Revelations
***Well this is the chapter where Gloria is gonna tell Chris about where she's really from, how she got there, etc. Input on this chapter would be nice, cause I'm still not sure if I like it, but if I re-write this freakin chapter one more time I might just go completely out of my mind.........Anyway tell me what you think. Thanks! Oh and sorry it's been so long since I've update but this chapter took me forever and I've been kinda busy lately. ~Sweet Dreams***
I knew this day would come. I'm not sure when it evolved into this immutable, inevitable, with out a doubt event, but it did. I put it off as long as I could, and if I had a choice, I probably would have avoided it forever. But Chris wouldn't allow me that luxury and even if I don't like it, I understand why. He deserves to know the truth, as bizarre and absurd as it is.
It never seemed like the right time to tell him, never the right moment. I didn't want to ruin everything by telling him the truth. And even if I did, he quite possibly might not even believe me. I didn't want the truth to be the string that unraveled our relationship.
I knew the perfection couldn't last and eventually everything would just crumble into tiny pieces.
"Just tell me the truth," Chris whispered to me, trying to control his temper.
We had been hanging out in the tree house that night, and once again the topic of my parents came up. He asked me why they were never home, and I made up some bogus lie, stumbling miserably on my words. I knew he could tell I was lying.
"That is the truth," I lied, trying to sound convincing.
"It's not," he said simply. "I know it's not the truth, and you know it's not the truth." He waited to see if I would reply, but I just looked down suddenly feeling very frustrated. "Things just don't add up," he continued. "I've known you for the entire summer and I haven't once seen you're parents. I don't even think they have a bedroom. And there aren't any pictures of you're family, no other things that even suggest another person besides you live there. There's never a car in the garage either. I thought it was because you had just moved here, but it's been almost three months. Parents don't leave their child alone in a strange town for three months Gloria. It's just not logical."
That word, *logical*. Of course it wasn't logical, nothing about this summer was logical. I looked up at him, tears were starting to cloud my vision, but he continued still.
"You never mention anything about where you used to live, or anything in your past for that matter. And as far as I know you never talk to your old friends and your parents never call. If they were away wouldn't they be worried about you, calling at least once a day to check on you?"
I nodded slowly, knowing what he was saying made perfect sense. It was all very *logical*.
"Just tell me the truth. It can't be that bad..............and if it is I want to help you. I care about you," he exclaimed. "What ever it is I'll understand," he added gently.
And for whatever reason I laughed. It was not the time to be laughing, but the entire situation was so surreal it was funny. How could he even began to believe what happened, let alone understand it?
"It's not funny Gloria," he said seriously.
"You're right. It's not. But believe me Chris, you wouldn't understand," I replied tiredly.
"Try me," he dared.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you. You'd think it was the biggest lie ever told in the history of mankind. That if I was gonna make up a lie, it should at least be a believable one," I tried to explain to him.
"If it's the truth I'll believe you," he interrupted, obviously bracing himself for what I would say next.
"Fine Chris. You want to know, I'll tell you," I relented. "But don't say anything until I'm finished," I added. If he wanted to hear the truth, he was gonna hear it. And even if he didn't believe me, it would feel good to tell somebody. To finally get the weight off my shoulders so to speak.
I took a deep breath and prepared to tell him everything. But I found myself at a loss for words. I mean how do you tell somebody something like this? I decided to start from the beginning, the most *logical* place to start.
"Chris, to be completely honest, I don't know why I'm here, or how I even got here. I was just a normal girl, leading a fairly normal life. And next thing I know I'm here."
"You're not making any sense," he said.
"Let me finish," I said. "I'm not from here Chris, and I don't just mean Castle Rock. I'm not from.........from......," I stumbled on my words again.
"Go head," he said, looking at me expectantly.
"I'm not from this time period," I finally managed. It sounded *illogical* and dumb.
"What do you mean you're not from this time period," he asked confused?
"I mean I'm not from the year 1963 Chris. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it is the truth." "Finally, it's the truth," I sighed.
"So what time period are you from," he asked, smiling?
"It's not funny Chris. You wanted the truth, I'm trying to tell you the truth. I knew you wouldn't believe me. I didn't even want to tell you in the first place, but you deserve to know it, even if you don't believe it."
He just stared at me, looking at me like I was crazy. I continued not really sure how to explain it.
"2003," I told him. "The year 2003. I was born in 1986, I lived in New Jersey, I had a life before this," I said, almost trying to convince myself as much I was trying to convince him. It reminded me of Peter Pan, how Neverland makes you forget about your past. Castle Rock was my Neverland, and Chris was staring as Peter, in some far-fetched, twisted sense.
"Alright. Fine. Let's just pretend that you are telling the truth, how did you get here," he asked, obviously amused at my story?
And that's when I told him everything. How I was on my way to my friend's, and the door wouldn't open. How I literally stepped right into 1963. I didn't bother trying to explain the movie aspect of it. There was no way he'd believe that and I was having a difficult time as it was, trying to convince him of the truth.
And besides, I didn't really understand it. A lot of things about this summer confuse me and I guess some was just better left alone.
I told him about the little old lady, how she gave me the key, everything. Right up to the moment he found me sitting in front of his house in the pouring rain.
When I was finished he stared at me, not saying anything, he didn't so much as blink.
"You expect me to believe that," he asked finally, a bewildered expression on his face.
"It's the truth Chris. I don't know what else to say," I finished tiredly.
"Prove it," he said suddenly. "Give me some shred of evidence that you're telling the truth and I'll believe you."
"I don't know how to prove it," I exasperated. "Just think about it. My story adds up Chris. The clothes I wear, no one else has these clothes Chris. The CDs, the songs. No one's ever heard of them because they don't exist yet," I said frustratedly.
"That could all just be coincidence. You could just listen to weird music and dress differently," he argued. "I want a solid piece of evidence," he demanded, making a fist and smacking into his palm.
I thought of something, anything that could prove I was telling the truth. I racked my brain for even the most miniscule piece of proof. Nothing came to me. I was blank. Then suddenly, I was reminded of Vern and his pennies. I knew I had to have a penny, or a nickel or something and if I could find one, there would be a year on it as well.
I reached for my bag that I had from day one. I had started bringing it with me to the tree house because most of the times we slept there. I started digging through the clothes. I found, on the bottom, a penny. It was shiny and new, but more importantly the year 2003 was printed on it.
"Look at the year Chris," I told him, handing him the penny.
He took it and examined it carefully. "2003," he muttered quietly to himself. He flipped it over in his fingers, trying to find flaws, or evidence that it wasn't real.
"It's real," I assured him.
"It can't be," he said, talking to himself more then he was to me.
"It is," I insisted. "It really is Chris," I said quietly.
"But.........how can.........I don't understand.......It's impossible," he rattled off.
"It is possible Chris. I don't know why or how, but the evident fact of the matter is, that I'm not lying. I gave you the only evidence I can think of, and if that's not enough, then I'm sorry, but there isn't anything else I can do," I cried. "I'm sorry Chris. I'm so sorry," I whispered. I put my head down and began to sob quietly. Telling him didn't feel as good as I thought it would. I felt stupid, I was a moron for telling him.
Chris moved closer to me and forced me to look him in the eyes.
"Are you telling the truth," he asked?
I looked into his eyes and simply nodded, tears still rolling down my cheeks.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner," he asked adjusting his body and pulling me closer so he could hold me in his arms.
"Well at first I didn't think I was gonna even be here long enough to have to tell you. This wasn't supposed to happen," I said sitting up and lighting a cigarette.
"What wasn't supposed to happen," he asked, also lighting a cigarette.
"Us. You and me. I didn't plan on developing any kind of relationship with you.........let alone actually caring about you."
"Are you sorry you did," he asked quietly?
"No.........of course not. It's just that I didn't want to get attached to anyone or anything. It'll just make it all the more difficult when I have to leave," I added.
"Leave. Where are you going," he asked?
I didn't want to tell him I had to leave, it just kinda slipped out. I didn't answer him.
"Gloria, where are you going," he asked, sounding a little bit angry.
"Home," I answered reluctantly. "Back to where I came from. Back to 2003. I can't stay here forever.......even if I wanted to," I added sadly.
"Why not," he asked? "Why can't you stay here............you're happy here aren't you?"
"Of course I'm happy here. But no matter how happy I am here, I'll always have a life I left behind. And even if I don't remember it all that well I know I do. If I stay much longer I'm not gonna even remember having a life before this."
Chris was quite as he considered this. He looked up and I could see his eyes glimmering from the formation of tears that refused to fall. "When," he asked quietly?
"By the end of the summer...........before you guys go back to school," I answered.
He was quite for a few more moments and then spoke. "Well then that doesn't leave us much time," he said forcing a smile. "We're gonna spend every waking, possible moment together until then," he added.
"Okay," I agreed, leaning closer so I could kiss him. He kissed me back half-heartedly at first, as if he wasn't really there. He snapped out of his daze and deepened the kiss, turning it almost violent. He'd never kissed me like that before, and it took me by surprise. I pulled away, breathless.
"I love you," he said quietly. "No matter where you are or what life you're living I love you. I didn't realize it until now, but I want you to remember that. Promise me that if you remember nothing else from this summer you'll remember at least that," he said, practically begging.
"I promise," I said quietly. And I meant it too. I meant it with every fiber of my being. I would never forget that my first and perhaps only true love had been a boy named Chris Chambers. And he loved me. And I loved him. "I.........I love you too," I whispered.
He leaned back against the wall and cradled me in his arms. "I know," he whispered into my ear. "I know."
***Wow this took me so long to write. I don't what I think of it, but I can't re-write this anymore.........I wanna move on with the story, since it's been forever since my last update........it's just that this chapter gave me a lot of trouble. Reviews are especially welcome and appreciated for this chapter. Oh just a little side note: I used the year 2003 instead of 2004 because the summer of 2004 hasn't happened yet, and I figured it would just be easier and make more sense to do it that way. Once again sorry it took so long. ~Sweet Dreams***
***Well this is the chapter where Gloria is gonna tell Chris about where she's really from, how she got there, etc. Input on this chapter would be nice, cause I'm still not sure if I like it, but if I re-write this freakin chapter one more time I might just go completely out of my mind.........Anyway tell me what you think. Thanks! Oh and sorry it's been so long since I've update but this chapter took me forever and I've been kinda busy lately. ~Sweet Dreams***
I knew this day would come. I'm not sure when it evolved into this immutable, inevitable, with out a doubt event, but it did. I put it off as long as I could, and if I had a choice, I probably would have avoided it forever. But Chris wouldn't allow me that luxury and even if I don't like it, I understand why. He deserves to know the truth, as bizarre and absurd as it is.
It never seemed like the right time to tell him, never the right moment. I didn't want to ruin everything by telling him the truth. And even if I did, he quite possibly might not even believe me. I didn't want the truth to be the string that unraveled our relationship.
I knew the perfection couldn't last and eventually everything would just crumble into tiny pieces.
"Just tell me the truth," Chris whispered to me, trying to control his temper.
We had been hanging out in the tree house that night, and once again the topic of my parents came up. He asked me why they were never home, and I made up some bogus lie, stumbling miserably on my words. I knew he could tell I was lying.
"That is the truth," I lied, trying to sound convincing.
"It's not," he said simply. "I know it's not the truth, and you know it's not the truth." He waited to see if I would reply, but I just looked down suddenly feeling very frustrated. "Things just don't add up," he continued. "I've known you for the entire summer and I haven't once seen you're parents. I don't even think they have a bedroom. And there aren't any pictures of you're family, no other things that even suggest another person besides you live there. There's never a car in the garage either. I thought it was because you had just moved here, but it's been almost three months. Parents don't leave their child alone in a strange town for three months Gloria. It's just not logical."
That word, *logical*. Of course it wasn't logical, nothing about this summer was logical. I looked up at him, tears were starting to cloud my vision, but he continued still.
"You never mention anything about where you used to live, or anything in your past for that matter. And as far as I know you never talk to your old friends and your parents never call. If they were away wouldn't they be worried about you, calling at least once a day to check on you?"
I nodded slowly, knowing what he was saying made perfect sense. It was all very *logical*.
"Just tell me the truth. It can't be that bad..............and if it is I want to help you. I care about you," he exclaimed. "What ever it is I'll understand," he added gently.
And for whatever reason I laughed. It was not the time to be laughing, but the entire situation was so surreal it was funny. How could he even began to believe what happened, let alone understand it?
"It's not funny Gloria," he said seriously.
"You're right. It's not. But believe me Chris, you wouldn't understand," I replied tiredly.
"Try me," he dared.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you. You'd think it was the biggest lie ever told in the history of mankind. That if I was gonna make up a lie, it should at least be a believable one," I tried to explain to him.
"If it's the truth I'll believe you," he interrupted, obviously bracing himself for what I would say next.
"Fine Chris. You want to know, I'll tell you," I relented. "But don't say anything until I'm finished," I added. If he wanted to hear the truth, he was gonna hear it. And even if he didn't believe me, it would feel good to tell somebody. To finally get the weight off my shoulders so to speak.
I took a deep breath and prepared to tell him everything. But I found myself at a loss for words. I mean how do you tell somebody something like this? I decided to start from the beginning, the most *logical* place to start.
"Chris, to be completely honest, I don't know why I'm here, or how I even got here. I was just a normal girl, leading a fairly normal life. And next thing I know I'm here."
"You're not making any sense," he said.
"Let me finish," I said. "I'm not from here Chris, and I don't just mean Castle Rock. I'm not from.........from......," I stumbled on my words again.
"Go head," he said, looking at me expectantly.
"I'm not from this time period," I finally managed. It sounded *illogical* and dumb.
"What do you mean you're not from this time period," he asked confused?
"I mean I'm not from the year 1963 Chris. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it is the truth." "Finally, it's the truth," I sighed.
"So what time period are you from," he asked, smiling?
"It's not funny Chris. You wanted the truth, I'm trying to tell you the truth. I knew you wouldn't believe me. I didn't even want to tell you in the first place, but you deserve to know it, even if you don't believe it."
He just stared at me, looking at me like I was crazy. I continued not really sure how to explain it.
"2003," I told him. "The year 2003. I was born in 1986, I lived in New Jersey, I had a life before this," I said, almost trying to convince myself as much I was trying to convince him. It reminded me of Peter Pan, how Neverland makes you forget about your past. Castle Rock was my Neverland, and Chris was staring as Peter, in some far-fetched, twisted sense.
"Alright. Fine. Let's just pretend that you are telling the truth, how did you get here," he asked, obviously amused at my story?
And that's when I told him everything. How I was on my way to my friend's, and the door wouldn't open. How I literally stepped right into 1963. I didn't bother trying to explain the movie aspect of it. There was no way he'd believe that and I was having a difficult time as it was, trying to convince him of the truth.
And besides, I didn't really understand it. A lot of things about this summer confuse me and I guess some was just better left alone.
I told him about the little old lady, how she gave me the key, everything. Right up to the moment he found me sitting in front of his house in the pouring rain.
When I was finished he stared at me, not saying anything, he didn't so much as blink.
"You expect me to believe that," he asked finally, a bewildered expression on his face.
"It's the truth Chris. I don't know what else to say," I finished tiredly.
"Prove it," he said suddenly. "Give me some shred of evidence that you're telling the truth and I'll believe you."
"I don't know how to prove it," I exasperated. "Just think about it. My story adds up Chris. The clothes I wear, no one else has these clothes Chris. The CDs, the songs. No one's ever heard of them because they don't exist yet," I said frustratedly.
"That could all just be coincidence. You could just listen to weird music and dress differently," he argued. "I want a solid piece of evidence," he demanded, making a fist and smacking into his palm.
I thought of something, anything that could prove I was telling the truth. I racked my brain for even the most miniscule piece of proof. Nothing came to me. I was blank. Then suddenly, I was reminded of Vern and his pennies. I knew I had to have a penny, or a nickel or something and if I could find one, there would be a year on it as well.
I reached for my bag that I had from day one. I had started bringing it with me to the tree house because most of the times we slept there. I started digging through the clothes. I found, on the bottom, a penny. It was shiny and new, but more importantly the year 2003 was printed on it.
"Look at the year Chris," I told him, handing him the penny.
He took it and examined it carefully. "2003," he muttered quietly to himself. He flipped it over in his fingers, trying to find flaws, or evidence that it wasn't real.
"It's real," I assured him.
"It can't be," he said, talking to himself more then he was to me.
"It is," I insisted. "It really is Chris," I said quietly.
"But.........how can.........I don't understand.......It's impossible," he rattled off.
"It is possible Chris. I don't know why or how, but the evident fact of the matter is, that I'm not lying. I gave you the only evidence I can think of, and if that's not enough, then I'm sorry, but there isn't anything else I can do," I cried. "I'm sorry Chris. I'm so sorry," I whispered. I put my head down and began to sob quietly. Telling him didn't feel as good as I thought it would. I felt stupid, I was a moron for telling him.
Chris moved closer to me and forced me to look him in the eyes.
"Are you telling the truth," he asked?
I looked into his eyes and simply nodded, tears still rolling down my cheeks.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner," he asked adjusting his body and pulling me closer so he could hold me in his arms.
"Well at first I didn't think I was gonna even be here long enough to have to tell you. This wasn't supposed to happen," I said sitting up and lighting a cigarette.
"What wasn't supposed to happen," he asked, also lighting a cigarette.
"Us. You and me. I didn't plan on developing any kind of relationship with you.........let alone actually caring about you."
"Are you sorry you did," he asked quietly?
"No.........of course not. It's just that I didn't want to get attached to anyone or anything. It'll just make it all the more difficult when I have to leave," I added.
"Leave. Where are you going," he asked?
I didn't want to tell him I had to leave, it just kinda slipped out. I didn't answer him.
"Gloria, where are you going," he asked, sounding a little bit angry.
"Home," I answered reluctantly. "Back to where I came from. Back to 2003. I can't stay here forever.......even if I wanted to," I added sadly.
"Why not," he asked? "Why can't you stay here............you're happy here aren't you?"
"Of course I'm happy here. But no matter how happy I am here, I'll always have a life I left behind. And even if I don't remember it all that well I know I do. If I stay much longer I'm not gonna even remember having a life before this."
Chris was quite as he considered this. He looked up and I could see his eyes glimmering from the formation of tears that refused to fall. "When," he asked quietly?
"By the end of the summer...........before you guys go back to school," I answered.
He was quite for a few more moments and then spoke. "Well then that doesn't leave us much time," he said forcing a smile. "We're gonna spend every waking, possible moment together until then," he added.
"Okay," I agreed, leaning closer so I could kiss him. He kissed me back half-heartedly at first, as if he wasn't really there. He snapped out of his daze and deepened the kiss, turning it almost violent. He'd never kissed me like that before, and it took me by surprise. I pulled away, breathless.
"I love you," he said quietly. "No matter where you are or what life you're living I love you. I didn't realize it until now, but I want you to remember that. Promise me that if you remember nothing else from this summer you'll remember at least that," he said, practically begging.
"I promise," I said quietly. And I meant it too. I meant it with every fiber of my being. I would never forget that my first and perhaps only true love had been a boy named Chris Chambers. And he loved me. And I loved him. "I.........I love you too," I whispered.
He leaned back against the wall and cradled me in his arms. "I know," he whispered into my ear. "I know."
***Wow this took me so long to write. I don't what I think of it, but I can't re-write this anymore.........I wanna move on with the story, since it's been forever since my last update........it's just that this chapter gave me a lot of trouble. Reviews are especially welcome and appreciated for this chapter. Oh just a little side note: I used the year 2003 instead of 2004 because the summer of 2004 hasn't happened yet, and I figured it would just be easier and make more sense to do it that way. Once again sorry it took so long. ~Sweet Dreams***