“That economic downturn was a ravenous beast let loose on America. Everyone lost everything; no one could find two pennies to rub together. Then the dollar showed signs of further collapse. A war was brewing and all our allies pulled out of trade withus.”
“But, itdidend.” She’d read it in the historybooks.
“I know. I made it end.” Wayne's eyes were so filled with sorrow that it was a jarring contrast to his proud grin. “Snow told me later that, in the world I came from, it was going to last another twenty years; America was never going torecover.”
“But. . .”
“The world you lived in was an offshoot of the world I wished for. Technically, Jo, we never lived in the same reality, you and I. We were separated from the moment I made my wish, and it only continued to split fromthere.”
She shouldn’t have been startled, but she was. She knew now that the world was merely the product of wishes that severed reality across time. But to really think about it was a bit surreal. She’d never lived in the same world as any member of the Society. With her wish, she’d lived in a different world than anyone else inexistence.
“You wished to save your country, and I messed with all of reality just to save my friend’s life,” Jo whispered. “A friend. . . who no longerexists.”
“He doesn’t exist?” Wayne whistled. “Then who did we just stick our necks outfor?”
Jo laughed softly, leaning back on the railing and letting her head drop between her shoulders. “I don’t know,” she confessed. “Me? I guess. . . my need for purpose? Because the Yuusuke we saved has never even met Josephina Espinosa.” Wayne was silent, and Jo found herself talking, frantic not to be left alone with her thoughts. “This was all for someone who I should have no attachment to. I spent time helping a random person, a stranger, using my time for that, when there are so many more important things. I guess it’s just how I am? Messed-up priorities? Because even my wish wasn’t noble—I didn’t even wish to change the world, or a country—and neither are my actionsnow.”
Her companion’s continued silence threatened to tear her apart. Just as Jo opened her mouth and took a breath, preparing to ramble again, Wayne cut her off. “Itwasnoble, Jo, then and now. Because you did change the world. You changed his world. You gave him a world. It doesn’t matter if he knows it or not, because the factremains.”
“I guess. . .” She swallowed the taste of salt and looked back out to the city, blinking into the nightlights.
“I don’t think you have messed-up priorities at all.” His shoulder pressed gently against hers. “Sticking your neck out for your friend? Doing the right thing? It’ll be Snow or Eslar—whoever gives us the business for this—that has messed uppriorities.”
“Thanks, Wayne.” Jo laughed softly. “Here’s to hoping he’s not reckless enough to throw it awayagain.”
“Well, I wished for an economically strong America, only to watch it be squandered in conflict after conflict, wasted in poor decision making, and ultimately dissolve into nothing as the country was carved up by the Commonwealth Powers of World WarIII.”
She heard the bitterness in his voice and was all too ready to change the subject, for both their sakes. “I’ve never heard you speak like this before, by theway.”
“Like what?” His entire voice and demeanor weredifferent.
“Like. . . normal? You don’t have the same accent. And I think it’s been a whole hour now since you called medoll.”
“Missing it,doll?”
She laughed. “No, not that. I just thought that you didn’t know how to speak any otherway.”
“I can speak however I want. I’m not like the others—modernizing, keeping up with the times on the outside. I choose to speak as I do because it’s all I have left of those days.” It reminded Jo of what he said about eating. Sleeping was the same, no doubt. They all had little things that would keep them connected to the lost realities they’d comefrom.
“I wonder what I’ll keep doing, to remember my time,” Jo whispered, the sentiment stilling her. A long silence passed between them and when Jo returned her mind to the present, Wayne was staring off at some invisible point beyond thehorizon.
“Nickel for your thoughts?” Jo asked, and Wayne laughed, tension easing from his shoulders just likethat.
“Oh nothin’ really. Just wondering how the wish is going. It’s not common to be gone solong.”
“Well, I suppose we should getback.”
“About that time,” Wayne agreed, though he hardly seemed happy for thefact.
“Should I pack up my things?” Jo asked as they started in to the hotel room. She motioned to the monitor set-up still occupying the main room of thesuite.
“No point. Can’t bring anything back from the realworld.”
Jo looked at the desktop she’d made a reality, for however brief a time. It was glorious. And it’d be pieced apart, bagged for evidence (though the authorities would never find anything concrete), stolen by hotel staff, or sold away to pay for the room. Jo swallowed away the grief at the idea of letting it go. “I don’t need it, anyway. The recreation room workedfine.”
“That’s the spirit.” Wayne was already dressed and Jo followed suit. “Say, about this wholelittle—”
“If you’re talking about helping Yuusuke, I’m not compelled to tell anyone anything.” Jo pulled up her jeans. “If you’re talking about the sex. . . I’m still not going to divulge.” She stopped dressing for a moment, watching his reaction, pleased with what shesaw.
