One Day in the Past – Chapter 4 – Testing the Day
Lucas is sitting on the bus next to Marta.
She is looking at him carefully.
“Lucas, what are you talking about?” she asks. “How can today happen again?”
Lucas sighs.
“I know it sounds strange,” he says. “But I remember everything.”
“What do you remember?” Marta asks.
“Yesterday morning,” Lucas says. “You ran to the bus stop. You said I was late. Then the boy at school dropped his books.”
Marta crosses her arms.
“That happens all the time,” she says.
Lucas shakes his head.
“No,” he says. “It happened exactly like this.”
When the bus stops near the school, Lucas stands up.
“Watch,” he says.
“What do you mean?” Marta asks.
“That boy,” Lucas says quietly. “He is going to drop his books.”
Marta looks at the boy.
A second later, the boy drops his books on the ground.
The books fall everywhere.
Marta stares at Lucas.
“How did you know that?” she asks.
Lucas shrugs.
“I have seen it before.”
They walk into the school building.
Students are talking and laughing.
Lucas looks around carefully.
“I have been here before,” he says.
“You come here every day,” Marta says.
“No,” Lucas says. “I mean today. I have lived this day already.”
Marta looks confused.
“That’s impossible,” she says.
Lucas opens his locker.
“I know it sounds crazy,” he says. “But I have seen all of this.”
Lucas takes out his history book.
“I don’t understand why this is happening,” he says.
Marta looks worried.
“Maybe you are just tired,” she says.
Lucas shakes his head.
“No,” he says. “Something strange has happened.”
He thinks for a moment.
“Maybe I can test it.”
“Test it?” Marta asks.
“Yes,” Lucas says. “If I have lived this day before, I can change things.”
In history class, Lucas is sitting quietly.
The teacher is writing questions on the board.
Lucas smiles.
“I remember this test,” he whispers.
“You do?” Marta asks quietly.
“Yes,” Lucas says.
The teacher turns around.
“Lucas,” she says, “what is the answer to question three?”
Lucas stands up.
He knows the answer.
“I think the answer is 1492,” he says.
The teacher nods.
“That’s correct.”
Lucas smiles and sits down.
“I knew it,” he says quietly.
After the test, Lucas and Marta walk into the hallway.
Marta looks at him with wide eyes.
“You answered that very quickly,” she says.
Lucas nods.
“I have seen the test before,” he says.
“Have you seen the whole day?” Marta asks.
Lucas thinks for a moment.
“I think so,” he says.
Lucas stops walking.
“I want to try something,” he says.
“What?” Marta asks.
“I want to change something small,” Lucas says.
“What do you plan to do?” she asks.
Lucas smiles.
“You remember the boy who dropped his books?” he says.
“Yes.”
“This time,” Lucas says, “I can help him.”
Lucas walks down the hallway.
The boy is coming toward them with a big stack of books.
Lucas steps forward.
“Hey,” Lucas says. “Do you want some help?”
The boy looks surprised.
“Uh… sure,” he says.
Lucas takes some of the books.
A few seconds later, the boy trips a little.
But this time, the books don’t fall.
Lucas smiles.
“See?” he says quietly to Marta.
Marta looks amazed.
“You changed it,” she says.
Lucas nods slowly.
“Yes,” he says.
“I can change things.”
But one question is still in his mind.
Why has this day happened again?
And how can he stop it?