Children in Time
Chapter 2
Wales Millennium Centre was crowded for midday. Samantha watched as people ducked in and out of the two main art galleries, a group of children just released from their theatre classes acted out a scene from a recent play, and lovers, mothers and children, friends, just strolling and enjoying the view; the view and a very sunny day. She brought her camera up and snapped a couple of pictures of the crowd. It was nice to see people enjoying civic centers and the waterfront as much as they did back home in Chicago.
A sweet breeze blew off Mermaid Bay and came ashore, ruffling her red hair. She chuckled as several people smiled, relishing the cool breeze. Hearing an argument start up behind her, Samantha turned on her heel and faced the other four people she had shared this trip across England with for the last three weeks.
"Get down from there!" Jillian stood with hands on her hips, her skirt and long black hair flowing in the breeze. "I refuse to pick up after you if you get yourself hurt or drown yourself in the bay!" Her brown eyes flashed as she stared at her friend.
"Oh come on now!" David looked down in the Bay.
"Are you trying to make sure people know we're not from around here? Go look at the kooky tourists!" Jillian looked to her traveling companions for some support. Sometimes she just needed a little encouragement. She was the youngest of the group of friends, but in her 27 years she had seen and done a lot.
"Can't I just have a little fun?" David put one of his legs over the top of the railing he was sitting on, so now he was straddling them. He looked over at Samantha and gave her a smirk. "See, Sam thinks it's fun. She's still taking pictures."
Samantha smiled as she snapped a picture of David, his t-shirt a dark brown to match his eyes. For being the oldest of the group, David sometimes acted like the youngest. He certainly seemed more like 12 than 34. His eyes were laughing as he watched Jillian, Elizabeth and Lynnae fret over him. He played coy, but he loved the attention when the girls fussed over him. A couple of times he had even called himself "Charlie" and them his "Angels."
"She would! You two are so much alike." Lynnae stuck her thumbs behind her braces and started running the thumbs along the material, up and down. "You know I don't like heights. Even when it's somebody else up there I don't like it. Tight-rope walkers even scare the crap out of me! You're just teasing me!" Lynnae then jammed her hands down into the pockets of her blue trousers as she glared at David.
"David! Quit fooling around. Don't make me get a cop or something to make you behave." Elizabeth tugged down her red waistcoat and gave David her best teacher glare. Being the next eldest after David, Elizabeth made sure he knew it.
"Fine, fine, fine. I know I'm beat when Beth starts pulling out the teacher looks," David said as he swung his leg back over the railing away from the water of Mermaid Bay. He hopped down and adjusted his dark denim jeans. "Which, by the way, is totally unfair. That's like a secret weapon, the teacher glare. I feel sorry for your prospective students."
Elizabeth stalked over and then smacked David hard in the shoulder. "You are such an ass sometimes."
"OW!" David began to rub his left shoulder. "I did not deserve that."
"Yes you did." Elizabeth then proceeded to whack David on the left shoulder again. She then turned her back to him and smoothed down invisible wrinkles in her black tailored trousers.
"Great. I should have known a month-long vacation would involve that time of the month."
Elizabeth whirled back around, her arm raised up. Samantha took a step forward but she was too far away. Lynnae nearly flew in between David and Elizabeth, her hands on each one's shoulders.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! You two-" Lynnae looked from David to Elizabeth.
"She's always making it physical-"
"He always pulls this stuff-"
"I always pull what stuff? If it wasn't for me-"
"We wouldn't have to get two rooms, you boy!"
"Boy? Excuse me? This is all man."
"Says who? You momma's boy."
"Don't you start-"
"I just wanted to go on holiday-"
"Then why aren't you paying for-"
"SHUT UP!" Jillian strode over and stood next to Lynnae, separating David and Elizabeth even more. She stared at the two friends and pursed her lips. Jillian put her hands on her hips and stuck her chest out. "Can't we just enjoy our trip? Do you realize how rare this is for all of us to be able to have a whole month off? Now, just quit bickering or go and have sex, whatever you two need to do to get past this."
"Ewwwww..." Elizabeth looked at Jillian like she had sprouted two heads. "Did you just suggest I have sex with David?"
"Yes. No. I don't know! Just quit arguing." Jillian gave a little pout and looked down at her black ballet shoes, her hair falling forward and partially hiding her face.
Lynnae put her hand on Jillian's shoulder and smiled at her. "I don't think they can quit. What else would they do?"
"Oh whatever!" David threw his hands up in the air and walked back by the railing. He leaned over, looking into the waters of Cardiff Bay. "Ask why she has been having such a problem with me being a boy lately."
"Actually, you have," Jillian said looking up at Elizabeth. She absent-mindedly smoothed down the gray t-shirt that Elizabeth wore.
Elizabeth's shoulders hunched forward. "Sorry. I didn't know how to tell you guys." Elizabeth looked out over the bay, her hazel eyes misting over. "Greg and I are splitting up. He didn't want me to take this vacation, but he was already starting on other little things. He can't understand why I want to teach, and he keeps accusing me of keeping secrets from him because I hang out with you guys."
"Then you don't need him," Lynnae stated, putting her other hand on Elizabeth's shoulder.
"You will always have us. Sometimes we're worse than family," Samantha said as she shouldered her camera and came up behind Elizabeth, putting a hand on her back.
Jillian shot David a look and slightly nodded her head towards Elizabeth. David rolled his eyes and ambled over to the group. He stood next to Elizabeth, hands in his pockets.
"Yeah, what they said."
Elizabeth sniffed and then gave a weak smile. "Thanks guys. Sorry I've been so bitchy lately."
"You were? We hardly noticed," Samantha snarked, smiling. She brushed her red hair back behind her ear, and looked around. "Why don't we continue exploring?"
"Sounds like a plan," Lynnae said enthusiastically and grabbed up her small brown leather bag. She started heading towards the stones and the water fountain. "Did you know that Cardiff goes all the way back to Roman days? Although, it was hardly a village then."
"Even now, there are only 317,500 people in the unitary authority area. If it weren't for the docks and the bay, Cardiff would have not become the city it is. It was due to the export of Welsh coal to areas outside the county of Glamorgan. The coal came from the Cynon, Rhondda, and Rhymney Valleys," Jillian supplied as they crossed across a big patch of concrete. "Oh, in fact, the village used to be called Glamorganshire."
David trotted forward, catching up with Samantha and whispering in her ear. "She thinks she knows everything, doesn't she?"
Samantha let out a light giggle. "It wouldn't hurt you to learn something new sometimes."
"Hey, I got my interests. What I don't know, I know where to look it up."
Samantha rolled her eyes and continued following the other women towards the fountain. She readjusted her leather coat. She looked around the Millennium Centre and smiled. It felt so calm here, so natural, especially being on the water. Except for some little things here and there, she could almost imagine she was home in Chicago. She came to a stop before she nearly collided into the back of Lynnae. Automatically she reached out and grabbed Lynnae's braces and let them snap.
"Ow! Do you mind?" Lynnae spun on her boot heels and huffed out her lips, puffing her nose at Samantha, fixing her with a pissy look.
"No, I don't."
"Ugh! Guys! I was just telling you how cool it is that Cardiff is built on limestone." Jillian stood there looking from one to the other.
"Never mind that, let's check out the fountain," David interjected.
"It's really cool," Elizabeth said as she looked up at the top of it.
"It's neat. Hey!" Samantha turned to them and brought her camera forward. "How about we get a group shot of you guys in front of it?"
"Oh, okay," Jillian said as she stepped back.
"You're always taking the pictures, why don't you get in the shot," Lynnae entreated.
"And just how do I do that?" Samantha waved her camera and her hand at Lynnae.
"Ask that couple over there," Lynnae said, nodding her head at two older gentlemen across the concrete from them.
"Couple? How do you know that," Elizabeth asked.
"They're holding hands and nearly cuddling. Oi!" Lynnae briskly started walking towards the couple, snatching the camera out of Samantha's hands as she walked past.
"Hey!' Samantha didn't even get a response from Lynnae. She watched as Lynnae talked to the two men and she could see her explaining how to use the camera. Lynnae suddenly started walking back towards them with the two men in tow and gave the group a thumb up. Samantha let out a sigh and started herding the others over by the fountain.
"This is Steve and Paul," Lynnae said as she pointed to the two men. "They said they would be happy to take our picture for us."
"Not a problem," the dark haired man said, smiling.
"Thanks," Lynnae said as she grabbed Samantha by the shoulder and they got into the picture.
Samantha took the end spot and looked to her right. There stood Jillian, Elizabeth, Lynnae, David and then her, with the fountain a brilliant background behind them, its cascading waters sparkling in the sunlight. The man took the picture and then held the camera out to them.
"Thanks so much," Lynnae said as she took the camera back.
They watched the two men take each other's hand and walk back across the Centre. A cloud rolled across the sun and Samantha looked up as the sky darkened. A shiver traipsed down her spine and Samantha tried to shake it off. She adjusted her backpack, hearing the plethora of badges attached to it jingle against each other.
"Where to next?" Lynnae tapped her heeled boots against the concrete as she shoved her hands back into her pockets.
"Well, in the Centre itself are at least two art galleries, and one is always open to the public." Jillian looked towards the building.
"I saw a sign for a tourist office somewhere around here. How about I go and grab some brochures?" Elizabeth looked to the others.
"Ohhh... okay then." Jillian wrapped her sweater coat around herself tightly.
"I'll go with you," David piped up.
Elizabeth gave David a particularly nasty look. "Why?"
"Because, dork, they might have a bathroom or something. I swear, I think we have hit every coffee and tea shop from here to the Thames." David started waving his hand, giving Elizabeth the signal to get going.
"Oh whatever! If it was up to you we would have hit every pub from here to Glasgow," Elizabeth said as she started walking away from their little group.
"There is nothing wrong with hitting a pub every so often. Definitely more fun than your little old lady tea houses." David ran to catch up with Elizabeth.
"You just don't like it because there are no women, or men, for you to make out with in the coffee shops. They have actual class."
Samantha couldn't make out the rest of the conversation as they took off across the Centre. She turned back to the fountain and saw the sun trying to break through the clouds as a random ray flitted across the stones. Samantha changed the F-Stop and was able to hold the exposure for long enough to get a sparkling shot.
"Remind me to ask them if there were any cute postcards I could mail to little Eve. She loves collecting them." Jillian cocked her head to the side just staring at the fountain and tried to pat down a wind-blown strand of hair.
Lynnae came up and put her arm around Jillian's shoulders. "Hey, never mind them. You're brilliant and they don't realize what they are missing out on." She turned her head and looked Jillian in the eyes. "And you are a great mother. Eve is a lucky little girl."
"Thanks." Jillian looked down and started picking at her nails. "I was worried about leaving her, this is the longest I have been away from her since she was born, but she seems to be having a blast staying with her grandparents and playing with her cousins when they visit."
"Hey, she learned to roll with the punches from you. She's one smart cookie and so are you." Lynnae reached up with her hand, and stroked the younger woman's hair.
Jillian looked up at Lynnae and smiled wanly. "Thanks," she mumbled. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but I am parched. I'm just going to run inside to that coffee shop we saw a little bit ago and grab some drinks. Caffeine all around?"
"Sure," Samantha said. "Need some cash?"
"Nah, I got it," Jillian said as she turned around and started briskly walking away, getting swallowed up by the crowd.
"Now that they are gone, how about some fun of our own," Lynnae said suggestively as she raised an eyebrow.
There was a pause as both Lynnae and Samantha looked at each other. Lynnae then reached into her little handbag and pulled out a rather small digital camera. Samantha closed her eyes and shook her head and put her camera strap around her neck.
"You are incorrigible," Samantha stated.
"Yes, but you love it." Lynnae smirked at Samantha.
"Whatever." The two women started taking different pictures around the Roald Dahl Plass, eventually winding their way back to the fountain.
"Did you get a shot of the couple by the-"
"Well, duh. I also got an awesome shot of the sun behind the roof of the building." Samantha shot a satisfied smug look to Lynnae.
"Oh, it's so on then." Lynnae began concentrating on her camera and trying to find a great shot to one-up Samantha.
When it came to certain things, like photography, Lynnae and Samantha could be quite competitive, almost to the point of seeming rude to outside observers, but it was mutual admiration. Some of their friends back home even joked that maybe they were sisters in a past life. Samantha had just taken a great people "feature" shot to possibly use in another book, or at least to look at for inspiration for her next novel, when she looked up and didn't see Lynnae.
"Hey!" Samantha quickly spun around, and was relived to see Lynnae walking next to the fountain. She was concentrating so much on her camera she wasn't even looking where she was going. "Watch out for-"
Samantha swallowed her words as she saw Lynnae take a step forward and plummet through a hole in the ring of stones around the fountain. Samantha dashed over, skidding to a halt in front of the hole, which looked too dark; especially knowing it had just swallowed up Lynnae. She looked down into the recess and saw Lynnae lying face down on a slab of cement. A slab of cement that seemed to be moving towards them, and Lynnae was sprawled on top of someone.
"What the fuck?"
A brunette woman standing next to the two flat people looked up at Samantha with wide eyes. She then looked back down at the pair. "Jack? Are you okay?"
Samantha could not hear the man's comments due to the distance and the fact that he was buried under Lynnae. The slab of cement kept approaching her and she could see that Lynnae's head was hanging over the side of the cement, and so was the man's.
"Lynnae? Lynnae are you okay?"
Lynnae shook her head meekly from side-to-side. As they got closer, Samantha could see Lynnae's white knuckles gripping the man's coat. The man seemed to be trying to get her up or something. Samantha couldn't quite tell.
"Lynnae, is anything broken? Are you hurt?"
Samantha could not hear Lynnae's response because she suddenly buried her head in the man's shoulder and Samantha could see the girl start to shake. She understood why when she saw beyond the cement slab and saw the drop that Lynnae was getting a full view of. She had always joked, but never meant it, that Lynnae's fear of heights would be the death of her.
She looked on with fear as she saw the cement slab rapidly closing in on her and realized that Lynnae and the man would be crushed if they didn't move, but knowing Lynnae she was probably frozen with fear. Very few things made Lynnae fearful, and here she was face-to-face with one of them. Samantha shoved her camera down deep into her backpack and dropped it to the ground. She fell to her knees next to the hole. She saw one young punk-looking guy regard her oddly as he walked past and she wondered why he didn't stop to help.
"Lynnae! Listen to me! Don't look around, just get up. Get up on your knees at least, and let the man get up." Samantha looked at the increasing short space and she could hear Lynnae's whimpers they were so close. "Damn it Lynnae! I am not telling your parents you died in Wales! Stand up please, or at least take my hand."
Samantha reached down into the hole; this was how close they were. She could just touch the brunette's hair. The brunette looked from Samantha to Lynnae and the man and quickly stooped down and grasping the man's lapels on his coat, she heaved both the man and Lynnae up to a sitting position, just narrowly missing hitting their heads on the ground under Samantha's feet. Samantha fell back on her heels and let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in.
The man struggled with Lynnae, but she would not let go of him, burying her head in his chest, still whimpering. With the help of the brunette, the man stood up, and Lynnae looked like if she could, she would be sharing the man's long gray coat with him.
Samantha stood up and walked towards them. She gently placed a hand on Lynnae's back and could feel the shudders still echoing through the girl's body. "Lynnae, it's okay. It's okay now. Let the good man go so we can see if you're hurt." She moved her free hand over Lynnae's left hand and started to pry the woman's fingers off the man's coat.
Lynnae's hand slowly uncurled and Samantha tugged it free. She then moved between Lynnae and the man and pried her right hand off the other side of the man's coat. Once Lynnae was free of the man, Samantha set her down on a stone two feet away from where the hole had been, but Lynnae still looked at the spot she had fallen through warily. Samantha caught the brunette following Lynnae's gaze and then looking at the man strangely.
She looked down into Lynnae's tear-streaked face. "Did you break anything? Hit anything? Hurt your ankle when you fell," Samantha asked as she began to check over Lynnae's white hands and arms for scratches.
Lynnae shook her head no and then looked down, trying to breathe deeply.
The brunette walked over and crouched down in front of Lynnae. "Are you sure you're okay, sweetheart?"
"She'll be fine, once I get her calmed down. I tried to warn her about the hole, but I guess we were too pre-occupied." Samantha tried to smile warmly at the man and the brunette but inside her head she was still mentally checking over Lynnae.
The man crossed his arms across his chest. "Are you telling me you can see the hole in the ground?"
"Well not anymore, it closed up," Samantha snapped.
"And she walked right into it," the brunette said as she stood up and stood next to the man.
"How else do you think she fell?" Samantha pulled a tissue out of her backpack and dabbed at a small scratch that was slightly bleeding on Lynnae's chin.
"I thought that wasn't possible," she could hear the brunette mutter.
"It's not supposed to be," the man replied.