I gave him a small smile. “Cross my heart and
hope to die.”
Jake, Alex, and I piled into the time machine.
“Once I calibrate everything,” Alex says,
“you’ll be back in 2008! Dad, this time, don’t
settle! Marry Sarah!”
“Sarah’s so kind. She’s way better than
Mom!”
He said it with such conviction, such longing.
く
I looked at his eager face and couldn’t help
but smile.
I just hoped he wouldn’t regret it.
The moment I hit the ‘go‘ button, the world
outside turned into a blinding white light, and
I squeezed my eyes shut.
I felt someone touch my hand, but it didn’t
matter.
As long as I got back to 2008, it was a clean
slate.
I opened my eyes, and I was standing at a
beat–up old bus stop.
The bus stop sign looked like it was straight
out of 2008 Lalanced around and everything
<
out of 2008. I glanced around, and everything
was exactly as I remembered.
Jake was gone, but Alex was sitting on a
nearby bench.
He looked shocked to see me, wondering if
the time machine had failed. But when he saw
the date displayed on his smartwatch, he
pumped his fist. “It worked!”
“But how come I didn’t disappear?”
“Dad will be with Sarah, so I won’t disappear!
Am I Sarah’s kid now? Oh no, I should call her
Mom now!”
The truth was Alex wasn’t my biological son.
I just happened to take care of this kid who
<
was abandoned by his mother, for the past
fifteen years.
I pulled out a sticky note, wrote down my
number, and gave it to him.
“Here’s my number. If you need anything, call
me.”
Alex sneered. “You’re not my real mom. And
you hogged my mom’s spot for fifteen years.
I hate you. I don’t need your help! My dad will
be with my real mom. We’ll never see each
other again!”
I watched Alex walk away, feeling a sense of
relief.
Good. He was never supposed to be a part of
my life, anyway.
く
My phone buzzed in my purse.
I looked down. My lock screen was a photo of
a fireworks–lit night sky, with a young man in
a thin sweater warming the hands of a girl in
a black coat.
That scene, from fifteen years from now, was
in my dreams every New Year’s Eve, only to
be replaced by the harsh reality and tear-
stained pillow in the morning.
The caller ID read: Chris.
It was like a sudden rain after a long drought.
My eyes welled up, my hands shaking as I
pressed the answer button.
The call connected, and I held it to my ear,
listening to the voice I’d waited fifteen years
<
to hear, as if it were a verdict.
“Hey, Dr. Karen, everyone said my cookies
weren’t sweet enough. Do you think you could
swing by after work and give them a look?”
The funny, witty tone was the same. Before,
I’d have laughed and called him cheesy. Now,
my throat tightened, and a thousand words
choked me.
He was always perceptive. He picked up on
my distress and asked, a hint of panic in his
voice, “Karen, what’s wrong? Where are you?
I’ll come get you.”
I forced myself to calm down. “Nothing, just
got something in my eye. I’ll get off work on
time today, just be good for me.”
<