Elsewhere(47)

Liz nods but doesn't say anything for a while. She just stares out at the water. "I was just wondering if there are Elsewheres elsewhere," she says finally. "It seems strange never to have thought about it before, but does everyone everywhere come to the same place? There must be other boats, right? And maybe they go different places?"

Owen shakes his head. "We all end up Elsewhere eventually."

"I only meant, it seems sort of small. Everybody couldn't possibly fit here, could they?"

"Elsewhere is actually very large; it only depends on your perspective." He takes Liz's hand and flips it over so her palm faces up. "It's an island really," he says. With his finger, he lightly draws a map of Elsewhere on her hand. "This is where the boats come in," he says, "and over here is the River back to Earth. I don't know if you know this, but the River is actually in the middle of the ocean. The ocean only parts once a day to allow the babies back to Earth." Owen draws the squiggly line of the River over the blue veins in Liz's wrist. He traces over to where her thumb is.

"And this is the Well, where we first met."

Liz stares at her palm. She can still feel where Owen had drawn the invisible borders. Suddenly, she closes her palm and the whole world is erased.

"Emily is coming here," Liz says.

"She's dead?" Owen says this in a measured, solemn tone.

"Thandi saw her name on the arrivals list. She'll be here tomorrow."

Owen shakes his head. "I can't believe it."

"So what are you going to do?" Liz asks, her voice practically a whisper.

"I'm going to meet her at the pier," Owen replies.

"After that?"

"I'm going to take her to my house."

"So you think she'll probably stay with you, then?"

"Liz, of course she'll stay with me."

"What about us?" Liz whispers.

Owen doesn't answer her for the longest time. Finally, he says, "I do love you, but I met her first."

He places his hand on top of hers. "I'm not sure what to do, what's right."

Liz looks at Owen. He seems truly miserable, and Liz doesn't want to be the cause of that misery.

She removes her hand from under his. When she speaks, it is in a strong, very adult voice. "The truth is, Owen," Liz says, "we've only just met. You have a responsibility to your wife." Liz waits to see what Owen will say.

"I don't want to lose our friendship," he says.

"We'll still be friends," Liz says. She's disappointed he came around to her reasoning that quickly.

"Oh, Liz, you're the best!" Owen embraces her again. "Emily's a great girl. I think you'll really like her."

Later that night, curled up in bed next to Sadie, Liz wonders how someone could claim to love a person one minute and not love her the next.

Of course, Liz is rather inexperienced in such matters. As many have discovered, it is entirely possible (though not particularly desirable) to love two people with all your heart. It is entirely possible to long for two lives, to feel that one life can't come close to containing it all.

************************************

The ship arrives at sunset. Owen wonders if Emily will recognize him. After all, it has been nearly ten years since they last saw each other. He notices that other people on the pier are carrying handmade cardboard signs with people's names written on them. Maybe he should have made one of those, too?

Emily is the second person off the ship. Even from five hundred yards away, the distance from Owen's position on the pier to the ship's gangplank, Owen can tell that it is her. The sight of her distinctive red hair makes Owen want to sing. She must be thirty-six now, but to him, she looks exactly the same as when he died.

Upon spotting Owen, Emily smiles and waves. "Owen," she calls.

"Emily!" Owen pushes through the crowd.

As soon as they reach each other, Owen and Emily embrace and kiss. It feels like a movie to Owen. He has waited so long for her, and now she is here.

"Did you miss me?" Emily asks.

"Oh, just a little," he says.

Emily holds Owen at arm's length, looking him up and down. "You look good," she pronounces.

"You don't look so bad yourself," Owen says.

Emily pushes Owen's hair back behind his ears. "You look young," she says, furrowing her brow.

She looks around the pier. "Are we all young here?"

"Eventually, yes," Owen replies.

"What do you mean 'eventually'?" Emily asks.

Owen smiles. "Don't worry," he says, "it all works out in the end. I'll explain everything." Owen takes Emily's hand. As he leads her out to the parking lot, he feels that the sad times are behind him, once and for all.

In the car, Emily asks, "So how does this work? Do I stay with you?"

"Of course you do," Owen answers. "You're my wife."

"Am I? Still?"

"Of course you are." Owen laughs. "Who else would you be?"

"But what about 'till death do us part' and all of that?" she asks.

"I've always thought of us as married," Owen says, "and now we aren't parted anymore."