She Was Never Here
sci-fi◐ TeenMara cuts the thread. The needle hums and the basement flickers. When the light steadies, the calendar on the wall reads Sunday. Saturday afternoon is just gone, like it never happened. She runs upstairs shouting Eli's name. He answers from the kitchen, alive, eating cereal. It worked. But he frowns at her and says, 'Why are you crying? Who's Eli?'
Eli backs away from her, spooked. He grabs his keys and says he's going for a drive to clear his head. Mara's stomach drops. The drive. The highway. The river. She blocks the door with her body. 'Please,' she says. 'Just stay home today. One hour. Trust me.'
What happens next?
2 ways forwardEli shoves past her, annoyed, and gets in the car anyway. Mara jumps into the passenger seat at the last second. On the highway, near the river bend, a deer leaps onto the road. Eli swerves. Mara grabs the wheel and steers them away from the water, into a soft ditch instead. They're both shaken, but alive. The river didn't get him this time.