Free The Center of Everything by Linda Urban

you’d
seen
it, though. I mean, Gretel has guts and I thought . . .” Lucy continues.
    If Ruby had a time machine, she’d go back and watch that part of the rehearsal. But if she did, would the time she spent watching the rehearsal become the real time? Would it mean that she would not have had her conversation with Nero? Or . . .
    â€œ. . . so do you think I should try it?”
    â€œHuh? Try what?”
    â€œDang, Ruby,” Lucy says. “Even when you’re here you’re not here.”

The Karate Kid
    Ruby hears her before she sees her. The crack of the board, the
Kiai!
yell. Okeda Martial Arts is making its way around Cornelius Circle.
    â€œHi-ya!”
says Willow, chopping Ruby in the stomach.
    Aunt Rachel grabs hold of Willow’s wrist. “We don’t hit.”
    â€œI didn’t hit. I chopped.”
    â€œWe don’t chop, either. Now check in with Ruby.”
    â€œIs your belly okay, Ruby?” Willow asks. Her concern is not very convincing.
    â€œYes,” Ruby says, even though it is not. This is not Willow’s fault, however. Ruby’s belly was hurting even before her cousin chopped it.
    â€œKiai!”
    Ruby hears the crack of another board. She can see Mr. Fisch’s pickup truck now. It is black with OKEDA MARTIAL ARTS painted on the door. Just beyond, Ruby can see the glistening bald head of Mr. Fisch as he reaches into the truck bed for another thin square board. Behind him, about ten feet back, walk two rows of
gi
-clad students. One at a time, the students dart ahead of the rest and bow to Mr. Fisch, and then, with a few graceful steps, approach the board Mr. Fisch holds out.
“Kiai!”
A sharp kick and the board is split in half.
    Lucy is the youngest of his students in the parade. She is also the fiercest. Ruby has never seen her look so fierce. In past parades Lucy has performed kicks and punches in the air but never attacked a board. This year things are different.
    Lucy does not look at Ruby. She looks only at the square of wood, even when it is not her turn. But now it is her turn. She steps forward, her eyes never leaving the board her dad holds.
    â€œKiai!”
she cries.
Crack!
    Lucy bows, then turns and dashes back to her place in line.
    If you were Ruby Pepperdine, you might think that was pretty impressive. You might think about calling out your friend Lucy’s name and cheering and waving. You might hope that your friend would hear your voice and smile when she sees your face in the crowd.
    Or you might wonder if Lucy has already seen your face. If she has been imagining it every time she approaches one of those boards. If she imagines your face and then
Kiai!
    You might decide it is better not to say anything at all.

To Tell or Not to Tell
    There are two schools of thought about the secrecy of wishes. One is that you should always tell, because you never know who might be able to help you get what you wished for. People who believe this often appear on talk shows. Share your dreams with the Universe, they say.
    The other school holds the birthday candle philosophy: to tell a wish is to ruin its chances of happening.
    Ever since she became Essay Girl, Ruby has thought of her wish as the birthday candle sort, but now, as she swirls her spoon in her morning Cheerios, she is beginning to reconsider her position. She is surprised to discover that talking to Nero about time travel has actually made her feel a little better, even though she isn’t any closer to understanding what it is she is supposed to do. What if telling somebody the truth about her wish would help her figure it out?
    What kind of wish is a Captain Bunning wish?
she wonders.
Would telling—or not telling—ruin things?
    â€œNo, Maurice, I will
not
be in the service center tomorrow,” Ruby’s dad says into his phone. “Tomorrow is Bunning Day, remember? The parade?”
    Once again Ruby is careful not to wish for a sign of