The Other Side of Me – Part 7
by Limbo’s Mistress

It took me longer to recover my wits than I would have preferred. I wasn’t sure which was the more distressing. The fact that Charlene was cheating on Jackson with her friend’s boyfriend. Or the fact that said boyfriend was none other than Danny Morris, the asshole bully from high school.

“What?” I spat, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand to get the taste of Danny out of it. “What the hell?”

“Is that cherry I taste?” he asked playfully, seemingly oblivious to the rage coursing through me. “My favorite.”

That easy smile I’d spent four years seeing slid across his face in a practiced motion. It was the same disarming grin he’d used to convince teachers that the kid from the AV club had tripped all on his own. Or coerce brain-addled girls that he was really a tough guy with a soft side. Charlene might have been swayed by it, but I sure as hell was not.

“Want to tell me what made you think manhandling me in a dark alley was a good idea?” I balled up my fists and began calculating the possible trajectory of my foot so that the upward arc would put my booted toes squarely in his balls.

For a second, that smarmy smile faltered, a hint of confusion drifting across his face. Then he shook his head and chuckled.

“Sorry, Charlie,” he said, sounding the barest bit apologetic. “I really didn’t mean to scare you or anything. I saw you walking this way and thought I’d surprise you.”

I was still debating the pros (which were a lot) and the cons (of which there were few) of high-kicking his nuts into the lower atmosphere. Then I simply sighed and relaxed a bit. Not that I actually trusted the jerk, but his body posture seemed to indicate that he wasn’t considering moving closer to me again. At least not immediately.

“Surprise me?” I fought to keep from screaming. Mostly because I didn’t want to attract attention until I felt I needed to. “By grabbing me from behind without any warning and then … kissing me?”

A bit of color crept onto his face. Wait a second. Was he blushing? Was Mr. Most Likely to Go to Prison actually embarrassed?

“I know. I know.” He said, shrugging. “It was stupid. Call it momentary insanity. I saw you, was overcome with desire, and just had to kiss you.” Then that Cheshire grin reappeared. “Forgive me? I promise to make it up to you.”

I shook my head, feeling a wave of nausea roll through me. Mostly because I couldn’t believe that Charlene was a far shittier friend than I expected. Okay, maybe not mostly. More like equal parts disgusted with my double’s behavior and the fact that Danny Morris had kissed me.

“Josie …” I started to say. However, Danny stepped forward and took my hand gently into his, silencing my protest.

“Don’t worry about her. She’s with Shelly over on the other side of campus. No way for her to know we’re together.”

Now I was going to be sick.

“That’s not the point, Danny,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest.

“Danny?” He tossed me another slightly puzzled expression, then threw his hands in the air. “Then what is the point?”

“The point is that we should be doing … whatever this is.”

I didn’t know exactly the nature or duration of this tryst between Charlene and Danny. Without those details, keeping my protest vague seemed the wisest course of action. Of course, the vagueness didn’t stop my imagination from trying to fill in all the disgusting gaps. Which only made me the more nauseated.

“Are you serious?” he asked, his tone moving from one of wonder and bewilderment to anger. It was one I recognized immediately.

I nodded, holding his furious gaze with my own.

“It’s not fair to Jackson. Or Josie.” I ran my fingers through my hair, pressing the tips into my temples. “I really don’t know how I let you convince me otherwise.”

“Me?” He raised his arm and pointed his finger at me. “You were the one who started with the whole ‘you’re too good for Josie, you deserve someone better’ shit.” He shook his head, jaw visibly clenched. “This is fucking Homecoming all over again. You’d think I’d know better.”

Do … huh? My tirade died as my brain pulled the emergency brakes and everything came to a screeching halt. This little clandestine affair was Charlene’s idea?? Danny didn’t woo her from Jackson, she wooed him from Josie? That couldn’t possibly be right. I shook my head, staring at the familiar stranger standing a few feet away.

After the incident in Mrs. Wimple’s yard, Danny Morris and I avoided each other as much as possible. I didn’t have any desire to get my ass kicked and I assumed he didn’t care to run afoul of anymore of Jackson’s crazy inventions. Anytime we did have to interact, the exchanges were brief, rare, and seething with thinly veiled hostility. After graduation, I was fairly certain we might never cross paths again.

What if, over here, the years had unfolded differently? Back home, Danny was constantly in too much trouble to participate in organized sports. This version, however, had apparently not only joined the football team, he’d been good enough at the game to transition to playing for the university. Throw in the disturbing fact that Charlene had been a cheerleader, and it was all too easy to assume they’d gravitated to the same social circles.

They’d obviously never dated. Otherwise, either Katie or Jackson would have mentioned it. But that didn’t mean that something intimate hadn’t taken place between them. Maybe some short-lived fling that set them on a course leading to what they were doing now?

“This is not like Homecoming, Danny” I said, trying to sound confident rather than confused. “Not like it at all.”

He snorted in response, shaking his head. “Other than the fact that we’re seeing different people than we did in high school, it is exactly like Homecoming. And what’s with the ‘Danny’ crap, Charlene?”

Oh … well, shit. I guess Danny was a moniker more suited to a child than a young man of almost twenty. I never bothered to find out how he liked to be addressed as we both got older. To me, he would always be that bully named Danny. What did Charlene call him? Dan? Daniel? Stud-Muffin?”

“Look,” I said, holding up one hand. “Let’s just take a breather, okay? I’m having a really unusual day.”

This situation wasn’t going to work out well for either of us if it continued along its current trajectory. I just needed to disengage and go somewhere to think. Figure out how best to fix the issue.

Plus, I needed time to deal with the shit-ton of guilt pressing down on me. Which was completely messed up if you thought about it. Why was I feeling guilty about what my duplicate from a parallel universe had done. It wasn’t like I’d done, or would even think of doing, the stuff she had.

Right now, based on what I’d learned so far today, I would rate my double: Zero stars. Would not recommend.

“Whatever,” he said, still brimming with anger and hurt. “I guess I’ll see you later.”

He stared at me for another couple of seconds, momentarily making me panic. I wouldn’t know what I would do if he suddenly accused me of being an imposter. Of not being the Real Charlene. However, he merely shook his head again and marched out of the alley and across the grassy courtyard toward the athletic complex.

When he was gone, I slumped against the cool brick wall behind me, fighting to take control of the whirlwind of conflicting thoughts and emotions. Of course, that was when my phone began to ring. I pulled it out of my purse, already deciding that if it was Danny, Josie, or Shelly, I was going to send the call to voicemail.

It was Jackson.

Balling my free hand into a fist, I drew in a deep breath, released it, then swiped my thumb across the green circle.

“Hey,” I said in a voice that was shakier than I wanted. “What’s up?”

“Hey,” he replied. “I just thought I’d check in and see how it was going. I know Charlie has lunch right now, so I figured I wouldn’t be interrupting anything.”

Nope. Not interrupting anything. Except your girlfriend’s infidelity with your former nemesis. Other than that, nothing at all.

“It’s been eye-opening,” I said, forcing a little chuckle into my tone. “To say the least.”

He laughed as well. Only his sounded genuine. “I’m sure it has been. I have to admit I’m a bit envious. You’re not only getting the chance to explore a different reality; you get to do it as a different person. Truly groundbreaking.”

“Next time, you can be the one stuck in the skirt.”

“You’re in a skirt?” He laughed again. “You let Katie dress you, didn’t you?”

“She, uh, made some suggestions.” The implication of his question finally resounded in my brain. “Charlie doesn’t wear skirts to school, does she?”

“She does sometimes. Most days, though, she just wears jeans.”

“I’m going to kill her sister when I get home,” I growled.

“I’m sure you look adorable in it,” he said. “Anyway, I just thought I’d see how your first day as Charlene was going. After practice is over, can you swing by here? I want to run a few more scans. They’ll be useful in recalibrating the machine when I get it back up and running.”

“Sure. Just make sure you keep working on that one and don’t transition to a new project. I know how my Jackson is prone to doing that.”

“I promise, Charles. Getting the two of you back where you belong is my main priority.”

“Good. I’ll see you around five.”

I hung up the phone and dropped it in the purse. I had used every ounce of willpower not to tell him that the girl he thought the universe revolved around was a two-timing bitch. While I tried to convince myself that it was because I didn’t have all the details, and not being able to tell him everything would only make it worse, that wasn’t the truth.

The truth was … I was afraid. I feared that he might be so angry at her that he might decide leaving her in a different body in an alternate dimension to be a fitting punishment. Leaving me trapped here. In her.

An hour ago, I would have said that Jackson would never do something like that. But now I realized that just because mine wouldn’t, didn’t mean the one here wouldn’t. I’d already seen, firsthand, how different mine and Charlene’s moralities were.

I pressed my fingers into my temples. This whole thing was starting to give me a migraine. My appetite, tenuous to start with, had vanished completely. In fact, as I stepped out of the alley, the aroma of the food being prepared nearby made my stomach roil. I covered my mouth with one hand and hurried away from the student center as quickly as my booted feet would carry me.

Charlene’s one o’clock class was Sociology. Despite my overwhelming desire to just find a corner to sit in and think, I decided to attend. Mostly because I couldn’t think of anyplace better to go.

According to the school’s website, Pratt Hall was where I needed to be. I thought it might be somewhere near McIver, which meant hiking all the way back across campus. When I came into sight of the structure, I sensed someone walking up behind me. As I started to turn around, preparing myself for another round of arguing with Danny, a familiar, more feminine voice called out.

“Hey, Charlie. Wait up.”

I froze in mid-step, slowly turning around to look at the person who’d called my name.

Samantha Thomas.

She looked exactly the same as my maybe-girlfriend back home, with the exception that her long red hair hung down past her shoulders, rather than stopping at chin length. She wore a dark denim skirt that came down to just above her knees, revealing the taut, muscular calves of someone who’s main source of physical activity was running up and down a field for ninety minutes, and a light purple blouse with mid-length sleeves. The cut of the top was loose enough to look comfortable, but tight enough to emphasize the generous swell of her breasts.

I’d once thought her bosom to be average in size. However, compared to Charlene, she was very well-endowed. Which immediately made me wonder how she dealt with them while playing.

“Uh, hey … Samantha,” I said, blinking rapidly and wondering what sort of screwed up humor the universe possessed. “How’re you?”

She laughed and continued walked, causing me to resume my pace to keep up.

“Not bad. Had a chem exam at eight this morning. Probably failed. Then I got assigned a ten page paper in Brit Lit. Now I get to go sit in a freezing lecture room for an hour and a half while Professor Reardon drones on and on about social deviance and group demographics.” Then she smiled a gigantic grin at me. “At least the company won’t be so bad.”

Company? Wait, did that mean that her and Charlene were in the same class? Seriously??

I returned her smile, despite the nervous pit forming in my stomach, and shrugged. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to keep each other awake.” Mentally, I crossed my fingers. If I’d misinterpreted her comment, if we weren’t currently heading to the same class, I was going to look like a total idiot.

“If not,” she said, laughing. “One of us will need to sneak out and grab a couple of lattes.”

I nodded, feeling my coiled anxiety relax a bit. My original plan for class was to wait outside until just before the lecture began, then go inside and look around to see if anyone waved at me. Then I would sit down next to that person and do my best to appear extremely interested in the teacher’s words.

Now, at least, I knew who I was expected to share the class experience with. Even if the relationship on this side of the mirror was different.

“Did you finish the reading?” Samantha asked as we climbed the steps to the entrance to Pratt Hall.

I shook my head. “Had to, uh, keep an eye on my little sister last night because my dad worked late. Totally took up all of my evening.”

She nodded. “Yeah, I hear you. I started to read, got as far as three pages in, then decided to go to a movie. Definitely the better choice.”

“What did you see?”

“That new ScarJo movie that just came out. Black Widow.”

I nodded. “I’ve been wanting to see it myself. Any good?”

“Oh yeah.” She pulled open the door, holding it for me. “Maybe next time I’ll shoot you a text. We can go together.”

In the lecture hall, I followed Samantha to a pair of seats near the back. We plopped down our stuff, pulled out our books, and waited for knowledge to be imparted.

Professor Reardon was a tiny lady. She looked like she might be in her mid-forties, with short jet black hair streaked with shocking bands of white. She wandered around the front of the room while she talked, occasionally calling on one of the other sixty students spread out around the auditorium. I followed along with her lecture, all the while praying that she didn’t call on me.

For once, fate decided to cut me a break.

My phone buzzed several times during the class. Thankfully, the amount of junk in my purse muffled the sound so that only Samantha and I could hear it. The first time, she glanced down at my bag, then back up to me. When I responded with a shrug and left the device where it was, a smirk appeared on her face. By the time the diminutive professor dismissed us, the phone had buzzed another half dozen times.

“Extra popular today,” Samantha said with a grin as we walked out of the lecture hall. “Either one of your teammates is having a fashion emergency or else some guy is really desperate to talk to you.”

I rolled my eyes. The only guy who struck me as desperate enough to repeatedly text me without waiting for a response was Danny. Jackson would have been more considerate of the fact that I was supposed to be paying attention in class. As we stepped out into the sunlight, Samantha released a sigh of disgust.

“Oh, I forgot Option Number Three,” she said, nodding her head toward the bottom of the steps. “Miss Wanna-Be Regina.”

I followed her gaze, looking past the rest of the students filling down out of the building to the pretty blonde girl with her arms crossed over her chest and the sour expression on her face. When our eyes met, the frown deepened and her stance became more impatient. It was more than apparent the smartly dressed girl was waiting for me.

And not too happy about it.

“She doesn’t look happy,” I murmured softly to Samantha while smiling at the stern-faced female.

Samantha snickered. “When does Rachel Bostwick ever look happy? If you had a permanent gold brick shoved up your twat, you’d frown all the time too.”

Rachel? I thought Samantha said her name was Regina? Regardless, the icy blonde barely gave my companion a glance as we descended the last few steps to where she was.

“Ghosting my messages, Miller?” she asked in a snotty tone. “Not exactly the brightest idea, sweetie.”

“I was in class,” I retorted, crossing my arms over my chest to mimic her. “I was trying to learn. You know, the whole reason why we go to college.”

Samantha snickered softly again, causing Rachel’s baby blue eyes to turn into sharpened daggers pointed in her direction.

“Do you mind, Lesbo?” she sneered. “This is a private conversation.”

Samantha shrugged. “By all means, carry on.” Then she looked at me. “Catch you later, Charlie.” She strolled off at a leisurely pace toward the Quad without a single backward glance.

I watched her depart, then turned back around to find Rachel had narrowed the space between us to mere inches. However, since I was the taller, made even more so by the boots, she had to look up at me.

“I do not understand why you continue to maintain a friendship with that rug muncher,” Rachel growled. “Not exactly the sort of image we like to present.”

“We?” I asked, tilting my head. “Who is we?”

The blonde stared at me as if I’d just asked if she liked lube-less anal.

“Kappa Omega, Charlene. Or have you decided to renounce your pledge?”

I almost reached up to smack myself in the forehead. Luckily, I managed to refrain and put on a disarming smile.

“I have not. I’m just messing with you.” I shook my head. “You really need to relax, Rachel.”

“Your humor leaves a lot to be desired,” she said dryly. “A lot. Very well, then. I suppose you have a worthwhile explanation?”

No, actually, I didn’t. Because I didn’t have the slightest damn clue what I did, or didn’t do, that required me to explain anything to someone like this Rachel. There had been cliques at my high school, but none of the so-called Queen Bees ever gave off this much attitude.

“Explanation for what?” I asked.

“Your absence from last night’s soiree, of course. I thought I’d made it clear that attendance was not optional.”

I wanted to tell this smug, stuck-up bimbo that I was a grown woman who could go where she liked, when she pleased. However, it wouldn’t be Charles telling her where to get off. It would be Charlene. I doubt my doppelgänger would be pleased to return to her life to find she’d been blackballed from the very sorority she had originally pledged. As much as I felt she was not as nice a person as I’d thought, I couldn’t do that. Not on purpose.

“I’m sorry, Rachel. My dad called and got stuck at work. He asked me to keep an eye on my little sister. I really meant to call you and let you know, but one thing led to another …”

I did my best to sound and look contrite. For people like Rachel, showing the proper amount of deferment went a long way. After all, they already thought they were better than anyone else. What was the harm in using that inflated ego against them?

After staring at me for a few more seconds, she finally sighed in an overdramatic fashion.

“Very well. I suppose abandoning your family when needed goes against the Kappa way of life. Just as long as you remember that once the induction ceremony is over, your new sisters will also be your family. We will expect you to show us the same level of care and concern that you do your first family.”

Jesus, was this bitch a blow hard or what?

I nodded, switching my demeanor from one of supplication to joyous glee. As if I’d just been pardoned. “I will!” Then I dragged my finger across my left breast. “Cross my heart.”

“Excellent!” The blonde said. “I knew I chose correctly when I picked you to join the Kappas.”

“I won’t make you regret it.”

“See that you don’t, Charlene.”

I needed to get away from her before I ran out of steam from all the ass kissing. Luckily, I had a pre-ordained out. Lifting my arm, I pointed in the direction of the athletic complex.

“I really need to take off, Rachel. Cheer practice.”

She nodded, then made a little shooing gesture with her right hand, effectively dismissing me.

Really? These were the types of people Charlene wanted to associate with? Arrogant floozies with the upbringing of a spoiled debutante? Man, my double really didn’t know what she was doing with her life, did she?

“Thanks,” I said, since that seemed to be the best approach. “Bye.” I turned and began to walk rather hurriedly away, both hands balled into tiny fists. Would it be inappropriate if I punched her at some point? I mean, it would technically be a girl hitting a girl. That didn’t break any codes of chivalry, did it?

However, it would seem that my getaway wasn’t going to be as clean as I would have liked. When I was ten feet into my departure, Rachel called after me.

“Remember that we have a mixer tomorrow night with the Delta Chi boys. I expect you there with bells on.”

I lifted my hand and waved it to indicate I’d heard her. I probably would have made my feelings on the matter clearer if I’d chosen to wave only a single digit at her.

I was almost to the sports building when the world went sideways. My thoughts had been occupied with on all the shit between Charlie and Danny, so at first I didn’t notice anything weird. However, when all of the sound around me just ceased instantly, I yanked my attention away from Charlene’s twisted love life and back to my surroundings.

From what I could see, people were still walking and running and talking. Cars were still driving by on the narrow streets nearby. There was just no ambient sound. Other than the pounding cascade of my heart, which tripled its pace and slammed painfully in my chest.

What the hell? I began to wonder if I’d suddenly gone deaf.

Then, about three seconds after the sounds of the world disappeared, the world followed suit. Darkness, complete and total, engulfed me. Drowning me in its inky depths. I opened my mouth to scream, but I could no longer feel my throat. Or my mouth. Or my lungs.

I had totally ceased to be.

The sensation of non-existence lasted less than a second. Two, at most. Then the world, with all its images and noises, crashed back around me. The sudden re-emergence threw my brain for a loop, and I reached out instinctively to grab something before I fell flat on my face.

Instead of the empty air that should have been around me, my fingers and palm impacted on the cool metal surface of a table.

In Jackson’s lab.

What the fuck?

The resident inventor himself was standing a few feet away, staring at me with an expression that made me think I’d just taken a leak on his favorite power resistor.

He sighed. “You’re acting completely irresponsible and absolutely selfish.”

“I am?” I asked. Then I grabbed my throat. It wasn’t the voice of a young lady that had emerged. It was the voice of a young man.

My voice.

“Holy shit,” I said, marveling at the deeper tone. It sounded a little weird and alien, but I figured that was because I hadn’t heard it in almost twenty-four hours.

“Yes,” Jackson said. “I guess it does come as a shock to have someone pointing out your character flaws.”

“What?” I said, moving my hands from my throat down my body. There were no unnatural mounds of flesh beneath my shirt, and the area between my legs had more substance than it did seconds earlier.

“Charlie,” Jackson said, arching a brow as moved closer to me. “Are you listening to me?”

“I’m back!” I yelled, throwing my arm in the air in a fist pump. Then I lowered it to point at the bewildered genius. “I don’t know how you did it, but you are a goddamned miracle worker!” I leapt across the space between us and grabbed him in a tight hug, lifting him slightly off the floor in celebration.

Jackson’s eyes widened as he stared down at me. “Charles?”

I released him and nodded, taking a step back. “Who else? God, man, I didn’t think you were going to be able to pull me back so quickly. Guess you’re smarter than your other version.”

Jackson continued to stare at me silently. Then he slowly shook his head.

“I … I didn’t do anything.” He pointed to a spot behind me.

When I turned around, I could see the control panel for the dimensional window. The unit was in complete disrepair. There were wires and circuit boards littering the floor around it. It looked like a half-completed science project. I turned back to him.

“Then how do you explain this?” I gestured at myself. “If you didn’t zap me back, it must have been the other Jackson.” I smirked. “Guess you’re not the brightest of the pair, after all.”

Instead of joining in with my good mirth, Jackson frowned and began to mutter to himself.

“It’s not possible. Even if he’d managed to get his unit repaired so quickly, it takes two to open the window. Plus, she wasn’t anywhere near the device. Spontaneous transference isn’t possible.”

I clapped my hand on his shoulder, giving it an enthusiastic squeeze.

“Look, I’m sure you’ll figure out all the math in due time. How about we just enjoy the fact that, once again, I’ve managed to survive one of your insane creations.” I laughed and clapped him twice, probably a bit harder than I intended. “Next time you have some out of this world device you want to show me, how about video chat?”

I turned around and started moving toward the stairs. The only thing I wanted to do was go home, hug my mom, and then go back to house on campus and enjoy being male again.

“Charlie, wait.” Jackson moved to block me from the exit. “You can’t leave. Not yet. We have to figure out why you came back. It’s not possible.”

I waved my hand. “Look, I’m sure you’ll figure it out later. You always do.”

“No, you don’t understand. I’m not saying that I haven’t determined how you and Charlene switched back without the dimensional window being active. I’m saying that it is impossible. Not just unlikely. Completely and utterly impossible.”

I pointed at my chest, trying to keep my good mood going. However, Jackson’s attitude was starting to chip away at that euphoria.

“I don’t know what to tell you, Jack. I’m back here and she’s hopefully back there in her own life. As messed up as it is. Everything’s finally normal again.”

“Charlie …”

I held up my hand and spun around, heading for the door.

“No. Absolutely not. You do your brainstorming thing. I’m going home. Later.”

Before he could protest any further, I pulled open the laboratory door, crossed the threshold, and closed it behind me. If I didn’t step foot in that room for a year, it would be too soon.

I ascended the steps and left Jackson’s house, emerging into the mid-afternoon sun. My Jeep, the red one, was still parked in the same spot I’d left it before my impromptu trip. Climbing behind the wheel, I drove it the fifty feet from the curb to my driveway.

“Mom?” I called out the moment I stepped into the house. “Mom??”

Even though I’d seen her in person two days ago, and talked to her on the phone a couple of hours before Jackson’s messed up experiment, it felt like she’d been absent for years. Part of me began to panic, imagining that I hadn’t really returned to my original dimension. That, somehow, my male body had crossed over to join my soul, leaving me whole in a world that wasn’t really mine.

She appeared in the doorway to the kitchen, wringing her hands on a dishtowel. A distressed expression sat on her face as she looked at me.

“Charlie, I thought you were over at Jackson’s.”

“I was. Now I’m home.” I smiled as I immediately went over and wrapped her in a tight embrace, hugging her with every ounce of my love.

“Oh, Charlie! What in the world has gotten into you?” She laughed and pried herself free from my arms, shaking her head. “You’ve been extremely affectionate the past two days. Makes me wonder if you’re in trouble and trying to butter me up before your father and I found out what.”

I shook my head, knowing she wouldn’t believe me if I told her.

“No, I’m fine. Can’t a guy just want to tell his mother how much he loves her?”

“Yes, he can,” she replied. “However, I think you’ve said it about three or four hundred times since yesterday.” She tilted her head slightly to the side, as if studying me. “Are you sure there isn’t something wrong? Trouble with a girl, maybe? I know you prefer your privacy when it comes to your relationships, but if you want to talk, I’m here.”

I nodded. “I know you are. There’s no trouble with a girl.” At least, not anymore.

“Okay. Just remember that I’ll always be here for you if you want to talk.”

I froze, her words stabbing me in the heart. Because I’d just realized that Charlene didn’t have that. Her own mother was gone, snatched away when she was in those screwy, messed-up years of her youth. That turbulent time when you never knew what way was up and needed a bit of guidance from someone who’d been through it before.

I’d missed my mom while on a temporary trip to the other side of me. But only because I knew she was beyond my reach until the Jacksons figured out how to reverse the experiment. However, I had the knowledge, deep down, that she would be there waiting for me when I returned.

How badly had this situation affected Charlie? After two years of learning to get along without her mother, she suddenly found herself in her company again? Even if it wasn’t exactly her original mother. Then, just as suddenly, she was pulled back to that world where a single decision had cost her dearly. What would that be like?

I shook my head. My annoyance at her and the choices she’d made, choices which only affected me due to a lab accident, faded away. I couldn’t continue to be upset with her, now could I?

Well, the cheating on Jackson with her friend’s boyfriend still stuck in my craw. Though, I did have to remind myself that the people on the other side weren’t completely identical to those here. For all I knew, Other Jackson was a crappy boyfriend who never paid her any real attention. Not that it was an excuse, mind you. It was simply a matter of understanding.

“Penny for your thoughts,” mom said, pulling me out of my musings.

I smirked. “That depends,” I said. “Is she cute?”

She arched a brow in inquiry. “Is who cute?”

“Penny. If you’re trading her for my thoughts, I just want to make sure it’s a good deal.”

My mother rolled her eyes, but laughed all the same. “I’m sure with a name like Penny, she’s adorable. Are you leaving or sticking around again?”

“Sticking around for a little while. At least until this evening.”

“Good. Then you can help me make dinner.”

For the next two hours, I happily assisted my mother in cutting vegetables and layering pasta. Apparently Charlene had been missing mom’s special lasagna and had begged her to make it this evening. I didn’t mind. It had been a while since I’d enjoyed that particular dish as well.

While we worked, we chatted. Mom had detected yesterday that “I” was upset about something, but decided to let “me” come to her about it in due time. The revelation made me laugh. Charlene’s dad barely had any clue his daughter was acting out of character. He just thought it was a matter of a girl being a girl.

If Charlene’s mom had still been alive, I have no doubt she would have easily seen through my ruse.

Jackson called twice while we were making dinner. Both times I ignored it, letting him go to voicemail. Mom arched an inquisitive brow at my decision not to talk to my best friend, but said nothing.

When the lasagna was in the oven, the garlic bread in the toaster, and the salad sitting in a large wooden bowl on the table, mom went to the fridge and pulled out a half-full bottle of wine. She took two small, plastic glasses from the cabinet and filled each about a third of the way. She put the bottle back in the fridge and walked to the table, handing me one of the glasses as she passed.

When I opened my mouth to reminder her that I was not twenty-one, she gave me her No-Nonsense look.

“If you think I believe that you’ve never had alcohol in your life, you are sorely mistaken.” She sat down at the table and pointed at her own glass. “I feel like having some wine and I’m not having it alone.”

“If you insist,” I said, grinning. Though I was an athlete, I didn’t treat my body as some temple that required dedication to near-impossible ideals. I might not make a habit of sucking down a six-pack every night, but my roommates and I did keep booze around for when the urge struck.

I took a sip of the sweet Riesling and made a face. I’ve never been much of a wine person.

“It’s an acquired taste,” Mom said, taking a sip of her own.

“I can imagine,” I said, shaking my head.

I started to bring the glass to my lips again. If mom wanted someone to drink wine with, then I was more than happy to indulge her.

However, when the glass was halfway to my lips, all of the sound around me disappeared. Like someone switching off a speaker.

No! No! Shit!

I glanced over at my mom, desperate to tell her that I loved her. Before I could do more than turn her way, that darkness fell over me again, tearing me away from everything.

A second later, the world snapped back into focus. Bringing with it complete confusion.

Rather than sitting in a chair in my parent’s kitchen, I was on a bed, on my hands and knees, and being jerked back and forth rapidly. My hair was damp and wet, hanging down over my face and clinging to my neck. My breathing was blasting from my lungs in ragged, torrential gasps. My brain, slightly scrambled and disordered, was unable to piece anything together.

Then a blast of pleasure rocketed out from both my groin and my mind, tearing through me like a firestorm. Unable to control myself, I screamed something loud and primal as the wave bathed me in such euphoria that I was sure every neuron in my skull was exploding at the speed of light. My fingers twisted themselves around the satiny cloth beneath my grip, grasping for purchase against the flood of endorphins saturating my being.

The rapid rocking instantly stopped. Through the haze slowly lifting, I realized two things which sent a cold chill running through me. The fingers of someone’s hands were curled around my hips, holding me tightly, while something else, bigger than a hand, filled me from behind.

As I quickly came down from my orgasmic high, I plopped forward to crash face-down in the damp sheets of the bed. The motion caused the object stuffing me to vanish with an audible, and extremely nauseating, pop. A second later, the weight of the second person landed next to me, sending a ripple rolling through the mattress.

I stared down at the semi-darkness created by the sweat-drenched sheets, panting wildly as micro-earthquakes sent involuntary trembles through my arms and legs. There was absolutely no naiveté on my part about what Charlene had been doing when we swapped back. The only question running through my mind was … who?

“Holy shit,” Danny Morris said from beside me, a light laugh flavoring his voice. “That was incredible.”