"Mary Beth?" Piper asked. "Mary Beth? Are you all right?"
Mary Beth shot up, opened her eyes, and turned toward the sound of the voice. She saw Piper sitting on the edge of her bed.
"What?"
"I asked if you were all right," Piper said.
Mary Beth looked around the room and sighed as the truth set in. She was still alive. So was her sister. The man was gone. The threat was gone. She had survived a dream.
"I think I had a nightmare," Mary Beth said.
Piper tilted her head.
"You screamed my name. You told me to run."
"I had a nightmare," Mary Beth said. "I dreamed of the man with the deformed ear. He had a knife. He wanted the book. You came in the room."
"It's OK. I'm here. We're both here," Piper said. "We're both all right."
Mary Beth smiled faintly.
"I guess we are."
"Can I get you anything?" Piper asked.
Mary Beth shook her head.
"No. Just stay here. Stay here and talk to me."
Piper nodded. She climbed into the bed, fluffed a pillow, and scooted up next to her sister. Like Mary Beth, she wore the pajamas she had slept in. She had not gone for a morning walk.
"What do you want to talk about?" Piper asked.
Mary Beth smiled.
"How about something light and pleasant?"
Piper offered a sad laugh.
"I'll do what I can."
Mary Beth turned to face Piper. She saw a girl with heavy eyes, a frown, and obviously a lot on her mind. She patted her sister's hand.
"What's the matter? You don't look happy."
"I'm not," Piper said.
"What happened last night? Did you and Ben quarrel?"
"You might say that."
Mary Beth fixed her gaze.
"Care to elaborate?"
"No," Piper said. "It doesn't matter anyway."
"What do you mean it doesn't matter?"
"I mean it doesn't matter. Ben and I are done."
"Don't you like him?" Mary Beth asked.
"Of course I like him."
"I don't understand. If you still like Ben, then why are you 'done'?"
Piper stared at her sister.
"We're done because we can't possibly go any further. We can't possibly make a relationship work. Don't you understand? None of this is real, Mary Beth. We're just visitors here."
"I know," Mary Beth said. She looked away for a moment. "I think the same thing whenever I'm with Mark. I guess I'm just better at putting off the inevitable."
Piper sighed.
"I almost made a mistake last night. Ben and I got a little crazy in his car – and I almost gave in. I wanted to give in. I wanted to show him how much I like him. Then he said something that snapped me out of a daze. He reminded me that he has a life here – and a past and a future. I don't. I'm just a time traveler who is quickly getting in over her head. You are too."
Mary Beth frowned.
"Do you want to leave? Do you want to return to 2017?"
"Yes," Piper said. "I think we should go back before we do something stupid. I know you like Mark. I know you want to stay. I know you want to enjoy all this as long as you can, but I think we should leave. We don't belong here."
Mary Beth took a deep breath.
"Can you give it another week?"
"I'm not sure what that would accomplish," Piper said. "What do you want to do that we haven't already done?"
Mary Beth smiled.
"There are several things I want to do, including something I want to do for you. Just give it a few more days, Piper. If you still want to leave on Saturday, then we'll leave. We'll pack our bags, say our goodbyes, and leave. Can you give it one more week?"
Piper nodded.
"I can do that."
"Thanks," Mary Beth said. She threw an arm around her sister, pulled her close, and kissed the top of her head. "Now let's talk about something else and get some breakfast. I'm hungry."
CHAPTER 34: PIPER
Tuesday, April 14, 1959
Twelve days after watching Ben play tennis for the first time, Piper prepared to watch him for the last. She settled into her bleacher seat, eyed the senior with the nasty serve, and waited for him to score an ace. This time she did not intend to distract him.
Piper watched Ben and Wayne win a point in their doubles match with John Muir's best and then turned her attention to the people around her. Donna clapped her hands and cheered every time Ben touched the ball. Sally did the same for Wayne. Mary Beth alternated between cheering for the Maulers and cheering up her sister. She had done a lot of that since Sunday.
"Where did Mark go?" Piper asked.
"He went to get me a drink," Mary Beth said. "He'll be back in a minute."
"Are you two going out tonight?"
"I think so. He mentioned something about a movie."
"Have fun," Piper said.
"Do you want to come along?" Mary Beth asked. "I'm sure Mark wouldn't mind. I know I wouldn't mind. I would much rather have you come with us than mope at the motel."
"I'll be fine."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
Piper laughed to herself. She wasn't sure about anything. She had found more misery than contentment since Saturday night and had approached each new day with dread. She counted the hours until she could return to the predictable but happy life she had left behind on June 2, 2017.
Piper watched more of the match and then again turned her attention to something closer to home. This time she gazed at an unhappy blonde at the end of her bench.
She did not need to ask Vicki Cole why she wore a frown. She already knew the reason. The students of Midway High School had denied her a crown and maybe a date by electing Chip Bennett and Bunny Martinez as their prom king and queen.
Piper resisted the temptation to gloat. She knew what it was like to lose something she wanted and, for that reason alone, wished Vicki the best. Schadenfreude was for losers. She thought about misery, company, and loss until she saw a man approach the bleachers.
"Here's your drink," Mark said a moment later.
He handed a bottle of Royal Crown Cola to his leading lady.
"Thanks," Mary Beth said.
"Did anything bad happen while I was gone?"
"No. Ben and Wayne haven't lost a point."
"I figured as much," Mark said.
Mary Beth patted the wooden bleacher.
"Come sit with me."
"I'd rather go for a walk," Mark said.
"You want to go for a walk now?"
"I do. I want to go for a walk – with Piper."
Piper turned her head.
"Surely you mean my sister."
"No," Mark said. He smiled. "I mean you. Can you spare a few minutes?"
Piper glanced at Mary Beth.
"Do you mind?"
"I don't mind at all," Mary Beth said. She smiled. "I would much rather lose Mark to my darling sister than some sorority hussy."
Donna and Sally laughed.
"OK then," Piper said. "I'll go."
Piper stood up, stepped toward the middle aisle, and descended the bleachers. She joined Mark just as he finished a quiet conversation with Mary Beth.
"We won't be long," Mark said.
"Take your time," Mary Beth said.
Piper looked at Mark.
"What do you want to do?"
"Let's take a stroll around the school."
"OK."
Mark waved to Mary Beth and Donna and then guided Piper toward a sidewalk that encircled the campus. He spoke when they reached the walk.
"I hope you don't mind the intrusion."
"I don't," Piper said. "What do you want to talk about?"
Mark smiled.
"Let's start with your travel plans."
Piper sighed.
"I see my sister has filled you in."
"She's told me a few things," Mark said.
"Do
n't blame Mary Beth. I'm the one who wants to go."
"I'm not blaming anyone. I know this can't last forever. I just want to know why you want to leave so soon. There's really no need to rush."
"I know," Piper said.
"Is this about your fight with Ben?" Mark asked.
Piper shook her head.
"It's bigger than that. It's about facing reality. Every day I stay here, I find it harder to walk away from Ben and Sally and others I've met. If I don't break these attachments now, I may not be able to break them at all."
"I understand," Mark said.
"I still have a family in the future, Mark. I have parents, grandparents, cousins, friends, and people I want to see again."
"Mary Beth does too."
"She does," Piper said. "The difference is that she's fallen for you. She's fallen so hard I don't think she can act without help."
Mark frowned.
"That surprises me. She's known me for only three and a half weeks."
"You obviously don't know my sister."
"What do you mean?"
"Mary Beth is a person who trusts her instincts," Piper said. "If she likes you after five minutes, she will probably like you for life. In your case, it's more than that."
Mark did not reply. He kept to himself as a group of students approached and passed. He resumed the conversation a moment later.
"Have you two always been close?"
Piper looked at Mark.
"We have since grade school."
"You weren't before that?" Mark asked.
Piper shook her head.
"Mary Beth didn't even acknowledge me until she reached the sixth grade. She was too caught up in her own life. Then one day she decided to be a big sister."
"I don't understand," Mark said.
"She stood up to kids who bullied me."
"You were bullied?"
Piper nodded.
"I had a big mouth in the second grade. Hard to believe, I know."
Mark chuckled.
"So what did she do? Beat the kids up?"
"No. She threatened them. She said, 'If you don't leave my sister alone, I'll have you all spayed and neutered.' Mary Beth didn't even know what the words meant. She heard them on a TV commercial. But her warning worked. The bullies never bothered me again."
Mark laughed hard.
"That is funny."
"I've worshipped her ever since," Piper said. "She's the best sister a girl could have."
"That's beautiful."
"Are you and Ben close?"
"We are, for the most part," Mark said. "We've definitely become closer since Dad died. We depend on each other more and do more together."
"Did you ever have a bonding moment?"
"If you're asking whether I ever spayed or neutered his friends, the answer is no," Mark said. He laughed. "If you want to know whether we've had important moments as brothers, the answer is yes. We've had several."
Piper smiled.
"Give me one."
"OK," Mark said. "One of the best was just three years ago."
"What happened?"
"Ben asked me for dating advice."
Piper widened her eyes.
"Ben asked for dating advice?"
Mark nodded.
"He needed it too."
"I can't imagine that," Piper said.
"That's because you didn't know Ben his freshman year," Mark said. "Back then he wasn't a big man on campus. He was a relatively shy guy with a squeaky voice and pimples."
"So why did he need advice?"
"He needed it because he wanted to take a gorgeous junior to the winter formal."
"What did you tell him?" Piper asked.
"I told him what others told him," Mark said. "I told him he should give up and pursue girls his own age. Then I remembered something a friend had told me in high school. She said that girls like poetry and that the surest way to win them over was to write a poem."
Piper smiled.
"She's right."
"I thought so too," Mark said. "So I told Ben to write the girl a poem every day for a week, slip the poems in her locker, and then ask her out at the end of the week."
"Let me guess," Piper said. "She went out with him."
Mark met her gaze.
"She went out with him for six months."
Piper smiled again.
"I'm impressed. You did a good thing."
"You could say that," Mark said. "Most say I created a monster."
Piper laughed hard. She loved the story. She loved hearing about a future Lothario's humble start. She loved hearing that Ben Ryan was human.
Then she felt a twinge of sadness as she and Mark turned a corner and headed back toward the tennis courts. She realized how much she liked Mark and Ben and their mother. She liked them a lot. It was one of the reasons she had to walk away and do so sooner rather than later.
"So when do you think you'll leave?" Mark asked.
"I don't know," Piper said. "Mary Beth has given me until Saturday to make the call."
Mark forced a smile.
"I understand."
Piper looked closely at Mark's face and saw the sadness in his eyes. She could see that Mary Beth was not the only one to fall hard in three and a half weeks.
"Mark?"
"Yeah?"
"I want you to know something."
"What's that?" Mark asked.
Piper placed her hand on his arm and stopped walking.
"I want you to know that you've done more than show my sister a good time. You've put a spark in her eyes and a smile on her face," Piper said. "Be happy with that."
CHAPTER 35: MARY BETH
Hollywood, California – Thursday, April 16, 1959
Barry's Bistro exuded more character than glitz. A hole-in-the-wall tucked between a bank and a boutique, it offered just twelve tables, a limited menu, and a noisy swamp cooler. It was the kind of place people avoided unless they wanted to hide from the world.
Mary Beth didn't mind. She had come to Barry's to meet an individual and not enjoy comfort, cool air, or chili that was said to be the best in Los Angeles.
She entered the bistro at half past ten, spoke briefly to a waitress, and then led Piper through the restaurant proper to a small, sunny, unoccupied patio in back. A moment later, she settled into a seat with a good view of the door, sipped a glass of water, and gazed across her table.
"Are you hungry?" Mary Beth asked.
"No," Piper said. "I am curious though. I want to know why I had to skip school and take a sweaty bus across Los Angeles to a diner I've never heard of."
Mary Beth smiled.
"Must you know everything?"
Piper laughed.
"Yes!"
"You'll find out soon enough," Mary Beth said. "In the meantime, I want to talk to you about this weekend. Do you still want to leave early?"
Piper nodded.
"I think so. I just don't see a reason to stay."
"What about the prom?" Mary Beth asked.
"What about the prom? No one is going to ask me. I humiliated one of the most popular boys in school. I doubt even a pimply freshman would ask me now."
"What?"
"Never mind," Piper said. "I'm just feeling sorry for myself."
Mary Beth paused when the waitress approached the table. She gave the server her order, waited for Piper to do the same, and then resumed the conversation.
"What did you and Mark talk about on Tuesday?"
"Didn't he tell you?" Piper asked.
"No. He didn't tell me a thing."
"Then maybe I should take the Fifth."
"Just tell me," Mary Beth said.
Piper sat up in her chair.
"We just swapped anecdotes about you and Ben and talked about the weekend. He doesn't want us to leave, of course. He wants us to wait until at least the end of April."
Mary Beth sighed.
"I know."
"You have to break it off, Mary
Beth. You have to end things now. It's not fair to give Mark false hope. He's in love with someone he can't have."
"I know."
"It's mutual, too, isn't it?" Piper asked. She fixed her gaze. "You're in love with him."
Mary Beth nodded.
"I know it's crazy."
"It's not crazy. It's normal. People fall in love every day," Piper said. "They just don't do it in different time zones."
Mary Beth laughed.
"How did you get to be so wise?"
Piper smiled.
"I had a good teacher."
Mary Beth reached across the table and touched Piper's arm. She wanted to show her sister that she appreciated her love and support, if not her pointed advice.
She pondered that advice when the waitress brought out two sandwiches and considered her options when the server took her leave. She knew Piper was right. She didn't have a choice in the matter. She had to break things off with Mark and do so at the earliest opportunity.
Mary Beth started to say something about Piper's order but stopped when she saw a woman step onto the patio. She smiled when the woman sat at a table about ten feet away.
In some respects, the new arrival, a lady in her early thirties, was no different than a thousand other women in Los Angeles. She was roughly five-foot-five and 120 pounds with a round face and a curvy figure. She wore sunglasses and a silk scarf over her platinum hair.
In other respects, she was night-and-day different. With twenty-six film credits, a Golden Globe nomination, and a fan base that numbered in the tens of millions, she was arguably the most famous and popular woman on the planet.
Mary Beth watched closely as the woman in the blue blouse and the white Capri pants pulled a pen and a few sheets of stationery out of her purse, placed the paper on her table, and scribbled a few notes. She didn't need to guess what the lady was doing. She already knew.
Marilyn Monroe was keeping track of her day. She was completing a log that would someday occupy page forty-two of Marilyn: Her Life in Letters.
For the next ten minutes, Mary Beth ate her sandwich, sipped her water, and considered the ways she could add her oblivious sister to the mix. She glanced at Marilyn frequently, held the gazes as long as she could, and turned away when she sensed she had looked too long.
Mary Beth halted her surveillance when the waitress entered the patio, pulled out a pad, and took the celebrity's order. She resumed her watch after the server brought the star some iced tea, wiped her table, and walked away. She continued the game of visual cat and mouse until the mouse removed her sunglasses, looked at the cat, and raised a brow.
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