Redemption

Later, David lay on his bed, watching the small silver orb as she “read” the books lying lined up on his floor. In this, she would hover over a page for a second, and then dart to hang over the next. Then, the page would turn, as if under its own power. To his amazement, she was so fast that she could read an entire book inside of a half an hour. However, all the more amazingly, she had perfect memory and could quote the books that she read verbatim.

When he fell asleep, he had a dream about being a brave explorer, out to save Miss Thatcher, whom Geometry problems held captive. In order to free her, he had to solve each problem. Then, he dreamed that he had trained beavers that made furniture with their teeth. When she woke him up the next morning, Click was ecstatically happy.

“I love learning!” She declared as he shook the sleep from his head.

At breakfast, Grandma gave David a catalog from Lemmings’ furniture store. To the adult’s stunned amazement, the magazine opened itself upon his laying it on the table. Then, the bracelet rose from his arm to form a ball that floated over the pages.

“She can read?” Grandpa astounded.

“Yes.”

“But she doesn’t have any eyes-Does she?” Ma asked.

“Not as we understand them,” the boy replied, watching as the pages turned themselves.

“But the pages are moving so fast!” Mary gasped.

“She doesn’t take long,” David laughed as the sphere floated back to form the bracelet on his wrist.

“The trick will be to craft furniture of high quality, but at an affordable price,” the image decided ponderously.

“Can you do it?” He asked silently.

“And how!” She smiled, “But, I have a lot more to learn before we can get started. Also, sadly, the library is closed today.”

“Do you want to go there after school tomorrow?”

“Yes,” she replied thoughtfully.

Now that his folks were slightly more accepting of her, they spent the better part of the morning asking David questions. These, eventually turned to be of considerable profoundness.

“Is she a spirit or something?” Ma asked curiously.

“No,” the boy relayed, “She is a physical being, just as we are.”

“Is she good, or evil?” Grandma inquired.

“She’s good,” the boy assured her, and then he added, “That is why she is glad that she has me as a host. Because she says that I am a good boy.”

“So, does she believe in God?” William pressed.

“She says that, because she learned her fundamental understanding of life from me, she believes what I believe. But . . . She is convinced that there has to be a God, as everything was created somehow, because it is impossible to make something out of nothing.”

“Does she have a soul?” Mary wondered.

“She is not quite sure,” he replied, “But, she thinks that she does.” Pausing, he listened once more. Then, laughing, he added, “If she does, she has already given it to Jesus.” This, above all else, endeared the entity to the adults.

A few minutes before ten o’clock, Mary got her sewing kit and material out. As she did, there was a small knock at the door. Opening it, David found Cathy waiting there.

“Hi!” He chirped.

“Hello,” the girl replied. Then, uncertainly, she asked, “Am I still allowed to come over?”

“Of course!” He assured her, swinging the door open, “Come in!”

Once she was in the sitting room, the adults greeted her and asked her if she wanted something to eat. To this, she replied that she would have a biscuit. Ma, however, insisted on her having more.

“You wait here,” she smiled, “A little thing like you can do with more than a biscuit!” She then went into the kitchen as Grandma and William began to take the girl’s measurements. Once they had these, they showed her the material that they had on hand. When all was decided, Ellen came in holding a plate of eggs, biscuits and hash browns. This she gave to Cathy, insisting that the child eat it.

Once the girl had eaten, she sat talking to Ma and Grandpa, as Mary sat looking at patterns and David listened. During this, she revealed that her grandfather had been a sailor, who had suffered an injury at sea, and now could only work as a janitor.

“For the moment,” Click assured in his mind.

A few minutes later, the old man broke out his checker game. Cathy opted to sit with Ma and watch David compete with the old man. Then, Ma read a story, as William made funny remarks to make them laugh.

When Lunchtime came, Grandma and Ma made sandwiches for the kids, while David taught Cathy how to play Checkers. As they ate, Cathy explained that she wanted to be a veterinarian when she grew up. He thought that this was a good thing, because he loved animals as well.

Finally, at the end of the day, the little girl got ready to leave. Before she could go, Ma hugged her and made her promise to come by and see her the next day. With her smiling nod, David walked her home. Reaching the path to her house, she smiled once more.

“Thank you for letting me come to visit,” she said, “I had a really good time.”

“Thank you for coming,” he replied happily, “I had a good time as well!”

When he got back to the house, the adults were talking in the sitting room. With his entry, he learned that this was about Cathy.

“I know that the poor thing was hungry when she got here,” Ma recalled in a voice heavy with concern, “It took her no time to clean that plate.”

“She’s as thin as a rail,” Mary added. Then looking at William, she reminded, “You saw how thin she is!”

“Yeah,” Grandpa agreed. Then, he nodded “And it is obvious that she misses her mother. Did you notice how she hovered around Ellen?”

“I noticed that as well,” Ma affirmed. Then, looking at her son, she apologized “But, I didn’t want you to get jealous.”

“I’m not jealous,” the boy assured her, “Because I asked myself how I would feel if I didn’t have a mother. So, I decided that I don’t mind sharing you.” At this, the adults rose from their seats and took turns hugging him.

“If I could hug you, I would,” Click said proudly in his mind.