[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/iyJuAe0.png [/img][/center][center][h2][b]The Mandela Effect: Part 10[/b][/h2][/center] [center][b]"90's" Aubrey Adkins[/b] | [b]Will Grant[/b][/center] [center][b]Pacific Point, CA[/b][/center] Aubrey splashed a handful of water into her face. She did not know whether she was trying to snap herself out of her sleepy grogginess or out of the bizarre dreams she had experienced the past night. When she looked up at the mirror, she saw the water running down her face, along with her long locks of blonde hair that were curling around her head in every direction. How much caffeine did she have last night? Was what she saw in her dream some sort of caffeine-induced nightmare? But why did the lives of those other Aubreys feel so real? She filled her palms again with water and splashed her face again. After Aubrey wiped down her face with a hand towel, she turned her attention to taming her hair. She first ran her fingers through her hair and pulled it back into one, long ponytail. Then, with one hand holding the ponytail together, Aubrey transferred scrunchie from wrist onto her hair with her free hand. Her hair still looked like a mess, but she could fix it later. Once Aubrey was through with fixing her hair and trying to snap herself out of the haze of just waking up, she exited to the bathroom and headed towards the kitchen, although fitting through the doorway with her arachnid physique was not simple task, as the frame was not designed with her frame in mind. She managed it, but it was not as simple as walking through the threshold. When she opened the refrigerator door and reached in for some orange juice, she paused when she noticed that there was a six pack of bottled pop sitting inside the refrigerator. For a moment, Aubrey was befuddled by the presence of these drinks, as she knew that she was all out of the caffeinated beverage when she checked earlier that morning. But she soon jumped to a relatively safe conclusion: Will must have picked some up from the store while he was out, as she did not see him on the couch when she had gotten up in the middle of the night a few hours ago. Aubrey then reached towards the six pack and pulled one of the bottles off from the plastic that held the six containers together as a unit. While she twisted the bottle cap on her beverage, she then turned to view the couch to see if her boyfriend had finally returned. And indeed, he was there, sprawled out over the couch with a single blanket covering his body. However, Aubrey also noticed that Will was wearing a certain scarlet and gray costume, minus the mask, a costume that she recognized from the news report she had seen on her phone just a few hours ago. Plus, now that she had seen in close up, the costume did look awfully similar to hers in design. It was just a bit more modest than her own costume, but that made sense because of the sort of guy Will was. For a moment, a thought crept into Aubrey’s head: was Will wearing this costume a sign that this place’s Aubrey knew about his alter-ego? [color=b22222][i]Wait, I’m the real Aubrey.[/i][/color] She thought as she realized this internal contradiction. She knew for sure that [i]her[/i] Will was just a regular person, no powers and all. Yet the news reports and the costume he was wearing said otherwise. But Will had the worse poker face in the world. There was no way he could have hidden anything this ground shaking from her. As her head ached with these inconsistencies in her memories, Aubrey drew the curtains back just enough to let some light into her living room, but not enough where he drider physique would be visible from outside. As the small sliver of light rushed into the room and struck her sleeping boyfriend, Aubrey heard his rustling from his slumber. [color=b22222]“Good morning, sleepyhead,”[/color] Aubrey greeted Will as she leaned over the back of the couch. [color=b22222]“Looks like you had a busy night.”[/color] “You don’t know the half of it,” Will groggily replied while he was attempting to wake up. He clutched his forehead and began to rub it, as if it would somehow help wake him up. [color=b22222]“You want to talk about it?”[/color] “Actually, we do have something we need to talk about,” he answered as he began to sit up. “You might want to take a seat.” A sudden fear crept into the back of her mind. What could he possibly have to say? Possibilities started to fly around in her head. Could he be breaking up with her? No, that’s impossible; she was his dream girl. Something horrible had to have happened for him to want out of their relationship. But what else could he want to talk about? While these thoughts were running through Aubrey’s mind, Will had sat up and scooted over to the far edge of the couch to allow as much room for Aubrey next to him. In turn, when she noticed there was a spot for her on the couch, Aubrey crawled over the back of the couch and rested her spider-half on the couch’s cushions, draping her right arachnid legs over the couch’s back. [color=b22222]“So, what do you want to talk about?”[/color] “I don’t know how to quite say it,” Will began to say as he ran his fingers through his hair. [color=b22222]“Just say it.”[/color] Aubrey scooted closer towards her boyfriend and placed her hand on his thigh. “Well, um, the me whom you hung out with yesterday was an alternate version of myself from a parallel universe,” he finally admitted to Aubrey. There was a brief moment of silence before Aubrey broke into laughter. Will, however, still wore a stunned expression on his face. [color=b22222]“I’m so stupid,”[/color] Aubrey exclaimed, [color=b22222]“I thought you were about ready to break up with me or something.[/color] “Aren’t you at all concerned about the whole parallel reality thing?” [color=b22222]“Will, this is just another Tuesday in the life of a superhero. The bizarre should be expected.”[/color] “I’m not the only one. There’s your friend, Emily. Your teammates, the Immortals. From what I have heard, there are people across the country who have been replaced by a parallel reality doppelganger.” [color=b22222][i]Teammates?[/i][/color] Aubrey thought before images of these so-called teammates flashed before her eyes. She had an inkling that she should know who these people were, but the memories of these events that played out in her head felt like they belonged to someone else. The costumes she was wearing in these memories reminded her of the dream just had last night. Or was it a dream? [color=b22222]“I knew something was up with Emily ever since that Hounds attack,”[/color] Aubrey claimed as she tried to hide the distress she was experiencing from these varying memories. “And although the Immortals have not yet tested you yet, I’m pretty sure you’re also been affected.” [color=b22222]“What makes you think that?”[/color] Aubrey asked, although in the back of her mind she knew that there was some truth in his statement. “Well—” Will replied as he pointed at Aubrey’s shirt, which was the same Super Bowl XLIII t-shirt she had been wearing yesterday. Aubrey, in turn, tilted her head down to see what exactly he was pointing at. Her face immediately blushed when she [i]thought[/i] she knew what he meant. [color=b22222]“Well, that would explain why almost none of my bras fit.”[/color] When Will heard what Aubrey had just said, he wore a confused expression on his face. It took a moment for her words to register in his head. “What? No, that’s not what I mean. Sure, you’re not wrong, but—” Will tried to explain, although he was stumbling over himself because he was flustered, “Anyways—the point is that the Cardinals lost Super Bowl XLIII and, unless you found that shirt in some third world country, there is no way you could possibly have [i]that[/i] shirt. [color=b22222]“Well, that [i]also[/i] could be an explanation.”[/color] A silence settled into the room, as neither Will nor Aubrey knew what to say once the probable possibility that Aubrey was not herself had been suggested. What were you supposed to say to someone who looked so similar to a loved one, but whom you knew was not them. [color=b22222]“So, is there a portal or something I need to jump through for [i]your[/i] Aubrey to come back?”[/color] Aubrey finally broke the silence. “Err—not quite,” Will began to explain in turn. Because he knew what he was going to say was pretty loopy, he took ahold of her hands before continuing. “Technically speaking, you are my Aubrey.” [color=b22222]“But didn’t you say I was a parallel version of your Aubrey?”[/color] “Yes, but—” Will paused as he tried to figure out how best to explain what had been going on. Once he thought he knew how to explain everything, he started speaking again. “You and [i]my[/i] Aubrey have not been stranded in each other’s universe. Whoever, or whatever, is causing all of this has somehow made you think and look like a different version of yourself. Your superhero friends have figured out a way to return the minds of effected individuals back to normal, but they’re still trying to figure out how to revert physical changes. Does that make sense?” Aubrey then sat there in silence, as the revelation that Will had revealed to her was registering in her mind. Was the dream she had last night her mind’s way of cooping with whatever the heck was going on. But which version of herself from that dream, if any, was the one native to this reality? What would happen to her current personality after her original consciousness had been restored? Will said it himself: she would not be magically teleported back to her own reality. Would she just cease to exist? Would she in all intents and purposes die? Although she knew that the right thing to do was to give back the real Aubrey her life, the fear of oblivion paralyzed her. “Aubrey? Are you okay?” Will’s voice snapped Aubrey out of her deep reflection of her current predicament. [color=b22222]“I’m fine,”[/color] Aubrey lied, although her face and voice betrayed her inner feelings. “Are you sure?” [color=b22222]“You know what. Let’s do something fun tonight,”[/color] Aubrey immediately changed the subject of their conversation. This time, she did a far better job repressing her fears. “Like—what?” Will asked his girlfriend. He suddenly remembered the conversation he had with this version of Aubrey last night. His heart was starting to pound. He just hoped she was thinking about something other than what he promised last night. [color=b22222]“Why don’t we go on patrol tonight? My Will doesn’t have superpowers. I don’t know if this world’s you normally have spider powers, but I think it would be a fun experience. Think of it as a crime-fighting date.”[/color] “Sure. That’s a great idea.” Will answered, giving off an internal sigh of relief. “I only have powers because my parallel-self had them. So this would be something new for me, too.” [color=b22222]“Great! Let’s make it a date.”[/color] She then lifted her arachnid body off the couch and started to walk towards the apartment’s bathroom. However, she stopped after taking a few steps (at least for an eight-legged person) and twisted her torso so she could see her boyfriend. [color=b22222]“Since you’ve been up all night, you can sleep in a little longer.”[/color] “Are you sure?” [color=b22222]“You need to rest up for our little date tonight. Plus, I can keep myself busy until you get your beauty sleep.”[/color] “Alright,” Will reluctantly agreed to Aubrey’s suggestion, “but let me change into my pajamas first.” [color=b22222]“I’ll be in the shower if you need me,”[/color] Aubrey told him before continuing into the bathroom and shutting the door behind her. She then turned the shower knob to warm up the water. Now that she was isolated from Will and the sound of the water beating against the basin of the water would mask her voice to a degree, Aubrey began to break out into tears. What was she to do? She knew it was wrong to rob Will of his real girlfriend. But how could she sacrifice herself to do justice for him? As these thoughts raced through her head, she unscrewed the cap of the pop bottle that she had been holding onto since she opened up the refrigerator and took a gulp of the caffeinated beverage to took off the edge of the pain she felt. Her phone then buzzed. It was this world’s Aubrey’s work. It was their last offer for moving Aubrey’s August photoshoot to today. She stared at the message for a moment before she typed out a quick response. But even when she had finished typing, she did not press the send button, but rather paused for a moment. Then flashes of the lives of the other Aubrey’s played before her eyes for a second time. One moment, she found herself, in her human form, standing in front of a classroom of high schoolers, with a chalkboard behind her. Everyone, including Aubrey herself, were wearing quite retro clothing, as if it was the 1930’s or 40’s. The United States flag with only 48 stars only confirmed it. Then Aubrey’s vision became blurred, like dozens of colors and lights swirling around her. When everything came to a standstill, Aubrey found herself posing in front of a photographer. She had her feet dipped into the cool waters of a pool. As Aubrey shifted her pose after each click and flash of the photographer’s camera, she displayed the swimwear that was he new rage of the 60’s: the bikini. In the final take, the camera’s flash was so bright that it temporarily blinded Aubrey. Once her eyes had finally recovered, she found herself standing in the Lotus, the strip club Aubrey worked at on Nautican Island. The most popular beats of the day were blaring through the air, while neon lights basked the entire club. Aubrey, being on the onlook for any potential customers, wove through the crowd that was focused on the main stage. “Hey, Rikki. The boss wanted me to remind you that you’re next on the pole,” Aubrey heard a familiar voice say her stage name. Walking towards her was a buxom catgirl. If she was not so white, one might have thought she had been pulled straight out of a really niche manga. “Thanks Samm—I mean, Kylie,” Aubrey almost let her real first name slip. Before heading over to the main stage, Aubrey handed over the money she had made from the past hour to the bartender for safekeeping in the envelope each girl had reserved for them. At least, Aubrey found herself gazing into the bathroom mirror. She could once again hear the water running from the shower faucet and could even feel the steam building up. She had no idea what she had just experienced. All she knew was that it was freaking trippy. She first splashed some water from the sink faucet into her face before taking one last swish of her pop. When she peered down at her phone, the message was still there. As there was not a message that alerted her that it was too late to response, Aubrey pressed the send button [color=b22222][i]How hard could this be?[/i][/color] she thought.