Beyond

When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a forest. My clothes looked as if someone had tried to rip them from me. As I tried to stand up, I felt a piercing pain flow through my body. I could feel blood dripping down my left leg, so I ripped off what was left of my pants and found a deep wound that looked as if it was done by a knife. A few feet away from me, I noticed a black duffel. I tried my best to walk toward it, slowly taking each step trying not to trigger any pain. When I got to the bag, I quickly opened it. The bag was stacked with money, and a cellphone on top. Using the black screen as a camera, I examined my face. Everything was the same, yet somehow not. Which meant I did it, I jumped.

As the phone began to ring, a picture of a woman with the name Zaria Hashemi appeared. I panicked, unsure about answering the call. I knew that I needed to hurry to find out as much as I could about this world’s Isla, then find the little black book, but how was I supposed to know who could be trusted. I decided to answer.

“Where are you?” She demanded, more than asked. Zaria spoke with a thick accent; she was the woman I needed to get to.

“You were supposed to be here hours ago with the money,” she continued. Zaria must have the book.

“I am sorry, something happened,” I said in a nonchalant tone.

“What, just hurry and get here,” Zaria urged.

“What do you mean where, you should know this.” Zaria was now shouting at me, which was understandable considering how difficult I was being.

“Sorry, I’m coming.” I said, then grabbed the money and left.

The building was completely concrete with no windows. It looked more like an old parking garage, with the lack of doors. Just as I remembered. With the moon now up, I could hardly see. I used the phone flashlight as I walked my up to the third floor, as I had in the past.

Walking towards Zaria, I could see how familiar she looked. This Zaria, looked just like mine. Only the Zaria from my word typically wore colored hijabs, hers was black. I did not realize how much I had missed her, until I saw her face shine under the moonlight.

“You are late,” she said enunciating every word. The one I knew first spoke nothing like her.

“I am sorry, but I brought the money.” I needed to hurry to find out where the book was.

Once again yelling, “how many times are you to apologize, juts get things done right.” She began to slowly walk closer towards me, while asking, “or maybe you cannot do it right because you do not know what to do?”

“What?” Confused, wondering how she could have known, I did not see her pull out a gun. Pointing it right in the middle of my forehead, she asked,

“What dimension are you from, and what happened to my Isla.” My Zaria could never do such a thing.

“Relax, I am with you, just as I was in my dimension,” I said giving her direct eye contact.

“But…How do I know I can trust you? I only want to make things as they were before.” For the first time her voice was now wavering.

“I do not know, but I also wish to return things to the way it was before it all started, but that is not possible,” I said very bluntly. Eventually lowering her gun, she went on to ask why it was not possible, why my dimension was involved, and where her Isla was. I already knew any answer I gave her would not satisfy her.

“You’re Isla will be fine.” I told her.

“That is only one answer, I asked three,” she said attempting to hold back tears of frustration.

“I apologize, but we do not have time for questions.” I needed to ask now.

“Do you have the little black book?”

“Yes, I have it, I do not understand it though.”

“It does not matter, because I do. I can explain, if you explain the bag of money,” I did not ask her.

“It’s 20,00, Isla and I, we are using it to run.”

“No one is competent enough to escape their destiny,” was all I could tell her.

“You are wondering why I am Involved. As things moved into motion in my world, it also did in yours. How long have you known Isla?” I supposed it was best to best to explain things, before saying what must be done of the book.

She answered, “I have always known her, since we were children.”

“I did not meet my Zaria until two years ago. You two met each other first, but it still happened in my dimension. Things may not take fold at the same time, nonetheless both dimensions will face the same fate. As it will in every other dimension, including every timeline.” As I finished speaking, Zaria slowly steeped backwards towards the wall, leaning her back against it. She quickly inhaled and exhaled small shallow breaths, while looking around puzzled. I could only stand there, staring at her, my feet would not move. She was not my Zaria.

“The Zaria of my world is dead,” I abruptly said. More shocked, she fell to the ground.

“Am I going to die?” She asked as the tears steadily fell down her face.

“No, but your Isla will.” Zaria was now wailing out in cries pondering on how we could possibly prevent her demise.

“As you said, we are not smart enough to stop fate,” she spoke with a look of utter disbelief.

“No. But we can try.”

“Who are we to defy what has been written in the stars?”

“By doing what none of our other selves have tried to do,” I said trying to choke back tears. The memory of Zaria lying on the grass, was still fresh in my head.

“We have to burn the little black book,” I continued. My mind raced with the fact that, if we had never found it, Zaria would still be here.

“That book, has everything one would need to know on how to jump dimensions and travel between timelines. If we destroy it, then none of this would have happened. Everything comes back to that book.” As I finished speaking, I examined every corner of her face, trying to understand what she could be thinking.

“You are right, this all started because of that book. If burning it means saving my Isla, then I agree that we should try this,” She said in an unbelievably soft voice now. Just like Zaria. Now opening her backpack, she pulled it out, the little black book. Zaria also grabbed a lighter.

“Here, you do it,” she said while handing me the book with the lighter. I quickly lit the book, then tossed it on the ground.

“Thank you, when I return back to my world, things should be different.” I was still trying to hold back tears. Looking at her, she looked just like my Zaria. I had to remind myself that although they look alike, I had to save my Zaria. Even if it meant lying about the meaning of the book, and the actions that will unfold in her dimension for burning it.