Where Forgotten Things Go

“Can we go home now? We’ve been out here for hours.” Nancy whined, stabbing her shovel into the dirt. Despite her lack of tact, she was right; we’d been digging for at least four hours. As far as I was concerned, the longer I stayed out here digging, the less time I had to spend at home. Not much of a win-win situation, but I’d take what I could get.

“We can’t leave yet.” Ms. Liu replied, “We still have four more trees to plant. Evangaline, would you mind grabbing the other shovel?”

“Yes, Ma’am.” I hurried over to grab the shovel. Before I could get to Ms. Liu’s beat-up red Ford, my foot caught on something hard. I went sprawling to the ground, thankful it had rained that morning. I scrambled to my feet and brushed off the dirt, hoping Nancy hadn’t been watching.

I tried to glance around to check, but was momentarily blinded by a glimmer of light reflecting off something in the dirt. Curious, I crouched down to pick it up. It was small, hardly larger than a tennis ball, and shiny. I didn’t know we had geodes down here, I thought, watching it shimmer in the afternoon sunlight.

“Eva, where are you?” Nancy called. I jumped and shoved the rock in the pocket of my overalls.

“Coming!” I shouted back, grabbing another shovel out of Ms. Liu’s trunk.

“What took you so long?” Nancy asked as I handed her the nicer shovel.

“Tripped,” I said with a shrug. Nancy’s eyes narrowed. She didn’t believe that for a second, considering I was the most coordinated person she knew. This time, though, it was true. So why did I feel like she knew I was lying when I wasn’t?

I jabbed my shovel into the dirt and tried not to worry about it. After all, this wasn’t the first time Nancy had made me feel like that. She was a bit notorious for having that effect on people.

It took us another hour to finish planting the trees for Ms. Liu’s botany class before we could go home. I’ll admit it wasn’t the most exciting way to spend my Saturday, but I had nothing better to do anyway. Besides, Ms. Liu had offered free lunch, a ride, and five hours away from my parents.

Ms. Liu was known for her rather hands-on take on teaching botany. All of her prep work was optional extra credit for anyone who wanted to volunteer. Of course, most kids opted to spend their Saturdays at the movies or doing something with their friends. That meant the only kids who actually participated were the social outcasts. That left a total of three people who showed up every year without fail to help Ms. Liu with her gardening.

Nancy, Carter, and I. We had been unaware of each other's existence until we got tossed into homeroom together with Ms. Liu two years ago. Ms. Liu then not-so-subtly put us together on a group project. And suddenly, for the first time in my fourteen years of existence, I had friends. Two months ago, though, Carter had gone MIA, and neither of us had heard from him or even seen him. It sucked, sure, but these were to be expected in Middle School, right? People change. They move on, we just had to accept the fact that Carson had finally gotten tired of our little trio.

I stared out the window, ignoring Nancy and Ms. Liu arguing over the best way to have an egg. Nancy somehow managed to turn every conversation into a debate. If my parents knew I had friends, they sure would love her. Nancy might not be tactful, but if she ever became a lawyer, she’d be the best in the business.

It was raining by the time Ms. Liu dropped me off. If only it came three hours sooner, I mused, watching the droplets splatter against the asphalt. I thanked Ms. Liu and promised Nancy I’d call. Scrambling out of the car, I didn’t exactly rush through the rain; it was more like a clumsy trudge. I was biding time, and I knew it. I was a chicken when it came to entering my house.

“Again?! Are you serious, Richard? This is the third time this month!”

“Well, what was I supposed to do? At least I saved some!”

“It should’ve been all, Richard! I shouldn’t have to come home worrying about how much of the paycheck is left!”

“Well, maybe if you hadn’t -”

“If I hadn’t what? Richard. Please, by all means, explain to me what exactly it is that I did to cause you to make this mistake yet again. Come on, Richard, I'm waiting!”

And there it was. The arguing. The yelling. The throwing dishes. Well, they hadn’t gotten there yet, but give them a few minutes, and I’d have a lot of cleaning up to do. I stood in the doorway, trying my best to meld into the wall. Like most red-necks in the country, my father had gambling problems. And like most red-necks in the country, that didn’t sit well with his family.

I sighed and silently shut the door. Kicking off my muddy boots, I grabbed the emergency sandwich and carrots I stuffed under the floorboards in a ziplock bag. I noticed that my stash of avoid-my-arguing-parents-at-all-cost meals was running low. I made a mental note to refill it when I had the chance and hurried upstairs.

I tossed my food on the bed and glanced at the clock; it was almost seven, which meant I could expect another two hours of arguing and a missing father tomorrow. My phone buzzed. I reached for it in my pocket, but felt something else in there instead. I pulled out the object I had forgotten about. The rock was still shiny, but now, it was faintly glowing. Weird. But maybe it contained some rare mineral that glowed in the dark. Or a bioluminecent slug had slimed on it.

Realizing I’d gotten sidetracked, I checked my phone. It was a text from none other than Carter the Magnificent Magician himself. I wondered what could be so important that he was gone for two months, but suddenly decided to talk again on a random Saturday. I considered leaving him on read, showing him how that felt, but curiosity got the best of me, so I decided to see what was going on.

To my great dissatisfaction, all it said was: Hey, I found something really interesting in the old forest, if you need a break from, you know, meet me by Aunt Jolene’s. Seriously? I thought. That’s all? No explanation. No, “I’m sorry, I completely ignored you for two months”? Just an invitation to meet him at the diner? Ugh. Why did boys have to be so darn confusing?

He sent the text twenty minutes ago, so there was a good chance he was still there. Against all better judgment, I decided to take him up on that offer. My parents wouldn’t miss me anyway. I grabbed a jacket, tied my hair back with a bandana, and ran downstairs. After I pulled my boots on, I shot Carter a text that I’d be there in ten.

Carter waved when he saw my bike coming towards him. It seemed he hadn’t bothered to go inside during the rain shower. His dark hair was plastered to his forehead and sticking out in odd angles. Like always, his camera hung around his neck, and his jeans were splattered with paint.

“Eva! You came!” He smiled as I parked my bike, “Wanna go inside and grab a bite?” There was more to that sentence, but I wasn’t listening. I was too busy being angry. So, instead of my usual greeting, Carter got a slap to the face.

“Ow.” He muttered, rubbing his cheek.

“Where were you!” I fumed, “You disappeared for two months, Carter. TWO MONTHS. You can’t do that. You can’t just not call, not text, not show up at school, and expect me to be okay with that! I was worried! I thought you ditched us. It’s so not fair for you to just text like that and pretend nothing happened!” I was panting by the time I finished. I hadn’t realised how angry and scared I was until Carter showed up again.

“I know,” He said, eyes softening, “I’m sorry. Look, how about I buy you a burger, and I’ll explain while we eat.” He looked like he was about to continue, but suddenly got a weird look on his face.

“Wait, did you say two months?” He asked.

“Yeah…” I drawled, “Why?”

“No reason.” He opened the door, inviting me inside, “I just… didn’t realise it’d been that long. Anyways, we have burgers to eat!”

We sat down in our favorite booth and ordered a couple of burgers. I was kinda glad I wouldn’t have to eat a Ziploc bag sandwich all by my lonesome for dinner tonight. Still, I felt like something was missing. There was me, there was Carter. Greasy diner, check. Backpack full of random stuff, check. Combat boots, yep, still wearing those. Nancy blabbing, che- no wait, no constant drone from Nancy.

“Where’s Nancy?” I blurted. I thought I saw Carter blush, but it was gone the next second, so it must’ve just been the lights in the diner.

“I didn’t invite her,” He continued smoothly, “She really wouldn’t be interested in this kind of thing. Plus, I figured you needed a break from her, you know, since you didn’t have me to shut her up for a few months there.” He grinned. I rolled my eyes.

“I happen to like Nancy’s rambling, thank you very much,” I said matter-of-factly.

“Sure.”

“It’s true!” I laughed at the doubtful look on his face. It was nice having Carter back. At least I knew he hadn’t been kidnapped. But the whole not-realizing-it ’d-been-two-months thing was a little weird.

“Two deluxe bacon cheeseburgers for you kids,” Janice said, setting our burgers in front of us. They looked absolutely heavenly and smelled twice as good.

“Thanks, Ms. Jancie,” We answered, digging in.

“So where have you been?” I interrogated through a mouthful of food. Carter shrugged.

“Camping.”

“Where?”

“Apacia Forest. The old part.”

“Why were you gone for so long?”

“I was camping with my brother.”

“Makes sense. What’d you find that was so interesting?”

“You’ll see.”

“You’re impossible.”

“Thank you. You done going CIA on me yet?”

“Yeah.” I sighed. “Now finish that burger, I want to see this interesting thing you disappeared for two months for.” While I was done with mine, Carter was barely halfway through his burger. Partly because he didn’t ever talk with his mouth full, partly because I was an extremely fast eater.

I waited impatiently for Carter to finish his food. I waited even more impatiently for him to order milkshakes. I was almost bursting with impatience as I waited for him to pay for the food. As soon as we had our milkshakes, I practically dragged him out the door.

“Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go,” I exclaimed as soon as we got outside. Carter smirked.

“Patience there, Nancy.” He answered.

“I am not acting like Nancy.” I frowned.

“Okay, okay,” He relented, “It’s this way, come on.”

We set out into the forest. It was starting to get dark, so I was glad I brought a flashlight. Carter took us down a really dark trail that looked like it was older than the dinosaurs. I grinned. I would love to see Joanne Harper say she did something more interesting than this.

The farther we went, the heavier the air was. The trees seemed to groan under the weight of some invisible force. Fireflies dotted the sides of the trail, creating little lamps to light our way. I breathed deeply, the fresh smell of rain filling my nose. I didn’t care what anyone said; this was the best way to spend a Saturday.

Soon enough, we entered a large clearing. It was carpeted with soft green grass adorned with dew. A weeping willow swayed in the center, wind whispering in its leaves. As moonlight flooded the clearing, I took in the sheer beauty of it all.

“Whoa,” I mumbled, “This place is…” I had no words. None. There was nothing in the English language that could describe this place. It was magical. Everything about it.

“Yeah.” Carter agreed, “Look at this.” He led me to the base of the tree, and there was a little doorway-looking-thing that was filled to the brim with shimmery, glowing rocks just like the one resting in my pocket. On the arch was inscribed six delicate words. The earth remembers what we forget.

“What are those?” I asked.

“Stones that let you travel through time, to places that should not have been forgotten.”

Carter and I whirled around. Fear pumped through my veins. The speaker was a tall man cloaked in gray with somber features that matched his expression. He padded over to us and reached inside the arch, fingering the stones like they were old friends. There was something about the way he walked, the way his spidery fingers gripped the stones, that gave me the feeling he was as ancient as the tree.

“Who- who are you?” I stuttered. The man smiled.

“Forgotten.”

I raised an eyebrow. Was that his actual name? Just… Forgotten? Then I realised. We were not supposed to be here. But we were also in exactly the right place. I shouldn’t have the stone in my pocket. Yet it was destined for me all along. The man noticed my wide eyes.

“You understand what I mean. Don’t you,” He paused, “Evangaline.”

“How do you know her name?” Carter glared.

He didn’t like new people. He didn’t like random guys who showed up out of nowhere. I mean, no one did, but it was different for Carter. I thought back to the time his little sister got kidnapped. He was terrified she’d never come back. The guy who took her was tall and mysterious, too. I grabbed his hand, trying to be comforting. He didn’t relax, but he squeezed it softly. At least I knew he wouldn’t do anything stupid.

“I know the name of everyone who’s ever been forgotten, Carter,” Forgotten chuckled, “It’s my job, mine and the earth’s.”

“Then don’t you know everyone’s name?” I asked. Forgotten smiled sadly.

“No child,” He said softly, “I know the name of everyone who has ever been truly forgotten.”

“Oh.” I felt a pang in my chest. I shouldn’t be surprised. I wasn’t surprised. But it still hurt. Truly forgotten. It sounded so… final. That meant Carter and I really were outcasts. That was a tough feeling, not that I ever really had much hope that it was all in my head.

“You two are very special children.” Forgotten continued, “That is why you can see me. That is why, I presume, you are here. That is why the rocks glow around you and why you, Carter, were able to use them. Would you like to see more?”

Carter and I stared at him. Special? This whole situation was insane. I just found out that Carter had time-traveled for two months. That could not be normal. It was wrong. It was the kind of thing that you saw in a sci-fi movie, not real life! Was I going crazy? I felt like I was going crazy. I breathed in sharply, panicking.

I slowed my breathing and tried to calm down. There was no logical way to think about this. And yet… it all made so much sense. It all felt so right. I sighed. Nothing like two quirky kids going with a magical dude to see his world. Carter and I looked at each other. He raised his eyebrows. I shrugged. What did we have to lose?

“Let’s do it.” Carter and I answered.