Miyu's Wish (7 page)

Keil.
I had spoken it the night of Marlene’s sleepover.
Was that his name?
I could only assume that if he was warning me of something, he was speaking from the future.

I groaned at myself, recalling what Clarence had said about déjà vu; perhaps “Keil” was just an odd figment of some long-repressed memory. I gazed hopelessly at Oogles, but he had no answers either.

I slid out of bed and went to my computer. On a whim, I typed “psychics” into the Internet search bar, causing an avalanche of links to scroll down. ESP. Mind Reading. Prophesy. Remote Viewing. Psychic Channeling. I had no idea what most of the terminology meant, but I clicked a few, finding myself reading about séances on one page and astrological predictions on another. I kept clicking.

I eventually stumbled upon the site I had visited two weeks ago—Time, Space, and the Migrating Soul—and decided to give it another try. The home page now sported a different design, featuring countless planet Earths flying like comets across the screen. I soon discovered that if I was fast enough, I could click a planet before it vanished to the other side, revealing more arcane trivia.
Our universe is one of a vast collage. Time cannot be surmounted, only used. The soul is a transcendent force of the Divine.

I groaned at the pretentious jargon, but found the forums more useful, with threads focused on nearly every form of psychic phenomena imaginable. A thorough perusal, however, still revealed
little resembling my own experiences. As a last resort, I hastily created a dummy account and typed up a new thread.

I simply wrote: “Hi, I have an unusual question. Is it possible for someone from one time period to communicate with someone from another—perhaps through thoughts, visions, dreams, or feelings? Thank you!”

I didn’t think I’d get much of a response, but I bookmarked the page anyway and then hurried to get dressed. I was to meet Marlene and Tamara at one thirty, and it was beginning to get late.

I strolled inside McKellar Mall, happy to be on my own for a few hours; my aunt had dropped me off and given me permission to run free. I noted my reflection in a shop window and smiled to myself. I was wearing a light-blue dress with an accompanying white cardigan sweater, and my hair was curled so that my locks bounced like buoyant springs as I walked. I had probably spent more time on my appearance than a trip to the mall really required, but the thought of possibly running into Thad without looking my very best was unthinkable.

Checking my phone, I hurried to a large fountain at the center of the complex, which was our decided rendezvous point. Marlene smiled brightly and waved as I approached, while Tamara simply nodded.

“Wow Miyu! You’re looking cuter than ever,” Marlene exclaimed, giving me a hug.

“Thanks,” I said, feeling my cheeks pinken. “You look very nice, too.”

Marlene glanced down at her blue, crochet tunic, which hung loosely from her shoulders and converged into an elegant bow by her side. “It’s a Mars Lavrende, the star fashion designer from France,” she explained. “My dad picked it up on a business trip, says it’s very unique—one of a very limited run.”

“Mars Lavrende?” I repeated. “Huh, I’ve never heard of him.”

“You’re not missing much,” Tamara said, her back turned as she tossed something into the fountain. “He’s overrated, like they all are.”

Marlene’s face tightened. “Humph, says the girl who dresses like a boy half the time.”

Tamara turned around and glared at her. “I just don’t believe in all the frilliness you and Minnie Mouse over there are always reveling in.” Indeed, Tamara was only wearing a simple, sequined top and blue, cut-off jeans.

“You shouldn’t judge things you don’t understand,” Marlene said stiffly, looking ready for a battle.

“Um, I think you’re both really amazing the way you are,” I quickly interjected, my eyes wide and dark as I stared between them.

They both froze and looked at me, their mouths curling into smiles. A moment later, they were laughing.

I crossed my arms sourly.

Tamara wiped her eyes. “I have a hard time figuring you out, Miyu, but you are good for a laugh.”

Before I could respond, Marlene dashed forward and grabbed my hand.

“Time for shopping,” she laughed, pulling me with her down the hall. Tamara, still smirking, followed at my heels.

We spent the afternoon hopping from one shop to the next, trying on more clothes than even Marlene could hope to afford. We then hit the larger department stores and played in their perfumes and cosmetics, and finally perused their jewelry and accessories. I eventually bought a pink handbag and a pair of glossy, leather sandals, while Marlene bought a satin scarf. Tamara, looking a little bored by that point, found an earring she liked for her nose.

We soon made our way to the mall’s extensive food court and had a nice lunch. I helped myself to a tasty dish of chicken bulgogi, while Marlene chose a salad, and Tamara munched down on a plump hamburger. We chatted merrily, but half of my attention rested on the tables around us.

“Looking for anyone in particular?” Marlene asked slyly, peering at me in between bites of lettuce.

“No, not really,” I said, unable to mask the disappointment in my voice.

Tamara rolled her eyes. “You see him every day at your locker. Why don’t you just ask him out?”

“I couldn’t do that!” I exclaimed, almost spitting out a mouthful of rice. “The guy has to be the one who asks!”

“You could still help him along a little, though,” Marlene added, wiping her mouth. “You know, doing things like complimenting him can go a long way. Laugh at his jokes, pat his back. Maybe even bake or cook something for him.”

I fell silent for a moment. In truth, I had considered doing some of those things, but I didn’t want to proceed too quickly. He still made me a little uncomfortable.

“Or perhaps there’s another boy you also like?” Marlene continued dryly.

As if in reply to her question, a shadow stretched over our table. We all looked up to see Clarence staring at me awkwardly.

“Miyu, I think I have some information regarding your time travel inquiry,” he said, grinning goofily.

Marlene and Tamara looked at me bug-eyed as I smiled uneasily. “It’s for an extra credit assignment we’re considering,” I explained quickly, springing up from the table. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

Feeling their stares on my back, I grabbed Clarence’s sleeve and led him to a small wishing fountain at the center of the food court.

“You really want to work on a project together?” he asked as we came to a stop. He suddenly looked very excited.

“No, well, maybe…we’ll talk about that later,” I scowled. “Clarence, you can’t be blurting out stuff about time travel and such things in front of people.”

“Why not?” he asked. “If it’s of genuine interest to you, why should they care?”

“Because they’ll think I’m weird!” I said, stomping my foot. “Even you laughed at me.”

He glanced at his feet, now looking very ashamed. “I know,” he said. “I’m sorry about that.”

I watched him for a moment and sighed.

“Look, it’s alright,” I finally said, patting him on the back. “I’m sorry I’ve been ignoring you in class. I’ve just been going through a lot lately. We’ll see each other on Monday.”

I turned to walk away, but he grabbed my arm and reeled me back.

“Clarence! Wha—what are you doing?”

“Sorry,” he said sheepishly, immediately dropping my arm like a rock. “But don’t you want to hear what I found out?”

I glanced toward Marlene and Tamara, seated somewhere behind a crowd of people. “It’ll have to wait until Monday. I really need to get—”

“Miyu?”

I blinked—recognizing the voice—and spun around to behold Thad walking up to me, looking really swanky in his blue jeans and corduroy jacket. A beautiful smile immediately wrapped itself across my face.

He stopped before me, nudging Clarence subtly out of the way. “It’s good to finally catch you outside of school.” He glanced me up and down. “You look great.”

“Oh, this?” I said, clasping my hands behind my back and looking downward. “I’m glad you think so.” I gazed back up at him. “You’re looking pretty sharp yourself.”

He grinned, his teeth sparkling. “You know, I was thinking about catching a movie. Would you like to join me?”

“She can’t,” came Clarence’s flat answer as he stepped beside me. I had forgotten he was there. “We’re currently in the middle of an important discussion, so if you would please excuse us.”

I felt my jaw slacken. “Clarence, we will talk about
it
later! OK?”
What was he doing?

“Doesn’t sound like she’s interested,” Thad replied. “And I’m sure she has better things to do on a Saturday than hang out with the likes of you, anyway.”

They regarded each other coldly, with Thad’s grin twisting into a sort of sneer. He took a step forward and clenched his right fist, but Clarence held his ground.

“OK, that’s enough,” I demanded. “Thad, you leave Clarence alone! And Clarence, we can finish our talk on
Monday
. Understand?”

They both looked at me with dumbfounded expressions.

Thad spoke first. “Miyu, are you serious? Why are you sticking up for this goof ? He could stand to be taught a lesson or two.”

“He’s…he’s still a friend,” I stammered.

“Thad? Thad, it is you! What a pleasant surprise!”

We all turned to see Kimberly walking over, everything moving and swaying in tempo with her movements. My heart thundered so hard, I feared it would explode.

“Thad, honey,” she beckoned, looking both hurt and disappointed. “I need someone to accompany me to Zellifare’s. It’s a new restaurant they’ve opened here recently, but I can’t go alone. Will you join me?”

“Um,” he answered, looking back at me. “You see, I…”

Kimberly seemed mystified by his behavior, but then noticed me standing just a few feet away. An electric current shot between us as she stared at me; I sensed her every emotion, from surprise to fear to jealousy, all in a second’s time.

“Are you two on a date?” she asked shortly.

I was too dumbfounded to answer, but the question seemed to be directed at Thad.

“No, not exactly, but…”

“Then you can accompany me to the restaurant,” she insisted, looking at him intensely. She then glanced at me, a dagger’s glint in her eyes. “I’m sure Miyu won’t mind.”

I could only stare back, my mouth partly open, as she pulled him helplessly away. He looked back at me, but then disappeared as she dragged him into the throngs of people.

I plopped down at the edge of the fountain and stared blankly into space.
What just happened?

Clarence took a seat beside me and cleared his throat. “Are you OK?”

I glowered at him.

“We’ll talk Monday,” he said, springing back to his feet and trotting away. He looked back at me a couple of times before finally vanishing around a corner.

A moment later, two figures crossed my line of vision. My eyes focused on Marlene and Tamara, the first looking sympathetic, the second exasperated.

“How could you let her run off with him like that?” Tamara scolded, her eyes burrowing into me.

“So you saw everything?”

They nodded. “Most of it, anyway,” Marlene replied.

“It just happened so fast,” I explained, almost to myself. I felt tears emerging, but then I remembered Thad’s sneering face, and they promptly dissolved.

“It was pretty random,” Marlene agreed grimly, taking my hand and pulling me up. “But we told you to watch out for her. Here, come on. Let’s go get some ice cream. My treat.”

I followed after them dazedly, realizing Kimberly was now my rival for Thad’s affections. I glanced at myself in a shop window, my chest seeming awfully small. I easily devoured the ice cream sundae Marlene bought for me a moment later.

“Oh, cheer up,” Tamara said, watching me eat with disinterest. “You’ll have other opportunities with him.”

“What’s really surprising is how that geeky Clarence acted. He must have really wanted your time to stand up to Thad like that,” Marlene mused. “I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone oppose him before.” She stared at me pointedly. “And it’s interesting you didn’t really take Thad’s side, either.”