Our TG Captionpage 16
written by... radel
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You pull Ben further into the cover of the overgrown hedges, your eyes fixed on Sarah and Alexa at the front door. Alexa is doing a surprisingly good job of acting lost and innocent, her youthful appearance lending credibility to her story. Sarah seems genuinely concerned, her earlier worried expression softening with maternal instinct.
"Okay, here's the new plan," you whisper to Ben, your voice urgent. "Alexa needs to create a diversion. Something that will draw Sarah's attention away from the front door, even for a minute."
Ben looks around nervously. "Like what? Should she trip and fall?"
"No, nothing that will hurt her," you say quickly. "Maybe she can pretend to see something in the distance, something that will make Sarah turn her back to the house. That's all we need."
You catch Alexa's eye and subtly nod your head towards the back of the house, then point towards the street as if indicating something interesting. Alexa, quick on the uptake, widens her eyes and says to Sarah, "Oh, look! What's that over there?" She points towards a seemingly random spot down the street.
As Sarah turns her head to see what Alexa is looking at, you give Ben a firm nod. "Now!"
You both dart out from the bushes, moving as quickly and quietly as your teenage legs will carry you. Your goal is the front porch. You need to leave the yearbook page somewhere Sarah will find it, somewhere that won't seem suspicious.
You reach the porch and your eyes scan for a suitable spot. The welcome mat? Too obvious. A potted plant? Maybe. Then you see it – a small stack of mail on a side table. Perfect.
With trembling fingers, you slip the folded yearbook page under the top envelope, making sure Ben's picture is facing upwards just enough to be noticeable.
Just as you finish, Sarah turns back to Alexa, a puzzled look on her face. "I don't see anything, dear."
It's your cue to get out of sight. You and Ben quickly retreat back behind the hedges, your hearts pounding in your chests. Alexa, sensing the shift, thanks Sarah for her help and says she thinks she remembers the way to the library now. She gives a polite wave and starts walking down the street, away from the house.
You watch as Sarah walks back inside, a lingering look of curiosity towards the direction Alexa had pointed. A few moments later, she reappears on the porch, presumably to check the mail or tidy up.
Your breath catches in your throat as you see her pick up the stack of mail. Her eyes scan the envelopes, and then they land on the slightly protruding edge of the yearbook page. She pulls it out, her brow furrowing in confusion as she looks at the faded image of a teenage boy.
You and Ben watch with bated breath as Sarah studies the picture. Her expression shifts from confusion to a flicker of recognition, then to utter disbelief. She brings the picture closer to her face, her eyes widening.
This is the crucial moment. Will she dismiss it as a strange coincidence? Or will something in that old photograph trigger a memory, a connection to the man she loves?
Sarah walks to the edge of the porch, looking around the neighborhood with a bewildered expression. Her gaze sweeps past the bushes where you and Ben are hiding. For a terrifying moment, you think she's seen you. But then, she looks back down at the picture, her fingers tracing the outline of the teenage face.
She whispers something to herself, her voice too low for you to hear. Then, she does something completely unexpected. She clutches the yearbook page to her chest and walks back inside the house, closing the door behind her.
You and Ben stare at each other, a mixture of relief and uncertainty washing over you. Did it work? Did she recognize him? Or is she just confused and possibly frightened by the strange picture?
"What do we do now?" Ben whispers, his voice filled with a fragile hope.
"We wait," you say, your eyes fixed on the closed door. "We wait and see if she comes back out. And we hope... we really hope that she remembers."
The silence stretches, each second feeling like an eternity. The fate of Ben's family, and perhaps your own, hangs in the balance, dependent on the reaction of a woman holding a faded photograph of a boy who is now, impossibly, a teenager hiding in her bushes. The Arbitrary Abeyance had thrown your lives into chaos, and now, you could only wait to see if a small piece of the past could somehow help piece the present back together.
"Okay, here's the new plan," you whisper to Ben, your voice urgent. "Alexa needs to create a diversion. Something that will draw Sarah's attention away from the front door, even for a minute."
Ben looks around nervously. "Like what? Should she trip and fall?"
"No, nothing that will hurt her," you say quickly. "Maybe she can pretend to see something in the distance, something that will make Sarah turn her back to the house. That's all we need."
You catch Alexa's eye and subtly nod your head towards the back of the house, then point towards the street as if indicating something interesting. Alexa, quick on the uptake, widens her eyes and says to Sarah, "Oh, look! What's that over there?" She points towards a seemingly random spot down the street.
As Sarah turns her head to see what Alexa is looking at, you give Ben a firm nod. "Now!"
You both dart out from the bushes, moving as quickly and quietly as your teenage legs will carry you. Your goal is the front porch. You need to leave the yearbook page somewhere Sarah will find it, somewhere that won't seem suspicious.
You reach the porch and your eyes scan for a suitable spot. The welcome mat? Too obvious. A potted plant? Maybe. Then you see it – a small stack of mail on a side table. Perfect.
With trembling fingers, you slip the folded yearbook page under the top envelope, making sure Ben's picture is facing upwards just enough to be noticeable.
Just as you finish, Sarah turns back to Alexa, a puzzled look on her face. "I don't see anything, dear."
It's your cue to get out of sight. You and Ben quickly retreat back behind the hedges, your hearts pounding in your chests. Alexa, sensing the shift, thanks Sarah for her help and says she thinks she remembers the way to the library now. She gives a polite wave and starts walking down the street, away from the house.
You watch as Sarah walks back inside, a lingering look of curiosity towards the direction Alexa had pointed. A few moments later, she reappears on the porch, presumably to check the mail or tidy up.
Your breath catches in your throat as you see her pick up the stack of mail. Her eyes scan the envelopes, and then they land on the slightly protruding edge of the yearbook page. She pulls it out, her brow furrowing in confusion as she looks at the faded image of a teenage boy.
You and Ben watch with bated breath as Sarah studies the picture. Her expression shifts from confusion to a flicker of recognition, then to utter disbelief. She brings the picture closer to her face, her eyes widening.
This is the crucial moment. Will she dismiss it as a strange coincidence? Or will something in that old photograph trigger a memory, a connection to the man she loves?
Sarah walks to the edge of the porch, looking around the neighborhood with a bewildered expression. Her gaze sweeps past the bushes where you and Ben are hiding. For a terrifying moment, you think she's seen you. But then, she looks back down at the picture, her fingers tracing the outline of the teenage face.
She whispers something to herself, her voice too low for you to hear. Then, she does something completely unexpected. She clutches the yearbook page to her chest and walks back inside the house, closing the door behind her.
You and Ben stare at each other, a mixture of relief and uncertainty washing over you. Did it work? Did she recognize him? Or is she just confused and possibly frightened by the strange picture?
"What do we do now?" Ben whispers, his voice filled with a fragile hope.
"We wait," you say, your eyes fixed on the closed door. "We wait and see if she comes back out. And we hope... we really hope that she remembers."
The silence stretches, each second feeling like an eternity. The fate of Ben's family, and perhaps your own, hangs in the balance, dependent on the reaction of a woman holding a faded photograph of a boy who is now, impossibly, a teenager hiding in her bushes. The Arbitrary Abeyance had thrown your lives into chaos, and now, you could only wait to see if a small piece of the past could somehow help piece the present back together.
What do you do?
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