THE SIX-MINUTE DIFFERENCE
643 Words
Aarav stared at his phone, unable to understand what he was seeing. The time displayed at the top of the screen was 12:42 p.m., yet the underground clock clearly showed 5:59 p.m. Kabir checked his own phone and frowned.
“Mine says twelve forty-two too.”
Mira looked toward the clock.
“That's because your phones are still connected to Timeline One.”
Aarav looked at her. “Then what timeline are we in?”
Mira hesitated.
“Timeline Two.”
The words made Aarav's stomach tighten. He remembered the message on the black watch.
TIMELINE 02 ACCEPTED.
“But I didn't choose anything,” he said.
“You did when you touched the Gate.”
“I only touched it for a second.”
“A second is enough.”
The underground chamber suddenly shook again. Dust fell from the ceiling, and somewhere above them, a train rumbled through the station.
Aarav looked at the clock.
6:00 p.m.
Only one minute had passed.
Yet his phone still showed 12:42 p.m.
“Why is the time different?” Kabir asked.
Mira walked toward the Meridian Gate. “Because time isn't the same in every timeline. The Gate doesn't simply connect different places. It connects different versions of events.”
Aarav stared at the machine.
“So the newspaper wasn't showing tomorrow?”
Mira shook her head.
“No. It was showing another timeline's present.”
Aarav remembered the newspaper sitting on his kitchen table that morning. He suddenly realized how impossible the situation really was.
He hadn't seen the future.
He had seen another reality.
“What about the people who disappear at 6:15?” he asked.
Mira's expression darkened.
“They don't disappear.”
“Then where do they go?”
“They cross over.”
Kabir stepped forward. “Cross over to where?”
Mira looked at the Gate.
“To another timeline.”
Before anyone could say anything else, the underground lights switched off.
Aarav heard a metallic click.
Then another.
Someone was opening the door.
Mira immediately stepped backward.
“We need to hide.”
Kabir whispered, “Again?”
“Trust me.”
They moved behind the machine as the door slowly opened.
A man walked into the chamber.
Aarav recognized him immediately.
His father.
But this time, something was different.
His father wasn't alone.
A young girl walked beside him.
Aarav stared at her.
It was the same girl from the photograph.
Mira.
Except the Mira standing beside Aarav was already there.
Aarav looked between the two girls.
“What?”
The two Miras stared at each other.
For several seconds, neither moved.
Then the second Mira whispered, “You're not supposed to be here.”
The Mira beside Aarav answered quietly, “Neither are you.”
Kabir looked at Aarav.
“I officially have no idea what's happening anymore.”
Aarav couldn't blame him.
His father stepped forward.
“Aarav.”
Aarav stood slowly.
“Dad?”
His father looked relieved.
“Thank God.”
Aarav wanted to run toward him, but something stopped him.
The older Aarav's warning returned to his mind.
That's not your father.
He looked carefully at the man.
“Which timeline are you from?”
His father's expression changed.
For a moment, there was silence.
Then he smiled.
“That's a very good question.”
Aarav took a step backward.
His father continued, “I'm from the timeline where you never existed.”
Aarav froze.
Kabir whispered, “What?”
The man looked toward the Meridian Gate.
“I spent years trying to bring my son back.”
Aarav's voice shook.
“Your son?”
“My Aarav.”
The room fell silent.
The man looked directly at him.
“He died when he was eleven.”
Aarav stared at him.
“Then why do you look like my father?”
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