A Different Virus - Laura's Story

Chapter 11

I was surprised to see that the bunkbed and dresser were already in Diane's room. I guess it was our room now and I was very glad that I got to stay with her. We got dressed up in our winter clothing and headed outside. The first playground we found had teenagers horsing around in it, so we kept walking. The next small playground had one girl about my age playing. With Diane's encouragement, I went to say hi while she spoke with another lady who was sitting on a tire swing.

The girl's name was Brindley and she was happy for someone to play with and soon we were trying to see who could go the furthest down the monkey bars without falling. She was winning by a lot, my arms just didn't want to hold me for more than three swings.

Diane came over, "Laura, I have to run some laps around the fort. See that track there? It is part of it and I will pass by on each lap. Can you please stay here and play with Brindley?"

I looked at her, "Can I come?"

She shook her head, "Not this time, maybe later when you are stronger and able to keep up."

I really didn't want to stay behind, but I knew she was right. At least I knew she would keep passing by. Her name was on my name tag as my guardian, so I knew that she had to eventually come back, "Okay, I will play here."

"Thanks Laura," she turned and headed for the trampled snow that must be the running track. She swiftly picked up speed until she was almost running before disappearing from my sight around the building. I had seen others jogging along that track while I had been playing with Brindley, so I already knew it was there.

I kept playing with Brindley although I paused and waved at Diane each time she passed by, she waved back. I took a small break on top of the slide to catch my breath as Brindley competed against a boy who had just shown up.

I turned my attention to those who had been jogging along the running track. The way Diane jogged seemed different than how the others jogged. Admittedly she was moving faster, closer to a lope than anything else. But there was something else I couldn't quite put my finger on.

I watched as other person jogged by and Diane came into sight again. I waved at her as I did every time I saw her pass by and she waved back. I tried to study how she was moving. I watched as she passed another jogger and I finally saw it. I looked at the other joggers just to confirm what I had noticed.

Diane's movements lacked a beat. I could see a beat with the other joggers, the way their legs moved and their body bounced created a one two, one two tempo. I couldn't see any noticeable pause or jolt that the other runners had in their pace. Her movements were smooth and easy.

The others looked like they would rather slow down, stop, or were somehow forcing themselves to move. It looked like jogging took effort on their part, whereas Diane looked like nothing was holding her back and her steady lope didn't take any energy whatsoever.

I watched more joggers as they went by, waiting for Diane to come back into sight. I kept watching all of them. There she was again. Now that I knew what I was looking for, I could pick it out easier. The difference was small, but I had seen it. I tried to memorize it, so I could pick it out later on. I suspected the difference I had seen was because she was actually an angel. Being able to spot that small difference might help me figure out if someone else here was also an angel.

I went back to playing with Brindley and the boy. Each time Diane went by, it got easier to pick out her movements. Eventually Diane came over and we headed inside. Diane's room was on the second floor and we had to walk through another bedroom to get to hers. I hadn't seen anyone in the empty room yet, although Diane said that her friend slept there.