MCMXL

“Careful honey, watch your step okay.” Edna chuckled as her little four year old frantically swiped away at the cobwebs in his face.

“But mummy they're everywhere.” Timmy whined lifting up his hands to be carried. Edna smiled picking him up into her arms and gently stroked his hair.

Using the little light that shone in through the dusty window, she was able to flick on the light switch, which brightened the dark grimy attic.

The little room was dusty, and full of boxes with bits and pieces lying everywhere, waiting to be looked into and sorted out.

Edna took her eyes off little Timmy and stood still, looking at all the boxes. She took a deep breath, smoothed down her skirt and tucked her hair behind her ears. She was all ready to get down to business.

“Come on honey, come help mummy out.” Edna said getting on her knees, looking through all the boxes. She suddenly paused and looked over to Timmy who called out to her.

He stood still, cuddling his stuffed toy, his fingers pointing towards a huge box. “mummy are those more toys and storybooks for me?”

Edna laughed at his question and gently pulled him unto her lap. She looked at him, her eyes sparkling with joy, showing motherly love. “these are mummy's photo albums from when she was really young dear.”

Edna opened up the box and pulled out the huge book. She blew the dust off the cover with one swift blow and opened it right up.

Her eyes lit up, she looked back at the first picture. It was a picture of her and her husband when they were seventeen. The date of 1948 written on it.

It brought good memories of how far they had come, they now had a little boy together. Timmy smiled along with his mother as she reminisced about old memories.

She looked through more pictures, laughing at the stupidness of her and her friends.

Her smile was wiped off in an instant. Sadness showing in her eyes and tears filling them, falling out of them unto her cheeks.

Lori smiled back at her from the picture. She looked so happy, so alive.

As Edna continued to look back at her sister, the memory of that dreadful day came back to her.

She held unto Timmy, sobbing into his clothes. All Timmy could do was stroke his mum's hair, it wasn't like he could do anything else. He was only four.

Edna looked back at the picture wishing she could change everything, she put down the photo album and sighed, it seemed she had seen enough for the day.

She got up to continue her work, only she wasn't in her attic anymore. The room blurred, grew faint and then was gone.

There was a flash of light, suddenly Edna found herself transported to another place and time. When she landed, a warm light was shining right in her face. She opened her eyes slowly and put her hand up to shield her eyes from the light.

“Timmy!” “Bradley!”

“Where am I?” Edna said to herself, looking around trying to find a familiar face.

She stood looking at the old buildings that surrounded her in the busy street. The sounds of children laughing, grown ups talking and teenagers messing filled her ears.

A few gazes from strangers made Edna feel uneasy. but what she didn't know was that she couldn't be seen. she walked for a little bit trying to figure out what was happening, suddenly two girls ran into her sight.

Edna gasped, fear filling her eyes. “No! No, no, no! This can't be.” She whispered holding her face, shocked at what she saw. She suddenly remembered, it was this day. The day her sister died.

“Go straight to the sweet shop Lori! Mind your little sister, don't go too far now” a young woman wearing a blue summer frock with flowery patterns called out.

“Mum!”  “Lori!” “you have to stop, take us back!” she ran, tears streaming down her face, calling for their attention, but they couldn't hear her.

25th may 1940! She was sent back to the dreadful day of her sisters death. She had to stop it, she couldn't bear the guilt of her being responsible for the death of her sister.

She raced into the sweet shop after the girls trying to find them, this was it! It was about to happen all over again.

If only she had listened that day, she thought.

“Edna put it down!”

She ran over to where she heard the little voices. Her young self was arguing with Lori. She was always stubborn and rebellious as a little child.

Edna went up to the arguing girls. “you have to listen to her! Trust me please!” she said on her knees trying to get her younger self's attention.

The arguing went on still. “Edna just put it down, it's too dear.” Lori yelled.

“But that's the one I want” Edna's younger self screamed holding on tightly to the huge jar of sweets.

“Oh my God! Please just put it down and listen” Edna's cries increased, shaking her head side to side and trembling in fear.

Edna screamed as her younger self, left the sweet jar and ran out of the shop.

“Don't do it!”

“come back, you're going to regret this please just listen to me!”

“Edna!”

Memories of that day flashed in her mind. She recollected the memories of the hour the lifeless, bloody body of her sister laid on the ground, the loud banging sound before Lori's body was propelled forward and how hard she hit the ground. She remembered how the driver had sped off. She remembered how much pain her parents went through. It couldn't happen again, she had to stop it.

It was only a few seconds now till her young self ran straight for the busy road. Edna launched herself at Lori, pushing her away from the accident that was about to happen.

Just as she was about to run straight into the car, Edna grabbed herself but the collar and yanked her away from the road.

Edna yelped as time whirled around her again. A strange shiver shot through her when she became fully aware of where she was.

She was standing in her childhood home, Edna stood still, in shock. She didn't know whether to believe it was real or fake.

Standing right in front of her eyes was her own mother and sister, cooking and happily chatting in the kitchen.

“Mum!” “Lori!” Edna screamed, running up to hug them both, but as she was about to make contact, she passed right through their body.

She took a sharp breath as she fell to the floor.

When Edna got up she was no longer in the kitchen. She was in a strange room that looked so familiar. Edna looked around the room with a look confusion on her face. Lori was alive, but what had happened to her?

She walked out of the empty room into a hallway, she had been transported to her old school.

“what's happening, why am I back here?” Edna questioned.

Edna walked into a classroom where she quickly spotted herself, nothing could prepare her for what she saw.

She had become a rebellious teen.

“Go to the detention room now!” Mrs Williams her old English teacher yelled loudly, her voice booming.

“I'm not going to detention I'm going home, this is a waste of time.”

Edna watched her younger self zip up her bag and walk out of the room.

Tears dropped onto her cheeks as she found herself no longer in her school, but in the town park.

She fell to the ground, hugging her knees and sobbed quietly. Bradley looked so happy with his new family.

They never met. Timmy never existed. Edna now realised the changed she had made had disrupted the future.

The death of Lori had changed her, it was because of that she became a better child, she worked hard to make her sister proud.

She had met Bradley in highschool and he helped her through it.

But not anymore, none of it had happened. She changed the future.

The park blurred, grew faint and then was gone.

“Edna!” “Darling wake up!”

Edna woke up to being shaken vigorously.

Her vision cleared and she was able to see who it was.

She was back in her attic, she looked up to see her husband staring back at her, happy she was okay.

It was only a vision, but it had felt so real.

Edna placed Timmy unto her lap, and pulled her family into a hug. She grabbed the photograph of Lori and placed it to her heart.

Bradley gave her a comforting smile.
“you'll forever be in my heart Lori.” Edna whispered kissing the picture.

hannahsue--

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