Written by Emma Breckwoldt
Illustrated by Estella Sun
"I sat there, fingers on the keys, scared to move. It wasn’t my imagination. That was real."
I sat down with my iced chai latte and blueberry muffin at the same table as I had every morning the past month. It was summer, and my shift at Barnes and Noble didn’t start for two hours, so I might as well get some writing in. I had been having writer's block the past few days, so I opened a new document to start fresh. At least I tried. My internet wouldn’t work. It said I was connected to the cafe wifi, but nothing would load. I guess I will use the word processor on my computer. I had never used it before because I liked having my stories in the cloud, but it would have to do.
I began typing “It was a rainy morning”, and that’s when it happened. I looked outside and saw people running for cover as a shower erupted out of nowhere. I continued to write, “Anna struggled to close her umbrella outside of the coffee shop when a man, tall and blonde, came up to her and helped her wrestle it shut." Then something hit the glass I was sitting next to. I looked up and saw a man, tall and blonde, and a girl shutting an umbrella. Woah. I was starting to get really confused. There’s no way. That would be impossible. My computer then decided to connect to the internet, so I continued my story on a Google doc. “The man opened the door for her, and they went into the coffee shop”. I looked outside, and they were still there. That would’ve been crazy. But before I could even continue, the internet went out again. So I went back to my word processor. I copied “the man opened the door for herl, and they went into the coffee shop together,” right as the bell rang. There they were. It’s just a coincidence. But I couldn’t shake the feeling it was something much larger than. There was only one way to find out. “Tom Holland walked into the coffee shop.” I laughed to myself, imagining the British star wandering into this small shop in Fredericksburg, Texas… when I heard him. I turned around, and sure enough, at the door was Tom. What is going on? I immediately selected the entire document and pressed delete. “Are you sure?” The screen asked me. I was. I looked back at the door, and Tom was gone. And so was the couple. And the rain. I shut my computer and ate my muffin in wonder.
As I stood restocking the shelves of the adult fiction section, I couldn’t stop thinking about earlier. It can’t be possible. It felt like something out of the books I was putting on the shelves, not real life. But on my break, I took my computer to the break room to be sure. I had left the document up on my computer, and I began to type. “John, the assistant manager, came into the break room and told Lily that she was getting a $2 raise.” I knew that would never happen because John hated me, but in he walked.
“Lily, can I speak to you?” John came and sat down at the table.
“What is it?” He wouldn’t.
“I have decided to give you a $2 raise,” he just sat there.
“Why?”
“I’m not sure, but I am. Now, I have to go back to checkout,” he then stood up and left.
I sat there, fingers on the keys, scared to move. It wasn’t my imagination.
That was real. It was all real. What to do now? I could do literally anything. This was too much responsibility. I was only 17. I had the entire world at my fingertips, and the first thing I wanted to do was write myself a boyfriend. Not world peace or climate change, but a boy that I could kiss and go to dinner with. I was the least qualified with the power, and yet it was at my fingertips. So I could use it how I wanted. I wrote a paragraph and then finished my shift, waiting for what I wrote to come true.
It did.
As I was walking out of the store, I turned left towards home and ran into him. John Brown, captain of the football team and my crush for two years, stood before me now.
“Oh I’m so sorry,” his eyes were even deeper blue up close.
“It’s okay, don’t worry about it,” I had to look up to speak to his 6 foot 3 self.
“It’s Lily, right?” He did not know my name before. But now, things were different.
“Yeah,” I couldn’t help but blush, even as I knew what was to come.
“Could I maybe walk you home?” he turned and stuck his arm out like we were at a ball, and I graciously accepted. I then quickly realized that I didn’t write anything after this. I didn’t have a script to follow. I would have to actually talk to a boy. Terrifying.
“So, are you excited for football season?” that felt like the safest question to ask the quarterback.
“I can’t wait. We have been practicing every day, and the team looks even better than last year. I think we can win state,” his shoulders moved back as he talked.
“That’s exciting,” I didn’t know how to reply. I couldn’t tell you anything about football. For me, it’s all the same from first down to pass interference. Since my house was only five blocks from Barnes and Noble, I was saved.
“Well, this is me,” I smiled as I looked at his face.
“Okay, I’m gonna pick up my sister now. That’s what I was going to do, but I just had to walk you,” he smiled and walked away.
“See you around,” I skipped into my house. Even though it was awkward, I have now held hands and walked with John Brown.
After a bite of my muffin and a sip of my chai, I thought about what I wanted my day to look like. Maybe I could give myself money, or I could hang out with John again. As I looked around for inspiration, I noticed a man in the corner with a suit and coffee. He didn’t look like the others who were normally here, but I guess I didn’t know everyone. I went back to my computer without looking back up. “As Lily walked to work, she saw something sparkling in the bushes. She walked over and saw it. A bar of gold was just sitting there. She put it in her pocket with a smile, and entered Barnes and Noble much richer than the day before.”
I never knew just how heavy gold was. But as I walked home, it weighed me down, and not just physically. It was unfair that I got this without trying. But then again, life is unfair. I placed my backpack on the table with a much louder thump than intended, which caught the attention of my dad.
“What you got in your bag, a brick?” he came into the dining room from the kitchen.
“I just got a couple of books from the sale section.”
“Actually, sweetie, there is something I need to tell you,” his face fell.
“What is it?” Please don’t be “I lost my job again”.
“Well, something happened. You know John Brown?” Oh did I know him. “His sister,” he continued, “his sister is missing.”
“What? When? How?” I couldn’t move.
“I guess normally John picks her up from daycare, but yesterday some stranger posing as her dad did. By the time he finally showed up, she was gone. They reported her missing right away and have been looking ever since, but they don’t have any leads,” he reached out and put his hand on my shoulder. It was all my fault. My selfish desire to hold hands with a boy made his sister get kidnapped. I had been making myself rich all day while they had been worried out of their mind.
“Thanks for telling me. That’s horrible,” I couldn’t look him in the eyes.
“Are you friends with him?” He reached his hand out across the table, but I did not accept it.
“Not really.” At least not by his choice.
“Well, there is a casserole in the oven, but I have to go to work. I love you.” I faked a smile as he stood up.
The moment he shut the door, I grabbed my computer and started typing. “The police car was driving by the park when they noticed a little girl on the swings. They went over, and it was John Brown’s sister. They talked to her nicely, and she got in the car and they brought her home.” There. All fixed. But it wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t been so selfish. I was starving, but I couldn’t move to get my dinner. What would happen next time I changed reality? Had I hurt anyone by giving myself gold? My spiral of thoughts was interrupted by a knock at the door. I went over and checked the peephole. It was the man from the coffee shop. He was standing there in the same coat from earlier.
“I know you are in there,” he yelled through the door. I looked back outside the peephole, and I saw a car on the street with another man in the same coat outside. I took a step back.
“We need to talk about your computer.” How did he know about it?
“Who is we?”
“That’s classified. But your computer is powerful, and we need it”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. But if you don’t leave, I’m going to call the cops,” I shouted in the most aggressive voice I could muster.
“We know what the computer does, and we want it. Now give it to me nicely, or we will take it.”
“I’m calling the cops,” I shouted, moving closer to my computer on the table.
“They won’t make it in time,” he yelled. My gaze moved to the door handle. Shit. Dad hadn’t locked it when he left. Maybe he wouldn’t notice. But then it started to turn. Then it opened. He was in the house, and all I could do was stare.
“I was hoping we could do this nicely,” he spoke calmly, but his body said another story.
“I don’t think that’s possible,” I turned, grabbed my computer, and began to sprint. My dad’s office was just around the corner, and I slammed the door as he was right behind me. He pushed against it hard, so hard that the locked handle moved. I grabbed a chair and propped it under like I had seen in the movies, but it was shaking as he kicked it. I knew he would get in soon, so I had to type fast.
“The man,” I wrote as the door fell. I looked up and into his eyes. I saw nothing. He stepped to the computer and was about to grab it when I typed “left”.
“Goodbye,” I smiled as the realization of what I did washed over him. He turned around and began to exit the house. I took the computer and followed him out. As he exited, I continued; “he got into his car, and he and the other man drove away and forgot about the computer.”
I didn’t know how I would explain the busted door to my dad, but at least I was alive. I looked at my computer screen, at the words I had written. They were more powerful than I ever imagined. I could do anything, but at what cost? I had known what I had to do since the moment that I first made it rain. But now, it was more clear than ever. So after I put a chunk of casserole on a plate and put it in the microwave, I sat at the table with my computer.
“Are you sure you want to delete?” It asked. I had never been more sure of anything in my life. I pressed enter and checked my backpack. It was the lightest it had ever been. I then went to delete the word processor.
“Are you sure you want to delete this application? This action cannot be reversed.” I looked around. The casserole had ten seconds left. I closed my eyes and imagined if I kept it. I saw a beach, a cute boy, and no worries. But when the microwave beeped, I opened my eyes to our small kitchen and dining room. And it was my home. I didn’t know who that man was or why it wanted, but it was too powerful for anyone, no matter how good their intentions were.
So I pressed enter, walked over and grabbed my plate, and sat down. I took a bite and immediately burned my tongue. Okay Universe, I guess I deserved that.
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