User:Xepscern/Jeremy 2

Jeremy had no idea where Sarah had taken him. In a snap of her fingers, she had transported him from the back school parking lot to an open, green field. Looking around, the only mark of civilization Jeremy could see was a road, about a quarter mile away. The rest was a field of grass with the occasional tree.

“Where are we?” Jeremy asked.

Sarah gave a coy smile. “Jeremy, believe it or not, we haven't moved an inch. We are in the exact same place we were before, only twenty-two years ago. Twenty years ago, the plot your school was built on was just an acre of farm land, left unused for a decade.

The realization finally hit Jeremy. “We’re in the past,” he said to himself, breathless. “Before… before I was even born.”

“Correct,” Sarah responded. “Welcome to 1995. More specifically, Saturday, October 28th, 1995. 1:47 PM. An hour before Ptah’s comet was first recorded passing the Earth's atmosphere.”

Jeremy’s mind continued to race, trying to comprehend what just happened.

“I know it's a lot, Jeremy. And I wish I could help, but I have to leave you alone for a few hours.”

This snapped Jeremy back to reality. “Wait, why? Are you leaving me here?”

“Don't worry,” Sarah reassured him. “The thing is, we have no idea what could possibly happen if someone gets exposed again. I may get a new power. I may have my current power become amplified. I may loss my power. I may die. Or maybe nothing will happen at all. We play on the safe side, so I'm going to travel out of here, and return once I know the comet has left the atmosphere.”

Despite Sarah’s words, Jeremy felt more nervous than ever. The possibility of Sarah not coming back and leaving him hear, stranded in time, filled him with dread.

“I can sense you don't trust me,” Sarah said, breaking the silence. “You know… I'm not suppose to do this, but I could stay here if you want.”

“You would?” Jeremy asked. “But… you just said that could kill you.”

“Yes,” Sarah said plainly, as if she was hiding fear. “But if it's the only way I can get you to trust me, I'll do it.”

“No,” Jeremy said, after a minute of thinking. “I'll stay here. I'll do it.”

“Perfect!” Sarah said in relief. “Well, my watch says it's now 1:50 PM. You have your phone, right? Obviously there’s no cell signal, but it can still act as a watch. Just set it to the current time, and you can count down the moments youself.”

Jeremy nodded, updating the phone’s clock.

“When the comet passes, odds are you won’t be able to see it. Comets aren’t very bright at night time, much less during the afternoon. So don’t worry if you don’t notice it.”

Jeremy nodded again, still feeling a slight guilt questioning her.

“Once the it passes, though, you'll feel an urge. A strong, tingling sense in your body. This means It worked, and you are one of us. It will be up to you to discover your new ability.” Sarah handed Jeremy a water bottle. “I won't be back for about an hour after the comet fully passes, so you'll need this.”

“Thank you,” Jeremy said, more relaxed.

“You're welcome,” Sarah said cheerfully, only for her to go serious afterwards. “One more thing. Lay low. Don't be spotted. You're an anomaly of the timeline. You shouldn't exist. Don't be seen, and especially don't be caught using your powers.”

Jeremy, taken aback by this sudden change of tone, took his default defensive mode of answer: “Yes, okay, I will.”

“Good,” Sarah said. “So, I guess I'll be seeing you in a few hours. Take care.”

And with a snap, Sarah was gone.

Jeremy thought the hour spent waiting for Ptah’s Comet would be the longest hour he would experience in his life. His stomach in knots, Jeremy laid in the grass, trying and failing to relax his mind. His body felt tense and unsure, like it was waiting for his mind to decide the best course of action to take.

''What happens if she doesn't come back? What if I'm not “one of them?” What if I am? What are they going to want me to do?''

Jeremy only realized now what Sarah had done to him to get him to stay: a guilt trip. Sarah made him feel bad for not trusting him, and now he realized how worse off he is if she doesn't come back.

''You don't even know her! Why did you try to please her? It's just like with dad! Dear god, what if I do change? What are mom and dad going to do? How will they react? Will they even notice? What if I don't return? Will they notice that?''

Jeremy’s thoughts raced a mile a minute, his efforts in calming himself down failing. Checking his phone, he saw there was still a half hour left to go. He instinctively tried to go to the internet, only to remember that 1995 didn't yet have any cell towers for his phone to connect to, much less the internet as he knew it.

With no other options, Jeremy laid in the grass, closed his eyes, and focused on his breathing. Cassie told him meditation helped her whenever life has treated her poorly. Trying to come off smarter than he was, Jeremy dismissed it as “pretentious breathing”, but then found himself using it in a near weekly basis.

“Looks like I've finally succumbed to the evils of meditation,” Jeremy said to himself, smirking. “Note to self, tell Cassie how much I hate her.”

With his mind clearer, Jeremy thought about the lingering memories that floated around his head.

He thought about the time at nine years old when he introduced Cassie to his parents, and outright described her as a “weird” child.

He thought about the time at thirteen years old, when his father told his co workers that his son already outweighed him.

He thought about the time at fifteen years old, how his parents said they wouldn't help Jeremy get a licence like they did Dylan because he hasn't yet earned their respect.

His mind became bombarded with negative thoughts, and as Jeremy was quick to realize, all of them either involved his parents, or made him think of them.

Not every thought that came and went in his mind was sad, though. Jeremy remembered his pride in getting the highest score on his math exam last week. He remembered playing video games with Dylan when they were little. He remembered the terrible movie marathon he has last weekend with his friends. In such a relaxed state, he was even able to remember the dumb, not funny jokes he and his friends came up with in kindergarten. He figured that overall things were pretty good for him. Whenever his mind drifted back to his parents, however, he could feel himself flinch in fear of what the memory would be. Even happy memories with them were clouded in the same self-doubt and shame he felt thinking of the bad ones.

Jeremy stayed like this, laying in the grass, hands behind his head, totally relaxed. He could feel himself in total peace, finally able to concentrate on himself, and not worry about what other people thought. Whether it was a trap or not, Sarah gave Jeremy his first chance at peace.

Suddenly an alarm went off in Jeremy’s pocket.

Confused, Jeremy pulled out the phone to look at the time. There was no way, he thought, he had already spent a half hour on just his deep breathing. Yet, sure enough, the phone showed a “2:47 PM” in white, block text.

Jeremy looked up in the sky, seeing if he could see anything. The sun was still high in the sky, making Jeremy squint for any signs. Even ignoring the sun, though, Jeremy couldn’t see anything aside for a bright, blue sky and the occasional cloud.

Jeremy shrugged, took a drink from his water, closed his eyes, and went back to his meditation. He could feel his body relax and feel better. He was so deep in his trance he could feel and count his heart beats. The detachment to the world Jeremy reached was so strong he no longer felt the ground underneath him.

Deep down, he knew this wouldn’t last. He would have to get back to the real world eventually, and that wasn’t considering the strong possibility he was stuck in time. He knew he would have to worry again after this and make preparations. But for now, Jeremy chose to relax by himself.

“I see you discovered your power,” a familiar voice said.

Jeremy shot up awake, and looked for where the voice was coming from. Sarah was there, but was somehow beneath her. Somehow Sarah was on the ground, and Jeremy was six feet in the air.

Suddenly, Jeremy realized he was flying.

“Holy crap, I’m flying!” Jeremy said smiling. He felt his heart race and his mind fill with excitement.

And as his mind came back to reality, Jeremy plummeted back to the ground.