Julie Cross - Tomorrow Is Today: A Tempest Series Bonus Short Story

May 14, 2009, 6:30pm

I dont get what were supposed to be doing, Holly said as she spread her worksheets all over the gym floor.

I moved next to Holly, who was stretched out on her stomach with a pen in her hand. Wellthe first one is just a bunch of nonsense questions that you answer and then seal it up in an envelope so no one can see it.

And the point is?

Mr. Wellborn holds onto them and mails it to you before camp staff training starts next year and you get to see how much youve grown in a year, I said.

She laughed and rolled her eyes. God, thats cornymaybe Ill leave mine blank.

Just tell him your life is a blank slate right now, I teased. Today is the first day of the rest of your life

Adam, what are you writing? Holly asked.

Telling you might put your life at risk.

Holly laughed and set her future questionnaire aside. The other assignment is just making camp lesson plans for the first week?

Uh huh, I said, flipping through my own pages. We got rosters too, so we can start learning names.

Whats the point? Holly said. Most of these kids probably pay someone to go to camp for them so they can sit at home and play video games like a normal child.

I shouldnt laugh since I was one of those kids, but I couldnt help it. Holly making fun of privileged children had become a high point of our two months of counselor training.

When Holly got up to turn in her lesson plan, I took the opportunity to talk to Adam. Its your birthday tomorrow, right?

Yeah

My roommates are throwing a party, I said, lowering my voice so the invite wouldnt spread like wildfire. My dorm isnt that big. You knowend of the year celebration. Do you wanna come? Maybe we can do a little more time-travel experimenting in a different setting.

A grin spread across Adams face. Awesomeactually, I have a few ideas already.

I figured.

He jumped into several ideas for possible experiments and theories to test. I listened for a few minutes and then found my eyes wandering as Holly sprawled out on the floor again, not nearly as close as before. She had her blonde hair tucked behind her ears, flip flops kicked off and lying next to her. I memorized the way her pen moved fluidly across the page. It was almost sexy, which is totally bizarre. Maybe Im secretly imagining her doodling my name all over her paper. But Im not sure Holly is the kind of girl to do that. And Im not sure I want her to be.

She must have felt me staring because her head turned slowly in my direction and her cheeks flushed.

Youre filling out the corny questionnaire, arent you, Holly? I said to cover for my five minute long session of checking her out. I had a feeling youd be all about that.

Adam snorted beside me and I assumed I was right. Holly didnt actually want to leave her answers blank.

Her eyes returned to the page, but I could see her smiling a little and found myself doing the same. Then I dug for my own paper and wrote my name on the top. See, HollyIm totally into this too. No need to feel embarrassed.

Me too, Adam said. Cant wait to talk to my future self.

As soon as he said that, Adam and I both glanced at each other and started cracking up. The irony was just way too good to not laugh.

May, 15, 2009, 8:30pm

Jackson! My man!

I turned in the direction of the voice. Two guys I didnt even recognize stepped through the doors of the NYU dorm room I shared with my two roommates. We had a large suite, but had nearly reached capacity and it was still really early.

Hey! Whats up? I said, nodding at the random guys. Behind them, smiling sheepishly, stood Adam Silverman. He stepped tentatively from his world of New Jersey high school and into the world of college parties in the Village. I waved at him, grinning as I moved toward the door. One of my roommates, Danny, was already shaking his head and partially blocking Adams way in. No way, Jackson! No babies allowed! We agreed.

Hes eighteen. Today .

Oh man, Danny groaned, throwing his hands up in the air. Theres more.

It took me a second to see the two additional high school babies behind Adam. Holly Flynn entered the living room, followed by a very tall, skinny guy who looked even more nervous to be here than Adam did. He stuck out his hand. Im Davidthanks for letting us crash your partythis is pretty awesome.

No problem, man. Glad you could come.

The music got cranked up about five more notches and Adam grabbed my sleeve and pulled me into the kitchen.

Sorry, they begged me to come, he said in a hushed voice. Wellmore Holly than David, but thats usually how it goes with those two.

I leaned against the counter and watched Holly chatting with my neighbor. Her blonde hair was long and flowing today, not pulled up like she usually had it on staff training nights. She also had on a form fitting black dress and five inch platform shoes, but she still barely made it to Davids shoulder.

Those two? I asked Adam.

What? He had his back to the crowd and was now typing something into his phone. Experiment data . Ohright. David and Holly. Those two.

Theyre together?

Yeah, for over a year now. Theyve known each other since freshman yearI meanwe all have.

A year? Holly had been with the same guy for a year and in the two months Id known her and Adam, this had never come up? Or maybe I just didnt listen very well?

I clapped my hands together. Okay, ready for the real fun.

Adam looked up at me, finally. Im ready, but we need to hang out for a couple hoursyou know, record the current scene, then compare once youve acquired some time-travel data.

Alright.

For the next thirty minutes, I played the perfect host and chatted and danced with two girls who lived in the building but on a different floor and another chick from one of my classes fall semester. Then I spotted Holly alone, leaning against the kitchen counter. I wandered over and rested my back on the counter opposite of her. Sowheres Doug?

David , she corrected, then glanced around the living room. Im not sure. Last I saw, he was with Adam and they were quoting movies and cracking up.

So, why are you in here, by yourself? Mentally drafting important notes to your future self?

She shot me a dirty look but was smiling. I was just messing with you the other day. I dont like doing any of that stuff.

Dont deny it. I know youre lying. You are so totally all about the future plans game I paused for a second, choosing just the right words to describe this girl who was still mostly a mystery to me. More like the dream big gamegoal setting and all that inspirational crap. I bet you even write in a diary.

She quickly diverted her eyes from mine, cheeks flushing like they had the other day.

Ha! I knew it.

Okay, she shrugged. Youre rightbut really, if Id lived herein New York all my life, I dont think Id have anything to write about. Id be out there doing stuffnot writing about what I plan on doing. Im convinced the best writers have very boring lives.

My eyebrows lifted. Good answer. Not sure I can continue to make fun of you now.

She smiled at me. Youll think of a new topic.

Do you want to see something really cool? I asked, making a quick and impulsive decision.