To the ones we love

Far off futures

    Kara found herself lying on her bed, she sat up rubbing her eyes. Why was the bed made? She stood up, feeling dizzy at first and then finding her footing. The events of the night before were fuzzy, but she figured it must be morning. Kara went to get a cup of coffee, but as she reached for the pot, her hand slipped right through it. Waving it back and forth in a rush of panic, Kara realized her hand was actually going through the coffee pot, and the pot and liquid stayed still. She tried to grab a mug from the cabinet, but as she reached for the door her hand slipped right through the handle.

    Kara spun around, a sense of panic washing over her, and that was when she saw all the changes. It was her loft, but there were subtle differences. A doll house was now set up in the living room, and a lego set was spilled on the floor. The spare bedroom, where Alex had crashed plenty of nights before, was now redecorated for a little girl, no older than five. The door started to jangle, and she heard the rustle of fabric.

   "Tell Katie that I will bring the fruit tray to the next... yes okay... Yeah I know." She heard a muffled voice from behind the door and Kara waited, silent, ready to pounce. Then Lena walked in.

   "Lena, Oh thank Rao, I have no idea what's going on!"

    Lena ignored her, and for the first time she noticed something was different. Lena walked with no effort, and carried a small girl on her hip, about four. She wore a violet blouse, and a pair of khaki shorts showing the scars extending down her legs. Is this the future?

   "Yes, yes I will be there with Hope.... Yes we will both come.... Kara will be there too." She was on the phone with somebody, but shortly hung up. She set her tote bag and keys down on the counter, and then let her daughter loose. Her hair was tied up into a hasty ponytail, and she had a noticeable baby-bump showing underneath her top.

    "Lena!" Kara exclaimed, as if saying it again would help Lena hear her, but again she went unnoticed.

    Lena finally hung up the phone and sat on the couch, propping her legs up. The girl, Hope, played with the dollhouse set. Lena reached for a cube, the same cube that Kara had given her right after the attack. First Lena scrambled it, moving all the different textures around, and then, within minutes, she had it solved again. She repeated the process twice more.

    Hope noticed what Lena was doing, "Mommy can I try?" She asked with enthusiasm.

    "Sure, baby" She handed off the cube to the little girl, solved for the third time.

    "Is this a Rubik's cube? We have one at school."

    "It is." Lena gave simple answers, but she still spoke to her daughter like an adult.

     "Mommy, why does it have all these funny textures on it? The one at school is all smooth." The little girl turned the sides, making no progress to actually solving the cube.

    Lena dragged her hand along her daughter's cheek, not quite making eye contact, looking just off center, "You know I can't see very well baby. Mama gave this to me right after I lost my vision."

   "Can you see now?"

    "A little." The answer seemed to satisfy Hope and she went back to playing with the cubes. Suddenly, she heard the door again, but Lena didn't seem alarmed. When kara turned around, startled, she watched a older version of herself walk in. Her hair was a little longer, her eyes were a bit more tired, but she also looked a thousand times more happy.

   "I see Hope found your cube." Kara smiled.

   "Yeah, she seems to like it." Lena responded but never took her eyes off the girl, not even for a second. This other Kara, the older one, sat next to Lena and handed her one of two Lattes she had carried in.