CHAPTER 5: Three Sundays Ago
1968 Words
There are some memories that become blurry with time.
You forget the exact words someone said.
You forget what they were wearing.
You forget what the weather was like.
But there are also memories that stay strangely clear.
For me, it was three Sundays.
Three ordinary Sundays that I never thought would matter.
Three Sundays when I met the same boy.
Three Sundays that eventually became the beginning of my first crush.
And now...
I was living them again.
Only this time, I knew exactly what was coming.
---
Sunday One
The first Sunday was the easiest.
Nothing dramatic happened.
No confession.
No butterflies.
No movie-like moment.
Just a fifteen-year-old girl carrying chairs in a church and a boy who happened to be there.
Except I knew his name.
I knew his future.
And I knew that this ordinary moment would eventually become something I would remember years later.
Josh was standing near the entrance.
He was helping arrange the chairs again.
I watched him for a few seconds before forcing myself to look away.
Don't stare.
I looked again.
Stop.
I looked again.
Elle.
I sighed.
“You're embarrassing yourself.”
“Talking to yourself?”
I nearly jumped.
Josh was standing beside me.
I looked at him.
“What?”
He laughed.
“I asked if you're talking to yourself.”
“No.”
“You definitely were.”
“I wasn't.”
He smiled.
“Okay.”
He walked past me.
Then stopped.
“You're Elle, right?”
I nodded.
“Yes.”
“I remembered.”
My heart did something completely unnecessary.
“Really?”
He smiled.
“Yeah.”
I looked down.
“Good.”
There was a pause.
Then he asked,
“Are you helping with the chairs?”
“Yes.”
“Come on.”
He handed me two chairs.
I stared at them.
“You're making me work?”
He laughed.
“You said you're helping.”
I smiled.
“Fair.”
We walked together.
It was such a small thing.
But I remembered the original timeline.
I had barely spoken to him.
This time, I did.
And that was the first change.
---
After church, I went home.
I opened the notebook.
I expected something.
Nothing happened.
I frowned.
“Seriously?”
I flipped through the pages.
Blank.
I tapped the cover.
“Come on.”
Nothing.
I sighed.
Maybe I had imagined everything.
Maybe the reset wasn't real.
Maybe—
A line slowly appeared.
FIRST CHANGE: +1
I froze.
Another line appeared.
TIMELINE STABLE.
I stared at the page.
“So you really are doing this.”
The notebook didn't answer.
But beneath the words, another sentence appeared.
ONE SMALL CHOICE CAN CHANGE EVERYTHING.
I closed it.
I wasn't sure whether I liked that.
---
Sunday Two
The second Sunday was different.
Because now Josh knew me.
Not well.
But enough to recognize me.
When I arrived at church, he was already there.
He looked at me.
Then smiled.
“Hey, Elle.”
I smiled.
“Hi.”
“You're early.”
“So are you.”
“I always am.”
“Why?”
He shrugged.
“I like helping.”
I looked around.
“You actually enjoy arranging chairs?”
He laughed.
“No.”
“Then why?”
“My mom told me to.”
I laughed.
“So you're just obedient.”
“Sometimes.”
“Sometimes?”
“Depends.”
“On what?”
“On who's asking.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“Interesting.”
He smiled.
“You ask a lot of questions.”
“I like knowing things.”
“About me?”
I froze.
He was smiling.
I realized he was teasing.
Still...
my face felt warm.
“Don't flatter yourself.”
He laughed.
“Okay.”
We walked toward the chairs.
I remembered the original timeline.
This conversation never happened.
But now it was happening.
Because I had changed it.
Maybe that was the point.
I wasn't supposed to simply repeat my life.
I was supposed to experience it differently.
---
After church, Josh approached me.
“Hey.”
I turned.
“Yeah?”
“Do you want to join us?”
“Join you where?”
“There's a small group going to eat.”
I looked at him.
My heart skipped.
This wasn't supposed to happen.
In the original timeline, I went home.
I didn't go anywhere with him.
If I said yes...
I'd be changing another part of the equation.
I hesitated.
Then smiled.
“Sure.”
---
The place was small.
Nothing fancy.
Just a little restaurant near the church.
Josh sat across from me.
We talked.
About school.
About our favorite subjects.
About things we wanted to do when we grew up.
He wanted to become an architect.
I told him I wanted to become an engineer.
He smiled.
“Engineer?”
“Yes.”
“That's hard.”
“So is architecture.”
“I didn't say it wasn't.”
“You implied it.”
He laughed.
“You're competitive.”
“I'm realistic.”
“Same thing.”
I smiled.
Then he asked,
“Why engineering?”
I paused.
The question was simple.
But somehow, I wanted to give him a real answer.
“Because I like solving problems.”
He smiled.
“That sounds like you.”
“What does that mean?”
“You seem like someone who always wants an answer.”
I looked at him.
For a second, I wondered how much he already understood about me.
Maybe more than I expected.
“What about you?”
He looked down at his drink.
“I like creating things.”
“Buildings?”
“Sometimes.”
“What else?”
He smiled.
“Things people remember.”
I stared at him.
“That sounds cheesy.”
He laughed.
“I know.”
I laughed too.
And somewhere in the middle of that conversation, something changed.
Not in the notebook.
Not in the timeline.
In me.
Because I realized I wasn't talking to my childhood crush.
I was talking to Josh.
A real person.
Not an idea.
Not the popular boy everyone liked.
Not the person I had imagined.
Just Josh.
And somehow, that made him more interesting.
---
That night, the notebook changed again.
JOSH — 8%
I stared at the number.
“Eight?”
It had been one percent.
I swallowed.
“What does that mean?”
The page changed.
CONNECTION INCREASING.
Then:
TIMELINE DEVIATION: 7%
I frowned.
“Is that bad?”
Nothing.
I waited.
Nothing.
“Of course.”
I closed the notebook.
But before I could put it away, another sentence appeared.
YOU ARE CHANGING HIM TOO.
I stopped.
That thought hadn't occurred to me.
I wasn't the only one changing.
Josh was changing too.
Because of me.
---
Sunday Three
The third Sunday arrived faster than I wanted.
I knew this one mattered.
In the original timeline, this was when I started pulling away.
I remember seeing girls talking about Josh.
I remember hearing his name everywhere.
I remember realizing how many people liked him.
And I remember thinking:
What's the point?
I was just another girl.
So I gave up.
That was how the crush ended.
At least, that's what I told myself.
This time, I decided not to run away.
I arrived at church.
Josh was already there.
He looked at me and smiled.
“You came.”
I smiled.
“Of course.”
He walked toward me.
“I thought you weren't coming.”
“Why?”
“You weren't here last Sunday for the usual time.”
I laughed.
“You noticed?”
He shrugged.
“Maybe.”
My heart skipped.
Maybe.
That word stayed in my head.
We sat together during the service.
Not beside each other exactly.
But close enough.
Afterward, we talked outside.
Then I noticed it.
Girls were looking at him.
Whispering.
Laughing.
One of them walked toward him.
“Josh!”
He turned.
“Hey.”
She smiled.
I looked away.
There it was.
The old feeling.
The same insecurity.
The same thought.
Everyone likes him.
I remembered why I had walked away the first time.
Maybe I should do it again.
Maybe some things were meant to happen exactly as they did.
I stood.
“I'll go help my mom.”
Josh looked at me.
“Already?”
“Yeah.”
He nodded.
“Okay.”
I walked away.
One step.
Two.
Three.
Then—
“Elle!”
I stopped.
I turned.
Josh was walking toward me.
He stopped in front of me.
“You okay?”
I nodded.
“Yeah.”
“You look sad.”
“I'm not.”
He stared at me.
“You are.”
I laughed awkwardly.
“Why do you care?”
The question slipped out.
His expression changed.
“I don't know.”
I stared at him.
He looked away.
Then back at me.
“I just do.”
My heart pounded.
He smiled slightly.
“Is that weird?”
I shook my head.
“No.”
“Good.”
For a moment, neither of us said anything.
Then he asked,
“Will you be here next Sunday?”
I looked at him.
The question felt strangely important.
I smiled.
“Yes.”
“Promise?”
I laughed.
“Why?”
“Because I want to talk to you again.”
My heart stopped.
I looked away.
“Okay.”
He smiled.
“Okay.”
I walked away.
But this time, I didn't run.
---
That night, I opened the notebook.
The page was different.
JOSH — 15%
I smiled.
“Fifteen.”
Then the number flickered.
16%
I frowned.
Then:
17%
It kept increasing.
18.
19.
20.
My smile disappeared.
“What?”
The number stopped.
21%
Then the page went completely black.
A single sentence appeared.
FIRST VARIABLE: ACTIVE.
I stared.
Then another sentence appeared.
BUT THE EQUATION HAS CHANGED.
My stomach dropped.
“What did I change?”
The page remained blank.
Then:
ORIGINAL PATH:
«Elle loses interest in Josh.»
I swallowed.
Then another line.
CURRENT PATH:
«Josh is becoming interested in Elle.»
My heart stopped.
I stared at the words.
“No.”
The notebook remained open.
I slowly shook my head.
“This wasn't supposed to happen.”
The page changed.
YOU WANTED TO CHANGE THE PAST.
THIS IS THE CONSEQUENCE.
I closed the notebook.
My hands were shaking.
I had wanted answers.
I had wanted a second chance.
I had wanted to know what would happen if I made different choices.
But I hadn't considered one thing.
What if changing the past meant changing someone else's feelings?
What if Josh was never supposed to like me?
What if I was creating a version of him that never existed?
I lay down.
I stared at the ceiling.
Then my phone rang.
An unknown number.
My heart froze.
I answered.
“Hello?”
Silence.
Then a voice.
A boy's voice.
Young.
Familiar.
“Elle?”
I sat up.
“Who is this?”
The voice laughed softly.
“You really don't remember?”
My heart began pounding.
“Who are you?”
A pause.
Then:
“I'm the second variable.”
The call ended.
I stared at the phone.
My blood went cold.
Ezekiel.
But that was impossible.
I wasn't supposed to meet him yet.
The notebook suddenly opened beside me.
Three words appeared.
RESET INTERRUPTED.
I stared.
Then another line.
THE SECOND VARIABLE HAS FOUND YOU.
I stopped breathing.
And somewhere far away, in another version of my life...
Ezekiel had just entered the equation.
Much earlier than he was supposed to.
I slowly whispered:
“This wasn't part of the plan.”
The notebook answered.
THERE IS NO PLAN ANYMORE.
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