I'm Dying to Tell You Something

The Alternate Loop

I walk inside with AJ, standing close by as I look around the familiar apartment. Something already felt… Off. I fail to explain it to myself until I hear Gwen in the other room. "I have a secret, one nobody knows, that inside this gift is our new baby's clothes. And they’re marked in the front with the name that I chose. It’s a secret…" She says.

I tilt my head slightly. That wasn’t what she had said before. "I have a secret; that I’ve been here before. That I saw myself dying, lying here on the floor. That my wife's made desert, here she comes through the door. It’s a secret..." AJ murmurs.

Time seems to slow down as Gwen begins to walk through the door, leaving me in a slight haze. "I've got a secret; I don't know what to do. This is way different; I don't have a clue. I'm beginning to feel lost, I don't even know what I knew... It's a secret…" I murmur. Time begins to feel normal again, but my thoughts still whirl.

"How was your day?" Gwen asks, walking through the door. "Not now." He says, nearly cutting her off. "Fine, then. Okay... Jerk…" She says, muttering the last part to herself. "Sorry. Dessert sounds great." AJ says. Gwen looks over at him, confused. "But, I didn't even mention-" I begin to start covering up for AJ’s words. "Ah, you know we've been-" "Uh-huh?" "Stretched pretty thin at work." I say.

AJ glances at me as a silent thank you as we sit at the small dining table. "Well then, I have some news that should- Huh? Who's... Who's Bumblebee?" Gwen asks, glancing at my phone as it buzzed. "Ah, I'd better take that." I say, hesitantly picking up the phone.

Suddenly, I'm in the apartment’s elevator, next to who I recognized as the cop. He doesn’t seem to notice me as he begins to mutter to himself. "I've got a secret, and it's too late to stop. I don't have a warrant, and I'm not a real cop. But the girl's getting justice, 'cause she shot up her pop. It's a secret." He murmurs. Soon after, he notices me, backing up slightly.

"How much of that did you hear?" He asks. "All of it. Now get your phone. Bumblebee's calling you." I say as the elevator opens. I walk out of the elevator, hearing a faint "Oh hey, sweetie," from the cop as I walk into the apartment. I lock the door, and sit back down as Gwen begins to talk again.

"I'm feeling sleepy, and I may go lay down." She yawns. "Is this picture of you from your first night in town?" AJ asks, looking at the picture on the fridge. "It's police! Open up!" The cop shouts. I cringe, realizing Bumblebee's plan from the last loop hadn't worked. "Shh! Don't make a sound! It's a secret…" I whisper, handing AJ a knife and pushing him into the closet.

The cop shoots the lock, and barges in. He points his gun at me, walking towards me. "Hands where I can see!" He growls. I quickly put my hands, stepping back. "Wait, you're Bumblebee’s friend... Give the watch to me!" He growls, stepping closer, but putting the gun down. "Maybe I can find this thing myself…" He growls. I look down as he looks around.

"I can’t see a thing in here. Where do you keep the dang light switch?" He asks, looking over at me. "Right there, sir." I say, pointing to it. He walks over to it, grumbling to himself. I hear a slightly yell in pain, and sigh as I see he's unconscious. AJ walks out, and I quickly take the knife from him.

"Heh. Glad we didn’t get that fixed. Nice going there, Y/N. I- Uh, what are you doing?" He asks. "Sorry, AJ." I say, punching him in the jaw. "What was that for?!" He asks. I quickly punch him again, and he's out cold. I quickly help him to the ground, looking around.

"You've got a secret; one I've yet to unfold, but you ain't saying much, and I think you're out cold. I'd best hunt down that watch, because I know he's been told 'It’s a secret.'" I murmur, looking around. I walk into the restroom, looking around once again.

"Secrets surround me with the texts that she's sent. The attack on her dad, the assassin’s intent, and this dusty old watch that she hid in the vent. It’s a secret…" I say, putting it in my jean’s pocket and walking back out. "I shot my dad for his secret affair!" Gwen admits, her hands in the air as the cop points his gun at her. "With a nanny named Dahlia-" he growls. "Wait, you were there?!" AJ and I ask, then glance at each other.

"The name of our baby…" Gwen trails off. "Named after my mother..." AJ says. "Your nanny’s his mom!" The cop snarks at Gwen. "Then… My husband’s my brother?!" She says. I nod, nearly on instinct, and all three of them look at me. The cop walks towards me, jabbing me in the chest with his gun. "What do you know?" He asks. AJ and Gwen stand behind him, but fail to do anything out of fear. I take a deep breath.

"Time’s ticking backwards. That’s all that I know. I’ll relive this moment twelve minutes ago. The world’s but a loop in an inverted flow, and I’ll say it again in twelve minutes or so…" I say, looking down at the ground. The cop backs up, aiming his gun at me.

In the blink of an eye, AJ and I have swapped places involuntarily. "AJ, the loop! It’s falling apart!" I yell. The cop shoots, and AJ falls to the ground, bleeding. I run and jump on top of him, taking him to the ground. After a moment of struggling, he drops his shoulder and rolls, ending out on top of me. He takes out his knife, and I close my eyes, not wanting to see the blood that comes from my soon-to-be stab wound, but to my surprise, no pain comes.

I open my eyes to find Gwen on the ground, bleeding, and I bite my lip in surprise. "I don’t know what kind of black magic you have, Y/N, but you're dying tonight." He growls, pointing his gun at me.

Tick, tick, tick, tick. The cop and I both look around, slightly confused. Tick, tick, tick, tick. The ticking was growing louder and louder, and the cop put his gun away. Tick, tick, tick, tick. "You have the watch. I know you do. What time is it?" He asks. Tick, tick, tick, tick. "6:11- Oh." I say. What he was saying was finally clicking in my head, but the ticking grew louder and louder in my ears, when finally, it stopped.

"You said you had twelve minutes. Must be the end of this set of twelve, then. I’ll get you next time." He growls as the clock strikes the 12 minute mark. I collapse as I’m in front of the apartment door, before I even open it. There was one question repeated in my head. Why had the loop nearly destroyed itself?!