Bullshit!
That's what it was. Everything was. How could...this...any of this...any fucking of this happen? It made no sense at all. How could the little girl she saw growing up right in front of her eyes become someone else's daughter?
It literally made no sense. Nothing made sense.
When Dan refused to recognize her or what used to be between them, Willow choked it up, telling herself that it was fate, and of course, the consequences of toying with time. Even long before Alice convinced her to steal the time-travelling device from Carmen, she knew there would be repercussions. Not that she believed it would really work.
But Alice was hopeful. She wanted to go back in time and bring her daddy back. She wanted her family whole. She was the one responsible for everything Willow did. Then how the fuck could she betray her like this? How could she become someone else's?
Ugh. Without saying another word, Willow stormed out of the mansion and headed straight for where she had parked her car. She dug her hand into the pocket of her jeans, trying to find the key, but returned empty-handed. "What the hell?"
She was losing it, and she was losing it big time.
"It makes no sense," she kept repeating to herself, trying to comprehend the science behind everything that was happening. The worst she expected was for none of what they did to work. But not this. Not this. Not losing the little girl she had loved so much.
Tears welled up in her eyes, and her heart felt like it was being ripped apart.
But Willow suppressed her emotions and tried to focus instead.
No. She would have to figure this out. She would have to find a solution to this problem. Alice couldn't just wake up and call someone else her mommy and daddy. That little girl was supposed to be Ronin and Carmen's only daughter, and it was supposed to stay that way.
Willow paced the driveway, kicking and punching the car whenever she felt hopeless.
The only solution she could think of after an hour of pondering was to use the device again.
She paused, staring at the party in the gardens. It was still going on in full swing. She realized that when she woke up this morning, she didn't really have the device on her.
The realization gave her another pause. She frowned. Then where could it be? It was clearly not with Alice, considering nothing from their original timeline was remembered by the little girl. Could she have dropped it somewhere?
No. Willow would have noticed. She spent enough time in her bedroom after waking up to miss that piece of metal.
"What's wrong, Willow? Lost something?" A voice interrupted Willow's thoughts, causing her to stop dead in her tracks.
She flicked her eyes up and stared ahead, a little surprised to find Diana standing on the front porch. Diana wore a tight pencil skirt, a black shirt, and a blue blazer. Her heels were sharp, clicking against the night as she walked towards Willow.
Willow swallowed and instinctively took a step back. Suddenly nervous, feeling like a kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Well, she did steal something from the woman, or her daughter, not that it made a difference. So, obviously, her first thought was to assume that Diana had figured it out and was there to confront her. And that was a very scary thought to have.
Apparently, Diana was the only woman Willow could never understand. The older woman was an enigma. Someone with more secrets than anyone Willow had ever met. She did work hand-in-hand with someone like Simon Walsh and had still managed to keep it all hush-hush.
"Uh...hey! How long have you been there?" Willow could swear she hadn't heard the woman approaching, not even with those high heels. But despite all that, she tried to look normal, or as normal as she could muster up to be.
Diana smiled—a smile that looked too perfect to be real. It wasn't as if she appeared mad, just...curious more like. "Relax. I just got here."
Willow sighed, hoping her nerves would stop showing up. She watched Diana step down the stairs with the kind of elegance that Carmen had inherited as well. Despite Carmen's belief, the mother-daughter had a lot more in common than they wanted to admit to each other. "Well, it's good to see you. How long has it been? A month maybe?"
"Yeah," Diana spoke, hands behind her back. "We met at your company's annual event last time. Good food."
Despite the knots tightening in her belly, Willow grinned. "I'm told they serve the best Chinese."
"Well, I wouldn't say I had a bad experience."
"Yeah, well, glad to hear you enjoyed it."
Diana tilted her head slightly, her gaze lingering on Willow with a hint of curiosity. "You seem a bit on edge. Everything alright?"
Willow shrugged. "Oh, you know, just one of those days."
Diana raised an eyebrow, her dark eyes reading more than there was the need for. But then she turned, as if dropping the matter, deciding it wasn't worth her time. "Fair enough. So, what brings you out here?"
Willow sighed deeply in her chest, a hell more relieved. She had always been a bad liar and a terrible thief at that. "Just needed some fresh air, I guess."
Diana didn't say another word; she just stared into the darkness, as if seeing something Willow couldn't. Then, she looked up at the sky and allowed the faint moonlight to grace her beautiful face. "Don't you ever wonder how this beautiful world even came into existence?"
Willow didn't understand the reference, but she decided to bite. "I'm sure scientists have provided enough explanations for that."
"Yeah, but how do we know what we know is true? What's the proof of that?"
"Well, I suppose scientific theories are based on evidence and experimentation," Willow ventured, hoping she could satisfy the older woman's philosophical craving. "But you're right, there's always an element of uncertainty. What we perceive as truth today could be disproven tomorrow."
Diana turned to face her, her eyes alight with something that was beyond explanation. "Exactly. The nature of knowledge is complex and ever-evolving. Sometimes, it's important to question what we think we know."
She didn't know how or why, but something seemed to shift inside Willow. It might have been her imagination, but a voice in her head assured her that Diana's words meant more than what she was saying. "You're right. It's important to remain open-minded and curious about the world around us."
"That's right," A look of satisfaction settled over Diana's face. "And that's exactly what you should do. Take your own advice and stay open-minded."
Willow frowned, stunned into silence for a few long seconds...
"How do you...what do you...I don't..."
Diana cut her off gently, smiling. "Do you think that you could steal something from—something that I have been protecting all my life—and I wouldn't notice?" Then, she leaned closer and whispered in her ear. "Who do you think I gave it to Carmen in the first place?"
Willow should have known. Stealing the device had been too easy. She should have known Diana wanted her to have it. But the only question was, why?
"You are wondering why I wanted you to have it, aren't you?" Diana asked, moving away.
Willow didn't know what to say, it was obviously what any sane person would think.
Diana continued. "Because I had an idea for what purpose you wanted it for. Simple."
"I don't think..."
"You wanted to bring your brother back."
Willow's eyes widened and she took a step back. "How did you...?"
"Told you. I had an idea."
"But how? And why?" Then, another thought hit her like a bolt of lightning. "Wait a minute. Why is it that you're the only one who knows something happened? Everyone else seems to have adjusted to the changes I made in the past."
"I don't know the exact science behind it. Like I said, there's always an element of uncertainty. But I would be lying if I said I didn't have an idea about it."
"So, what is it?" Willow pressed. "What could be the reason you're the only one apart from me who knows about this?"
"I'm not entirely sure, but nothing else seems to make sense," Diana shook her head, crossing her arms over her chest. "I think it's because I've been in your shoes, I've done what you've done, and it's some kind of glitch that makes me an exception to all the changes that were made in the past."
"I don't get it."
"Try again."
"Are you saying you've time travelled too? But why? For whom? What did you change?"
Diana blinked, smiling. "What do you think?"
Willow did what Diana said. She thought. She tried to understand. She tried to...
Her eyes widened all over again, realization settling like the calm after the night of the storm. "Carmen."
Diana only smiled, letting her have the freedom to figure it all out.
Why would a desperate mother risk travelling through time? For her child, obviously.
"You saved Carmen that night, from that accident."
A/n: I hope this makes sense :P If not, I'm so sorry, maybe it will in future chapters. I'm doing my best here lmao
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