"What do you mean?"
Gina stopped to face her friend. "You've been acting funny."
"No I haven't."
"It's about Lieben, isn't it? Ever since he moved away, you haven't been the same." Amanda hadn't told her everything yet, just that she had met a boy, Lieben, that summer. "Gina, that was over five years ago."
"Why don't you look him up?"
That night, Amanda stared at the story "The Gold" until her eyes burned with tears.
She went outside and walked slowly toward the creek. Snow covered the ground. A thin sheet of ice had formed over the surface of the water. Amanda stared at the creek for a little while and then turned away.
SPLASH! She jerked around. A rainbow of colors was spinning within rows of frozen funnels.
"Amanda." She whirled around. Gold was standing just a few feet away. He had aged, just like she had. He was taller than she was, with that black wavy hair, bronze skin, and those same shiny blue eyes. She was almost breathless.
"You're really here."
"I missed you." His voice had changed too. It wasn't watery or weak, but deep and strong.
"I thought I would never see you again."
"I didn't know if you would, but I hoped for it all these years."
"Why now?"
"It wasn't time for me to come back, yet. But then the time came. I don't know why it took this long, but now I am here, and the forest is just a place for me to visit. I returned to town a few months ago, got a job at the newspaper writing articles. I found a place to rent, too. I'll be starting school with you. I passed the placement test so I will get to finish senior year with you."
She wanted to ask him how he had managed to become more educated, but the question would have the same answer it always did. "How come you didn't change back into a pebble like before?"
"Because you never stopped loving me.” He took a step toward her, then another until they were standing face to face. In sync, and in their own sweet symphony, they hugged and held each other tight. They stood that way for a good while. She could feel his love wrapping itself around her heart, coruscating throughout her body as if filling all the empty spaces that had been vacant for far too long. Reluctantly, they pulled apart and went inside the house.
In the kitchen, Dad was fixing dinner. Amanda entered the room with Lieben. "Dad, I'd like you to meet someone."
"Oh, hello. I'm Mr. Greene. You go to school with Amanda?"
"Yes, my name is Lieben."
"What an unusual name. Nice to meet you. Care for a burger?" The three of them ate at the table. Amanda and Lieben couldn't stop looking at each other.
At school, Gina caught up to Amanda and Lieben. Only a handful of teenagers walked the halls as the bell rang. "Hi, who are you?"
"Gina, this is Lieben."
"Lieben!" She threw her arms around him in a rush of excitement. "I have heard everything about you. Finally, we get to meet!"
He was usually golden, but her words cast a red splash of embarrassment across his face. Lieben spoke up. "I better go. See you at lunch."
Amanda pulled Gina into an empty classroom. "Can you keep a secret?"
"Of course. What is it?" Amanda confided in Gina, telling her everything, starting from the very first time she heard him up until their last day together.
Gina didn't believe her.
From her backpack, Amanda withdrew a story she had read too many times and handed it to her friend. "Read it. It's the only way I can explain it."
Gina sat down on the cold hallway floor and read through it. A few minutes into the story, she regarded Amanda in a new kind of way. When she realized Amanda wouldn't budge from her story, that she had never lied to her and had no reason to lie, she continued reading. By the time she was finished, she didn't know what to think.
That afternoon, Gina and Amanda were standing near the lockers. Gina held out the story to Amanda. "You know what this is?"
"I know. I don't expect you to believe me—"
"This is a miracle." She hugged Amanda. "I just can't believe you hid it all that time. I knew there was something special about you. He knew it too. Amanda, your love saved him from a life of loneliness."
Gina waved good-bye as she walked away. When Amanda glanced up, she saw Shane staring at her. They hadn't spoken since they entered high school. He smiled at her as if he understood something, as if they shared a wonderful secret. Amanda turned away, wondering what it could mean.
Epilogue
THREE YEARS LATER
In the forest, time moved at a normal pace when things are as they should be. The sun shone brightly. A mountain lion walked past Amanda and Lieben. A chipmunk scurried by. And although it was normal to those who lived there, it remained magical nevertheless.
"Don't you miss this? I mean, the magic of it all?" she asked Lieben.
"Not as much as I missed you all those years."
"But this was your home for so long."
"You are my home."
"I am?"
"Will you marry me?"
"Yes."
In the hallways of the high school building, time spun backwards for Shane Smith as he peered into his backpack. His eyes flashed with surprise and joy as the silhouette of a golden shadow danced across his face.
About the Author
Krista Wagner, a mother of three and wife of TJ, has been writing since she was seven. She started out creating songs and plays and then graduated to poetry during her teen years. In high school, she was on the staff of her literary magazine, co-authored her own zine, and began to write numerous short stories, mostly dealing with dramatic instances like murder or kidnapping.
Krista received her BA in English from UMBC in 1999, her MA in English Composition with a Literature Concentration from CSUSB in 2008, and an MFA in Creative Writing from National University in 2013. Since 2008, Krista has been an English adjunct instructor.
Krista started work on her first novel, Intent, during a summer road trip in 2013. Intent was published with TouchPoint Press in 2014. Her second novel, Rian Field, a psychological thriller, was published January 2016. She has also penned screenplays for her published novels. She enjoys suspenseful films, reading the Bible, and spending time with her family.
If you enjoyed this book, I hope that you will take the time to post a review on Amazon or Barnes & Noble and spread the word. My readers are the ones who keep this story alive.
kristawagner.wix.com/the-gold
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