“I’ll never forgive myself if I don’t try.” The edge to her voice shakes me to the core. There’s a sour feeling in my stomach gnawing away at me because how am I supposed to let her jump off this bridge like it’s a normal thing someone does?
My head is spinning from the shock of the moment. Mallory jumped. Emma is about to jump, but something doesn’t feel right. It’s too simple. Too obvious.
I stare into her tear-filled eyes. I know I have to let her go, but I don’t want to. I just got her back, and I need her in my life. It’s where she belongs. “What am I supposed to do without you?”
“I’ll still be here,” she says. “When you see me, show me the note, okay?”
I’d almost forgotten that there’s another version of Emma running around. I don’t know how to explain it, but it doesn’t comfort me. She might be the same person, but she didn’t spend the day with me.
I didn’t hold her hand.
She isn’t the person I kissed.
I want to be selfish, but it’s not fair for me to keep Emma here because I need her. Her sister needs her more, so I let go. “Okay.”
She touches my face for a moment, and even though she doesn’t say it, I can see the goodbye in her eyes.
I stumble backwards, forcing myself not to wrap my arms around her.
Emma puts her hands on the wall, ready to pull herself up, when she grimaces. She covers her chest like it hurts and her shoulders slump forward.
“What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know,” she whispers.
I reach for her to try and help, but the second my hand lands on her shoulder, my fingers feel nothing but air. My hand goes right through her.
Her body flickers in front of me, and my eyes widen because I have no idea what’s going on. It’s like she’s nothing more than a hologram or a figment of my imagination.
My hand shakes as I jerk it away from her. I close it in a tight fist to try and settle my nerves, but it doesn’t help.
Her frown deepens as she gasps for air. “I can’t breathe.” Her eyes meet mine with a terror I’ve never seen before. She knows something is very wrong.
I’m frozen, shaking, and my mind feels like it’s exploding. What did we do? Is this because we’re trying to change the future?
Emma staggers, losing her balance, and her weight falls forward.
I put both hands out to catch her, but she passes through them, falling to the ground in front of me.
“Emma!” I scream, dropping to my knees. Emma has to jump to save Mallory, and I don’t think it’s possible. With every second, she fades more.
I run my useless hand down my face, nails scratching my skin.
This has to be happening because of something we did. Mallory jumped instead of me pushing her off the bridge. That’s the difference, but that isn’t something I can change now.
My heartbeat skyrockets and my eyes sting with tears as Emma chokes in front of me. Whatever we changed is somehow killing her, and I can’t just stand and watch.
Everything was fine up until . . .
The note.
I pull it out of my pocket and hold it in front of her face. “What would happen if you saw this note?”
She looks at the note and shakes her head.
“Tell me!”
“I’d—” She gasps for air. “I’d hate myself.”
