Chapter 22
A fter reading Emily’s note, Lisa sat on one of the benches in the park by St. John’s Cathedral. Stephanie had gone off by herself to wander the gardens, telling Lisa she needed time to be alone. Lisa could see her pacing back and forth and could only guess what could be on the woman’s mind. Several hours before the party started, Lisa wondered where they could go in the meantime. Almost absentmindedly she reached into the pocket of her high-waisted jeans and found a key and an identification card. Her picture stared back at her. For a moment, even though the photo was fuzzy, she didn’t recognize the fresh face in it. Her hair was long and brown, and even without makeup she saw the carefree youthfulness in her eyes. The young girl in the picture smiled broadly, seemingly happy to be starting life.
***
It was a long afternoon and evening waiting for ten o’clock to arrive. Lisa’s hands shook as she headed towards the Columbia campus with Stephanie. There were more people outside at night than during the day with students hustling towards bars, parties, and whatever else they did after the sun went down. The punk kids with their spiked mohawks mixed with the others totally clad in black protesting life in general. Some students wore brightly colored leg warmers, big hair, and more makeup than Lisa had seen in decades. Spandex, cigarettes, and pot abounded. The lights on the campus walk were bright, and the steps to Low Library were full of kids smoking, laughing, and singing along with songs from boom boxes. Stephanie followed at Lisa’s side. “I’d forgotten how alive this place got at night.”
Lisa was oblivious to the sounds. She focused on the task before them, wondering when she’d find Emily, hoping the encounter would be the catalyst for returning life to normal.
They arrived at the party in a large hall on campus, loud ’80s music assaulting them when they opened the doors. Stephanie waved her hands in front of her face at the rush of cigarettes seemingly everywhere. “God, does everybody smoke here?”
Lisa smiled wryly. “Proof that we’re back in time.”
The party was jumping with people dancing in the center floor to songs by The Police and Huey Lewis and the News, and others hanging on the sidelines in groups, beer cans in hands. Some were gathered around a keg, waiting for their turn to fill red plastic cups. A large, hulking guy with a mohawk who looked like a football player stopped them. “IDs please. You don’t look like Columbia students.” Lisa pulled her ID from her pocket, and he grunted in approval. She smiled coquettishly and stood on her tiptoes to lean close to his ear. “Do you know a guy named Adam Scheiner?”
He put his meaty hand on her waist and pulled her towards him. “No, but I can be Adam if you’d like.”
Lisa pushed him away with both hands, still smiling. “Never mind. I’ll find him myself.”
She grabbed Stephanie’s hand and strode into the room as if she owned it, all the while scanning for Adam. They walked the periphery of the hall. Chrissie Hynde’s mournful voice and her blaring guitar with the Pretenders made talking almost impossible. As they approached one of the corners, Lisa noticed a couple making out. Something about the guy looked familiar, maybe the way he cocked his head to the side when he separated himself from the blonde girl he held by the waist. Stephanie pulled her hand hard and pointed as she leaned into Lisa’s ear to shout, “There he is.”
“Adam!” said Lisa as she grabbed his shoulder. He turned around with a smirk on his face. His eyes shot wide open when he saw Lisa and Stephanie together. He gulped noticeably and looked confused for a moment before he plastered a fake smile on his face and stretched out his arms. “Ladies! Welcome to the party. Will you join us?”
Stephanie reached out her hand and slapped his face, so hard that it swung to the other side. As everyone stared in shock, Emily showed up from nowhere and stood next to Lisa. “I told you he was scum. But you didn’t believe me.”
Holding his hand to his face, Adam straightened up and pushed his shoulders back, uttering epithets under his breath. He looked at all three women standing before him, then smiled with a sinister grin that showed all his teeth like a cat about to pounce on prey. With one hand, he grabbed the blonde’s waist, and with the other he waved in the general direction of Lisa, Stephanie, and Emily. In a voice meant to be smooth and suave, he said, “Ladies, ladies. No need to fight. There’s plenty of me to go around.”
Stephanie was the first to respond. “Adam, is this who you really are?”
Still holding on to the other girl, Adam reached over to Stephanie and put his hand on her shoulder. “Come on baby. You know I’m just playing around. I forgive you for the slap. I probably had it coming, but you know, I’m just a guy. Guys have needs, you know what I mean?” he said, pointedly winking his right eye.
Noticing that Stephanie’s arm was pulled back aiming to slap him again, Lisa grabbed her hand and yanked her away. “He’s not worth it, Stephanie. One more slap, and we’ll get ourselves kicked out.”
She turned to Adam, vitriol spewing in her words. “We’re not interested, asshole. We’re through with you.” In unison, Lisa, Stephanie, and Emily stepped away from him.
Adam shrugged his shoulders and leaned in closer to Stephanie. “Pity you’re so frigid. We could have had fun tonight. You would have been a nice addition to the collection.” He turned away from her and slinked closer to the blonde. Lisa heard him whisper, “Come on, Susan. Let’s get out of here. This party just got really creepy.”
As they walked away, Emily was the first one to speak. “You see, Lisa? For this, you threw our friendship away.”
“Emily, I don’t know what I did, but I’m so sorry.”
“Nah, too late. I’m never forgiving you. I just wanted you here, so you could see for yourself. I’m out of here.” She waved Lisa and Stephanie off and headed to the makeshift bar in the back of the room.
Lisa watched her friend disappear into the crowd, regret crushing her chest. Stephanie bumped her hard in the arm. “Listen, forget her. She’ll get over it.” Stephanie turned around and around, gesticulating with her arms and pointing everywhere, a note of near-hysteria in her voice. “What are we doing here now? You said we could go home. I don’t see what any of this has to do with me. I was at work, minding my own business with a husband and a family, and you’ve ripped it from me in your quest to find your friend. Well, you’ve found her. Now you saw my husband fooling around, and your friend doesn’t want to speak with you, so stop jerking me around here, and take me home.” She took a breath and continued, “You know what? I’m going to tell the DJ to play ‘Don’t You Want Me,’ and we can go back to reality.”
Lisa only half listened to Stephanie as she walked in the direction Emily had headed. Stephanie continued, “Lisa! Where are you going? We have to leave! Don’t test me. I swear to God, I’ll have them play that song.”
Lisa ignored Stephanie, watching Emily carefully, noticing that she had struck up a conversation with some guys who appeared obviously drunk, even from a distance. Curious as to what could happen next, Lisa continued her path while Stephanie jabbered in her ear about finding the DJ. She stopped in her tracks and yelled at Stephanie. “There’s no home without Emily, don’t you understand? That’s the reason we’re here. Adam is inconsequential now. Emily was right. He’s garbage. He cheated on you while he was married to you. He cheated on me when I was married to him in the other fake world. He cheats on everybody. But Emily.” Lisa stopped and pointed in Emily’s direction. “That girl is my best friend. She’s the reason I graduated; she’s the reason I didn’t lose my mind when my son died. And she’s the reason we’re here now.” Lisa paused, insight into her life appearing from nowhere, as if the fog that clouded her view of Adam disappeared.
She continued, breathless and excited. “We have one mission, and that’s to save Emily from whatever I did that caused her to disappear.” She resumed her march toward the bar, ignoring Stephanie a few steps behind her.
As they got nearer, Lisa noticed the guys surrounding Emily. They were laughing at a joke one of them had just said, and Lisa could see Emily throwing back shots of some liquor. One guy was pouring them and lining up the glasses in a row.
That’s when she saw him. Marcus, a younger version of him, with his shock of white hair and his beautiful smile. He was standing to the side away from the guy lining up the drinks.
Lisa stopped in her tracks. She had forgotten how handsome he was in college. She couldn’t understand why he was here, at this particular party, but she felt a calm take over her, as if all was now well with the world. He was watching Emily, and he sauntered over to her as if he didn’t want to get any attention. Lisa saw him lean down to Emily and whisper in her ear while he took the drinks away from her. He put his arm around her shoulder. Lisa couldn’t hear him, but she assumed he was saying something soothing. That was Marcus—always with a soft tone. What had happened to them?
Lisa hurried towards Marcus. “Hi! What are you doing here?”
His eyebrows raised like fuzzy inchworms. “Do I know you?”
Shit! She hadn’t met him yet. But this wasn’t how they met the first time.
Lisa recovered and added with a smile, “I’m Lisa. This is my friend Emily.”
“I know Emily. We work together in the library. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to take her out of here.”
“Do you mind if I go with you?” Lisa heard herself almost purring. Her hands were shaking, and her heartbeat raced. He was intriguing. Maybe this was why Emily got lost? So she could find Marcus again? Questions swirled in Lisa’s mind, interrupted by Stephanie tapping her on the shoulder. “Don’t test me, Lisa. I’m headed to the DJ.”
Lisa heard the threat and grabbed Stephanie’s hand. “Give me just a few more minutes. Please. Just a little more time.” Stephanie frowned but stayed put.
Marcus returned his attention to Emily and cajoled, half pulled her away, but she got out of his grasp and went back to the guys at the bar. Lisa drew closer and saw one of them whisper in Emily’s ear. She giggled and took his hand while he led her outside. Lisa rushed to stop them, but Emily pushed her hand away. “Leave me alone, bitch. We’re not friends anymore.”
Emily’s words were a punch to the gut. Lisa stood motionless, a single tear running down her face. Marcus must have taken pity on her. He bent his head down, gentle eyes staring into hers. He wiped her face with his index finger, as if collecting her tears. “So, your name is Lisa. And you’re Emily’s friend?”
“We’re best friends, even if she doesn’t remember right now.”
“In that case, best friend, why don’t we follow them and save her from herself tonight?”
Stephanie, seeing that Lisa and Marcus were now heading outside, pulled up alongside Lisa. “Time’s up. We need to go home.”
“Stephanie, I have to see this through. Please, I beg you. Stop. We’ll get you home as soon as I get this solved. I promise.”
Once outside, Marcus was the first to spot Emily down the block. “Look, there she is—getting into that black Trans Am with that guy. If we run, maybe we can get her to come with us.”
Long, sleek legs sprinting, Marcus was the first to reach Emily. She was sprawled in the car with the door still open. As she struggled to reach the door handle, Marcus blocked her. Lisa and Stephanie reached the car as Marcus grabbed Emily’s arm. “Come with me, Emily. You can’t go with this guy.”
Emily yanked her arm away. “Don’t you tell me what to do!” The driver yelled at Marcus, “Fuck off, man! She doesn’t want you!”
Lisa leaned into the car and pulled Emily by the shoulder, begging, “Emily, please, come with us. He’s drunk. You’ll get hurt. Let’s talk out here.” Marcus reached into the car and grabbed Emily’s other hand, and between him and Lisa, they stood her up and pushed her to the sidewalk. Marcus slammed the car door. The driver stuck his hand out the driver side window and gave them the middle finger as he peeled away. “You’re all a bunch of assholes!”
Emily slumped into Lisa’s arms, mumbling incoherently and slurring her words, “You ruined my party. I want to get back in the car.”
That’s when they heard the screech of tires and the clash of metal on metal loud enough to rise above the regular din of city nightlife. Turning in the direction of the noise, they saw the Trans Am smashed against another small red car and crushed against a light pole. The cars were two heaps of distorted metal blocking the intersection. Everyone in the area stopped to gawk, and traffic ceased moving.
Marcus, Lisa, and Stephanie collectively gasped at the horrifying sight. Stephanie was the first to speak. “Oh, my God, look at those cars!”
Emily, roused by the noise, stared at the accident and pointed: “What’s that?”
Lisa was the first to respond. “That is what we just saved you from.”
Emily turned her face to Lisa, still holding on to her. “You saved me? That’s so nice of you. I think I’m going to be….” And with that, she threw up on the sidewalk, splattering onto Lisa’s clothes.
Stephanie grimaced, “That’s gross…and I’m a nurse.”
Amid the noise of police sirens, ambulances, and people yelling indistinctly, Marcus pulled out a napkin he had shoved in his pocket, took Emily from Lisa’s arms, and wiped her face while he murmured. “Let’s get you cleaned up a bit and take you home.” Still in her stupor, Emily smiled broadly. “You’re so kind, but you’re not my type. Lisa here—she could like you. You should ask her out.” She leaned her head on his shoulder, and he patted her back while smiling at Lisa.
“Maybe she has a point. I should ask you out when this is over.”
Lisa noticed how in charge he was, so cool, just as she remembered him. She grabbed Stephanie’s hand and turned to thank her for helping her to find Emily when she heard the now-familiar tune. Traffic was stopped everywhere, and a car’s radio was loud enough to be heard amidst the noise of the crowd and the sirens.
Don’t you want me baby?
Lisa gripped Stephanie’s hand and let the notes of the song wash over her. She felt the darkness coming on, a smile on her face this time.
***
The hospital floor felt cold. For a moment Lisa was confused as to why she was sitting there, leaning against the wall, holding her knees and her bare feet on the floor. Stephanie was sitting on the bed a few feet away with a distant look on her face. She was the first to speak. “Are we back?”
Lisa shrugged her shoulders. “Looks like it, but I don’t know when this is. Do you have a cell phone to check the date?”
Stephanie reached into her pocket. “It’s still the same day; only a few minutes later. It’s as if we’ve been here all along.” She dialed home. “Hello, sweetheart!”
Lisa overhead Stephanie, “I’m coming home soon, honey. Really soon. Is Daddy there?”
High pitched giggles could be heard through the phone’s tinny speaker. Stephanie’s eyebrows went up as she answered, “What do you mean Daddy came to see me?”
More giggles while Stephanie continued, “Oh, it’s a surprise. Well, I won’t tell Daddy that you told me. It’ll be our secret.”
And a few seconds later, Stephanie replied, “Bye, my lovelies. I’ll see you soon.” Stephanie wiped a tear from her cheek. “They’re all right. My children are all right.” She sighed happily. “I can’t wait to go home to hug them!”
Eyes wide open, she continued, “Lisa, how is this all even possible?”
Lisa stood up carefully. “I still don’t know how anything is possible. I know only that it happens.”
Stephanie walked over to her and checked her pulse. “You’re normal. How’s your head?”
Lisa gingerly ran her fingers through her hair. “Amazing.” She felt her neck and the crown of her head. “It doesn’t hurt anymore.” She kept prodding around the formerly sore spots. “No pain anywhere. That’s weird. I’d gotten used to it.”
Stephanie cocked her head to the side, “I wonder if this last trip has something to do with that?” She stepped over to the nurse’s computer on a cart in the room. “Oh, good. We didn’t miss it. Your MRI is scheduled for fifteen minutes from now. Let’s get you there.”
Lisa grabbed her phone from the side table. “I have to check on Emily.” She scrolled through the contacts, but there was no Emily. “She’s not here, Stephanie. I can’t find her.”
Stephanie took the phone and looked also. She patted Lisa on the shoulder as she said, “Don’t worry about that. That only means she’s not in your contacts right now. Maybe the phone takes some time to adjust? Maybe it’s an Apple thing?” Her words didn’t ring true to Lisa, who appeared on the verge of crying again.
Stephanie piped up brightly, “Let’s get your MRI done, and by the time you get back, maybe the time glitch will have adjusted the contacts.”
Lisa hung her head and let herself be led away like a child, despairing that she had lost her friend, perhaps forever.
***
Back in her hospital room, Lisa paced the floor anxiously waiting for the MRI results. Frustration oozed from her fingers as she repeatedly tried to remember Emily’s number without success. She was stuck in this hospital prison with no access to finding out if Emily was back in this world or not. She had tried Marcus, but he didn’t answer his phone, and he wasn’t responding to texts. Lisa felt utterly alone.
After what seemed like hours, Stephanie walked back in. She had papers in her hand and a broad smile on her face. “I don’t know how this happened, but I have your test results here.” She handed the report to Lisa. “Pineal gland: normal size.”
Lisa raised her eyes in disbelief. “What happened?”
Stephanie put her hands up. “Who knows? Maybe this last trip made it smaller again. Maybe that’s why your head doesn’t hurt anymore. No one knows. But what I do know is that you can leave. This afternoon. I’ll just get your doctor to process your discharge papers.”
Lisa clapped with a mixture of glee and worry. Maybe going home would give her answers. From home, she could call Emily.
***
Dressed and ready to leave, Lisa waited impatiently. Stephanie finally returned with the paperwork. “Here you are. These are your instructions for lots of rest, at least for a week. Do you think you can handle that?”
Lisa smirked. “Yes. I just want to get out of here. I can’t reach my husband for some reason. Can you call a taxi for me?”
A familiar voice interrupted their conversation. “Hey, hon. They said at the nurse’s station that you were here, and I wanted to surprise you.” Lisa could recognize Adam’s voice anywhere. But she realized he was talking to Stephanie, not to her. He walked towards Stephanie his arms outstretched with a bouquet of flowers.
Stephanie raised her eyebrows and stepped back. She looked at Lisa and mouthed, “What?”
Lisa noticed that Stephanie turned her head when Adam tried to kiss her lips. He appeared stunned at his wife’s apparent coldness, and the two of them stood apart for a minute. Stephanie examined his face. Lisa could only imagine what was going through her head as she saw her husband in a new light.
Adam continued. “It’s OK I walked in here, right? I’m sorry, miss. I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s just that it’s our anniversary, and I have to leave for a business trip tonight.”
He doesn’t know me. That’s different. Lisa shook her head, “Truly no problem at all. Happy anniversary.”
As she uttered the words, she realized she felt nothing about Adam not knowing her. It was as if erasing his memory had erased her obsessive attraction to him. She felt free. Full of possibility. Excited to see what else may have changed, to discover what she could create with this freedom from Adam.
Stephanie wiped her face with her hand and became professional and crisp. Her words brought Lisa back to the present. “Lisa, my shift is over. We could drive you home if you’d like.”
Lisa raised her hands in prayer, in thanks. “Yes, my friend. Thank you. That would be lovely.”
***
Lisa waved to Adam and Stephanie from her front door. The house was empty and quiet. Her only task was finding Emily’s number to call her. She remembered that she kept emergency numbers on a bulletin board by the kitchen sink. She ran there only to find a big heart drawn on a piece of construction paper pinned to an otherwise empty board. Without giving it any thought, she searched the junk drawer for a phone book without success.
The disappointment, the sadness and despair, made her realize she was bone weary. She shuffled her feet to the living room, took off her shoes, and lay down on the sofa, pulling a soft blanket from the back of the couch to cover herself. The throw pillows were warm and comforting, and, before she even noticed, she was fast asleep.
She woke up to the sound of the door unlocking. Disoriented, she sat up on the sofa and peeked towards the door. Striding towards her, Emily squealed. “Oh, my God, you’re home! I came here to get you underwear and a fuzzy robe, and then I was going to the hospital to see you. How’d you get here?”
Lisa rolled off the couch, ran to Emily, threw herself into her arms and sobbed. “You’re here! Oh, Emily, you’re here!”
“Of course I’m here, crazy woman. Where the hell else would I be? I left your dog in my house. I wasn’t sure when Marcus would be home tonight, and….” Emily’s voice trailed off as she noticed Lisa trembling in her hug. “Listen, I know you love me and all, but it hasn’t been that long since we saw each other. I was just at the hospital yesterday.”
Lisa stopped her crying. “I know, I just…it just feels like you were missing and…I’m just emotional to be home.”
Lisa hugged Emily even harder, mumbling, “I couldn’t find you in my phone contacts. I couldn’t call you.”
Emily laughed. “Silly girl. My phone died, and I got a new one yesterday with a new number, remember? You deleted the old contact.”
Lisa looked up in disbelief. “Emily, I was so scared I’d lost you.” She snuggled back into her friend’s arms.
“OK, crazy lady. Sounds like you’re hormonal or something. How about I make us a cup of tea, and you can tell me all about how they set you free from headache central?”
They headed to the kitchen and gabbed as if no time or space had separated them at all. Overjoyed to have her friend back, Lisa stared at her as if she had been away for an eternity.
As the late afternoon turned into early evening, they heard the front door opening. A man’s voice boomed. “Hey? Who’s home?”
Hearing steps striding along the hardwood floor, Lisa turned in her seat to see Marcus standing in the kitchen doorway. He walked over to her in two steps and hugged her tightly. “You’re back,” he whispered. “I thought you’d still be in the hospital when I didn’t hear from you today.” He pressed his nose against her face and kissed her cheek. “I was planning to make us a quick dinner before heading to the hospital to see you.”
Lisa leaned away from his embrace and, with a quizzical look, asked “Us?”
That’s when she heard him.
A young voice yelling “Mommy!”
She turned in her seat to see a little boy of about nine or ten with curly brown hair running towards her. He jumped onto her lap like a spry kitten and squeezed her, covering her face with kisses. “I missed you soooooo much! Are you happy to see me?” Stunned and speechless, she stared at the child, at Emily and finally at Marcus, who had stepped into the kitchen to stand by the refrigerator.
Was this child in her arms a figment of her imagination or a ghost she had conjured up? Was she dead and this was heaven? Perhaps it was hell when the thought that it could all disappear in an instant occurred to her. But she felt the child’s arms on her waist, smelled his scent of air, grass, and little kid sweat. It must be heaven, she thought. Her eyes opened to everything in the house—the kitchen refrigerator magnets holding up crayon drawings, the picture frames full of Marcus, of her, and of their son, the toys strewn around, the paper flowers in a tin can vase. All the signs of a home filled with love.
Marcus leaned down to Lisa and put his lips on her neck. She freed one hand from the child and pulled his head down towards her. She snuggled into him, breathing in his scent. She had missed him. All this time she’d been wandering in her head and across time, this is what she’d missed the most. A family. Marcus. His calm assurance, his generosity, his warmth, and his love. She had blinded herself with grief at losing their son, when all along, she had pushed away the joy that Marcus brought to her life. She had shut him out, not letting him share in their joint sorrow, not seeing that together they might have been able to overcome the pain.
And now, after all the wandering, all the sorrow, all the loss, she had everything she had missed. She had Marcus. By some inexplicable miracle, she also had her son, alive, beautiful, growing. She had her best friend.
Gratitude spilled from her eyes. “Seth?”
He smiled up at her.
She kissed her son’s head, breathing in his life and pouring out her love for him. He was here. She was his mother. Still.
Her life was complete.
In a burst of energy, Emily shouted, “Oh you guys! You’re making me all sappy and crying. Stop that! Let’s have some fun!” She turned to Seth, pulled him from Lisa and twirled him around by the hand. “Auntie Emily is here, Seth. What shall we do for fun tonight?”
With glee, Seth yelled in his high-pitched little boy voice. “Alexa! Play The Human League!”
THE END