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Authors: Janis Mackay
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back to the past. I craned my neck and looked up. I knew what I had to do. Just like when we were eight, I had to do doublers and jump with him.
I took a deep breath and reached up to the last rung.
16
Robbie was flying like a rag doll up in the air. Up… down, up… down, yelling “ WHEEEEEEEEE! ” all the time. He had his back to me. I stood on the edge of the board grasping the rail. Then I let it go and stepped forward. It’s called “stepping into the other person’s bounce” and that’s what I did. Just like on the trampoline when we were eight. Only now there was no net and we were waaaayyyy up in the air above an Aqua Park in the twenty-second century. Robbie landed, whooping wildly like he didn’t have a care in the world. As soon as he took off again I sprung, pushed up by the force of his jump. So far he wasn’t aware someone was behind him. He landed again, took off and immediately after, I was hurled up. If this wasn’t terrifying it would have been brilliant fun. I spotted the steeple of the church. That hadn’t changed in a hundred years. I saw the hills of Glentress. They hadn’t changed either. I didn’t jump as high as he did. We were going to land together. “Isn’t this great, Robbie,” I said, breathless, not too loud and as calmly as I could.
But he heard me. We landed together and took off together. “Legend,” I heard him say. We were soaring in the air, then we were plummeting downwards. We landed and took off again. “Mythic!” he yelled.
With each jump I slowed down. I affected his bounce.And I spoke to him, gasping and panting like mad but trying hard to sound really relaxed. “Good to find you, Robbie, pal. You’re ok. Let’s take a rest, eh?”
And whether he noticed or not we gradually came to jump lower and lower, then we stopped, and he turned round. His face was beetroot. His eyes were gleaming. Sweat was running down his face.
“Just like that party,” I said, trying to forget we were practically in the clouds. “That was great, Robbie.”
He stared at me, like he didn’t believe his eyes. “Yeah,” he gasped.
I took half a step back towards the ladder. “Probably need a swim after that, eh?” I took another half-step. He stepped towards me. “They’ve got these cool shower-spray things, and bubble pools. That would be good, eh?”
“Yeah,” he said again.
“And a cold drink.” I took another step back. “Do you think they’ll have Irn-Bru?”
But Robbie just stared, flushed, half-mad looking.
I was almost at the rail, feeling for it with my arms out behind me, gingerly reaching back with my toes.
But just then Robbie looked over the edge, gasped, wobbled, yelled out, sunk to his knees and grabbed the edges of the diving board. A cry rose from below.
“You’re fine, Robbie,” I said. I reached one hand behind me, grasped the rail and with my other hand stretched forward. “Robbie, give me your hand. Don’t look down, ok? Whatever you do, don’t look down.” I tried to put on a firm commanding voice, the way I imagined a pilot would speak to his passengers before a crash landing. It worked. Whimpering, Robbie stretched his hand towards me, but I couldn’t reach it. “Just move bit by bit,” I said. “You can do it.”
Then he peered up at me, like he suddenly realised who it was. He didn’t look so wild-eyed any more. “I did it, Saul,” he said.
“Yeah, Robbie, you did it.” I didn’t know if he meant the time travel or the diving board, but now wasn’t the time to find out. “You did it,” I said again, encouraging him.
He dragged himself across the board towards me. I grabbed his hand and pulled him the rest of the way. We reached the ladder. “I’ll go down first,” I said, “and you come right after me. And don’t look down, ok, Robbie?”
“Ok, Saul.”
17
At first Robbie didn’t say a word climbing down, but about halfway he started coming out with random stuff, like, “Have you done your maths
I took a deep breath and reached up to the last rung.
16
Robbie was flying like a rag doll up in the air. Up… down, up… down, yelling “ WHEEEEEEEEE! ” all the time. He had his back to me. I stood on the edge of the board grasping the rail. Then I let it go and stepped forward. It’s called “stepping into the other person’s bounce” and that’s what I did. Just like on the trampoline when we were eight. Only now there was no net and we were waaaayyyy up in the air above an Aqua Park in the twenty-second century. Robbie landed, whooping wildly like he didn’t have a care in the world. As soon as he took off again I sprung, pushed up by the force of his jump. So far he wasn’t aware someone was behind him. He landed again, took off and immediately after, I was hurled up. If this wasn’t terrifying it would have been brilliant fun. I spotted the steeple of the church. That hadn’t changed in a hundred years. I saw the hills of Glentress. They hadn’t changed either. I didn’t jump as high as he did. We were going to land together. “Isn’t this great, Robbie,” I said, breathless, not too loud and as calmly as I could.
But he heard me. We landed together and took off together. “Legend,” I heard him say. We were soaring in the air, then we were plummeting downwards. We landed and took off again. “Mythic!” he yelled.
With each jump I slowed down. I affected his bounce.And I spoke to him, gasping and panting like mad but trying hard to sound really relaxed. “Good to find you, Robbie, pal. You’re ok. Let’s take a rest, eh?”
And whether he noticed or not we gradually came to jump lower and lower, then we stopped, and he turned round. His face was beetroot. His eyes were gleaming. Sweat was running down his face.
“Just like that party,” I said, trying to forget we were practically in the clouds. “That was great, Robbie.”
He stared at me, like he didn’t believe his eyes. “Yeah,” he gasped.
I took half a step back towards the ladder. “Probably need a swim after that, eh?” I took another half-step. He stepped towards me. “They’ve got these cool shower-spray things, and bubble pools. That would be good, eh?”
“Yeah,” he said again.
“And a cold drink.” I took another step back. “Do you think they’ll have Irn-Bru?”
But Robbie just stared, flushed, half-mad looking.
I was almost at the rail, feeling for it with my arms out behind me, gingerly reaching back with my toes.
But just then Robbie looked over the edge, gasped, wobbled, yelled out, sunk to his knees and grabbed the edges of the diving board. A cry rose from below.
“You’re fine, Robbie,” I said. I reached one hand behind me, grasped the rail and with my other hand stretched forward. “Robbie, give me your hand. Don’t look down, ok? Whatever you do, don’t look down.” I tried to put on a firm commanding voice, the way I imagined a pilot would speak to his passengers before a crash landing. It worked. Whimpering, Robbie stretched his hand towards me, but I couldn’t reach it. “Just move bit by bit,” I said. “You can do it.”
Then he peered up at me, like he suddenly realised who it was. He didn’t look so wild-eyed any more. “I did it, Saul,” he said.
“Yeah, Robbie, you did it.” I didn’t know if he meant the time travel or the diving board, but now wasn’t the time to find out. “You did it,” I said again, encouraging him.
He dragged himself across the board towards me. I grabbed his hand and pulled him the rest of the way. We reached the ladder. “I’ll go down first,” I said, “and you come right after me. And don’t look down, ok, Robbie?”
“Ok, Saul.”
17
At first Robbie didn’t say a word climbing down, but about halfway he started coming out with random stuff, like, “Have you done your maths