Repeat and Retribution

Chapter 26

Crystal was all antsy the next day, she was still unsure of what she saw, but there was a part of her that really hoped that it was real. Sitting patiently on the same area yesterday, she waited at at the spot that she knew was familiar for both of them.

Looking around the greenery of the whole place, it can be considered peaceful, yet she could not help her heart racing at the moment from the tension and anticipation of what she had seen.

She barely slept a wink since thinking if the possibility was real, knowing that her best friend of all people would be like her. It somehow lightened the weight on her chest and somehow managed to fill a bit in the void that she was experiencing.

Looking at her watch she had been staying there for almost an hour already, there was still no sign of her best friend.

“Crys, hey!” A soothing voice suddenly called out to her.

It was only then that she was able to notice the person that was coming her way. Smiles and all, looking all so cheerful and lively as he was waving at her.

“Larse! What are you doing here?” she could not help but say, as she was a bit surprised seeing the man in a remote place of the school.

“I was about to ask you the same thing,” Larse answered as he sat beside her.

“I’m just waiting for someone, and you?” She could not help but grin and raise a brow at the man.

In the short time she had managed to know the young man it was quite easy to see when he was lying or not. Seeing as how he was unable to look her in the eye and was a bit uneasy, Crystal already knew that there was something he wasn’t telling.

“We’ll, the guys and I were just snooping around the place, you know, since there’s no practice right now,” Larse just says, chuckling all the while he was trying to make himself comfortable in his seat.

“Not much to do huh, shouldn’t you be focusing on your studies,” she reminds him.

Placing his arms on his head while leaning on the seat Larse let out a half smile. “I thought I’d relax for a bit, since it’s just the start of class and all,” he shrugs.

“Maybe I should remind you that you almost got reprimanded last time because of your grades,” she could not help but tell him, remembering it all too well.

That straightened Larse on his seat. “Oh, you knew about that,” he let out a force laugh, scratching the back of his head.

Seeing the young man blush made her giggle. “Who wouldn't, you almost weren’t allowed to play. That kind of thinking will really have an effect on your career you know,” she warns, knowing how the man would end up in the near future.

Though she wasn’t really aware of the things that were happening with him during her old life time, she did remember things during their college years.

“We’ll, maybe I just need someone to give me a little push, you know, provide inspiration and support,” He suddenly says with more confidence and a bit more enthusiasm.

Eyes glinting as he turned towards her, Crystal could not help but swallow hard, when her heart almost leaped from her chest. It began pumping faster and she was suddenly lost for breath when she noticed something within those silver eyes, causing her blood to suddenly rush inside of her.

Averting her look to him she tries to focus on some other things in front of her. “Is playing for the team not enough?” she just says as she tries to not look silly at the moment..

“We’ll, of course it is, but you know, I was thinking of something….” Larse was cut off when a voice seemed to kept trying to get his attention.

“Larse!” the voice echoed once more.

This time the young man wasn’t able to ignore it as it seemed closer to them. Looking back Crystal saw one of the boys from the basketball team waving at them, along with the other students that were usually hanging out with the young man, whispering at one another as if they could be heard, though they were so obvious that it was them that they were talking about, because they kept giving them funny glances once in a while.

“What!” Larse voice boomed, face crumpled while giving the man a death glare.

“I thought you were just going to take a second, the guys are waiting,” the man called out again, grinning after saying that.

Larse ended up wiping his face with the palm of his hand, he grumbled suddenly blushing after being teased by their classmate.

“Seems you already have something to do,” she just says not wanting to add to the man’s humiliation.

“We’ll, sort of, the team was planning this party at Eric’s place, want to come?” He turns to her, eyes looking round and needy as if like that of a puppy.

She could not help but hold her laugh at the amusing look the young man had. There was really something in him that made her feels so warm and fuzzy inside.

“You already know the answer,” she just smiles at her, reminding him of her routine.

“We’ll, it was worth the shot,” Larse let out a sigh before finally standing up, having that smile of surrender once again.

“You just go on ahead and enjoy yourself,” she just gives him a good old tap on the side, giggling.

That somewhat made him laugh a bit. “I’ll just see you in class then,” he says.

“Yup, make sure you’re not late again,” she jokingly scolds as Larse began walking.

Larse just let out a laugh before nodding and running towards his group, he would give him a glance every now and then as their group started moving about.

She just gave him a quick wave of goodbye as she kept looking at them, receiving one from Larse before the group totally disappeared from her sight.

Crystal was suddenly lost in thought while remembering the young man’s face, there were now questions in her mind as to what may have happened to him in their current timeline, how he did and what he had become. That trail of thought was only broken when another person just suddenly sat beside her.

“Larse August huh, I always knew he had his eyes on you,” the familiar soft voice said, looking at the same place that Crystal was looking.

Caught off guard, it took her a while before being able to turn to the person beside her. “Brit?” she could not help but frown, hesitant to even say another word.

“Uhum, and seeing as you ain’t that shock to see someone you just met just means one thing,” the young woman says crossing her arms while folding her legs together.

“You are the Brit,” Crystal says in a slow yet excited manner, as the realization was starting to dawn on her.

“The Brit, yes!” Her best friend shakes her head to make her hair wave while strutting her hips to prove it was really her.

“Oh my god Brit!” Crystal could not help but jump at her, putting her in a tight yet joyful embrace.

She could not believe that she would actually be able to see her friend, her real and original best friend with all her wondrous and witty glory.

“Okay, okay, calm down girl, else we want other people thinking something else,” she pats her back. Laughing along with her as she too was holding on to her tears.

“I’m just...I’m just so glad that I don’t have to go chase you around and try to introduce myself and all that,” Crystal could not help but sniff as she was overjoyed, knowing that she was with the best friend of her old time line.

She really didn’t know what would have happened or what she would do, in case she needed to introduce herself again like in Clydes’ case.

“Make’s the two of us. So, you remember anything happening before all this went on or why the hell did this even happen? I feel like were in the twilight zone or something right now,” she scoffs putting one hand on her waist while twiddling with the other.

“I don’t know either, I just woke up the next morning and I was back in my younger body and in my college years,” she blurts out remembering the day all of this happened.

“Same for the both of us. You did anything that somehow managed to change things around you? Like not getting involved with that guy,” Brit’s face crumpled, trying not to mention the name of the man she was involved with.

“I did a lot actually,” she says, blushing as she bowed her head, remembering all the things she had been doing these past years just to improve herself.

“Uhum, and what happened?” Brittany raised an eyebrow then place a hand to her chin.

It seems that her friend had something else in mind. Asking things about the current things that were happening to them right now.

“Like you said, a lot of things changed, like what you saw there a while ago and of course there’s the thing in our house and a lot of others stuff,” she tells her.

“Did you manage to find out things you didn’t know before?” Brittany added, looking at her in a very serious manner.

“Like what?” she could not help but ask, though she understood that her friend might be trying to figure out these things that were happening to them.

“Oh, like how some people were already doing things behind our back from the very start and all those other stuff,” she waves her hand to make a point.

“Why, what did you find out?” she could not help but asks.

Though she did notice some events that didn’t happen before, she knew that her friend was much more observant than her when it came to such things.

“Just the reason behind why my dad cheated on my mom, among all other things,” Brittany scoffs, rolling her eyes as if the incident was nothing.

“Oh, what did you do?” She could not help but asks, knowing her friends current mind set, she wa sure it would not bode well for anyone who’m would dare instigate the woman’s wrath.

“Just did what I wanted to do for a long time, though it didn’t feel that fulfilling to say the least,” Brittany just let out a deep sigh, her shoulders falling from disappointment.

“Really, how come?” She could not help but raise a brow.

“Well, it somehow felt empty and lacking in luster, you know, like when you crave a food then you only get a bite out of it, I didn’t really get that satisfaction that I was hoping for,” Brittany sighed as she fiddled with her fingers.

“Yeah, I kind of understand what you mean,” she could not help but feel down, as she too felt that certain void inside of her these past few years.

“I think I have an idea on why,” Brittany states, looking up into the sky as she leaned back on the chair.

“Really!” She could not help but gape at her friend being able to figure something out that quick.

“Yes, well sort of,” Brittany turns to her giving her a somewhat bored look.

But before she could utter another word the woman’s cellphone rings taking both their attention.

“Who’s that?” she could not help but asks seeing as how her friend gave it immediate attention.

“Oh, it’s my new so called bff,” She says head raised with a very wide grimace.

“Who?” she could not help her brows from furrowing at what she heard.

Brittany’s devilish grin suddenly appeared, the one she usually see’s when she was about to do something mischievous or down right ugly. Crystal could not help but feel nervous because of it.

“Dana Jhonson,” the woman states.

“Why would you!” She bawled out, eyes wide in disbelief.

Brittany gave her wide and very long smirk. “Girl, have you forgotten my motto? Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. Besides, I can’t condemn someone for something that she hasn’t done yet, so I decided to do a little digging on this girl, see if it’s really all right to kick her ass,” she cackles.

She suddenly felt both worried and scared for what would happen to Dana now, she remembers that the two didn’t really get along in their previous lifetime, though they seldom crossed paths. But now that it had come to this, she was sure it spelled trouble.

“Do you really need to associate yourself with her?” she could not help but say , as she really didn’t feel comfortable having her best friend with that woman.

“But of course, know thy enemy girl!” She gives her a wink while chortling.

“But I missed you!” She pouted.

“We’ll, we shouldn’t be meeting just about yet or have you forgotten?” Her friend scolds, remembering that it was a year early for their actual encounter. “Besides, I feel that we need to do as much gathering for answers as we can else we might end up like last time,” she explains as she started texting on her phone to answer the message.

Seeing as her friend was suddenly aware of something she could not help but be more curious. “Oh, so what do you suggest I do?” There was now a part of her that really wanted to make sure that what she was doing right now was right.

“Girl, do all the things that gave you regret before and make sure you’re going to turn them into memories, that’s what I’ve been doing so far,” Brittany states pressing her fingers on her forehead.

“That’s actually what I’m doing,” she just smiles, remembering the things that she has learned so far.

From her cooking, cleaning and even her knowledge in her course, she had managed to grasp a lot of things that she had not before. Somewhat making her feel good about herself.

“Anyway, I got to go, I still need to go look into some things. And I love the self improvement that you’ve done with yourself, make sure to keep it up, girl and let me do the investigating,” Brittany pinches her cheeks making her giggle.

Her friend then jumps up out of her seat, stretching her hands upwards in a yoga stretching like pose.

“How will I talk to you again?” She asks, wanting to make sure that they had at least some means of communication.

“Girl, we have a phone or have you forgotten about that? You know who to look up on the phone book,” Brittany reminds her making the two of them laugh at the thought.

She almost forgot about that things since it was mainly obsolete in their current time line.

“Stay on your feet girl, we don’t know what might happen right now and with the sudden changes of people around us, make sure you don’t do any mistakes, all right!” Brittany reminds her as the woman started walking backwards to make sure they’re still looking at each other.

“You too, make sure you take care,” she waves at her.

“Oh you know I will!” Brittany giggles, giving her a hand gun shoot as she does a quick turn before leaving her there.

Somehow having her real and actual best friend in that timeline made her feel so relieved, knowing that she wasn’t the only one that suddenly got back from the past and having that dilemma of emptiness. But now she too was puzzled as to why was she feeling in anyway in the first place, specially since she was doing everything better right now.