James slowly stepped out of the water and onto the shore. Staring blankly, he took another step forward. A lone tear dripped onto the sand. His feet shuffled as he made his way across the land- away from the bodies. He entered a cave, which he had found when he was seven. It was dark. Slowly, he walked along the wall, feeling his way towards his favorite place. His hand reached a hole. He stepped inside and felt for his lighter. After bumping into a few boxes, he finally found it. Carefully, he flicked on a flashlight at the entrance to the hideout.
He looked around and sighed. This was his favorite place. He had prepared a small bed in the corner, where he would hide and sleep often. He curled into a ball and shivered from the cold. He cried.
8. Shift
James woke up and blinked tiredly. The sun was shining into the cave, brightening the small space. As he sat up, a bright light in the corner of the room almost blinded him. His eyebrow furrowed as he searched for the source of the light. After a few minutes of searching, he finally found a small, golden watch, which the sun was reflecting off of. He studied the peculiar watch and rubbed his finger on it. A flash of light blinded him for a split second, and then disappeared.
Time flashed back. There were no fires. There were no tears. Everything was back to the way it was to begin with.
*******
“I love you, Caroline…will you-will you marry me?”
A tear shimmered in her eye. She looked down upon him, smiling intently.
“I love you too.”
He slipped the ring on her finger and they embraced.
*******
James walked through town, a small golden watch in his pocket. He grinned to himself, for he knew he now could control time completely.
9. Burdens
After much persuading, Carlos decided to withdrawal from his duties and raise a family with his wife after their marriage. Carlos and Caroline became happily married a few months later. After a year, James’ mind became quite troublesome. He had constantly been rewinding time to fix his errors and the mistakes of others. It seemed to him like everyone was happy, except for him. No one but him remembered the hideous and horrifying events of that day, they burdened his heart. He was confused and didn’t like always relying on a watch to fix everything he did wrong. He soon sought out guidance and help.
He struggled on deciding who to confide in, but finally set his mind on telling Carlos everything. Once he had told Carlos everything, there would be no taking it back. James tried extremely hard to not make it sound to extravagant and exaggerated, but his efforts were to no avail. Carlos didn’t believe him and neither did Caroline. James was hurting and didn’t have anyone to support him.
10. Love
James felt like he had told everyone in town of his troubles. No one had believed him. Most just laughed at what they thought were childish ramblings. As James was standing along the seashore one day, a girl walked up behind him and stated quietly, “I believe you.”
James turned around slowly and looked the girl in the eyes. “Do you really?” James answered incredulously.
The girl nodded. James smiled and felt the burden lift.
“What’s your name?” James asked kindly.
“Julie. I’m eleven years old. What’s your name?”
“James and I’m eleven years old,” he responded happily.
A spark lit in Julie’s eyes. She smiled and held out her hand.
“Friends?”
James grinned and whispered, “Friends.”
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