The next morning, she sat up on the edge of the bed, pushing the weird dream away. Still in yesterday's clothes, she craved a long hot shower and food. She hadn't eaten anything since yesterday's sub sandwich. The desire to be clean and fed comforted her. These were basic human needs and wants, which meant that despite feeling otherworldly during the last twenty-four hours because of the déjà vu sensations, she was in fact worldly, still very much human. She looked at the alarm clock on the nightstand. It was 6:30 a.m. Sometime during the night, she'd made a conscious decision not to go to her eight o'clock history class. She couldn't go. After Monday's pencil-dropping incident and yesterday's triple sensations, she wasn't in the mood to be around people. Besides, she had the creepy feeling that she'd already been to that morning's history class. Going again would amount to unnecessary redundancy.
As the hot water steamed over her, she considered the evolution of her sensations. Initially, they'd been similar to the ones she'd gotten sporadically as a child, just a short burst of weird familiarity, an odd ‘been there, done that’ sensation, usually lasting less than a minute. Back then, she'd even considered the sensations kind of cool. At least they'd never freaked her out like the recent ones. And she could not recall ever having more than one in a month. Sometimes there'd even been years between sensations. But the current ones, except for the past weekend's brief respite from them, were coming almost daily. Yesterday, there'd been three occurrences; she'd never had more than one in a single day before. And now this morning her sensations felt anticipatory. She could almost visualize the history class. She could see her classmates' faces. She knew what they'd wear. It felt sort of like she was…was that even possible? Could she have become psychic?
She dried off and then wrapped the towel around herself, walking back to her room. She recalled the movie Phenomenon where the main character played by John Travolta had suddenly become a genius. He'd learned later that his newfound intelligence had been caused by a brain tumor that would eventually claim his life. She was less fearful now that tumors or such were the reason behind her sensations. Dr. Frost and the others had given her a measureable amount of hope that the cause of the sensations wasn't something fatalistic. Kallie's assuaged fears were based in part on that glimmer of hope as well as her gut feeling. She was getting increasingly convinced that she was getting a gift. Of what, she wasn't exactly sure. But to her, yesterday's sensation trifecta, along with this morning's psychic-like one, seemed to support the gift notion. Whether Friday's MRI would bear that out, of course, remained to be seen.
She dressed quickly and walked downstairs to the kitchen. Since she wasn't going to class, she had enough time to eat something other than toast. It felt like a ham and cheese omelet type of morning. Maybe, she thought hopefully, the aroma would stir Maggie to life and she'd come down to join her for breakfast, giving Kallie a chance to try to convince her housemate to accompany her to New Vibe's noonday Bible study.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Absolutely not,” Maggie said. She pulled a gray sweat suit from the dresser drawer and threw the two pieces on her bed beside Kallie.
“But why not?” Kallie asked. She nonchalantly spread Maggie's sweat pants across the bed and placed the matching sweatshirt above it, smoothing out the wrinkles of both with her hand. Maggie could not be accused of having varied taste in clothes. Her wardrobe consisted mainly of sweat suits, frumpy jeans, and oversized sweatshirts and T-shirts. Kallie estimated that her roommate had about fourteen sweat suits in an assortment of colors.
Maggie grabbed a towel off the back of a chair and pulled on a shower cap. “Because I don't want to.”
“But I cooked you breakfast,” Kallie protested.
“And I thanked you.”
Kallie held up the sweatshirt. “I'll iron this for you.”
Maggie headed for the door. “And have people thinking I suddenly care about how I look? No thanks.”
“Please!”
“Stop begging. It's unbecoming.”
Kallie followed her down the hallway. “The service only lasts an hour.”
“Exactly.”
“Exactly what?” Kallie asked.
“Exactly, meaning you'd only be there an hour anyway. You can make it through that. It's not like you're going on a blind date or something.”
“I know. But that pastor is kind of creepy.”
“Why don't you ask one of the other girls?”
“Now you're just being cruel,” Kallie said. Maggie knew both Shelly and Cynthia hated her. The feelings were mutual.
“Wish I could help you.”
“No you don't.” Kallie said. “Because if you did, then you would.”
Maggie smiled. “You know, you're probably right.” She closed the bathroom door in Kallie's face.
Kallie trudged back downstairs to the living room. She couldn't be upset with Maggie. She'd known it would be a longshot getting Maggie to go with her, especially if Maggie didn't want to go. That girl never did anything that she didn't want to do if she didn't have to do it. It was a major reason why Kallie liked her so much in the first place. Maggie was her own woman who put herself first. But she was also a good friend. If she'd suspected Kallie faced danger at the church, she most certainly would have gone with her.
But having an uncomfortable feeling wasn't necessarily an indication of impending danger. Besides, New Vibe was a church. She'd be going to a church in the middle of town, in the middle of the day. It was a church, for goodness sake. Why was it making her so uncomfortable? Well, for one thing, she answered herself, the other night the pastor had come by the house dressed like the grim reaper. And he'd done so after having received one phone call from a woman he hadn't even known. And she couldn't forget that she'd seen some of her college mates who attended the church. To her, they all looked sort of wacked out and mind controlled. There was something mildly strange about young people being that high on religion. Didn't they have enough to worry about and do without having to deal with the halleluiah brigade?
You're being silly, she chided herself. The reverend had already explained to her why he'd dressed that way. Besides, didn't she consider herself a free spirit who could dress anyway she liked, regardless of what other people thought? Wasn't that what Maggie did? And she'd praised Maggie for it. And as for the pastor coming to see her after he'd received that call from her grandmother, she should be thanking him, not condemning him for it. Lord only knew who her grandmother would have gotten to come over if the reverend hadn't agreed to do it. And as for her college mates—what student didn't look wacked out, especially during midterms? Of course she was being silly. There wasn't anything to fear about New Vibe Community Church. Still, she conceded as she sat down in the recliner in the living room that she'd feel a lot better if she had someone go with her. She checked her watch. It was seven minutes after eleven. She'd leave for the church in about thirty minutes.
Hearing a knock at the door, she went to it, pressing her eye against the peephole. “Who is it?”
“Seth Winters,” said the voice on the other side of the door.
She peered at him through the peephole, her heart thumping so hard she thought she could hear it. It was actually Seth Winters. Why was he here and how had he known where she lived? She’d felt an attraction towards him since the first time she saw him while registering for classes. Before she’d found out his name, she’d simply referred to him as “the boy.” She grabbed the doorknob with a suddenly clammy hand. She opened the door hesitantly, somehow feeling as if she was opening the door to her possible future. At the sight of her, Seth's eyes widened. The electricity was palpable. “Seth Winters,” she repeated.
“Uh, hi Kallie,” he stumbled. “I wasn't expecting you to answer the door. I saw that you weren't in class today. I thought maybe you were sick or something.”
She was at a loss for words. He knew her name and noticed that she hadn't been in class that morning. Obviously he'd also paid attention when Professor Sampson had calle
d roll, since the two of them hadn't been formally introduced. She stood motionless for a moment as her voice stayed on hiatus and her mind temporarily blanked out.
His face reddened. “I didn't mean to just drop in on you. But after Monday's class, I thought, uh…well, anyway I don't live that far from here; actually just a couple of streets over. I've driven behind you a couple of times. I guess you never noticed.” Despite the coolness of the morning, small droplets of sweat formed across his forehead.
Her voice returned, and then it was as if an unseen force pulled her back from the door, inviting him inside. “I guess I'm not that observant,” she said as he stepped into the foyer, closing the door behind him.
“I'd wanted to stop by sooner,” he said.
“Why didn't you?” Kallie asked, surprising herself with her sudden boldness.
“I don't know. I guess I didn't want to frighten you.”
“Why would that have frightened me?”
His face flushed a deeper red. “I don't know. I guess it shouldn't have.” He looked away for a moment as if afraid he'd put his foot in his mouth. Then, “Um, listen. I, um, I know on Monday, something was, um, bothering you. And when you missed class today, I, um, I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”
Kallie wasn't completely naive. She'd seen this stumbling around routine from boys before. Funny how she'd no inkling until now that 'the boy' had been the least bit interested in her. He was handsome, seemed of above average intelligence, and dressed nicely. But that was as far as she'd gotten in her thinking on the subject. Boys, even 'the boy', hadn't exactly been foremost in her mind since she'd returned to school. She hadn't sworn off boys for the books like Maggie had, but her nonchalance toward them had the effect of doing the same thing. Of course, living off campus hadn't helped matters either. Muting potential romances was one of the drawbacks. Other than going to her classes and to the cafe for a sub sandwich about three times a week, she hadn't spent much time on campus, which didn't really give boys or 'the boy' a chance to say much more than hello, particularly if the said boy was the shy type. Monday's conversation with Josh had been the first meaningful conversation she'd had with a member of the opposite sex since she arrived back on campus. And she had to admit that talking to someone with a deeper voice than Maggie's had felt nice. “I'm okay,” she said. “It was nice of you to check on me, especially since you don't really know me.”
Seth smiled sheepishly. “I know. That's my fault. I should have introduced myself sooner.”
“Well, I guess I could have done so as well,” Kallie admitted. She looked at her watch. It was getting closer to noon. “I wish we could talk longer,” she said and meant it, “but I do have somewhere I need to be.”
Seth smiled awkwardly. “Oh, I'm sorry, of course. Like I said I just wanted to check on you.” He turned to reopen the door.
Watching him turn, she was suddenly struck by a bolt of inspiration. “Wait a minute, Seth. What're you doing at noon today?”
* * *
The interior of New Vibe Community Church lived up to what its steepled, white-cement exterior had promised. New Vibe was a traditional, old fashioned church. It looked no different from any other church she'd ever attended. It had stained, variegated glass windows, plush green carpet, and two rows of fifteen aisle-parted pews. On the backs of the pews were racks containing Bibles and hymnals, and small wood pockets which held note pads and tithing envelopes. Up front, a pulpit flanked by two tall potted plants and backed by a choir stand stood prominently on a flower-adorned altar.
As she and Seth took seats near the front of the church, Kallie felt more than a little silly. Here she was dragging poor ole Seth to a church in the middle of the day because she'd thought…what exactly? That she was going to be attacked by a bunch of robe wearing Hare Krishna lookalikes? Or maybe, she'd believed that the church's pastor with his rapper's last name and colorful personality would swoop down from on high, preaching a fire and brimstone sermon while his transfixed flock, singing, shouting, and Bible thumping, encircled and taunted her. But now, as she sat there engulfed by the sweet smell of old wood mixed with a faint scent of flowers, she realized that her worrisome thoughts had been a tad foolish. A church was a church. And despite sensing that New Vibe still lacked a certain something (just what that something was, she wasn't exactly sure), she told herself that it was still just a church.
There were only about ten other people here, including two that she thought she recognized from campus. Everyone sat quietly, either reading their Bibles or casually looking around and waiting for Pastor Swag. Kallie looked at Seth. If he was freaked out by her offer to attend church with her, he didn't show it. He met her eyes and smiled. She smiled back, and then they both faced front again and waited with the others for the pastor.
Five minutes later, Swag entered through a side door. He was dressed casually, with khaki pants and a black button down shirt with a clerical collar. Carrying a Bible, he stepped onto the altar and went straight to the pulpit. “Good afternoon,” he said.
And then it happened.
The déjà vu sensation struck her with a fierceness she hadn't felt previously. She felt constricted, as if she'd been squeezed into a glass bottle. She was a part of the surroundings; in fact, immersed in them. Yet, somehow she was consciously separated from them at the same time. She turned to Seth. He was still looking intently at Swag as the pastor spoke. She looked around at the others. They were all looking at Swag, paying no attention to her. She could see their pending movements. And for the first time, she felt like she could do so not because she was somehow becoming psychic, but because she'd lived through this scene previously! She'd seen it all before.
She looked up front, locking eyes with Swag, and simultaneously the two of them said, “We're going to continue our study of Revelations today. If you would please turn to…” Kallie abruptly stopped, roughly grabbing Seth by the arm. “Let's go. I need to get out of here!”
They’d taken Seth’s car to the church. Now, he drove them to a nearby sandwich shop. Once inside the shop, he found a back corner table, away from the windows. The shop didn't have wait staff. Food was ordered and paid for at one end of the counter, and then picked up at its other end.
She'd told him that she wasn't hungry; but he ordered her today’s special anyway. It included what he considered the shop's best sandwich, the Reuben. He told her that she could take hers home to eat later; since for most college students hunger pangs often struck fiercely after midnight.
For his part, Seth didn't ask her what the matter was or why she'd all of sudden left a service she'd invited him to after the pastor had barely uttered a word. She appreciated him not making a big deal about it. She didn't really know him well enough to begin blabbering secrets to him. Not that what was happening to her was a secret. She didn't really know what was happening to her and probably wouldn't know until Friday's MRI test. Finally she said, “Thanks again for the sandwich and for coming with me today. I guess this was a heck of a first…” she paused. She didn't know exactly how to classify what they were on; since technically, it wasn't a date. She'd never asked a boy out before and honestly hadn't thought about it one way or the other. She supposed she was modern enough to do so, if the situation called for it and she was so inclined. But this outing hadn't been spurred by any romantic inclinations on her part. She'd wanted someone to go with her to Reverend Swag's church. Seth's showing up at her house had been a matter of convenience. Albeit a fortuitous one, she might add.
Sensing her awkwardness, he said, “I don't know. My father would be happy about my first outing with a girl being a trip to church.”
Outing, she thought, smiling inwardly. That was the same term she'd just used to describe it. “He would? Why?”
Seth bit off a piece of potato chip. “He's a reverend.” He stuffed the rest of the chip into his mouth.
Kallie sipped her soda. That's just great, she thought. She wondered what his dad would think when Seth described
the 'outing' to him. “A preacher's boy? So that makes you wild and rebellious?”
“Nah, I think that only applies to a preacher's daughter.”
They both laughed. And pretty soon they were laughing and joking like old friends about other things as well, everything from old television shows that they both liked, to recollections of some of their childhoods' most embarrassing moments. She found him unpretentious, easy to talk to, and incredibly gorgeous. After a while, she was ready for that Reuben, and afterwards, agreed with him that it was indeed a very good sandwich. When they'd finally decided to leave the shop a couple of hours later, she'd forgotten all about New Vibe Community Church and déjà vu.
CHAPTER NINE
Bennett was due a week of vacation and he decided to use it to visit his sister in Charlotte. He hadn't seen Helen and her family in over a year and he looked forward to the visit. He'd maybe do some fishing with his brother-in-law, Mark, and he could always count on his nephew, MJ, having the latest Madden videogame. And if the stars lined up right, his niece, Veronica, would be home for the weekend from college, giving him the opportunity to see the whole Ross clan under one roof and hear the welcoming and once familiar sound of family chatter. Yes, that was what he wanted to hear, needed to hear—the sounds of family. The numbing high he'd gained from his elixir-like hectic work schedule had finally worn off and was no longer helping him forget Elise and his girls. Besides, he no longer wanted to forget. He was now willing to embrace his memories of them. Maybe now the memories wouldn't hurt as much.
The early evening sky was cloudless, starless, and ink-black. He circled the long winding driveway leading up to his sister's home. The house was about seven thousand square feet with a three-car garage. Mark was an executive with a computer software firm, and, evidently, the company paid him well. Helen had been a teacher by trade, but Bennett couldn't remember when she'd last worked. He was very happy that his sister had found Mark. He was a good looking man as well as a great husband, father, and provider, and according to Helen, he was also her soul mate. From Bennett's vantage point, the two of them seemed happy and they were genuinely good folk. If anyone deserved the best that life had to offer, he often thought it was his little sister Helen. She'd been only three years old when their mother died, and he'd always felt she'd been cheated out of something. He prayed that she'd never again experience the pain of loss as he had.
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