Your Future Isn't Mine

Arianna Eisenberg had never asked to be different. At nineteen, when most of her friends were still fumbling through exams, crushes, and uncertain dreams about the future, Anna bore the heavy burden of already knowing too much about it. It wasn’t always like this. When she was a child, her visions had come like whispers in her dreams—fuzzy images, strange flashes of people she hadn’t met yet, or places she hadn’t seen. Her parents thought she simply had a wild imagination. But as the years passed, those “dreams” sharpened into clarity. She could describe the clothes people would wear before they walked into the room, recall conversations before they even happened, and foresee events that left her shaken because they were so specific. The first time she realized her gift was real, she was only thirteen. She had dreamt of her father getting into a car accident on his way home. She had begged him not to leave that night, sobbing at the door, her small hands clutching at his shirt. He had laughed it off, kissed her forehead, and told her she was worrying too much. That night, the police came. Her father had survived, but only barely. His car was in ruins, and from that day forward, Anna had never doubted the truth of her visions. Now, six years later, she was no longer a frightened girl but a young woman studying psychology at her local university. She wanted, perhaps naively, to understand the human mind because hers was constantly tormented by knowledge she couldn’t control. Her friends didn’t know about her ability. She kept it hidden, afraid they would call her insane or worse—use her. Only her mother knew, and even then, her mother’s comfort was laced with unease. On the surface, Anna lived like any ordinary student. She wore simple clothes—jeans, soft sweaters, and always her pendant necklace with a small crystal her grandmother had given her. She studied diligently, drank coffee late into the night, scribbled notes in her thick notebooks, and sometimes laughed with her classmates. But beneath all of that, she lived in constant fear of what her visions might show her next. *** The day everything changed was supposed to be just another Tuesday. The campus buzzed with life. Students hurried across the quad, some with earbuds in, others carrying thick textbooks. The autumn air was crisp, and the leaves painted the sidewalks in orange and gold. Anna adjusted her bag on her shoulder and tried to focus on the research paper she had to submit for her Abnormal Psychology class. Her best friend, Lila, was chattering beside her. “…and I swear, if Professor Morton assigns one more reading this week, I’m just going to collapse on the library floor and live there.” Anna laughed softly, shaking her head. “You say that every semester.” “And every semester, I mean it.” Lila sighed dramatically, tossing her long black hair back. “Anyway, did you hear? There’s a new exchange student. From England, I think. Or maybe Australia? Everyone’s already talking about him.” Anna barely registered the words. Gossip about new students was common enough, and she wasn’t the type to get curious. Still, she asked, “What’s so special about him?” Lila’s eyes widened, sparkling with mischief. “He’s gorgeous. Like, jaw-dropping. And apparently super rich. His family owns a company or something. Pitt Enterprises? I think that’s what someone said.” Anna rolled her eyes. “So you’ve already memorized his résumé?” “Hey, don’t blame me. Half the girls in our year are already plotting how to bump into him in the cafeteria.” Anna smiled faintly but didn’t reply. She wasn’t interested in some wealthy foreigner. She had enough chaos in her life without inviting more. But fate, it seemed, didn’t care what Anna wanted. *** Later that afternoon, Anna was sitting in the library, lost in her notes, when the atmosphere around her shifted. It was subtle at first. A faint murmur of voices, hushed but excited. The soft thud of shoes against the carpet. A chair scraping nearby. She ignored it until the sound of a deep voice made her glance up. And there he was. Harry Pitt. He stood a few feet away, speaking to the librarian. Tall, with dark blond hair that caught the sunlight streaming through the high windows, he looked almost unreal. His features were sharp but not severe, softened by the faintest smile tugging at his lips. He wore a tailored blazer over a simple white shirt, effortlessly elegant in a way that made him stand out from every other student around. Anna felt her chest tighten. It wasn’t just his appearance—though she couldn’t deny he was striking—it was something else. Something that made the air thrum, as if the world itself was holding its breath. And then, without warning, her gift stirred. The vision came not as a dream this time but as a rush of images flooding her mind. She saw herself in a white gown, standing beside Harry at an altar. She saw laughter, candlelit dinners, and a shared life full of warmth. But then the images twisted—shadows fell over them, arguments erupted, tears streamed down her face. She saw betrayal, heartbreak, and finally, herself walking away from him, shattered. It all happened in seconds, but when the vision released her, Anna’s hands were trembling. Her coffee cup toppled, spilling across her notes, but she hardly noticed. She couldn’t look at him again, couldn’t bear the weight of what she had just seen. Harry Pitt turned slightly, his gaze sweeping across the library. For the briefest moment, their eyes met. Anna froze. His eyes were an intense shade of blue, piercing, curious. And for the first time in her life, she felt the dangerous tug of something she had always tried to avoid: love at first sight. *** She left the library abruptly, gathering her things in a flurry. Lila called after her, confused, but Anna mumbled something about needing fresh air and escaped into the cool autumn evening. Her heart pounded as she walked across campus, her mind replaying the vision. Marriage. Destruction. Pain. Why him? Why now? Anna had always believed her visions were warnings, not certainties. She could change things, couldn’t she? She had to believe that. And if being with Harry Pitt would only lead to heartbreak, then the solution was simple: she would avoid him. No matter how her heart fluttered when she thought of his eyes. No matter how her soul whispered that she had just met someone who could change everything. *** That night, Anna lay awake in her dorm room. Lila was already asleep in the bed across from hers, breathing softly. The room was dim, the moonlight spilling in through the curtains, painting the walls silver. Anna stared at the ceiling, clutching her pendant. She tried to remind herself of the rules she had built to survive: never get too close, never ignore the warnings, never tempt fate. Her power wasn’t a gift—it was a curse. And love, she knew, was the one thing it could destroy most easily. But deep inside, beneath all the fear, another thought crept in. A dangerous one. What if the vision wasn’t a warning to run away? What if it was a test—to see if she was strong enough to change the future? Anna closed her eyes, trying to silence the war within her. But even in sleep, Harry Pitt’s face lingered, and the shadow of what was yet to come loomed over her like a storm.