‘Hang on, I’m going to conference in the rest of us.’
‘Conference in?’
‘The Tylers made some tweaks. Well, schoolteacher Tyler did. He’s the cleverest of them all.’ She sounds almost pained by this, and then I realize it’s just jealousy, our standard reaction to Tyler besting us. Listening to this other version of myself, so similar in so many ways, is starting to make my head spin.
‘Hi.’
‘Hi.’
‘Hi.’
‘Hi.’
Each of the new Bethanys joining sound the same, but also not the same, though in ways so subtle I couldn’t explain it. ‘Hi,’ I reply.
‘Well, I guess there’s no real need to do introductions,’ Bullet-Journal Bethany says. I have no idea how I know it’s her, but I do. ‘Bethanys, this is Bethany.’
‘Hi, Bethany,’ a new voice pipes up. ‘I’m the one from the world where Cesca was getting married.’
‘Did they make it?’ I ask.
‘Of course. They are so much in love it’s disgusting.’ She sounds thrilled, in one hundred per cent approval of the match. ‘Even if the wedding was the worst. Those dresses. Eugh.’
‘I met a Tyler in another world who said Helen had dreamt of that wedding since she was a tiny kid.’
‘Yeah. That’s what I mean about them being so in love. Cesca gave her free rein on everything because she knew it was so important to her future wife.’
‘I thought Helen was just being a bridezilla,’ I reply, feeling more than a bit guilty about how quickly I handed down that judgement.
‘Oh for real. She was that too.’
‘Hi, Bethany,’ another voice starts. ‘I’m the one who’s friends with Flick.’
‘Nowthatwas a shock,’ I tell her.
‘Yeah. We, as in the other Bethanys and I, figured I was the only one who went to that reunion and so reconnected with her.’
‘She’s actually cooler than I remember from school.’
‘She is. She’s awesome.’
‘I looked her up, in my world,’ pipes up yet another voice. ‘We’ve messaged a couple of times, might meet up in a few weeks.’
‘I haven’t looked her up here. Maybe I should?’ I reply.
‘But you’re going home,’ Bullet-Journal Bethany says. Something tells me she’s the leader of this troupe of Bethanys, like the bullet journal has given her superpowers and the others defer to her.
‘Well …’
‘Nowell…’ She mimics me in a way that isn’t wholly flattering.
‘But—’ I try again, but I’m interrupted by the Bethany from the world where Cesca married Helen.
‘Are you looking for an excuse? A reason not to go back to your own world?’ she asks.
‘No. Of course not.’ That would be ridiculous.
‘It’s only natural to be scared,’ she adds gently.
