Sativa

"Why do you always have to try to control me? "Anna demanded

"Regardless of how you feel, the answer is No Anna," her mother responded in kind.

"I can't deal with you; you don't let me do anything!"

"That's rich coming from a freeloader."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You'll know one day when you have kids."

"At this rate, I wouldn't burden the world with your genes."

Ella Joy stopped stirring the pot of stew as her tempestuous daughter continued to spew insult after insult. Typical teenage behavior, she thought. And so were late nights who knew what in a small town with hardly anything to do. Being a typical teenager just wasn't in the cards for Anna.

Anna stormed out of the house and off the back porch. The day was barely starting to heat up, but the humidity had already kicked in. Balls of sweat began to form on the back of Anna's neck as she walked aggressively towards the Old Barn and away from the house.

"Afternoon, Miss Annamae," DJ yelled from the animal pen. DJ was a local boy about a few years older than Anna. He had southern charm and wit and was plenty respectable, especially towards Anna.

"Hey DJ, not now gotta mellow out."

"Roger that," he said with a grin on his face and returned to his work.

Anna blew the hair from her face as she leaned against the open barn door. Her father had built the Barn himself before leaving the farm and unintentionally leaving his family in the process. At least, that's how Anna liked to imagine it. The red brick color was fading slightly, but the whole building had a beautiful rustic charm about it. About the size of a tiny home, Anna frequently fled to the old dwelling to connect and recharge. Anna started to open the various shutters to let in light and air. She didn't mind this task at all; it was her escape time, especially from her mother.

The greatest thing that she loved was that it was one big puzzle. Her father loved mysteries, so naturally, she followed suit. Every door, cabinet, staircase, and post led to a not-so-intuitive side of the Barn. One had to know the Barn and Anna's father to understand how to move around. She loved finding a new passageway or riddle to uncover and solve.

Anna walked into the Barn and began the task of opening the space. She walked up the staircase on the right, and after a few turns, ended up on the left middle wall. As she opened the shutters, creaking noises began to sing loudly.

"Better get the oil," Anna thought. She lightly skipped over to the fireman pole that would quickly get her to cabinets on the ground floor with all the fix-it supplies. Anna grabbed the bar and started to make her descent when a sudden electric charge ran through her body. Her feet hit the ground, and she immediately let go to stop the static shock.

"Jesus!" She exclaimed as she rubbed her hands against her worn-out capris.

She walked over to the cabinets and searched for the bottle of oil that she needed. She found an old and rusted canister in the back and made a mental note to let her mom know they needed another. She returned to the shutter and moved it, but there was no sound. Perplexed, she attempted to move it again, and still no sound. Oddly enough, this wouldn't be the weirdest thing that she would encounter in this Barn.

"Hello?"

The voice sounded familiar to Anna but more profound.

"Yeah?" Anna responded.

"Look, we don't want no trouble, but you better get outta here," the voice replied.

"What are you talking about?" Anna chuckled and made her way back to the opening of the Barn. She stopped mid-stride and dropped the bottle she had been holding. She couldn't believe her eyes. DJ stood in the doorway. Chiseled and more manly than he has ever been in her eyes. Was this a trick? He often played tricks, but how in the world was he pulling this off.

"DJ?" she exclaimed mid-gasp.

"Annamae?" he knew her instantly. He couldn't fathom seeing her again after all this time. He quickened his way in her direction and closed the gap between them. Anna felt confused and irritated.

"Alright, DJ, what gives?"

"Anna, I can't believe you're here."

"Are you mental? You saw me walk into the Barn."

"You're right about that, but I never saw you leave."

"I'm still in here."

"Anna, It's been years."

Baffled, Anna took a few steps away from DJ and looked around. The Barn looked worn down but no more than usual; same ole smell and everything in its place. Confused, she turned back to DJ.

"DJ, what's going on? Where's mama?"

DJ shuffled a bit before responding. "Anna, your mama passed a year or so ago. She drove herself crazy looking for you, and I guess she couldn't take the deathly silence of not knowing where you were. She looked for you every day; she never quit."

Tears started to appear in Anna's eyes as she tried to shake the disbelief away. With acceptance being a long shot, she rushed past DJ and towards her back porch and into the kitchen. The smell of beef stew and beer filled the room that seemed to be low-lit for some reason. She ran through each room on the ground floor to find the house like her own but with minor differences. For example, pictures of DJs family replaced her own and neutral colors on the walls and couches.

"Your mama sold me the farm and house before everything happened. Figured the whole thing shouldn't go to waste, I suppose."

Anna maintained her distance as she continued to search for some sort of explanation as to what was happening. The flatscreen on the wall blared in the background, but she was able to make sense of the newscaster's introduction.

Good evening, I'm Carol Shaw. Tonight, we will cover the decision of the technology-based magnet school and this year's annual tech fair to be held at the town square at 7 pm. Stay tuned for more details on the 2035 events. Next, we turn to Scott for the weather Scott.

"This cannot be happening," Anna whispered. It was nearly 15 years in ahead from when she stormed out of the house. But it only felt like a few seconds for her. She fell to her knees and started to rock back and forth before bolting to her room. Opening the door to her old bedroom, she found a rarely used makeshift gym. It felt cold and unused.

"I made some changes, but had I known…." DJ's attempt to lessen the blow didn't help.

"So, you're saying that I just jumped forward in time," Anna asked.

"I can't say a thing. All I know is one minute you were gone, and 15 years later, you're here."

"And mamas dead."

"She passed."

"Same difference. Okay, this has to be a dream, or I'm knocked out somewhere and need to be awakened." Anna started to look around again for evidence, clues.

DJ stared at Anna a moment in disbelief of her rationalization. Shaking his head, he rubbed the back of his neck and walked back downstairs. Anna followed while rapidly firing questions in his direction that she did not expect of him answering. He thought that if she felt any deeper, her head would explode with all the information she was trying to decipher.

"The Barn!"

"The Barn? What about it?" he asked.

"I have to go back to the barn." Anna raced back outside toward the Barn, and DJ followed. Before entering, she looked around again for clues. Anna walked in and stopped at the stairs, and took another look at her surroundings. Quickly she spotted the fireman pole, and her eyes got bigger. "That's it!" she looked around and spotted the old canister of oil she was holding and went to grab it before returning to the stairs.

Swallowing all his nerves, DJ reached for Anna's wrist, spun her into him, and planted a big kiss on her lips. Anna didn't initially pull away and allowed herself deeper into the embrace before pushing away lightly.

"What was that about?", she asked running her hand over her head and through her long hair.

"In case I don't get the chance again or still don't dare to do that when you get back."

Anna made her way up the steps and to the right of the Barn again towards the fireman pole. She nodded towards DJ, closed her eyes, and slid down. The same electrical current hit her with a bit more force for the return trip. The light had started to diminish from the inside of the Barn. Anna reckoned it was close to supper time. She walked out of the Barn and spotted DJ closing the animal pen. She ran over and gave him a hug and a great kiss.

"Whoa! What was that for?" although DJ was not complaining and wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Just taking a chance." She smiled up at him and heard a familiar sound coming from the house.

"Mama!" Anna heard her mother humming and ran towards the house. She found her mother on the back porch knitting a handkerchief on her rocking swing. She gave her a great hug as tears rolled down her eyes.

"Sweetie, what's wrong? Everything's going to be alright.", Ella Joy reassured her.

"I'm so sorry, mama."

"Love, it's okay. I love you; I know you're upset, but just don't go on growing too fast; you here? You got plenty of time to live."

Anna, speechless, held to her mother as they both rocked into the more relaxed summer night. As they entered the house, Anna turned to check on the old red Barn that started to flicker in the light of the sun setting.

Ella Joy turned and waved to DJ. He tipped his hat as she winked at him before going back into the house. Being a typical teenager just wasn't in the cards for her, Anna, and oh boy, did Ella Joy know that well.