The Watchmaker's Gift

V

"Ana!" Kaitlin's cheerleader-honed voice carried over the din. "Where the heck did you go? We thought we lost you."

"I thought I lost myself too for a minute," Anaya mumbled. She was still sorting through her conversation with Elle. Could she really pick a whole new career path?

It would change my entire life. But isn't that part of the reason I'm back in time?

"Don't you like it, Ana? It's a huge turnout, isn't it? We got 10 more colleges to participate then we anticipated, even some tech schools." Tay was practically bursting with pride, but her big, hazel eyes held a trace of something deeper.

That's right! If there was anything to organize, Tay would be at the heart of it.

Anaya's voice softened. "Sorry, it is a great turnout. You should be immensely proud. I'm just a little overwhelmed, I guess. I wasn't prepared for this."

Understatement of the decade, possibly more.

Tay nodded tersely. Anaya wanted to bang her head on a prefabricated wall. Mere hours of being reunited with the closest friends, she'd lied, forgotten essential things about them, and sucked the excitement out of a day they'd worked hard to put together. She needed a distraction before everything went downhill, fast.

"How about we escape for food and a movie after school is done? I'll buy."

Kait made a croaking noise and an exaggerated swirl with her petite hands. "Always with the escapes. No wonder running is the only sport you do better at than me."

"Anyway," Tay cut in, "Seniors get out early today, remember? We only have the Fair and the debrief."

Anaya headed down the school corridor on auto-pilot then stopped in her tracks. Her "auto-pilot" was almost twenty years out-of-date. An uncomfortable realization fell on her like a rock from a great height. She was lost.

Shit! I don't know what classes I'm taking or what time periods or...

Her heart sank with dismay. Anaya hadn't considered that even though she was back in her teenage body, the minute details of her teen years were just as buried away as they'd been when she was older. She looked to Kaitlin for support. "Where are we supposed to be going now? I don't want to be late for class."

"'Don't want to be late?'" Kaitlin cocked an eyebrow. "Who are you and what have you done to my best friend? I'm usually the one dragging you around!"

Anaya ran her fingers through her hair to conceal her trembling hands. "I missed my coffee. My brain's refusing to boot up."

"C'mon. Ana's right. We don't want to be late." Tay pushed past them, leading the way.

Stifling a relieved sigh, Anaya followed. Memories started to trickle in as they walked through the corridors plastered with school photos, awards and projects from senior year. As more students joined them, she hung back a little as she strolled literally down memory lane.