“DAD!” I yelled at the top of my lungs. I just woke up from my reoccurring nightmare. My dad passed away only a month ago in a plane crash. His death destroyed our lives. My mom had to get a job that goes from seven am to nine pm, and I never get to see her. My sister spends all day sitting outside and staring at the sky. She is in a depressing state, she never talks anymore, and I’m scared for her. In my dream, I’m at the very back of a full plane. The plane starts to shake and makes sharp turns. I run up the isle to get to my dad to make sure he’s okay, yelling his name. But, when I open the cockpit door, a bright light flashes and I wake up sweating and more scared then ever. I know it’s not my fault, but I feel guilty, I really need him.

I walked downstairs in my bumble-bee pajama pants and a black tank top. My hair was wavy and out of control. It was another day, where I wouldn’t be able to say “Good morning dad” or “Hey dad”. I felt lost.

The kitchen was empty and there was a note on the table that said:

Shannon,
Your sister and I went to California to stay with your aunt. I need my sister at a time like this and she knows how to make me feel better. Kara can’t look at anything in this house without being reminded of your father. That’s why she spends all day outside looking at nothing. You are old enough to stay home alone; and I knew you wouldn’t want to go to California with us. And you get car sick, I wouldn’t be able to take Kara on a plane, I couldn’t do that to her. Keep the house in good condition.

Mom

I put the note down and looked around; I’m all alone. I walked over and turned on the T.V. A man with white hair in a purple tux with a yellow tie came on the screen. He looked way too happy.

“Do you wish you could rewind time? Or undo something, like the loss of a loved one?” I paused the commercial to think about what the crazy guy with no fashion taste just said. I felt like someone was watching my life and this was the perfect time to say something. I hit play. “If you said yes, you need the Nealca! It can undo any mistake! And, we’ll give it to you absolutely free! Call now!” Free? I thought, I knew something was not right. But I called anyway, I had nothing to lose.

“Type in your address.” The voice recording ordered. I punched in the address and in the next five seconds the doorbell rang. I felt like I was being watched, big time. I walked over, not sure at what happened. Maybe it was ironic, some one ding-dong-ditched. I opened the door to see a box to the door step.

I brought the box inside and put it on the table. It looked about the size of a regular textbook, and weighed nothing. I opened the box and saw a million squishy packing peanuts. I dug through and then I saw it. It was the size of a credit card but as thick as three inches. I picked it up and examined it. It was bright yellow it, almost hurt my eyes. It had nothing on it; it looked like it opened though. ZING! It flipped open and that’s where it got technical. It had a screen on top and numbers on the bottom. It looked almost like a phone. But, there was a big button on the right side that just said ENTER.

Where are the instructions? I asked myself. I looked in the box and found a paper that said in bold letters:

PUT IN DATE AND HIT ENTER

Simple enough I thought. I tried it out first with my 13th birthday; I remembered everything that happened on that day from the second I got up, and I knew the date was right. Then on the screen, I saw me in my bed waking up! I saw the birthday cards on my dresser that haven’t been opened. I watched as my mom gave me a hug and say happy birthday sweet heart. That is exactly what happened on my birthday! I hit ENTER. The room went pitch black and then I was in my room; without even moving. I looked around, and then I saw me! I saw me sleeping in my bed, it was like watching a video of myself, but I was actually there. I can’t believe this.

“BEEP BEEP BEEP!” my alarm went off. CRAP! I dove and hid under my bed. I watched as my feet hit the ground and walked over to the bathroom.

“What do I do?!” I was asking myself. I’ve never panicked like this before. I didn’t want to see myself and talk to me. That would be way to confusing and it might mess up something in the future like me being in a crazy house. Then I remembered what got me here. I pulled out the Nealca and typed in the present date. I saw my kitchen on the screen with the open package box. I hit ENTER. The room went black again and I was in my kitchen. I was on the tile floor on my stomach in the same position I was before. I got up and reminded myself that what just happened was real.

“It works!” I shouted! I put in the date where the grim reaper would take my father. I saw a plane on the screen, my dad was flying it! I hit ENTER. The room went black, and I was on the plane, standing in the isle. My nightmare was real now. I ran down to the cockpit as fast as I could. I elbowed the flight attendant to move and I opened the door.

“Dad?” I whispered. “Dad!” I repeated, but a little louder. I tapped on his shoulder.

“Shannon? What are you doing here?!?”

“Dad! Listen to me! The plane is going to crash! I came here to warn you!”

“What?” He looked at me like I was crazy. Then I looked up and saw that we were about to hit open water!

“DAD!” I screamed at the top of my lungs pointing to the window, which got everyone’s’ attention. I turned around and shouted to everyone to buckle their seatbelts.

My dad quickly pulled the controller up and we hit the water, hard enough for me to get shot forward and hit the water. It felt like hitting conrete. All the lights turned off on the plane and everything sounded like it had shut down. The plane was on the water. Some of the passengers got hurt, but the most damage was a broken finger. At least I know my dad is okay now, I did it.

“DAD!” I shook him, but he didn’t respond. He wasn’t moving. “Come on dad, wake up.” I shook him again, but he didn’t move. I typed in the current date and hit enter without even looking at the screen. I had to make sure my dad was alive. It was dark, and then I was in my kitchen, back home.

“Mom?” I called, but she didn’t answer. I looked around and saw the note that she left for me to read. It was the same one I read earlier. Dad was still dead, but why? I went back to save him. Then I remembered what happened. He wasn’t paying attention to the sky; he was paying attention to me. He saw me and took his mind off the flight. It’s my fault. I ran upstairs bawling with the Nealca in my hand. I went to my room and shoved my face in my pillow and cried for three hours nonstop. I still had the Nealca in my hand. I took it and hid it where no one would know where it was but me. I went down stairs and ripped the box in pieces and threw it away. I shredded up the instructions. There was no evidence it was my fault. But it was my fault, how can I live with myself?


Everything happens for a reason…right?