Nick of Time: A Short Story (Part 2)
Backstory
This story came to me in a series of dreams. I was writing down fragments of different ones and all the pieces started to fit together. It feels a little like an episode of the old Twilight Zone TV series. It’s about a man who is given a second chance.
If you haven’t already, read Part 1 of the story.
Nick of Time, Continued
The next day in science class, Nick was introduced to Einstein’s theory of general relativity. He didn’t remember it from before. The gist of it was that Einstein thought gravity could bend time. Maybe that is how I got here, Nick thought to himself.
He was on the bus that afternoon glancing out the window watching the little town roll by, circa 1968, but mostly still thinking about Einstein and his theory. There was a scuffle behind him and as he turned to the sound, there it was.
He was a big kid. He looked older than he was. He only rode the bus occasionally, but when he did, he always picked on Nick. His name was Darren Evans.
The kid’s father was a bigwig at the hospital. The kid was a bully.
The bus wasn’t yet halfway to the neighborhood where they all lived and was only about half full.
“You’re in my seat,” said the kid. He leaned over and put a hand on Nick’s shoulder.
Nick turned back to the window for a minute. He didn't remember this incident. Then he turned and pushed the boy’s hand off his shoulder.
The boy recoiled. Nick didn’t usually react to him. Nick would just move.
“Get out of my seat,” growled the boy, leaning closer.
Nick spun in the seat and jumped to his feet. He brushed the boy’s hand and arm aside and stepped in close. He was shoulder to shoulder with the boy and had his hand and arm around the boy’s elbow, drawing him in tight.
“Listen to me,” hissed Nick. “Sit down and shut up or I’m going to wipe the floor of this bus with your butt and clean it up with your face.”
The boy tried to pull his face back and in outrage flailed with his other arm. Nick took his free hand, with the palm out and open, and struck the boy quickly and sharply in the nose. Blood went everywhere, and the boy howled in pain. Nick spun him away onto the floor.
Nick felt motion behind him and knew it was one of the boy’s friends. Nick felt a hand grasp his shoulder, and he stepped backward, quickly raising his elbow and smashing the backside into this boy’s nose. The boy went down in another pile of blood and tears.
Nick glanced quickly at each of his assailants. Both were on the floor of the bus holding their noses. The bus was completely quiet. No one else was making a sound.
Nick looked to the back of the bus. There was a third boy who hung out with the other two. He stood a couple of feet away. Nick motioned to him with his hands.
“Come on,” said Nick.
The boy looked at him for a moment and then retreated to the back of the bus. Nick glanced to the front and caught the driver’s eyes in the mirror. The bus hadn’t stopped. The woman’s face was solemn, but her eyes sparkled at Nick for a moment before she returned them to the road.
Nick sat back down in the seat. It was like the air went out of the bus and everybody started talking again, just as if nothing ever happened.
Nick rode the bus for the next two days and didn’t see the boy again. On the second day, just after they had pulled away from the school, Nick was sitting alone in his seat. A tall, slender blonde girl stopped beside him and said, “Can I sit here?”
Nick had seen her before. She was new to the school this year. She usually sat in the back and didn’t say much.
“Sure,” replied Nick, and he moved against the bus wall to allow her room to sit down.
She slid in beside him and said, “I’m Nikki George.” She held out her hand to shake. Nick thought to himself, you don’t see that much among high schoolers.
Nick took her hand. It was soft, and he squeezed lightly before he could stop himself. He replied, “I’m Nick,” and quickly withdrew his hand.
“I know,” she replied.
They rode in silence for several moments. Nick was enjoying just sitting next to her. He’d never been that close to her before. She smelled good.
She turned to him and spoke, “I saw what you did to those boys.” She looked as if she was waiting for an explanation.
“Yeah,” he replied, “It just kind of happened. I wasn’t in the mood to move.”
“Weren’t you afraid?” she asked, “There were three of them and they’re such bullies.”
“If I’d thought it through, I probably wouldn’t have done it. I’d have just moved. But he started it and then I had to finish it.”
Nick’s hand was on his leg next to her. She put her hand on top of his. “That was very brave, and they totally deserved it.”
Nick had to look out the window for a moment to keep from laughing, bus justice, had been dealt. Who knew, he was a hero.
Nick turned back to her and smiled.
Her face lit up, and she began to talk excitedly about school, and teachers, and the town. Nick just listened and nodded occasionally.
The bus had reached the neighborhood where they all lived. She squeezed his hand, their fingers now entwined. “I know you play basketball. Would you like to come over this weekend and watch the Tennessee game?” she asked him.
Nick was flabbergasted. It took him a second to respond. “Yeah, that would be great.”
“Good,” she replied, “come over about two and we’ll have snacks and hang out. My parents will probably be around.”
“I imagine they will be, yes,” he replied smiling, and squeezed her hand back.
The bus slowed, and Nick realized they were in front of the Evans’ house. The bus stopped, and the driver opened the door. A man stepped inside. It was Aaron Evans, Darren’s dad.
“I’d like to speak to the boy who beat up my son,” he called out.
Everyone on the bus turned to look at Nick. No way out of that, thought Nick to himself.
He squeezed Nikki’s hand and said, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Nick rose and walked toward the man. “Let’s take it off the bus,” he said.
The man looked a little surprised, but nodded and backed out the door and down the steps. Nick followed him. The doors closed, and the bus pulled away.
“Do you want to come inside?” asked the man.
“No, just say what you have to say.”
The man’s face flushed. He was talking to a fifteen-year-old who was telling him what to do. He didn’t like it. His back stiffened, he raised a finger as if to make a point; He was used to being in charge. He went to his booming voice.
“I’ll not have you beating up my son!” he bellowed.
Nick just looked at him. For a moment, Nick assumed his fifty-year-old persona and spoke to the man as an equal.
“Don’t be an ass. Your boy started it and I finished it. I wondered why he was such a bully, and now I see the answer. What choice would he have with a father like you? Before, I just thought he was stupid. Now I pity him.”
The man’s mouth opened, but no sound came out. He lowered his finger. He was being told off by a fifteen-year-old. Aaron Evans was not a man of great introspection. He was a bull, and he fought for what he wanted and tromped anything or anyone who got in his way. But something about Nick’s words struck home. He did bellow at this son, and the boy did cower. Apparently the boy took it out on people around him. Aaron had already decided to send Darren to military school, to toughen him up. Maybe it was discipline he needed instead, or a more stable environment.
The man’s shoulders sagged, and again he started to speak.
Nick was about to follow up when he remembered that he was supposed to be a frizzy-haired, pimply faced fifteen-year-old who should be frightened.
Nick didn’t speak as the man turned to him, but nor did he flinch. The man waved a hand and started toward the house, leaving Nick alone in the street.
Nick watched the man until he was inside, and the front door closed. He looked up and down the street in both directions. There was no traffic. It was about a mile to his house. He started to walk.
Nick hadn’t gone far when he heard a sound behind him. He turned to see the bus he rode pull up slowly behind him. He moved to the side of the road. The bus stopped, and the door opened.
“I thought you might could use a ride,” said the driver.
Nick nodded to her and stepped inside. The bus was empty. She must have finished her run. He sat in the seat behind her and she closed the door and pulled away.
Nick noticed how clean she kept the bus. It was never messy, or the seats torn, or any trash on the floor like the other buses. She was polite but firm, and he’d seen her throw people off for fighting or being rowdy. He looked back to where the fight had taken place a few days before. There wasn’t a drop of blood anywhere. Then he remembered something funny. At Christmas, on the last day of school, she handed out candy canes that were two inches thick and a foot long. It took all week to eat one of them. The bus reached his house and slowed. The driver stopped and opened the doors.
Nick rose and turned to her. “Thank you,” he said.
She nodded and almost smiled, “You’re welcome.”
Nick rode the bus the next two days and school ended for Christmas break. He didn’t see Darren or Nikki.
He sat on the bus and wondered if he should go over to her house the next day. He’d barely seen her since she asked. They were in science class together but sat across the room from each other. Nick reached into his book bag and pulled out the science book. He saw a piece of paper sticking out the top. He grabbed it and pulled it out of the book.
He unfolded the paper and saw it was a note. It was from Nikki.
“Hey, sorry we didn’t get to talk. I had to help my Mom with some stuff. I hope you’re still planning to come over Saturday. See you soon, Nikki.” It had a big heart in pink ink draw on it.
Nick folded the note and leaned back in the seat. He hadn’t been involved with Nikki when he was fifteen. He would like to have been, but he wasn’t. In fact, he knew that she had been involved with a guy named Foxx and that they were still happily married in Nick’s world as a fifty-year-old.
I don’t know how long I’m going to be here. I don’t suppose it will hurt anything to watch a basketball game.
Nick got up the next morning and helped his mother around the house. She asked him if he was okay. He assured her he was, and that he was just staying busy until he went over to a friend in the neighborhood’s house to watch the game.
“Anyone I know?” she asked him.
“A new kid, seems nice, should be fun.”
His mother took a long look at him, then nodded. They finished everything she wanted to do and Nick cleaned up for his date.
He hated it, but he biked over to Nikki’s house. Driving would have been so much more adult. But then he laughed. Just be a kid while you’re a kid. Don’t be in such a hurry.
He got to Nikki’s house and parked the bike beside the steps to the porch. Nick stepped up and rang the doorbell. The door opened immediately and Nikki jumped out and hugged him. She had on a really short pair of shorts and a fitted tee shirt. She was seriously attractive and Nick felt bad from his fifty-year-old perspective thinking that. She was somebody’s daughter.
And then he met somebody, as Nikki’s dad came into the room and shook hands.
“I’m James George, nice to meet you,” he said. “Nikki has told me how you stood down three bullies on the bus.”
Nick went with his standard reply, “I was lucky.”
Her dad smiled and said, “And modest.”
“I’d prefer to be cautious, but it happened,” replied Nick.
“Smart man,” replied her father, turning to look at Nikki and then back to Nick. “I’ll leave you two alone to watch the game.” He left the room. Nikki led Nick to the couch and turned on the TV.
“Dad likes you,” she said. Nick looked at her. “He never leaves me alone with a boy.” Smart man, Nick thought to himself.
Tennessee was playing, and Nikki commented that Alabama had played the night before. As the game started Nikki brought popcorn and Cokes into the living room and set them on the coffee table. Then she sat down beside Nick and took his hand.
“You mentioned the Alabama game last night,” said Nick
“Yes, my Dad’s favorite teams are Alabama and Tennessee. He’s watching the game in the other room.” Nick nodded and reached for some popcorn.
“He cheers them all the time. You’ll probably hear him, “Nikki added.
The game got underway and several minutes passed. Nick heard her dad cheering in the next room. He and Nikki weren’t talking much, but she had her arm around him and one of her legs over his leg. It was comfortable. What was there to say?
On the TV, Tennessee rebounded a missed shot and fired the ball up the court on a fast break. The guard went inside on a fake and dunked the ball. The crowd went wild. Nick popped to his feet and shouted, “Go Big Orange,” along with a fist pump.
“Nick,” it was Nikki’s father standing in the doorway between the two rooms. “That’s an interesting cheer. Did you hear that somewhere?”
“Ah, no, it just popped out,” Nick thought while thinking to himself, I knew nothing about Tennessee before I went to school there.
“That’s interesting,” replied her father. “What do you shout at an Alabama game?” Nick paused for a second, “Roll Tide Roll,” he offered.
“Never heard that one either, but I quite like it. And these just popped out while you were watching?” Nick shrugged, “Yeah, just something a fan might say to cheer on the team. “ Her father looked at him.
Nick went on, “I mean, can you imagine an entire gym or a football stadium full of people shouting that out. It would show overwhelming support for the team and be defeating for the opponent.”
Nikki’s father stepped into the room and clapped Nick on the shoulder. “I think you are on to something there.” Then he asked, “Do you follow pro football? Who do you think will win the Super Bowl?” Nikki sat on the couch, looking frustrated as the two men talked. “Dad,” she said.
“I just want to hear what he thinks and I’ll leave you alone.”
Nick looked at Nikki and then at her father. “The Jets are going to win, 16-9, count on it!”
“The Colts are the heavy favorite,” replied her father.
“Go with Joe, Broadway Joe, bet on the Jets, 16-9. I’m positive.”
Nikki’s father nodded to him and stepped out of the room.
Nikki punched him lightly on the shoulder when he sat down, “What’s a girl got to do to get some attention.”
Nick took her hand and squeezed it, “You got my attention.”
The remainder of the game passed uneventfully and Nikki stepped outside with him after it was over, as Nick prepared to leave. They stood holding hands and Nikki stepped in close. She leaned up and kissed Nick on the lips. She looked up at him and said, “That was fun.”
Nick shook his head in agreement. “Yes, it was.” Nick looked in her eyes for a moment.
“Do you know a guy named Mike Foxx?” Nick asked her. Nikki shook her head.
“You should look him up. I think you’d like him.”
“I never kissed a guy and had him pass me off before. Did I do something wrong?” replied Nikki, looking hurt.
Nick turned her face back to his. “Everything is great. I’ve never had a better time. I’m not passing you off. I’m just not sure how long I’ll be around. You’re a nice girl, you deserve a nice guy.”
Nick kissed her on the forehead. “I’d better be going.”
The next week passed quickly, and Christmas approached. Nick didn’t hear from Nikki. It made him sad. His mother asked if he wanted to go downtown to do some last-minute shopping. He agreed. They jumped in the family station wagon and drove to the square. He got out of the car and started down the street.
When Nick looked up, he was in a different part of town. The sun was out, and the sky was blue and cloudless. Nick saw his hand, and it was his fifty-year-old self. He turned and looked at his reflection in a car window. He was an old man again.
He continued down the street and approached the crosswalk for a light. Nick noticed a big medical center ahead and across the street, a cancer center.
He didn’t remember those from before he left. Nick remembered he had been in town to bury his father. He walked slowly toward the crosswalk and didn’t notice a man standing there, an old black man, in an odd suit, with a one-handled suitcase and a cane.
Nick stopped and looked at the man, recognition dawning in his eyes. The man pointed with the cane at the hospital. “It’s named for an administrator from some years ago, Aaron Evans.”
The old man then told Nick that Evans had a son who was a bully, but rehabilitated himself after an incident, worked hard, and then dedicated his life to follow up on his father’s work. It was the biggest medical center in the region. Nick thought to himself, I don’t remember seeing Darren after a certain point. He just disappeared and no one spoke of him.
Then the old man pointed across the street to the cancer center. “It was donated by James George. He won a large bet on the 1969 Super Bowl and turned it into a fortune selling sports apparel with the expressions “Roll Tide Roll” and “Go Big Orange” printed on them. He donated most of his fortune to establish the center after his wife died from cancer. His daughter’s husband, of many years, Mike Foxx, is the executive director.
It all took a second to register with Nick. Then he burst out, “I thought you said I couldn’t change time?” The old man shrugged and looked away. He tapped the cane twice on the pavement and softly spoke, “Perhaps…. I was mistaken.”
The loud screech of car brakes interrupted Nick, and he turned to face the light he had been about to cross under. A car sat sideways half thru the intersection.
Nick turned back to the old man, but he was gone.
The white hand popped up on the sign for the crosswalk and with another quick look, Nick ventured across the street and entered the cancer center, where they were successfully treating his father.
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