again Soon
Chapter Twelve: Getting Out of This
Chapter Thirteen: Dreams Do Come True
Chapter Fourteen: Together Again
Chapter Fifteen: Home at Last
Chapter Sixteen: The Betrayal
Chapter Seventeen: Meeting at the Frasers’
Chapter Eighteen: Where Are They?
Chapter Nineteen: How Did This Happen?
Introduction
I
t happens again! We are watching one of my favorite shows at our apartment, and in just a blink, it changes—a scene in the movie that I have watched so many times before. It’s not a big change, hardly even worth mentioning.
Of course, I can’t keep the shocked expression off my face, so my friends are now staring at me, wanting to know what’s wrong. You see, I only have a couple of friends, and they know about me—the things I see, the changes that they don’t see. They are very supportive and say they believe me, but I can’t help but wonder when that will stop, when they will start looking at me like all the other people, the ones who look at me like I’m out of touch, maybe a little crazy or just strange. Because of this, I only have one friend from kindergarten through high school. So needless to say, I have been a kind of loner—you know, the smart kid, the nerd. I mean, like, what is there to do? So I excel in academics.
I want to know why this is happening to me and if it is happening to others. So I have googled and googled and checked Facebook, YouTube, TikTok—you name it, and I checked it. What I have learned is you can’t believe half of what any of them say. Still there are a few stories out there that sound a lot like what is happening to me, but there is no way I’m sharing anything about myself on social media.
I am now in college, and I am majoring in Business Administration with quantum physics as my minor. That’s where I have met Brad; we are taking a lot of the same classes. I have trusted him enough to tell him some of the things I have seen or not seen, and he doesn’t look at me like I’m out of touch. I think he believes me. Wow.
There are stories on social media that say that there is a small group of people who misremember an event or have a shared memory that the rest of the population does not agree happened. What do you believe? Well, I belong to that small group.
Chapter One
Saturday
O
h no, no…no…I have forgotten to set the alarm! I start to jump up, and I lie back down. This is Saturday! Hooray for the weekend! It’s been nonstop studying the past couple of weeks, staying up at all hours of the night, getting ready for our finals, and we have passed with flying colors.
I have gotten into Bently University with a GPS of 4.0 along with my best friend, Trish. Getting here has taken a lot of hard work; we accepted the college that the both of us received acceptance letters, and here we are. This is our second year. I am not one of the rich kids, and for my scholarship to continue each year, I have to keep my GPA up. Trish has gotten in the same way with a GPA slightly higher than mine, but her family is very well off and will have no problem paying her way. Monday is the last day of the semester; it’s just a formality.
Tonight we are having a pizza party to celebrate. The we is Trish, Crystal, Brad, and myself.
Now for Brad—I met him about three months ago; he transferred in from California State University. I keep running into him as he has almost all the same classes as I do. And who wouldn’t want to run into Brad? Oh my God, he is six feet four inches and then some, with black hair that is always a mess (you know, that just-got-out-of-bed look) and blue eyes that seem to change if you look into them for very long. He goes to the gym almost every day, so yes, he has a great body too, and yes, I am falling for Brad.
Tonight we have wine and pizza, and we are rewatching my favorite show. I love this show, so much so that I can watch it over and over again. I have found that it helps me feel better about some of the things I have been dealing with in life in general. Strange, huh? If you knew my life, you would understand when that they say life is stranger than fiction, they are talking about me.
I live off campus in a very small two-bedroom with Trish. I should say she is my only friend, that is, until I came to college and met Crystal. The first day of school, I was running late and ran right into her; we just started talking like we had known each other all our lives. That has never happened to me before. I couldn’t help thinking, “That will change once she gets to know me better.” Two years later we’re still friends. Wow! Who knew?
Now as for Trish, we have known each other since kindergarten. I love her like a sister. It has always been the two of us. Trish has one elder brother named Trent. I had a crush on him through most of my school years. He was very kind to my heart and would tell me, “One day when I am all grown up, we just might have to get married.” It wasn’t until I was in middle school that I realized he was just playing with me. Still Trent has a place in my heart.
Trish and I were both born in Denver, Colorado, to wonderful parents. She still has both her parents; they spend most of the year traveling through Europe. They are always sending postcards and trinkets to keep in touch.
As for my parents, I lost my dad; he died after my first year of college. It’s been really hard on Mom. It became even harder when I chose to go to school in Massachusetts. I know she gets lonely, so I try calling her as often as I can. I know she misses him; I miss him. It’s been hard not having him here. I miss our talks; we could talk for hours. Love you, Dad!
Since I was little, I was labeled the strange kid. I would have moments where I would just stop and just stare; then I would go back to whatever I or we were doing. Eventually the kids started noticing and would think something was wrong with me. What they didn’t know was I wasn’t just standing there frozen in time. I was noticing a change—something as simple as the name of our school building changing from “West Branch” to “the West Branch.” I learned early on not to say anything; if I did, no one would believe me. (Trish always believed me; what she thought mattered more to me.) It was best if I kept things to myself. When I told them what I saw, usually they would laugh, and it would take days before they would forget and things would go back to normal.
I try not to notice the changes; I can’t help it. It is still shocking to me. It sometimes scares me a little. These changes seem to be happening more often the older I get.
Trish is the only one all through our childhood who sees who I really am and defends me. I love that girl.
Trish went to go visit her family a couple of days ago; they flew in from Europe last week. Her mother wasn’t feeling well; she came home to see their family doctor. Trish called and said that she would be getting home really late and not to stay up. I still tried waiting up for her, but all the late-night studying had caught up with me, and I ended up falling asleep with my phone still in my hand.
Now it’s after ten in the morning and no Trish; where is she? Why hasn’t she made it back yet? I hope her mom is good.
The phone starts ringing in my hand and scares the crap out of me. I say, “Hello?” It’s Crystal; she is so excited for tonight that I have to pull the phone away from my ear, or else I’ll lose my hearing. I tell her I have everything ready on my end. But I am a little worried that Trish hasn’t made it back yet nor called. I am hoping to hear from her; it just isn’t like her not to call. I can’t help but think, “I hope her mother is all right.”
Now Crystal is worried, and I tell her I will let her know as soon as Trish calls.
So I ask Crystal, “What time will you be here?” Now Crystal is back to being Crystal, excited and a little over the top. She can barely contain herself. She’s going on about a new pastry shop and all the wonderful pastries she has bought, about gaining weight, about staying up all night, and about wanting to pick up my wine order. Somewhere in the nonstop sentence, I think I hear that she will be here at seven. It even sounds like she is jumping up and dow n and starting to get out of breath. This is what I love about her—so much energy. I calm her down and tell her not to worry about picking up the wine, which I picked up last night after our last class, and I thank her for asking.
Then the real reason she has called comes out—she wants to know if Brad and I have moved past the friendship stage. She knows how much I like him, and I tell her, “No…still just friends.”
Then there she goes again. “You haven’t kissed? How can that be? The way he looks at you, you need to make the first move. This isn’t the dark ages, you know!”
I have to interrupt her, or she will just go on and on. “Crystal, I want Brad to make the first move, and I am OK with waiting. I love you, and I will see you tonight at seven.”
Friday Night
After my last class, I have decided to do a little shopping. I want to try this new boutique that has just opened up. It has one-of-a-kind clothing, not something that I can really afford. But on Saturday night, I want to look extra nice. I want to be subtle but not too subtle. Let’s face it, I want Brad to notice me. So I have gotten black jeans that fit like a glove. And I love this really sweet top that’s a little low down in front and has a lot of green going through it. It brings out the green in my eyes and makes the red come out in my auburn hair. I really like Brad.
After leaving the boutique, I pick up the wine and head home. It is starting to get late. I don’t want to miss the chance to call Mom, so I grab a blanket and sit on the couch and call her; we talk for a couple of hours. It’s been hard. What makes it worse is that it wasn’t Dad’s health that killed him; he was in great health. He died from a hit-and-run. He was driving home late after work, and a truck forced its way into the oncoming traffic on the highway. He died instantly; the people in the truck died also. It’s been over a year, and there’s no clue about who has caused the accident.
Mom asks about Brad; she knows I really like him a lot. I have told her that Trish and I are having Brad and Crystal over tomorrow night for pizza and movies. We say our goodbyes.
It’s getting late, and I haven’t showered and washed my hair. My hair is down to my waist and thick and has a natural curl to it. So I like to blow it out; it makes my hair more on the wavy side. I crawl into bed with my phone in my hand, waiting for Trish to call.
Saturday Morning
I can’t believe it’s after ten in the morning and still no call from Trish. I’m thinking about what Crystal has said. Maybe I should make the first move. I think about the outfit I bought last night and how I am going to fix my hair, and I say out loud to myself, “I hope Brad likes it. I am really starting to like him.”
Then Brad is standing in front of me and says, “What do you hope I like?”
I grab my heart and say, “Freak…freak… freak! You just scared the crap out of me. How did you get in? Did I forget to lock the door again?”
He says, “No…it was locked.”
I say, “Then how?”
A slow smile spreads across his face, and he says, “I have my ways. You will just have to figure it out. It’s my little secret. But hey, don’t get up on my account. I like that sleepy look on you. And as for a new outfit, I like the boy shorts and tank top you have on.”
Now I’m getting worried and start to get up. I say, “OK…how long have you been standing there? What did you hear?”
He doesn’t answer, but before I can get up, Brad is pushing me back down on my bed. He puts his head on my forehead. My heart is pounding so hard that I think I can hear it. Feeling him this close, I can sense his warmth. I can feel his heart pounding against my chest. I want him to kiss me. Maybe I should pull him in and kiss him. I start to push on his chest so I can take his face in my hands, and before I can, he takes both my wrists in one of his hands and pulls them above my head.
He takes my breath away. I say his name in a whisper; I am not sure if he can hear me. Maybe he does because I hear a low growl. It feels like the temperature in the room has just gone up. I wait.
He moves his face slowly down to my neck just above my shoulder and just breathes me in. It feels so intimate! To get my brain to function, I close my eyes, and that’s when I feel him let go of my wrists. I slowly open my eyes, and he is standing at the foot of my bed just looking at me.
His hair is as black as night. He had a slight growth of hair on his face, giving him a rugged look. His blue eyes seem to look straight into my soul. He is wearing a tight-fitting black T-shirt that hugs him in just the right way and is tucked into low-riding blue jeans. I don’t think I have ever seen a man so well built.
I’m having a hard time understanding why I feel so connected to him. If that connection should ever break, I know I won’t be able to survive it.
I hear a low growl; at least I think it’s a growl. My eyes start to move back up his frame, until I meet Brad’s eyes. His brow lifts over his left eye, and there is a smile on his lips; his eyes seem to have darken even more. Is that possible?
I clear my throat. I don’t know how much time has passed. A sec, a minute, maybe more? Luckily Brad breaks the silence by saying, “OK, sleepyhead, be ready. I will be back by six with the pizzas. Hope you will be hungry.”
Oh, I am hungry, just not for food. I didn’t say that out loud, thank goodness.
Brad walks over to the side of the bed, pulls me up, and hugs me tight to him, almost like he is afraid to let me go.
I ask him, “Is everything alright?”
He says, “Hey, you know me, I am always alright…more than alright. See you tonight. Hey, I am going to the gym, and I have a few errands to run…won’t take too much time. Do you want to come? We can get a late lunch.”
I tell him, “I would love to, but Trish didn’t get home last night. She said she would be late and not to wait up, but still she isn’t here and hasn’t called. I am starting to worry, so I will be tracking her down. I’m sure she just stayed the night at her mom’s house because it got too late.” I smile. “I…can’t go. I just have to make sure.”
Brad winks and says, “And you have that new outfit to try on. Can’t wait to see you in it. Oh and, Liz, Trish is good. I can feel it.” Brad slowly releases his hold on me.
I look up and smile at him, and I say, “I hope you’re right.”
And just like that, Brad’s gone, and I am just standing there with my hand covering my mouth, just staring at the empty doorway. “I can’t believe that just happened!”
I take a deep breath, trying not to worry, and call Trish. She answers on the first ring, thank goodness. “Hey, Trish, is everything alright?”
“Liz, I am so sorry I didn’t call first. I knew you would worry. Everything is good now. We had to take Mom to the hospital last night, and it was so late I knew you would be sleeping. Before you ask, yes, Mom’s fine. We are back home. She passed out last night right before I was going to head out, and we couldn’t wake her, so Dad called an ambulance. She is feeling so much better now that the doctor told her they can return to Europe by the end of the week. Dad is sending me back in the family jet, so I will be back in plenty of time for tonight. Liz, I am so relieved Mom is good. I don’t know what I would do if something happened to her.”
Trish knows I can’t help but think of my dad with what’s happened to her mother. So she ask me how I was holding up with the loss of my dad. It’s been a year since I lost him, but hearing about Trish’s mom brings it all back. I keep waiting for it not to hurt so much. I’m so relieved about Trish’s mom and that Trish will make it here in time for our movie night. On a brighter note, to have a family jet—wow, what would that feel like? Oh well, I don’t really have anywhere I want to go, so…
I know Trish is wanting to ask me if I am OK, meaning if I have had any visions, but she also knows that I don’t like to talk about it, so she doesn’t bring it up. If she gets a feeling that I am holding back, she will get me to talk. I know she believes me (that the changes are real); she say things like, “I can hear the gears turning in that head of yours,” or “You know you have my total support.” But until I can find out what’s happening to me or what is freaking wrong with me, I don’t want to share too much. I can’t lose the few people in my life.
Trish brings me out of my thoughts, saying, “Liz…I am so ready for tonight, just to pig out and do nothing, not worrying about school or test scores. We did it, and I am bringing a couple of bottles of the really good stuff from Dad’s wine cellar. He won’t miss it.”
