Page 63 of Evermore

“I convinced him to undergo one final experimental treatment. A procedure that promised to anchor his consciousness to linear time permanently.” The older River's voice broke slightly. “But instead of anchoring him, it shattered every temporal barrier in his mind completely.”

“Jesus,” River whispered, understanding beginning to dawn.

“He didn't die. He didn't disappear. He jumped so far backward through his personal timeline that our first meeting was erased entirely.” The older River's form was becoming more transparent, his presence unstable as emotional energy drained from the confrontation. “I lost him to a reality where we'd never met, where our love story had never happened.”

The cottage fell silent except for the irregular flickering of the lighthouse beam and River's heart breaking for a future that might never come to pass.

“I've spent seventeen years living in a world where the most important relationship of my life never existed,” the older River continued, his voice barely audible now. “Where I remember every moment of our love, but he has no memory of me at all. I've been trying to teach you to let go before you destroy the very thing you're desperate to save.”

Finn's hand tightened in River's, his presence solid and real despite everything the older River was telling them. “How are you here if that's what happened? How can you manipulate our timeline?”

“When Finn's temporal barriers were destroyed, it created... fractures. Places where different timelines bleed through.” The older River's explanation was simple, exhausted. “I learned to move through those fractures, to influence events in timelines where you still have choices to make.”

“You've been sabotaging our happiness to prevent us from reaching the point where I become you,” River said, understanding finally clicking into place.

“I've been trying to save Finn from the worst possible outcome of your love.” The older River's form was flickering more rapidly now. “In my timeline, your obsession with curing him destroyed his mind completely. I thought if I could just convince you to accept what happened to his mother, to let him go before you started researching treatments...”

“But we're not you,” Finn said firmly. “Our choices don't have to lead to your mistakes.”

“How can you be sure? How can you risk everything on hope when I'm standing here as proof of what happens when that hope goes wrong?” The older River's voice was fading with his presence. “I loved you just as much as he does. I was just as determined to fight for our relationship. And I destroyed him trying to save him.”

River looked at Finn, seeing determination and love and absolute trust in his brown eyes. The older River was asking them to choose fear over hope, safety over love, loneliness over the risk of loss.

“Because this is our story to write,” River said, his voice steady despite the impossible situation they were facing. “Your experience is real, your pain is real, but your timeline isn't the only possible outcome.”

The older River's form stabilized slightly, as if their defiance gave him something to focus on. “Then you choose to create me—seventeen years older and broken by loss that could have been prevented.”

“We choose to create our own future,” Finn said quietly. “Whatever that looks like.”

The older River's expression shifted through grief and frustration and something that might have been desperate hope. “If you insist on this path, if you refuse to learn from my mistakes... then at least let me show you the truth. Let me show you exactly what your love becomes when fear drives every choice.”

River felt Finn's hand squeeze his, both of them understanding that they were about to see something that would either strengthen their resolve or break it completely.

“Show us,” River said, his voice carrying more certainty than he felt. “Show us what we're choosing to risk.”

The older River's form became more solid, as if their willingness to face the truth gave him the energy he needed to maintain his presence. “Then prepare yourselves. What you're about to see is love turned to obsession, hope turned to desperation, and the slow destruction of everything you think you're fighting to preserve.”

River kissed Finn then, soft and desperate, a promise made before witnesses to whatever future they were about to confront. When they broke apart, they turned to face the older River together, hands clasped, ready to see the worst possible version of their love story.

“We're ready,” River said.

The older River nodded, his weathered face holding both admiration and pity for their courage. “Then let me show you how love dies when it becomes more important to cure someone than to simply be present with them.”

Chapter 20

The Other Timeline

Finn

The cottage air still shimmered with residual energy from Future River's presence, charged with electricity that made Finn's teeth ache. Future River stood in their doorway—not quite solid, not quite translucent—carrying grief like a second skin. The weight of his sorrow pressed against Finn's chest until breathing became work.

Finn's hand found River's without thought, fingers threading together in the automatic way of people who'd learned to anchor each other through storms. River's palm was warm, real, present in ways that made Future River's flickering form seem even more heartbreaking.

“You want the whole story?” Future River's voice carried the particular exhaustion of someone who'd been telling himself the same lie for years. “Fine. But I should warn you—watching love turn to obsession is like watching someone drown in slow motion.”

The lighthouse beam stuttered overhead, its usual steady rhythm broken by whatever temporal chaos Future Riverbrought with him. In the fractured light, Finn could see how the years had hollowed out his face, carved lines of regret so deep they looked permanent.

Future River's gaze fixed on their joined hands, and something cold slithered down Finn's spine. The parallel felt too precise, too deliberate—like looking into a mirror that showed not your reflection but your future grave.

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