By the time we finally stopped running, my lungs had legally separated from my body, filed for divorce, and taken half my assets.
Ruhan shoved open a metal hatch in the middle of some random rooftop and gestured for us to go down.
Ren climbed in first.
I followed.
Kabir… cried a little and then climbed.
Ruhan came last, pulling the hatch shut behind him.
We descended into a long, dusty corridor that looked like the basement of a building that had seen one too many breakups.
Ren turned on a tiny light attached to his backpack.
I blinked.
The corridor stretched into darkness, but the space was quiet, still, not flickering like the safehouse.
Ruhan explained, "This is one of the older tunnels. They weren't created by timeline tech. Collectors can't detect us in here."
"Good," I wheezed. "Maybe I can finally die in peace."
Kabir placed a hand dramatically to his chest.
"We almost died out there. All because of YOU."
I blinked at him slowly.
"Baby, if you die because of me, that's natural selection."
Kabir gasped.
Ruhan coughed to hide a laugh.
Ren tugged my sleeve.
"Mom. We need to keep moving."
"Okay, hold up," I said, waving him off. "We've been calling me Mom a LOT today. Can we… take a break from that?"
Ren's face fell immediately.
Too immediately.
Like I'd slapped him with a slipper.
I sighed.
"Not forever. Just for five minutes. My brain is overheating."
Ren nodded, very solemnly, like he was signing a peace treaty.
We walked deeper into the tunnel and eventually reached what looked like a… bunker?
With dusty couches.
A tiny kitchen.
Two doors.
A water purifier from 2009.
Kabir looked around like he'd just entered the apartment of an emotionally unavailable bachelor.
"What is this place?" he asked.
Ruhan shrugged.
"An old hideout. Haven't used it since—"
He stopped.
Since when?
I turned to him.
"Since when?"
His jaw tightened.
"Nothing important."
Translation:
Since the timeline where you, me, and Ren were a family.
I swallowed.
Ren, trying to lighten the mood, immediately started opening cabinets like he owned the place.
He found a packet of instant noodles.
Held it up like treasure.
"Mom! Look!"
I sighed.
"That's not even—forget it, fine. Show me."
He ran up to me with the proud energy of a toddler who discovered gravity.
"It's your favorite! In my timeline, you made this when Dad came home injured."
Ruhan froze.
Kabir rolled his eyes.
"You're unbelievable, Arya. You cooked noodles for this man in another timeline?"
I resisted the urge to throw Kabir back into the timeline bleed.
Ren bounced in place.
"Can we make it now? Please?"
"Kid, I don't even know where the stove—"
He took my hand and dragged me to the tiny kitchen corner.
"Yes you do," he insisted.
"In the other timeline, you always cooked here."
That sentence hit harder than it should have.
Before I could argue, my hands moved on their own.
Like they knew the layout.
I reached for a matchbox on the correct shelf.
Tilted the rusted gas knob just right.
Lit the flame without looking.
Ren clapped his hands.
"See? You remember!"
Kabir looked at me like I'd summoned Satan.
Ruhan looked at me like he remembered the moment this first happened.
I looked at myself like
WHO IS POSSESSING ME AND WHY IS SHE DOMESTIC.
I stirred the noodles mechanically while Ren narrated:
"In my timeline, Dad always sat here when you cooked. And you would tell me stories about how you both met but Dad always denied the embarrassing parts—"
"Ren," Ruhan warned.
"—like the time he tripped in front of Mom—"
"REN."
"—and the time he burned his sleeve trying to impress her—"
"REN!"
I choked on air laughing.
Kabir stared at Ruhan with the slow dawning horror of a man realizing his competition was a timeline-upgraded Greek god with tragic backstory bonus points.
I handed Ren the bowl.
He slurped loudly.
Then he paused.
Tears filled his eyes.
"Oh," he whispered. "It tastes the same."
My chest clenched.
Kabir gagged.
"What is happening right now?"
Ren looked at me with trembling lashes.
"In the other timeline… this is how you comforted me. When I had nightmares."
My heart shattered a little.
Just slightly.
Just enough.
I looked away.
But Ruhan had already noticed.
His voice softened.
"You don't have to force yourself to remember."
I snapped my head at him.
"Oh good! Finally! A man who doesn't demand emotional labor instantly. Wow. Rare species."
Kabir muttered something profanity-like.
Ruhan ignored him completely and stepped closer.
"Arya," he said gently, "you don't owe us anything."
Ren went very still.
I blinked.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
Ruhan met my eyes steadily.
"You don't owe us your trust. Or your memories. Or your future. You didn't choose any of this."
Then, quieter—
"You didn't choose us."
Ren bit his lip, eyes glossy.
The noodles suddenly tasted like heartbreak.
I swallowed.
"Okay," I said slowly. "Let's… clarify something."
They both looked up.
"I don't know what I was to you in the other timeline. I don't remember anything. And honestly, I don't know if I want to yet."
Ren's shoulders slumped.
Ruhan nodded once, eyes unreadable.
"But," I continued, "I am not the kind of person who lets a child cry alone. And I'm not the kind of person who lets people chase a kid across rooftops."
Ren's head snapped up.
"And," I added, pointing at Ruhan, "I'm definitely not the kind of person who ignores a man who nearly died protecting us."
Ruhan blinked.
Like he wasn't expecting praise.
Like it physically confused him.
"So," I finished, "I'm here. For now. Until we figure this out."
Ren launched at me like a missile, hugging me around the waist.
Kabir looked offended.
Ruhan looked… relieved.
Just a little.
Then—
BZZT.
Ren's tablet lit up.
A notification.
Then another.
Then hundreds.
"What is that?" I asked.
Ren stared at the screen, horrified.
"Uh…"
Kabir leaned over.
His eyes widened.
"Oh my god."
Ruhan stiffened.
"What?" I demanded. "What happened now?"
Ren turned the screen toward me.
A viral video.
A street.
Me.
Ruhan.
Ren.
Kabir screaming in the background.
The caption read:
HOT SINGLE DAD + VIRGIN MOM + TIME-TRAVELING CHILD = THE DRAMA WE NEEDED
The comments were worse:
"Who is this man?? LOOK AT HIM CARRY HER LIKE A PRINCESS."
"The kid is adorable, omg timeline AU??"
"Kabir looks like a villain sidekick."
"I ship the parents so hard."
"Where do I find a man like this???"
Kabir screamed:
"WHY AM I THE VILLAIN SIDEKICK???"
I sank onto the couch.
"Oh my god," I whispered. "The internet thinks we're a family."
Ruhan exhaled.
"Arya," he said carefully, "we need to disappear. Now."
I looked at him.
Then at Ren.
Then at the screen.
Then at myself.
And whispered the only logical reaction:
"I need more noodles."