When Stella woke the next day she felt refreshed, which did not fit with the fact that she had walked across Geneva the day before, and had just a few hours of sleep to rest up from it. It didn’t make sense, but she knew why.
As much as she considered the musings of writers, poets, and artists of all sorts about love and its magic to be foolish and nonsensical, there was something amazing about the healing and rejuvenating effects of love on the mind and body. It was, in all its forms, like a drug. Whether it was sexual or innocent romance, it left the heart beating better and the mind thinking faster.
She got out of bed in the cozy hotel room and glanced at the clock. It was 8:30. She would be late for work. That was alright though, such trivialities had vanished from her mind. Elijah was still asleep, and she made her way to the bathroom to wash up and get ready for the day. When she opened the bathroom door, she jumped, but kept down a yell.
Aileen stood inside the bathroom, curiously examining the sink. That single moment in time felt like something out of a horror movie. For all intents and purposes, the being that was in the bathroom was no a human girl, but an omniscient and omnipotent God - Yaweh, Allah, Zeus and the whole pantheon combined, or any other deity. No, Aileen was far worse than such beings, because she was demonstrably real, and she was standing in the hotel bathroom. That being then looked over at Stella, and the physicist felt her heart skip a beat.
Calm. Total calm. It didn’t matter. Whatever Aileen was, didn’t matter. Stella realized that it was because Aileen was real, that there was nothing that needed to be worried about. Worry was pointless. This moment wasn’t frightening. It was an opportunity, to know more about the world and to enjoy life.
“Hello Aileen.” Stella said, bringing as warm a smile to her face as she dared. She felt her usual cheery and carefree self returning at a slow pace from the devastating revelation she had experienced the day before.
“Hello Stella!” Aileen replied, and also smiled. It felt like a smile given in return, but not genuine. There was however, no malice behind it, not hidden intent. It was just meant to return a gesture of happiness.
“How did you find us?” Stella asked, sating her curiosity about the first question which came ot mind.
“Were you hiding?” Aileen asked, and cocked her head to one side in confusion. Then, her expression softened to worry. “I know that it is easy to scare your kind, but I am not a threat, and I am not hunting you.”
Stella thought about the idea for a second. For Aileen, finding someone had so little effort involved that it was not like stalking or tracking someone. It was just a matter of looking for them, like you would at a party or within your own house.
“No, I was not hiding. However, I can’t find people like you can.” Stella explained. “And you are right, we do scare easily, but we are also very curious. So I want to know how you found Elijah and I.”
“You are like us!” Aileen said, smiling this time with sincere happiness. “You are like my sort of human. We are very curious.”
“I guess that is something wonderful we share.” Stella said.
“Yes it is!” Aileen replied, nodding her head with confidence. “To answer your question, I found you with my Manus Dei. It is about the mass of this city now, so the area it covers is very large. Sensing you was not a problem.”
Stella nodded. She wondered to herself why Aileen even needed to visit CERN in person at all. It would seem that such an activity wasn’t necessary for the girl. For that matter, having a body seemed pointless for Aileen, after all, the girl could be anywhere and everywhere at all times, couldn’t she?
“Well, we will do that. First though, Elijah and I will spend some more time together. I’ll meet you at the accelerator at noon.” Stella explained. She thought for a moment about how the day would go, with her being late for work, as well as bringing Elijah into places he didn’t have access too. She spoke again. “If you could, or if there is a way, would it be possible to make it easy on Elijah and I to have…well…to have free reign of the place? I don’t want any trouble with being late for work today, or him being someplace he isn’t supposed to be. Is that possible?”
Aileen looked like she was thinking for a moment, before she nodded. “Yes, it is possible.”
“Good.” Stella replied, before letting out a breath that she had been holding in without realizing it. After all, it was entirely possible that she had just doomed all of her co-workers. Requesting something from the equivalent of a god was nerve wracking. Then again, consider her position, it didn’t trouble her much whether Aileen had just decided to remove everyone she knew from the facility. “I’ll meet you there then. Right now, I have to shower.”
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Aileen nodded, and then pointed her hand towards the sink. A great mass of black particulate matter materialized from around the room and converged to a point in Aileen’s hand. It shifted and swarmed in a great mass, and from it appeared a toothbrush, a hairbrush and comb, soap and shampoo, and an exact set of clothing that matched what Stella had been wearing the previous day - but clean and new. Many other items followed, including make-up, deodorant, and any item that Stella could need to prepare for a day.
It was a moment of fascination and awe, and one that proved to Stella that she had been right about Aileen and what their discussion the day before had meant. She had already believed the math, but seeing was believing. Being present to actually witness what Aileen was capable of brought it all full circle. It also caused a chill to run down Stella’s spine, when she realized that Aileen was not just in front of her, but that the girl’s Manus Dei was all around, and was a part of everything that could be seen.
Aileen then looked at Stella. “Do not spend too much time with him. If too much time passes, then it will be more worthwhile for us to have jumped, than to have maintained my presence here. That has happened once, and I do not want it to happen again.”
“When?” Stella asked. It could have been a question asking how long she had left with Elijah, at maximum. It could also have been a question asking when Aileen had run over her limit. Stella herself did not know which she meant. Aileen took it as the latter.
“When we visited a horrible place in a country called Poland, in 1945. We stayed there too long.”
Stella frowned. “Aileen…I don’t know how to put this, but, you should be careful. We humans aren’t like-”
“I am human.” Aileen interjected, looking suddenly disturbed. Stella was quick to correct herself.
“Well, the humans of this time. We’re delicate. Seeing things like that, they hurt and damage us. Elijah has been damaged. I could tell last night. I want him to be happy. You can’t keep taking him to such horrible places. He has to have peace and calm. He has to have good things.”
Aileen nodded. “Yes. He must not be distressed. I must not be either. I feel empathy for living things, and many living things suffered there.”
For a moment, Aileen looked solemn, and Stella smiled. At least the girl was not lying, and understood. Perhaps she really was human.
“Well then, see you at noon.” Stella said, and waved at Aileen. She half expected the girl to just materialize away, but instead Aileen walked out of the bathroom, and then out of the hotel. Elijah remained asleep, and did not see or hear her go.
Stella cleaned herself up, and during that time Elijah woke up and did the same. They went to a cafe on the lake for breakfast, and after that walked back to CERN. There was little conversation between them, but many happy and satisfied glances. They had said all they needed to say the night before, and these last moments were about nothing more than being in each others presence.
When they reached CERN they were greeted by a waiting Aileen, and Stella began a tour for little blue haired girl. At first, this was all the day was. For a couple of hours Stella showed both Aileen and Elijah through exhibits, museums, displays, and around the facility itself. Aileen would ask questions, and Stella would answer them. It was knowledge Aileen already knew, but she wanted to hear Stella’s answer. Then, Aileen would correct the answers with new knowledge, and comment on parts she liked.
Then, they toured the actual facility. They went all over, to places that even Stella had not been too, and to places that none of them were allowed. No one they met objected. In fact, these individuals acted as if their presence was routine and expected.
Aileen loved every moment of it, and brought smiles to both Stella and Elijah’s faces with her happiness. The girl’s joy was infectious, and urged the lovers past their fear of losing on another, to show the time traveler all they could about the massive science experiment.
And the time traveler watched. She watched with wide eyes and joy at screens and monitors, and then at the accelerator itself.
The day ended. It had too, as time marched on. Hours later, as the sun was starting to set, they all found themselves in the same place they had started - at ATLAS, in front of the mural.
Goodbyes were said quietly, and Stella kissed Elijah one last time, perhaps just because it was fitting to do so. He issued apologies, words were shared about how crazy and insane the whole experience was. Elijah gave advice about how to deal with the difficulties Stella would encounter with him in the future, still naive to the truth of how futile that advice was. Stella did not mind though, she took the comments and thanked him for it.
Her goodbye to Aileen was much less affectionate, but kind. There was no bitterness in her heart for the little girl, much less resentment or hate. It was Aileen that had given her this moment, after all, and time was a precious thing. The little human being form the future had never lied or given a falsehood, and had held true to everything. And she had even been kind and thoughtful, in a very human way.
Aileen, for her part, was far more saddened by the departure. She complained about how wonderful Stella was, and how foolish Ellijah and her were for breaking up. She started to cry when Stella said good bye, and gave the woman a hug that Stella halfheartedly returned before agreeing to leave. For Stella, it felt like a total contradiction from the way that she had acted the day before, and even that morning, when she had wanted to jump through time to the future with Elijah, rather than wait a day.
After that, Aileen and Elijah walked just a short distance away from Stella. Aileen took Elijah’s hand, looking like his little sister or a lost child standing beside him. Stella’s eyes looked directly into Elijah’s, but in a moment of curiosity they wandered to Aileen’s. The girl’s expression was lost, and the gaze of her eyes caused her to look dazed. It was as if she were mentally in another place.
Then, her eyes snapped back to reality and met Stella’s. It was without words that Stella understood what this meant. She instinctively braced herself, but then relaxed as she realized how silly doing such a thing was. She felt total resignation wash over her, and she smiled at Aileen, who stared back with an unchanging expression.
Stella waited.