Becky's son Alex had been dead for eight years. So when she got a text from his old number, claiming to be Alex from a parallel universe, it had taken a lot of back and forth and a few pictures to convince her that this was not some cruel joke. She still wasn't sure what to make of it. Did Alex dying in one universe and living in another mean that God had different plans for people in different universes, or was each universe run by a different God? What was God's purpose in giving her this glimpse of what could have been?
Not that she wanted it to stop. She'd often wondered what Alex would have done after high school, and now she had the chance to find out. Alex hadn't been able to keep their text thread going long, but he promised to video call next month on Mother's Day so they could talk at length. It was the first Mother's Day she had looked forward to in eight years.
When Becky's daughter Danielle heard about the call, she immediately made plans to come. They sat together on the couch while Becky's husband Kevin prepped the computer for Alex's call. A few minutes later, Alex's face grinned at them from the screen. "Hello from MIT-616!"
Kevin laughed. "Did you seriously name your universe after Marvel?"
Alex grinned. "Well, our professor wanted to call the universes after Greek letters, but we quickly convinced him that there would be too many."
He sounded just like Becky's Alex, but her Alex had never grown his brown hair long enough to be pulled back in a bun. Alex-616 also wore wire frames instead of black plastic glasses, and his cheeks were rounder. She wished she could see more details, but he sat away from the camera so the rest of his family could also be in the frame.
"Um, Danielle, I have to ask," Danielle-616 said. "When did you dye your hair?"
Danielle touched her short pink hair. "Last week, you?"
"Same! Wow, that's so weird. What did Mom say?"
Becky cleared her throat. She did not approve, but her daughter was an adult. Besides, she wanted to make the most of their limited time with Alex. "So, are you in your lab right now? Is this where you connect the universes?"
"Yeah, let me show you around."
Becky quickly got lost in the jargon that Alex spouted off as he pointed out the various machines in the background, so she just watched the sparkle in Alex's eyes. But his sister cut in again.
"Danielle, you wouldn't happen to also be dating Zach Gardner, would you?"
"Yeah, for nine months now."
Danielle-616 clapped her hands together. "Did you also bring him home for Christmas?"
Becky stifled a groan as Danielle nodded. Danielle could talk her ear off about Zach, and normally, she was happy to hear it, but now was not the time. "Alex, are you seeing anybody?"
"No, not right now." The sparkle left Alex's eyes.
Oh, poor boy, had he recently had his heart broken? "Oh, sweetie, I'm sure you'll find someone."
"But, Mom, what did you think about Zach?" Danielle-616 asked.
Becky sighed. "Zach's nice and all. What did you think of him Alex?"
Alex's face fell. "Is that all you have to say?"
"Well, I mean, our time is so short..." Why was he so sad? It's not like she said she didn't like Zach.
Kevin-616 cleared his throat. "Becky, given it's Mother's Day, we also want to hear from you."
A pit grew in Becky's stomach as she looked at the three people on the computer screen who should have been four. Alex had said in their text conversation that the same accident that had killed Alex in her universe had killed her in theirs. And while Danielle-616 looked the same as her Danielle, Kevin-616 was thinner than her Kevin, and had more gray in his hair. Losing a spouse had taken a larger physical toll on him than losing a child had. How could she address that loss? Should she? "I don't know what to say."
Her Kevin reached back and took her hand. "Just be yourself."
Alex and Danielle-616 looked at her expectantly. As much as she missed mothering Alex, they both missed being mothered. Different grief, but grief just the same. This is why I put you in contact, the Spirit's voice came into her mind, sharp and clear. So that you could comfort one another.
Becky took Danielle's hand. "The Zach I met was very polite and enjoyed hearing how I got into teaching history. But the best part was seeing how he made Danielle smile. The two of them seem made for each other." She locked eyes with Danielle-616 "And if your Zach is like him, then I wish you both the best happiness."
Alex grinned. "That's what I thought."
This piece was published in 2024 as part of the Holiday Lit Blitz by the Mormon Lit Lab. Sign up for our newsletter for future updates.
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