“Nothing else to say?” The Phillip of my time was a little more talkative. This one tilted his head like he was trying to figure me out.
“There’s a fifty-fifty chance of two futures, and I’m unsure if you’re ready for them. I can’t tell which direction you’ll go in. They both move back and forth into probable, then less probable.” His eyes glazed over, and I waited until he finished searching for the answer.
“Does telling me change the odds in a favorable outcome?” I asked, and he shook his head.
“That’s the kicker. If it were me, it would. But I’m a gambling man. You? You’ve got issues, future best friend,” Phillip said with a shrug.
I wanted to know in this case, so I told him so. “Doesn’t seem like it matters, might as well.” My whole body ached, and the summer heat licked the back of my neck while beads of sweat grew on my brows.
“I suppose so. I do hope, in telling you, that you’ll make the best choice.” He sighed and closed his eyes. Moments of deep breaths passed before he opened them again to level his stare at me.
“Emily dies during the Terratrex Catastrophe. She’s the hero that brings down that awful corporation through her death.” The tension in my body ceased only to be replaced by the heaviest of weights pulling me down. And down I went. Right there on the sidewalk, in front of the Italian restaurant, I crumbled to my knees.
“No.” I didn’t want to believe it, though I knew Phillip never lied. My future friend came to his knees in front of me, silent in support.
“What happens if I change it?” I needed to know. I couldn’t lose her.
“Terratrex gets a slap on the wrist and terrorizes our planet for a long time.” One life to save many, that’s what he’s hinting. Terratrex’s horrid reign would finally end, but at the cost of Emily’s life. To save her meant they continued on and hurt countless more. I understood why the futures were jumping back and forth. It should be easy. Save Emily. But what kind of person does that make me if I condemn others for her?
“What’s the best choice?” My chest tightened as my heart beat so fast. My head hurt and I wondered if this was what having a heart attack was like.
“That’s up to you. I have my hopes, but you know what I always bet on.” Love. He always bet on love. He said that to me days ago.
“Tell her I’ll be back. That I’m sorry for breaking my promise, but I’ll be at her apartment for dinner.” I needed to move, to run, to scream, to get this explosive energy out before seeing her. Images of her green eyes popped into my head, and I shook them out. If I saw her right now, I’d crumple further.
“I’m gonna look for answers.” I placed my hand on the wall for support as I stood on wobbly legs. I couldn’t lose her, and I couldn’t condemn humanity either.
“I’ll keep an eye on her. She’ll make lasagna for dinner. Bring wine and Italian bread.” Phillip stood and placed his hand on my shoulder for a brief moment of comfort.
I nodded once and kept quiet. I needed answers, and the man in front of me gave what he could. I walked into the restaurant bathrooms and called my power to me.
I needed to exist where she did; without her, I simply wouldn’t. I needed answers.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Emily
Vincent seemed distant throughout dinner, and I wished I could help. We chatted about hero work and my little bit of training, but the tension in his shoulders stayed tight. I wondered if being in the same apartment as Chasity bothered him, but he shook his head when I asked. She was staying at a friend’s house, and after confirming with the parents of said friend, I relaxed, knowing she wouldn’t be creepy with him.
We plopped onto the couch after eating, and Vincent wasted no time pulling me close. He held me tight, pressed soft kisses to my shoulder, and drew little circles on my waist. I didn’t know how my comfort powers worked, but I assumed they did their job when little puffs of snores came from him twenty minutes into the TV show I put on.
Time jumping exhausted him, and I’m guessing he did a lot today based on how out he was. After a few episodes, I glanced at the clock, then decided to get him into bed. I tried doing it with my telekinetic powers at first, but nothing happened.
“Hey, big guy. Let’s go to bed.” I nicely ran my fingers down his cheek. He twitched, then as I said it again, he woke up.
“Bed sounds good.” He tucked me close to his chest, and his glittering orange power stuck to us. I quickly closed my eyes, wondering why he called his powers. We hit a soft surface, and I opened to see what or where we were. Hopefully, nowhere awful.
My bedroom. Everything looked similar to how it did earlier, but perhaps we were here on a different day? I glanced at the clock on my nightstand to see five minutes past the last time I checked. What a dork. I laughed and kissed the closest part of him I could reach in his arms, his chin.
“Walking was too much, huh?” He jumped us five minutes ahead so he didn’t have to walk down the hall. He didn’t say anything, but I saw the smile on his lips grow. Doofus. Part of me wanted to get up to do my nightly routine, but his body felt so warm, and snores somehow soothed me. I didn’t want to wake him or move. So I pulled the blanket over us and placed my hand over his steady heart.
Trees on fire, my arms around a little boy in the flames, Vincent’s smile, us holding hands, Chastine’s cruel smile, me and a black-haired man kissing, Vincent and me sleeping in my bed, my eyes turning bright yellow as a lion walked beside me.
I woke up and churned over images of Phillip’s visions that entered my sleep. Vincent’s chest moved up and down so peacefully, and I realized the one with us sleeping in my bed came true. We held hands a lot and Vincent smiled a lot, so I felt comfortable saying those came true as well. All I hoped was my future headed in a pleasant direction. What I didn’t care to see happen was my sister’s cruel smile or burning trees. I liked nature, and I didn’t want my sister’s cruelty, period.
While I didn’t believe the lion one happened exactly like the image in my head, perhaps the one roaring lion at the zoo was an adaption of that vision. Futures changed all the time. The lion at the zoo weirdly protected us, or at least that’s what it felt like.
My alarm rang and I reached over to smack the top of the clock. Vincent slept through the morning wake up sounds, and I wondered how many timelines he went through to be so tired. Slowly, I lifted his arm and tried to crawl out of bed without waking him only to have strong arms pull me back into bed.
