I'm Nine Again

I made my way to the bathroom with each step causing me pain as I walked. My parents" bedroom door was open and vacant. Walking through the kitchen, I could see my lemon cake sitting on the bench with the moonlight that illuminated the room through the kitchen window. The cake sat there in its baking dish, burnt to a hard crisp. I turned on the lights in the bathroom and an unfamiliar face stared back at me in the mirror. This face was beaten, battered and broken. A large bruise took up most of the left side of my face, running from my eye line and down to my lip which had a large gash on in. The other side of my face was colored red, blue and black with my right cheek swollen up. I turned on the tap and splashed some cold water on my face. My cuts and bruises pained as I did.

I couldn"t stay here any longer. I tried to help as much as I could but there was no point risking my life for this. Last night my father would have murdered me if my mother and aunt hadn"t stopped him. As close as I was to June, and as much progress that my mother had made with her alcoholism, this task was too much for me. I couldn"t remain in a situation where I couldn"t defend myself. I couldn"t fight back against a fully-grown man. This wasn"t the first time he had shown his violent side in the two weeks that I"d been here, and I knew that if, no, when he comes back, it won"t be the last. It"s stupid of me to stay here. I had knowledge of the future and I was wasting my time away here. I"m meant for bigger and better things than this. I had to leave.

I went to my room and packed my bag. I took some clothes and my notes and prepared to leave. Before I left the house, I wrote a note to my mother, and to June.

"For June and Mum.

When you read this, I"ll probably be long gone from here. I wanted to say that I"m sorry, but I really can"t stay. This living arrangement places me in too much danger. I need to find somewhere that I can thrive. Don"t worry about me, I have options and I intend to use them. I"ll apply to get a scholarship at a boarding school. I know that I"m smart enough to do so. I"ll be fine. Don"t wait for him to come home. You should both leave as well, seek help from government services. There are many that are available to help people in our position. Unfortunately, I won"t be along for that journey.

Mum, you"ve made a lot of progress lately and it"s been over a week since you"ve had a drip of alcohol. Words can"t state how proud I am that you"ve been able to quit drinking without any help. I know that alcohol withdrawals can be hard to deal with. Things are only going to get harder, but I want you to know that strength comes from within yourself. I know that you"ll be able to come out of this ahead and take on life with a newly ignited flame. Our relationship wasn"t the best, your husband being mostly to blame for that. I just want to let you know that I don"t hate you, so don"t hate yourself. I"m not leaving because of you, I"m leaving for me.

Aunty June, words cannot express how grateful I am to you. You have always taken great care of me. You were excited for my opportunities, encouraging of my pa.s.sions and wore a beautiful smile through all what life had to throw at you. Seeing you cry, seeing you hurt, it tore me up inside in ways that I never imagined possible. I never want to see you hurt, or cry, ever again. I want you to live your life to the fullest. You"ve always encouraged me to follow my dreams and now it"s my turn to tell you. You"re young and have many years left in front of you. Follow your dreams whatever they are. Leaving you is what truly hurts me the most, but I know that your pa.s.sion for life can turn around any negative experience that comes your way. Pick yourself up and move forward. We all need to move forward.

I have my own path to walk in this world. I know the both of you also have a role to play. Let"s not dwell on the past we can not change, but the future that we can forge. I"m sorry I can"t be there with you along the way.

I love you both and wish you both the best that life has to offer.

- Travis.

Tears were rolling down my face as I finished writing the note. I placed the note down on the table and turned to leave. The world was going to be harsh to me. No matter what power I had, what knowledge I had, I was going to have to face every new challenge head-on.

"Travis is that you?" a fickle voice called from Junes bedroom.

"Yeah," I replied, "I"m just getting some water."

"Are you okay?" she asked. It was my mother"s voice.

"Yeah I"m fine," I said.

"I love you," she said.

There was a pause. It felt like minutes, hours, years. My heart was beating. Slowly, and then faster. A pin drop would be able to be heard from miles away in this atmosphere. Tears continued rolling down my face.

"I love you!" I said.

I waited, a few seconds, a few minutes. I turned and quietly opened the door and slipped out into the cold and frosty winter morning air. The sun was still nowhere to be seen on any horizon. Quietly, I shut the door. I leaned my head against it and whispered.

"I"m sorry. I love you. I love you both."

* * * * * *

I walked far and for hours. I must have pa.s.sed through multiple different suburbs. The truth was, I didn"t really have a solid plan. I did plan to get a scholarship at a boarding school, but the words I"d written in the letter were a lot more promising than the reality of the situation. In truth, I didn"t really know where I was going. The only thing I really knew was that I had to get out of that situation. There was no reason change for me to use my knowledge of the future to change the world if I was stuck in an impoverished home being beaten all the time.

The sun had come up a while ago and the people were going about their day. Commuting to work, getting their morning coffees, going for their morning jogs. I walked into a quiet café just off the main road.

"Excuse me?" I asked.

The young pair, a male and female, who were working behind the counter turned to look at me as I spoke.

"Would I be able to do some work in exchange for some food and maybe a coffee?" I asked, "I don"t have any money, but I can wash dishes, sweep and mop, I can even clean the windows if you need them cleaned."

"s.h.i.t kid!" the man said, "What happened to you!?"

He rushed out from behind the counter and knelt to face me, looking at the discoloration of my face. Both were in their early 20s.

"Jacob, hold on a sec!" the girl from behind the counter said.

The rushed around and over to the newspaper stand. She picked up a paper and then came back over to me.

"What is it, Annalee?" Jacob asked.

She knelt down and slowly pushed the hood back from my face. She looked at me and then back to the paper, then finally back up at me again.

"This is you isn"t it?" she asked.

The front page of the paper a still shot from the footage that Laura and I had taken. The kids from school were in the middle of kicking me on the ground. Imposed over that image in the bottom left corner was another image of my bruised face and body. The headline read;

BEATEN, BATTERED AND BRUISED: Local school is a hotbed for child violence and princ.i.p.al does nothing to a.s.sure parents of their kids" safety.

After the hours I"d spent walking it was the first time I"d even thought of Laura and her family. Her mother Rachel wasn"t lying. She made me front-page news.

"Holy c.r.a.p!" Jacob said, "This is you isn"t it?" he asked, "Are these the kids that did this to you?"

"No," I shook my head.

"I"ll call the police!" Annalee said.

"No!" I said looking at her. It was the first time I"d looked up at them as they knelt for me, "I"ll tell you guys everything, but you can"t call the police."

My mother and June still needed time to get out of the house and get to safety. They probably hadn"t even woken up yet.

"I"ll work," I said, "I just need some food and a coffee."

"You don"t need to work!" Jacob said, "It"s fine, come behind the counter and we"ll get you something."

"You wanted a coffee?" Annalee asked, "Do you know how you like your coffee?"

I followed them both behind the counter as Annalee went to start making a coffee and Jacob grabbed a first aid kit from atop one of the fridges. He took a moment to apply a different a.s.sortment of creams to my bruises.

"I don"t know how to reduce this swelling I"m sorry," he said.

"That"s okay," I said, "Any ibuprofen should work.

"Wow, smart kid," he said.

After Jacob finished treating my face, we all sat down at one of the tables. I had food and a coffee while they both drank a coffee. I told them my story. Not all of it, I left out the part about being from the future, but I told them about the bullies, and the princ.i.p.al as well as my home life. That my mother was a recovering alcoholic and that my father was a domestic abuser. They sat there stunned for most of the story. Annalee let a few tears out here and there.

"That"s messed up!" Jacob said.

"So, you don"t want us to call the cops to give your mother and aunt some time to escape your father?" Annalee asked, repeating what I had said moments beforehand.

"Yeah," I said, "And I left because that just isn"t the place for me. If I stay, I might end up getting killed by my father, or worse put into child protection which isn"t much of a better option from what I hear in the news."

"Well you can come by this café as much as you want," Anna said, "We will always have a coffee and a feed for you here."

It turns out that they owned the café. They were a young couple who were saving up for a house but at the last minute decided to buy the café instead.

Looking up at the TV, I saw the horse racing, playing out on the screen. It was the 2002 Midyear cup. I remembered when I was in school. The teachers had gathered all the students into a big room, and we all watched the race. Us children had no idea what we were doing there, but now looking back on it the teachers probably all had some money on the race, and they wanted to watch it. This was my chance to do something with my knowledge of the past.

"There is no way you guys are going to believe me," I started, "But that horse race on TV."

"The Mid-Year Cup?" Annalee asked.

"Yeah," I nodded my head, "Number 1, Alcatraz is favored to win paying 1.05 odds."

They both looked at me confused. I remembered this race very vividly because all the teachers were making a huge deal out of it when it happened. No one would have predicted the outcome. No one now except for me. I was the only one in the world who knew who was going to win that race.

"When there are 200 meters left in the race, Alcatraz is going to stumble it will take out the six horses behind it, leaving only 4 more in the race. The winner of the race will be number 10, "Prince of Trot" paying odds around 26:1. The horse in second place will be number 4, paying odds of around 8.10:1."

"How could you possibly know that?" Jacob asked, "Do you watch the horse races?"

"I said there was no way you were going to believe me," I said.

Annalee walked over to the newspaper stand and started flicking through the sports magazines. She strolled back over reciting the prices.

"Number four, "Holiday" is paying $8.10 and number ten is paying $26," she said sitting back down and going over the numbers.

"I know there is no way you are going to believe me," I said, "That"s why I"m willing to work out a deal with you."

I knew the results of this race because the result was 10,4. It became a big joke. When referring to an upset at the racing tracks in the future, everyone would reference it as being another 10,4. It is also what spurred a large wave of animal activism. Out of the six horses that would stumble, five of them would need to be put down because of broken legs.

"That race isn"t for another few hours," I said, "I am willing to work for you for the entire day. I will clean windows, toilets, I"ll do the dishes, I will do any work that you want me to do. But I want you to put $100 on that exacta bet." I said.

"You want us to gamble on your behalf?" Annalee asked.

"When you put it like that, you make it sound like a crime," I said.

"It kind of is a crime," she said.

"Okay, then yes," I said, "I want you to commit this very small minor crime. All I ask is that when you win that bet, I get 25% of the winnings."

Annalee raised her eyebrows and looked over to Jacob who was thumbing through the pages of the sports magazine.

"Jacob?" she asked.

"So, you"re saying that you know for a fact that Alcatraz is going to stumble and that you know for a fact that the exacta bet for this race is going to play out as 10,4?" he asked.

"As I said, I know you guys aren"t going to believe me," I said, "I just need you to trust me, that"s why I"m willing to work for the whole day, and if my calculations are right, it should pay out $21,600. When you win this bet, and I know it will win, I"m asking for $5,400."

"Screw it," Jacob said.

"Jacob?" Annalee asked looking confused.

"I"m not going to place a bet on your behalf," he said, "However, I"m a gambling man my self and I was going to bet on this race anyway."

"Jacob you aren"t seriously considering this are you?" she asked, "Six horses stumbling and the results coming in 10,4?"

"Why not?" he asked, "It will be fun. If we lose, we lose. If we win, then we"ve met a psychic who can see the future. Besides, placing this bet will make it a really fun race to watch."

Annalee shook her head and smiled at Jacob. She then returned her gaze to me and looked at me carefully.

"You speak very eloquently for a 9-year-old," she said, "And you seem to know a fair amount that people your age wouldn"t know."

"I"m a psychic remember," I said poking my tongue out.

"Well mister psychic," she said, "I am going to make sure you work really hard today then."

"Also," Jacob said, "If we manage to win this bet, you"ll be getting 50%, not 25%."

"You really don"t have to," I started.

"No," he interrupted, "If this actually plays out how you say it will, then you"re getting 50%"

I didn"t bother arguing with him after that. I wasn"t going to turn down the extra money when it was being offered to me. I knew he was offering the 50% half out of disbelief that this bet would follow through, but I gave him all the information. If he wanted to offer me more money, then that was on him.

Jacob left after that conversation to go to the local betting agency and place the bet. I was put to work instantly. I started by sweeping the floors, then mopping the floors. It was a job that I used to do for my aunt and uncles" restaurant, but I was 18 when I did that. The job was a lot harder for this young body. Especially since I still felt pain in my stomach from my fathers boot the night before.

As the day slowly progressed Jacob had come back with the ticket and went back to work, the café br.i.m.m.i.n.g with people coming and going for breakfast, then lunch. Towards the end of the lunchtime, the café started becoming full of people who were getting some coffee and food, sitting around the TV waiting for the race to begin. The time inevitably came.

"Everyone!" Jacob called, "The race is about to start so I"m going to turn the volume up."

"Okay so we come down to the last race here today down at the Mornington race track and this is the one we have all been waiting for. Lights are red but the horses are making their way into the cages as I speak. We have Alcatraz paying out at 1.05 tipped to win the main event for today. The light showers we had earlier have cleared up and the track has been given the go-ahead by the crew on the ground and now all that we are waiting for is the green light. All the horses are now in the cages so any minute we should see the green light. And as I say it there it is, the green light is on and the race will be beginning any second now."

Everyone in the café held their betting tickets in their hand and started calling out the horses they had their money on. Jacob and Annalee were standing behind the counter, eagerly watching the TV. Jacob had his ticket in one hand, looking over it to make sure he got the bet correctly placed. Annalee had both her arms wrapped around his side as her eyes were glued to the screen. Jacob looked over to me and gave me a big thumbs up.

CRACK!

"And we are off! Straight out of the gate we have "Alcatraz" half a head in front of "Goldilocks". In third there is "Be my Hamburger." "Mixing Days" is keeping speed. Holiday pulling to the outside, looking to gain a head. Then it"s "Maxwell" "Chot Hocolate" "Dad"s Horse" "Prince of Trot" in 9th a head behind "Eat the Dragon" but taking the spot from "Options." "Options" pulling back to the inside to try and keep the pace. We are pa.s.sing the quarter-way mark now. It"s "Alcatraz" "Be my Hamburger" taking the second spot from "Goldilocks" who is now head to head with "Mixing days." "Holiday" working his way up head to head with "Goldilocks" and "Mixing days" but staying on the outside. "Prince of Trot" now pulling to the outside and pa.s.sing "Dad"s Horse" and "Chot Hocolate" still behind "Maxwell" but gaining. "Eat my Dragon" and "Options" bringing up the rear."

Everyone in the café was yelling at the TV screen. All of them were calling out different names to the screen as the horses ran. This was how I remembered the race going. I wasn"t too sure on the details, but I knew there were two horses on the outside. That was "Holiday" and "Prince of Trot." There were a few people in the café yelling out for "Holiday" to win.

"Coming around the final stretch now and "Alcatraz" is keeping the lead, "Be my Hamburger" and "Mixing days" close behind but fighting for the inside. "Goldilocks" is pulling to the inside trying to fight for a third place. ALCATRAZ IS DOWN! STUMBLING AT THE 200M mark!"

Everyone in the café roared! Some with excitement and others with disappointment. Jacob and Annalee shot their gaze over to me with a surprised expression before quickly turning back to the TV.

"On this inside "Mixing Days" hits the barrier and goes down. "Be my Hamburger" IS ALSO DOWN. "Holiday" JUMPING OVER FLAILING LEGS OF "Alcatraz" BUT THAT"S GOING TO SLOW HIM DOWN! "Goldilocks" "Maxwell" and "Chot Hocolate" ALL GOING DOWN! IT IS A MESS RIGHT AT THE FRONT. THE REAR HORSES ARE PULLING TO THE OUTSIDE NOW! "Prince of Trot" NOW FLYING UP THROUGH THE OUTSIDE! "Holiday" is back on the run but is he going to get up to speed in time? No, he"s not, "Prince of Trot" now taking the lead, "Holiday" coming up close behind him now. "Dad"s Horse" now coming in for a race to third with "Options" a head behind.

Both Jacob and Annalee had shocked expressions on their faces. The ticked that Jacob was holding in front of his face had now dropped to his side with his arm that also dropped. Annalee started yelling.

"COME ON! "PRINCE OF TROT!" she yelled.

"HOLIDAY!" A few people from the crowd started yelling.

"We are down to the last 50 meters now and "Holiday" is gaining on "Prince of Trot" but it doesn"t look like there is enough distance for "Holiday" to make this work! AT THE LINE AND "Prince of Trot" FLYS THROUGH A HEAD IN FRONT OF "Holiday." "Dad"s Horse" PULLS THROUGH KEEPING THE LEAD ON "Options." No photo finish needed today folks. The results are 10,4,7,8 for what is probably the biggest racing upset in this countries history. Exacta being a big 10-4 and 7 making a trifecta if anyone was insane enough to place it. This is unprecedented folks, you saw it here on Racing First TV network, it"s a big 10,4."

Everyone in the crowd started roaring. Some from anger. Some in joy as they may have placed number 10 to win the race. Annalee started screaming and jumping up and down, shaking Jacobs arm while she did. Jacob was holding his ticket in the air.

"10,4!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

People turned to him yelling and Annalee jumping up and down. Some of those closest to the bar started cheering for them.

"You had 10-4!?"

"Great work guys!"

"10-4, Dumb luck! Congratulations!"

Jacob held the ticket tightly in his hands as he started showing people the $100 he had on 10-4. People started quickly trickling their way out of the café, probably upset at the race. From memory, it was a really upsetting race. There were people who had placed their entire months" income on the favorite because the a.n.a.lysts were saying there was no way Alcatraz would lose the race. Annalee ran over to me with a huge smile on her face.

"I have no idea how you could have possibly picked that!" she said, "But I am so glad you walked into our shop this morning. You have no idea!"

Soon after, most of the patrons started to leave until eventually, it was just us three again. Jacob left to cash in his ticket and came back again. We all sat around the same table that we had sat around earlier on in the day. Jacob sat there counting out the money on the table.
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"$10,600. $10,700 and $10,800," he said. He pushed the money towards me. I hesitated for a moment. Even in my adult life I had never even seen that much money let alone owned it all at once.

"As we agreed," he said, "You get %50 of this." I took the money and placed it in my bag. I was probably going to need to buy a wallet or a better place to store my money than in my backpack.

"How the h.e.l.l did you know that was going to happen?" Jacob asked, "How could you have possibly known the 6 horses would go down and that those two horses were going to come in front with number 10 taking the race? I have been racking my brain about it ever since the race, but I can"t come up with a logical explanation."

"I"m going to be half honest with you guys," I said, "I can"t tell you how I knew that was going to happen. And I need you to not tell anyone else that I tipped you off about this."

Jacob and Annalee looked at each other with confused looks and then back to me.

"Are you from the future?" she asked, "Are you psychic? Do you know people who were in the racing industry and knew they were going to rig it?" she asked question after question, "How could you have possibly known that?"

"As I said," I started, "I can"t tell you how I know that. I just do."

"What are you going to do with the money?" Jacob asked.

"Tonight, I"m going to get a motel room. I can work out the rest from there," I said, "But now I have a small financial footing to support me while I get my life back on track."

"Are you going to be okay?" Annalee asked, "You"re just a kid after all."

"I"m a smart kid," I replied, "I"ll be fine."

The bell hanging on the store door began to ring. Jacob turned to face them.

"Sorry, but we"re closed right now."

Laura stood in the doorway of the café with a troubled look on her face. She walked over to me and placed her hand on my face.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"I"m fine, I"ll tell you all about it," she said.

"There"s a little bit more I want you to tell me about," she said.

I hopped up from the table and pulled her hand away from my face. She looked like she was about to cry at the sight of me.

"Laura, can you wait outside?" I said, "I"ll be out in one minute."

Laura obliged and walked outside the café as I turned back to Jacob and Annalee who were looking at me inquisitively.

"Who was that?" Jacob asked.

"Your girlfriend?" Annalee added.

"She"s not my," I started, "Look, I have to go now."

I looked over to Laura to make sure she was out of earshot. The door was closed, and she was looking in. I took a deep breath and started to speak. I had to warn these guys. They already knew a small bit about me so it wouldn"t be too hard for them to believe.

"In 2008, the global economy is going to crash," I started, "A lot of small businesses all around the world will go bankrupt and lose everything. It"s the result of banks lending money in a reckless fashion. I want you guys to be safe from that. If you want to survive the economic recession, sell this business before 2008."

"How could you know this?" Jacob asked.

"I knew about today"s race," I said, "Trust me when I say I know about what is coming. Just stay safe.

"If we sell the business," Annalee started, "And someone else takes over, won"t we then be the reason they are pushed into bankruptcy?"

"Yes," I said, "It will be a lose, lose situation. If you morally can"t, then that"s on you. I"m just giving you the knowledge before the fact. It"s up to you do decide what you do with it."

"You really won"t tell us who you are or how you know all this?" Jacob asked.

"No, sorry," I replied, "Thank you for the coffee and breakfast. I"ll never forget the kindness you two showed to me today. Goodbye."

I turned around and walked out of the café. No more words were spoken as I left. The bell rang as I walked through the door and came face to face with Laura.

"So my mother heard a story today," she said, "That there was a young couple in a café a few suburbs over. The young boy was very close to the café owners and when the race was run today, the café owners won. They won with a large bet on 10-4. A bet that shouldn"t win in a million years."

"What"s wrong Laura?" I asked.

"I won that same race Travis," she said.

I could see her mother waiting in the car across the street. The engine was still running, and she looked over to us as we spoke. I was confused. I had no idea where she was going with this.

"I told my parents to place a large bet on this horse race for me," she continued, "I told them that this race would be an upset. To place a large bet on 10-4."

My thoughts started running wild. It couldn"t possibly be. Well, it could possibly be, but I was having a hard time believing it. Laura told her parents to place a bet on the exact same race with the exact same winning numbers. A bet that shouldn"t be won in a million years.

"It"s a very funny combination of numbers," she said, "10-4. A very big race with a result like that. You"d remember those numbers for years!"

"Laura, are you?" I started.

"Travis," she interrupted, "Would you believe me if I told you that in 2016, Donald Trump would be elected as the president of the United States?" she asked.

"Laura," I started, not believing the conversation I was having, "Would you believe me if I told you that in 2014, a terrorist group known as ISIS would start one of the biggest wars fought in the middle east?" I asked.

"Travis would you believe me," she continued, "If I told you that in 2009 a man called Barak Obama would be inaugurated as the United States first black president?"

"And that one year earlier," I continued, "The world went through one of the worst economic collapses since the great depression?"

"In 2005," she said, "The worlds most popular video streaming service, will be invented. A website called YouTube."

"In one year from now," I continued, "The coalition forces of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America, will invade Iraq on the pretense of weapons of ma.s.s destruction, but none will be found."

"Travis," Laura said with tears welling in her eyes, "I"m from 2019. My name is Alice." She paused for a moment.

"I"m also from 2019," I said.

"My name is Sean."