Yes
“No.”
“You’re acting real funny. You were just freaking out a few minutes ago and now you’re laughing at a picture of Jesus. You coming off the peak?”
Shit. That’s actually a great excuse. Why didn’t I think of that? “Yeah, sorry. That’s why I called you. Having the cramps in the middle of it really fucked me up.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Well, I didn’t wanna give you TMI.”
“For smoking weed?” Maria scoffed. “Weirdo. You know I know you’ve done it before. Why would I judge?”
“Y-yeah. Sorry. I was paranoid.”
“Shit, been there.” Maria patted the cushion next to her. “Have a seat. Take the edge off. You definitely need it.”
Jasmine agreed and took a seat next to her. Her curiosity fell back on her like an anvil. “What’s on TV?”
“I dunno. The remote’s right there.” Maria nodded at the remote on the coffee table.
Jasmine snatched it up and inspected it. It looked like her old remote, maybe a little fatter? Her Jasmine brain saw everything as normal, but Jared brain could find minute changes. Giving anything else closer looks provided the same mind-puzzling contradiction: what she was holding was different from how his memories experienced them, but everything else including muscle memory, subconscious, and various other facets of his psyche registered them as perfectly normal. The contrast faltered side to side in her mind like a pair of dimensions spilling over one another inside the hull of ship rocking on its keel. Neither could take hold of another, not when the
opposing perspective would come crashing over on top as soon as the advantage had been taken. It was like he’d been trapped in her own personal Mandela effect.
Maria watched her stare a disconcertingly long amount of time at the remote. “Damn. You’re toasted.” She quipped.
Jasmine realized how hard she was staring and laughed it off. “Oh yeah. Haha… My bad.”
“Hey, don’t worry about it. Like I said, been there.”
Written by TheGreatJaceyGee on 28 January 2023
