Someday We'll Be Together

Chapter 18- Komodo Dragon

Marla called out to Lena and Max standing nearby.
"Help me move him to a quiet place."
Max took off his gaming headset and went over to help Marla lift Tyler from the ground.
"Lena, you too," Marla said.
Lena glanced at Max and Marla and rolled her eyes.
"Alright, I'll call you back later, Dustin. I'm going shopping. Don't bother me." She hung up her phone and joined Max and Marla.
"Max, what is this stranger doing in our house and why is she helping Tyler?"
"How the hell should I know!"
They brought Tyler to the old municipal library. Marla was eyeing Lena. As they gently laid Tyler down, Lena fretted.
"Be careful, one of my nails is about to break. I just got them done."
"Oh my God, who are you? You don't look anything like the Lena I know," Marla said, unable to hold back.
Lena stared blankly at Marla.
"Maybe because you don't know me, you idiot?"
"Just our usual boy-crazy Lena," Max said nonchalantly.
Lena snapped at Max.
"Look who's talking. Aren't you ashamed of dating Georgina Hamphred, who's as old as your mom?"
"Oh my God, Georgina Hamphred, the mayor?"
Max and Lena looked at Marla strangely.
"What does the mayor have to do with it? She's just a regular middle-aged woman," Lena corrected.
"A woman who looks way too young for her age," Max added.
"Oh my God. I can't even imagine what Tyler changed to make you date the mayor. Anyway, listen to me, I need your help."
"If you're collecting donations for the poor, talk to Kyle," Lena said.
"No. This is directly related to you. To your life and mine."
"What do you mean?"
"Are you happy with your life, Lena?"
Lena shrugged.
"That's none of your business."
"Of course it is. Just look at yourselves. Do you think your mother deserved to be in this situation? Tell me."
"Lena's right. We don't know you. Our life is none of your concern," Max said.
"I can see you're uncomfortable with this topic. Listen, I can get you out of this mess. We can get back to our old lives."
"Our old lives? What do you know about our lives?"
"We don't even know you. Why should we trust you?"
"Are you serious? You trust Kyle but not me?"
Lena reached for her phone.
"I'm calling security. I can't believe they let a stranger in here."
"I'm a time traveler. Tyler is too. We were living in 2008, then Tyler went back in time, made a mistake, went back to 1983, and did something that completely changed his father's life. When we returned, we found ourselves in this mess."
Lena and Max stared blankly at Marla.
"What did you give Tyler to drink?"
Marla rolled her eyes.
"Oh my God, you don't believe me. Who can I blame? A stranger comes to you, says she went back in time and changed everything, and then asks for your help." Lena and Max continued to look at Marla with their mouths open.
"Alright, let me prove it to you."
Marla took out her wallet and began to search for something.
Lena whispered to Max.
"How do we know she didn't escape from a mental hospital?"
"She's interesting. I like her. We don't get to experience such events every day," Max said indifferently.
"Here it is," Marla said, holding up a photo. Lena and Max looked at the picture. It was a photo of Lena and Marla when they were kids.
"Who's this girl next to me?" Lena asked.
"That's me. And the one next to you is, you," Marla said.
"But... I don't remember anything like this," Lena said, clearly confused.
"This is from your real life."
"Isn't the life we're living now real?" Lena asked.
"No, this is an alternate 2008. None of us actually belong here. We're in this situation because Tyler went back in time and changed everything."
"So where is this time machine?"
"The time machine is a Polaroid camera. Tyler has it. I'll show you when he wakes up. Now, do you believe me?"
"No. Traveling back in time is theoretically impossible. If you reach the speed of light, you can slow down time relative to yourself and see the future, but going back is impossible in every way—" Marla interrupted Lena.
"Alright, I get it, at least your physicist brain is still intact. I don't know how the machine works, but do you know Margaret Lincoln?"
"Yes," Lena said. "She's a quirky woman who gives me physics lessons. Sometimes she acts very strange, like she's known me for a long time."
"Great. It's her invention."
"So what exactly do you want us to help you with?" Max asked.
"You'll help Tyler fix his mistake by going back in time."
"Going back in time isn't even possible. I see what you're doing here. You're playing with us," Lena said, still not believing.
"Playing with you? I know your father very well, Lena. Michelangelo, right?"
"My father? My father is dead, Marla!"
"I'm saying that you could see your father again, Lena. I'm telling you your father is alive! Just in a different 2008."
"Okay, this is nuts," Max said.
"And your mother. Your mother isn't living with Kyle. Don't you want to see her? When she's happy?"
Max turned to Lena with a thoughtful expression.
"I think it's worth a try. What do we have to lose? If she's telling the truth, we can see our parents."
Lena nodded reluctantly.
"Alright. I'll do anything to get rid of Kyle."
Marla took a deep breath.
"Okay. Now that you believe me, I can explain everything from the beginning."