Eli throws himself back in his chair, one hand to his head and the other limp across the chair’s arm. The box falls out of his grip and clatters on the wooden floor. His grandmother’s ring pops out of the box and skitters away from him. The diamonds taunt him in the moonlight.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHQHBx5iGm
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbtOPZ3qtax
“We can’t do this,” Mari said gently, curling his hand over the ring.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrXPInYjWJ
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZkbwY74Jc
The memory makes him shudder. Good thing he did it alone rather than in a crowded location as he was originally planning to.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPrT253swoB
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZefst6hcR
“I love you,” he said.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7kprYOCEqA
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU4uJzAMiY4
“I love you too.” She stared at the flame of the candle between them. “But…how can we get married when you aren’t old enough to drink at your own bachelor party? Are we supposed to pop open a bottle of apple cider?”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp7aSaTJrEG
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD0QHdH6NQq
“I didn’t know drinking was that important to you,” he said stiffly, running his pinky along the rim of his water glass.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnt6KALuple
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOzQht4j1nB
“It isn’t that,” Mari said. “It’s what being able to drink represents.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡclE4HFz9Fr
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOWPyc8MLw4
“And what’s that?” he asked, knowing he wasn’t helping his case by sounding like a petulant child.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCgmHDkZwvn
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjUefb0B3c1
“That you’re an adult,” she said, reaching across the table to put a hand to his cheek. “Which you aren’t yet.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcBR3tCTTYl
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡakOrhVMvab
“That’s not what you said last night,” Eli muttered.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW51CABLgBB
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPKXIdUXAf
She shot him a look and her smile melted away. “I love you, Eli. You know that. But we can’t get married. At the very least, we can’t get married right now.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQGxz1Lcetl
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ3juiz1xgS
The table is still set for dinner, even though Mari has long since left. The ice in her water glass has melted. He can still smell the candle wax.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbaxRyzTIiX
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqth9kZVkdN
Mari wanted to go to the Epik High concert even more than Eli did. Or rather, Eli wanted to go but had to accept the fact that he couldn’t afford to do everything while studying full-time and working part-time at the university bookstore. But Mari wanted to do everything.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOB8tWSE4pm
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy5CBB6smXe
“I can’t go to the concert,” he told her.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzP876pH7iw
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsRyIaghQCB
She bought him a ticket anyway, telling him, “It isn’t a big deal.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo5jel6mnpo
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqrtXt6EqdD
It’s always been like that. She casually buys him a ticket to something and doesn’t think twice about it. For him, however, each event she pays for becomes a brick on his back. He can’t imagine she’s as fine with it as she seems to be.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaZefMGfNGN
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPh7TzQZn4x
He has never been sure what bothers him more—being a burden on her or the fact that she isn’t honest about how she feels, that she pretends it’s okay that she has to keep paying for him.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnNdFEZERz
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqUgvhoi4Sz
Eli gets up, leaving the ring where it is on the floor and goes out to the balcony. He leans his forearms on the cold metal railing and leans forward, staring up at the sky. His favorite thing about living in a college town is that he can actually see the stars—especially since his apartment is at the top of the hill.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMc4ycP2fXa
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC74Wo2zJ6Y
He drops his gaze down toward the school and can even see Bell Hall, the building with the lab where Mari works. There are some lights on, although he’s fairly certain Mari isn’t there right now. She’s probably soaking in a hot bath—probably reading to calm her nerves after rejecting Eli’s proposal.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnxbLRcASYq
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1a77covUbE
He grips the railing and leans back, eyes turned upward again. The night breeze pushes his hair off his forehead.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0QQ128FPHB
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw1Oh4Smdtx
He went to the lab with her once, but only once. Mari had needed to stop by and start an experiment before they headed out on a date. He had trailed in after her, wanting to see what she did and just wanting to be in her presence.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNLnN3uDdzX
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlM3PFQjYCv
One of her coworkers stopped by to talk to her and glanced at Eli questioningly.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDdtIKAx873
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOx6Jy6wefJ
“Alan, this is my boyfriend, Eli,” Mari said.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIIHJwZQJZi
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGLzcSeIbQS
“So, Eli, what do you do?” Alan said as they shook hands.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGOGH8HrZNW
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7YP1wMzBqq
“Are you really going to pester my boyfriend right now?” Mari said, taking Eli’s arm and tried to pull him away.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8RfLDnDYcJ
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxhXoedLdiG
“Pester him? I’m just trying to be polite,” Alan said. “Is his job top secret or something?”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpiue9RhQGJ
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpXfIAZ8t4y
Mari’s lips were pressed together. Clearly she had never told her coworkers she’d met her boyfriend while she was a graduate student T.A. for his undergrad biochem class.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKIyow1xO0z
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrNK2BiIHyq
“I’m a student,” Eli said, suddenly wanting to leave the lab and head out to their movie.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMsWbjuo27
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb1JStL6nZy
“PhD? What do you study?” Alan said.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM7aatBVDT6
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Gx7kyokyV
“No, not a PhD student,” Eli said, his neck and cheeks starting to heat up. He couldn’t meet Mari’s gaze.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1YHy8NtfX3
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiCi7aSo3E9
“Oh, Master’s then?” 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpfUfhF2p63
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQD9vYH3VGB
“Actually, I’m an undergrad,” Eli said.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsnLOBKIAy
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9tpphuh1Dq
“Oh.” Alan looked at Mari and then back at Eli. “Well, it was good to meet you, man.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBudEtE8KvW
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ22EWzR47Mk
Eli followed Mari in silence. He could feel something like embarrassment or shame rising off of her, but she turned around and placed a hand on his forearm, forcing a gentle smile.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLdEOaxo7zu
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFiDOXM7fzx
“Don’t worry about it,” she said. “This is just because of your age. One day, you’ll catch up to me—maybe even pass me—and it won’t matter. We’ll forget there was ever a time like this.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrFTGdVXxuq
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3JaI34reec
Eli sighs. Crickets chirp in time with the twinkling of the stars. As he stares up absently, a giant meteor falls. He watches it streak across the sky, getting brighter and brighter and brighter until the blazing light fills the sky, fills his vision, fills his mind.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQdhzqCf66
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡannR5Xunlm
He blinks. He’s in the living room of an apartment. There are no lights on, and the time reads 2:57 a.m. on a digital clock with green numbers—just around the time he was standing outside. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpF0syRR9VZ
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsuF8mrjHFp
He realizes with surprise that there’s something in his hand. It’s a piece of a rock. He would think it’s a dream, but the rock smells like metal and fire. It’s warm. Eli brings it to his face. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy6xQz9ylRT
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtr4YC3k7uZ
He doesn’t see how it’s possible, but he wonders if it’s a part of a meteor—maybe the meteor he just saw.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKufN11LSuf
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmNgdCAOgLl
He surveys the apartment. It’s bland and undecorated, but the wooden dining table seems ready to splinter under the weight of open textbooks and notebooks. A closed MacBook charges, precariously close to a half-finished mug of coffee. Eli leans forward and looks at the notebook, immediately recognizing the handwriting.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaHUzhV2CIy
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC9ymXgVBNl
It isn’t possible.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfm8G1K12zo
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjOdi45qEiq
He glances toward a closed door that he assumes is a bedroom and makes his way over warily, quietly pushing it open. There’s a bed on the other side, up against the wall. Moonlight streams directly upon the sleeping form. Her back is turned, and even if it weren’t for the dark hair ribboning across the pillow, he still would have recognized her.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5CzyKBeHZa
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEMJdHNkctn
He creeps closer—she’s a notoriously light sleeper—and takes a better look. She shifts in her sleep slightly, as though she can sense she has a visitor. And then he sees her face. Mari looks pretty much the same as she did when he saw her a few hours ago, only more vulnerable. There are streaks of lavender in her hair, starting at her scalp and traveling out. Her bangs are shorter, settling on her closed eyelids. There’s still a hint of baby softness that hasn’t yet melted away to reveal the sultry cheekbones in the Mari he loves.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuo2LALoYXj
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqR81nm5jY7
Eli presses a button on her phone, illuminating the screen, to see the date. Five years ago to the day.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lWMxoRrcs
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1sTzU0MKnj
If this is right, if this isn’t a dream of some sort, he’s seeing her when she was the same age as he is now. He looks at the meteor, still in his hand. He isn’t sure how he knows this, but he’s suddenly sure the meteor was his ticket here and will be his ticket back to his year.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmzhkpnInC9
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8fZ6PxeE3R
But he has an idea. Now that he’s here, why not stay? He’ll age with her, and she will no longer be five years older than him. He’ll make it work, somehow—find a way to survive as a twenty-year-old in this year, stage a run-in with her. She’ll fall in love with him again, but they’ll be on equal ground.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVVkjpFIfOS
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZSpef6O9Uk
Sliding the little meteor piece into his pocket, he takes a deep breath, excitement mounting at the thought of starting again with her at the same age—even if she is still a month older. They’ll have five more years together than they would have otherwise.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS2DUYCKEfe
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDtP9a6VF8V
“Is this really want you want?” Mari asked him multiple times, a shrewd look on her face. “With me five years older than you, you do realize things might need to happen five years faster than you want them to, right?”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcBrfcqMUvO
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwV2Zkde0Er
“Like what?” he said.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡygHmf8gvhU
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkwoP5T3HCU
“Getting married, having kids,” she said.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRPHMyMSVw4
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXLy9FXBnep
“Well, good thing you warned me about it now,” Eli said. “Now I’m mentally prepared.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXPEjLok5f4
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaz2HWFasQY
“Seriously, though,” she said. “Don’t you want someone your age?”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjDL9KrcXFk
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxChT4vt6ZE
Eli sits cross-legged on the floor beside her bed, deflating instantly. If he stays here isn’t he finding someone his own age. He told her he didn’t care about their age difference. And he doesn’t, really. He presses the heels of his hands to his eyes, feeling a little dizzy as if he just got off a rollercoaster.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡis8Lfb8SWi
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgtNbatBjXY
“I can’t believe you’ve never ridden a rollercoaster before,” Eli said.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMHZ1mSe1fq
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOnR8ITUrt7
Mari gripped his hand, her nails digging into his skin. Her eyes were wide, focused on the car that sped by thunderously. The riders’ screams seemed to hover in the air behind them.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpgZzN0Igot
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTsT0pLslBO
“Well,” she said. “I guess this is all part of our goal of making new memories together.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡre4B16Mbw3
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKtLYVqjmF6
This Mari sleeping in front of him doesn’t have that memory of riding the rollercoaster with him. She doesn’t have any of the memories they’ve created over the past two years. The situation would be unbalanced with him knowing her soul even as she tries to discover his.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB1aC265dBQ
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUrktMy9lPO
Eli takes the meteor out of his pocket. It seems like it’s getting warmer. He stands up and looks at her again, a little sad at the thought of a future that can never be. Taking his chance, he leans forward and presses a kiss to her forehead, just above her left eyebrow. Even five years ago, she used the smell shampoo she uses in the present.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQXWA0xqWKq
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5l0WZdetFn
Mari stretches and blinks blearily at him. He knows she was almost blind pre-LASIK. This Mari can barely see anything without her glasses or contacts. He must be just a blonde-haired outline to her, too indistinct for her to even tell he’s Korean under that blonde hair.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgL35vByWRo
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrnRR731c9y
“Who are you?” she murmurs.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8fgOaRpuv5
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiEhztJiOFC
He thinks about it for a moment and speaks softly to keep from waking her up completely. “I’m someone you haven’t met yet—someone you’ll meet in the future and fall in love with, but not quite as deeply as I’ll fall in love with you.”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNRachYvOFF
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsSD4awcwwo
“Why?” Her voice is still groggy, eyes half-closed.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAgi3adMotg
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnJxT0BoXU4
“Because I’m younger than you,” Eli says, gently putting a finger to her cheek. “It’ll bother you, and I think you won’t believe me when I say just how much I love you. But I love you, and only you, and especially you when you’re five years older than me. Don’t forget it, okay?”735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbIhV53her
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uDABET70N
He holds his pinky out to her. She curves her own pinky around his. Her skin is almost as warm as the meteor.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxibpcIPo3q
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDb7IwT50FX
“Okay.” Her voice is nearly gone now as she sinks back into sleep.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxenbus7BQM
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBKEE5t0KQM
He holds the meteor in his palm as it burns more fiercely, watching this Mari and thinking about the Mari waiting for him back in his present.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrUCnCqS2l1
Penana
search
Loginarrow_drop_down
Registerarrow_drop_down
