THREE

 

At first it appeared that Gold Rush High hadn’t changed at all. There was the same brick building, the same hallways lined with lockers, the same layout of the quad. But then I noticed the differences – the large bulletin boards with papers tacked to it, the handwritten student council posters, and the multiple payphones littering the campus. 

But the biggest contrast was the actual students. They all stood in clusters talking loudly, and not one of them was looking down at a phone or listening to earbuds. I caught a couple of them passing notes, and a few were legit using the payphones.

I so have to get a picture of this.

Out of habit, I reached into my pocket, my fingers searching for my cell before I remembered smartphones hadn’t even been invented yet. I sighed. Guess I wasn’t getting that picture.

They were all wearing clothes like what I had in my closet - babydoll dresses, wide-legged pants with chunky belts, some wore what appeared to be combat boots, and others had on overalls. There were lots of ponytails and perms. It smelled like floral perfume and stinky hairspray. I coughed a few times.

“You okay?” Nick asked.

Perhaps the strangest of all was that Nick was still here. He’d actually walked into school with me, and he didn’t even seem worried that someone would catch us together.

“Remy!” Brooke squealed from across the hallway. I flinched, ducking my head. Oh, hell to the no. I wasn’t falling for one of her pranks. Not this morning. Not in front of Nick. “What’s with the outfit?” she asked when we got closer.

Here we go. If there’s one thing I knew about Brooke, it was that you couldn’t win a war of words with her. She’d always one up you. No one could out-mean her. So why try?

“Thanks for the ride, Nick,” I mumbled, scooting around Brooke, desperate to get away from her.

“Wait.” Brooke grabbed my arm. “What’s wrong? Are you mad at me or something?”

Is she for real? We’d been mortal enemies for years.

Katie and Melody ran up, smiling. Oh, great. Now I was surrounded. This must’ve been what a carcass felt like when the vultures descended. “Hey, Brooke. Hey, Remy.”

Since when did Katie and Melody talk to me? My head spun. Nick was high-fiving his friends, but he hadn’t moved away from me. Why was no one acting like it was strange that I was here?

The bell rang, and I stiffened.

I couldn’t be late for choir again. Ava’s morning trips to Starbucks had caused us to be late several times in the last couple of weeks.

“I gotta go,” I said, wondering why I even bothered telling them.

“Where?” Brooke’s eyebrows knit together.

“Choir,” I answered, dumbfounded.

“Choir?” Brooke let out a nervous laugh and glanced around.

Nick shrugged. “She’s been acting strange all morning.”

Annoyance flared. They’d act strange too if they woke up in the wrong year.

“Maybe she’s sick,” Katie offered. “That would explain the outfit.”

Was I really dressed that different from the rest of them? I guess I was. They were all in skirts, chunky black shoes with platform heels and chokers around their necks.

“Are you sick?” Brooke backed away from me. “Because I can’t afford to get sick right before the big game.”

“Neither can she,” Melody added, pointing in my direction. “If any of us get sick, the routine won’t work.”

What routine?

“I’m not sick,” I said. Just confused. Lost. In the wrong place…at the wrong time.

“Then c’mon.” Brooke slipped her arm through mine and walked forward, her head held high. Was she voluntarily touching me? Were we friends?

Yep. Definitely a dream.

“See ya guys at lunch,” Nick called out before heading the other direction with his friends.

We ate lunch together? Huh. I guess I could get used to that. When we rounded the corner, the choir room was to my left. I glanced toward the open doorway catching the edge of the sleek, black piano, a few ivory keys.

Ava appeared at the end of the hall walking in our direction. Her hair was shorter, darker, her lipstick almost black. She wore ripped jeans and a heavy metal t-shirt. Her ears were lined with studs. She looked way different, but she was still my Ava, and my chest expanded. For the first time since I’d woken up, I could breathe easily.

“Ava!” I wriggled my arm out of Brooke’s and stepped toward my bestie. We’d been friends since middle school when we were paired together during PE. We were equally bad at sports, but we loved singing and reading and a ton of other stuff. It would take me all day to list how many things we had in common. She was more than my friend. She’d become family over the years. My soul sister.

I was about to throw my arms around her neck when her hardened expression stopped me. She looked ready to punch me in the face. I knew that look. It was normally reserved for girls like Brooke. Not me.

Never me.

“What do you want?” She crossed her arms over her chest. There was nothing welcoming about her tone.

My insides twisted, my palms filling with sweat. “I um…I just wanted to talk to you. I’m sorry about not returning all of your texts yesterday…I was so upset about Ian.”

“Ian? Texts? What are you talking about?” She rolled her eyes, her gaze skating over to Brooke and the girls. “Word of advice: Lay off the recreational drugs. They’re killing the limited amount of brain cells you have left.”

“I’m not on drugs.” I shook my head, leaning closer and lowering my voice. “I don’t even know what they’re doing here. It’s like they think we’re friends. When I woke up this morning everything was different. I’m so confused.”

Ava wrinkled her nose and glared hard. “Seriously? I don’t know what you’re up to, but you’re in my way.  Go back to your posse over there.”

Dazed, I blinked a few times. “What? I don’t get it. You’re my best friend.”

“Ha ha. So funny I forgot to laugh.” She snorted, shoving past me. “Buh-bye now.”

Heat worked its way up my neck and spilled across my cheeks as she hurried away from me. Ava had never talked to me like that before. Squeezing my eyes shut, I drew in a breath.

“What was that all about?” Brooke sidled up next to me.

I shook my head, too disoriented to respond.

“You guys, we really need to get to first period,” Melody said. “Coach McGinley will kill us if we keep getting tardies.”

“Coach McGinley? Why would she care if I’m late?” I asked.

“Cause the last time you got detention you had to miss cheer practice, remember?” Katie clamped a hand on my shoulder, her eyes bugging out.

“I’m a cheerleader?” No, that couldn’t be right.

“Are you sure you don’t need to go to the nurse?” Brooke frowned.

“Yeah, I’m sure. Let’s get to class.” I had no idea what was going on, but there was no way I was spending the day in the nurse’s office. Not when I’d been handed everything I’d ever wanted.

“Finally,” Melody said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Following them, I peered over my shoulder. The sound of the choir singing rang out. Last week I was in there. I was standing with Ava belting out harmonies at the top of my lungs. Brooke and her friends teased us. Nick barely gave me a second look. Ian had ditched me and then kissed a different girl.

Now I was riding to school with Nick. And, apparently, I ate lunch with him. I was popular. A cheerleader. And from what I could gather, Ian and I had never been together. It was like I’d been given a second chance. A clean slate.

I’d have been crazy not to take it.

 

***

 

Okay, so in 1993 I still lacked coordination, and I still couldn’t dance. How I’d made it onto the cheerleading squad was beyond me. Practice was epically brutal, yet somehow, I managed to keep up. Lucky for me, my part of the routine was relatively simple. Still, my body wasn’t used to all the moving and gyrating. By the time it was over, my legs were on fire. I collapsed onto the grass and guzzled down some water. The other girls were all talking and laughing together. Obviously, they weren’t dying like I was.

“Hey, you need a ride home?” A shadow cast over me. I glanced up into Nick’s dark eyes.

I wanted to ride with him, but I wasn’t sure I could stand up yet. Nodding, I said, “Just give me a minute.”

“Rough practice?” He plunked down next to me, bringing with him the scent of sweat and leather. He set a large duffel bag on the ground by his legs.

“Yeah,” I answered honestly. “Yours?”

 “Football practice is always a little tough.” He smiled. “But I like it.”

I understood that. Choir rehearsal was nothing like this. I left there feeling energized, no matter how challenging the songs were. I wanted to tell him that. To connect with him by sharing this part of myself, but I knew I couldn’t. He didn’t know that version of me.

“Remy.” Brooke skipped over to us. “You coming?”

“I can give her a ride home,” Nick said, and my heart did that flipping thing it always did in his presence. At least that was one thing that hadn’t changed.

Brooke flashed me a knowing smile, and my cheeks warmed. “Okay. I’ll call you later, Remy.”

It was weird seeing Brooke friendly like this.

“All right.” I waved as she ambled off the field.

“Ready now?” Nick asked.

I wasn’t, but I nodded. It wasn’t fair to make him sit out here with me all night. Using all my strength, I pushed up with my arms and struggled to make my legs straighten out. They were wobbly and tight. Nick stood and bent down to grab his bag. I teetered on the balls of my feet, my body swaying to the side.

“Whoa.” Nick turned swiftly, his arms coming up around my sides. “Careful.” I fell against him, my fingers grappling with his shirt. His eyebrows furrowed, his lips curling downward. “Is it your ankle? Did you sprain it again?”

“Again?” I bit my lip. “I sprained it before?”

“Ha!” He burst out. “Good one.”

Clearly, that was a yes. There were so many things I didn’t know about my own life.

His arms wrapped around me, holding me tight. My body slid against his. I held my breath, my pulse skittering beneath my flesh. His gaze locked with mine. “If you sprained it, I’ll nurse you back to health like I did last time.” Last time he nursed me back to health? My mouth dried out. I swallowed hard. Man, I wished I hadn’t missed that. His fingers played with my spine. A chill brushed up my back. His gaze lowered down toward my leg. “Want me to take a look?”

Uhh…let me think about that. Hell yes!  

But my feet were all sweaty. Probably smelled too. And there nothing was wrong with my ankle. I was out of shape, that was all. “My ankle’s fine,” I answered once I could finally get my brain and mouth working in sync. “I’m just tired.”

“I knew you weren’t feeling well.” He lightly pressed his hand to my forehead, and I melted into his touch. Thank god I didn’t have him check my ankle. This was so much better.

His lips were so close to mine, I could feel the heat of his breath on my skin. It took all my willpower not to lean forward and kiss him. I wanted to badly.

“You’re not warm,” he said. “But you should get home anyway. Get some rest.”

When he drew back, I went cold. How hard would it have been to lean forward and press my lips to his? Why didn’t I take the opportunity when I had it? Who knew if I’d get the chance again. This might have been nothing more than a dream. And even if it wasn’t, this nineties version of me was a fake.

A fraud.

An imposter.

What would happen when Nick figured that out?