16. TRUTH BE TOLD

Brent pays and we leave the diner. When we walk through the door he stands still and looks around us. He has a look of wonder in his eyes. It makes me feel excited to see him this way. I love how he is still calm and in control even if we are in a world where we do not really belong.

"Shall we explore some more? Or do you want to return home?" He looks sideways at me. I want to explore, but what if exploring messes up the world we know. He seems to read my mind. Another thing I love about being in his company.

"We will not engage with anyone. We will only look around. Maybe we will buy some food to take home." His voice is soft and soothing. I know he is dying to explore some more. I nod at him and smile. He returns my smile and takes my hand in his large warm hand.

He starts walking in the opposite direction of the bus stop and pulls me along by my hand. My heart is racing with anticipation.

Next to the diner is a car repair garage. There are a few men working on a very old car. As soon as the thought crosses my mind, I realise that the car is not all that old for the era we are wondering around in.

Brent nods and greets the men with a friendly wave. They all greet and wave back. I soft chuckle escapes my mouth. Brent looks down at me.

"What is so funny, little sapling?" he asks

"I was just thinking, the world I ran away from was so rude. Nobody ever greeted anyone anymore. People would walk past you and not see you at all. Even if they bumped into you, they would not acknowledge your existence." I look over to the men working on the vehicle. "Here, everyone is friendly. Greeting strangers and talking to us as though they know us." I shrug. "It's a refreshing change, I guess."

Brent smiles at me.

"I am sure if we went back further in time, people would be even more friendly." Brent stops walking when we reach a small supermarket. He smiles at me and tugs my arm to follow him inside.

We both take a basket at the door and slowly start to wander into the store. The music playing over the speaker system makes me think of typical old-time movies. It is not tuned to a radio station they way it would be in modern day.

We start at the furthest isle and brows the products on the shelves. Brent picks up a packet of pasta and turns to me. He looks like he is stifling a laugh. He bends a bit to me and whispers "There are no expiry dates on these products."

I chuckle softly. That would be a problem in modern day. Apparently, it wasn't that important thirty years ago.

Brent takes some fresh products from the shelves. I fill my basket with snacks. I notice a distinct difference between the products on these shelves and the memory I have of shopping in the modern day. There are far less variety. Where we also have more options regarding size of products.

Whenever Brent finds something noteworthy, he would show it to me and smile a strange smile. It happened a lot since all the products had old logos or old branding.

We meet at the pay point and Brent pays for our products. The lady packs it into paper bags and we each take one before walking out of the store.

"I absolutely enjoyed that!" Brent says as we walk back to the bus stop where we came from.

"So did I" I told him. Then it dawned on me. He must not be the one doing the shopping in his household.

"Who usually does your shopping?" I ask him, a little scared that he would tell me that there is a woman taking care of the necessities in the house.

"Well, that would be Maude. She runs the entire place, really." He seems to be wondering for a moment. "I have never really taken much notice of all the small things she does. Sometimes days go by without me even seeing any of the help around the house."

He looks over at me while we walk side by side to the bus stop "and you?"

"I am a huge fan of online shopping. I have everything delivered to me. If I cannot order it online, I would really just go without it." I look at him and am a bit surprised to see his eyebrows raised to its highest possible point.

"I know it is not the most normal thing in the world but I am a bit of a recluse and prefer not to leave my house." I offer as an explanation.

We reach the bus stop just as the bus pulls in next to it.

Brent helps me onto the steps with his one hand and then follows after me. He stops next to the bus driver and bends down to whisper in his ear. He then takes coins from his pocket and hands it to the bus driver. The bus driver smiles broadly and nods while saying thank you.

Brent follows me down the isle and comes to sit next to me.

"I settled my debt to the bus driver." Brent says as he settles in next to me.

"From the look on his face I am sure you more than settled it."

"True" Brent smiles.

During the drive out to the bus stop close to the portal we both fall silent. Each of us lost in our own thoughts. I wonder what Brent is thinking about. Would he like to go back to see his wife and child? I did ask him this question when we were hiding beneath the stairs. It is easy to say no to something if there is no possibility of having what you are offered. Would his answer differ now that he knows there is a real possibility of him seeing his wife and child?

"What is causing that frown, little sapling?" Brent's soothing voice pulls me from my thoughts.

"I was just thinking about today" I lie to him.

The bus pulls to a stop in front of the bus stop and Brent nods to me.

"This is us" he tells me.

I get up and carry my paper bag of snacks to the front of the bus. The bus driver greets me with a lot of enthusiasm. I smile sweetly at him and tell him goodbye. Brent follows me off the bus.

We walk through the bushes towards the little building that holds the portal to our time.

I feel nervous when we reach this point. I know I am an overthinker and this makes me feel paranoid. My mind keeps asking questions like, what if someone sees you go in and then follows you through? What if you open the door and someone is already inside?

I look around over my shoulder to make sure nobody sees us. Brent opens the door and we both slip into the small building. As soon as the door closes a shiny knob becomes visible on the opposite wall.

Brent reaches over to open the door and a feint light comes in. We walk through the second door and Brent closes it behind us.

We stand a moment to look at each other.

"What a difference!" Brent almost exclaims

"Yes, this basement is freezing! I miss the sunshine on the other side." I tell him.

Brent makes his way to the oil lamps and put a few on to light up the room. I pack the snacks out on one of the shelves. Brent makes us each a hot drink while I make myself comfortable on the bed between the blankets.

Brent brings my drink to me and makes himself comfortable beside me.

"I have to tell you Lubelle, that was one of the most interesting days I have ever had." Brent tells me with a bright broad smile.

"It was a lot more fun going there with you than the previous time I went alone." I tell him as I take a sip of my drink.

Brent goes silent and he seems to be staring into nothing. I wonder if he is thinking about his family. I like Brent. I do not want him to feel pain. If I ask him and he wasn't thinking about them, he would definitely start thinking about them and that may open old wounds.

"You know how someone would say, "Now I have seen everything", I think I have really now seen everything." Brent tells in a distant voice. "I don't think you could tell me anything now that would really surprise me" Brent looks over at me.

"My real name is Stella" I blurt out and take great pleasure in seeing Brent's eyebrows shoot up again.