Chapter 2

I texted, "Am I not happy seven years from now?"

There was a long silence on the other end after I sent it out. Then, the phone rang, and I saw that it was my future self calling me.

I answered the call.

The person on the other end of the line sounded tired, weary, hurt, and in great despair.

"You'll have married Crystal seven years later in a very grand wedding, and you'll also have a daughter named Pearlie."

But before I could even feel happy about that thought, I heard him say, "But you're not the least bit happy. In fact, you're in great torment every day.

"Reuben will still be living in your house, doing all sorts of over-the-line things with Crystal every night, but he would always use the excuse of him being her 'brother' to ward you off.

"It won't be until you come back early from a business trip and catch them red-handed in your bedroom that they'll finally admit it."

I listened to him speak and felt a knife going through my heart.

"Crystal will be very sorry about it at first and fall to her knees, begging you to forgive her and that she won't ever do it again. And you believe her because of the baby you're having with her. You can't bear to divorce her at that critical moment.

"But when Pearlie is only just seven months old, she will cheat on you again with Reuben. Eventually, she won't even have a shred of remorse left. She'll tell you that she hates how vanilla you are in bed. She'll tell you that she hates how you always get suspicious of her and Reuben.

"Even Pearlie will never acknowledge you as her father. She'll only ever call Reuben 'Dad'."

He then sent me a family photo. It showed Crystal happily leaning into Reuben's embrace with a little kid about five years old sitting in her lap. They were all smiling happily at the camera.

But I wasn't in the photo.

And I shouldn't have been absent from it.

I continued listening to my future self talking about his life, feeling the pain and despair washing over my body.

When he was finally done speaking, I suddenly recalled the photo of the empty bottle of sleeping pills that he'd sent to me at the very start of our conversation.

I shakily asked him, "The sleeping pills! You took the sleeping pills, didn't you? How can I save you? I want to save myself too! Are you going to die, Daniel Summers?"

There was a long sigh on the other end of the line. Then, his voice slowly grew weaker as he said, "Probably. I think the drug effects are kicking in. But Crystal brought Reuben and Pearlie abroad for a family trip. I guess the maids are the ones who'll discover my body tomorrow.

"Just break up with Crystal, Daniel. And don't ever look back!"

Right after my future self said that, I heard the sound of the phone clattering heavily on the floor. Then, the call disconnected.

I lost control of my emotions and burst into loud sobs. It felt as though I was the one in that empty house seven years from now, watching my future self gradually dying.

I cried for a long time until I completely ran out of energy.

Then, Crystal finally pushed the door open very lightly and came up to me, gently pulling me into her arms. She stared at my swollen eyes and said, "Dan, I'm really sorry about what happened earlier. I—"

I looked up at her and said, "Crystal, let's break up."