Three years into my relationship with Harry Henson, I quietly posted something online:
"I think I want to get married."
What I didn't expect was the flood of comments from people who claimed to be from three years in the future, all of them begging me to stop:
"Are you talking about marrying Harry Henson? Don't. Whatever you do, don't!"
"Sarah James, wake up. Harry's been sleeping with your best friend, Leonora Simmons, for ages."
I frowned. My first thought was that my followers were messing with me.
Harry was my childhood sweetheart. Things had always been good between us, more than twenty years and barely a single fight.
And Leonora was my closest friend. We told each other everything. She'd even complained more than once about how quiet and withdrawn Harry was, said she could never fall for a man like that.
I almost laughed out loud and was about to close the post when Andy, one of my most devoted fans, sent me a message:
"Sis, everything we're saying is true. You can't marry Harry. He'll destroy you."
A second later she sent me a string of news headlines from three years out. Black text on white, every word cutting straight to the bone:
【SHOCKING: Beauty Influencer Sarah James's Husband Caught in Affair. Star Sinks Into Heartbreak, Diagnosed With Severe Depression!】
【Sarah James Suffers Three Miscarriages. The Mastermind Behind It All: Longtime Best Friend Leonora Simmons!】
【Sarah James Left Physically and Emotionally Shattered, Permanently Unable to Conceive.】
……
Reading those headlines, something turned over hard inside me, and still some stubborn part of me refused to believe any of it.
A few seconds passed before I managed to type:
"Andy, are you in on this little prank too?"
Harry had once been willing to give his life for me. How could he ever betray me?
Andy replied almost instantly:
"Sis, I've followed you since the day you started posting online. I want you happy more than anyone. Why would I ever do that to you?"
She paused. Then a new message popped up:
"It's May 30th where you are, right? If I'm remembering correctly, today's the day Harry plans to propose to you."
"And today is the day your nightmare begins."
A cold thread of doubt wound through me.
Harry was proposing today? I didn't even know that. So how could Andy?
Unless everything she'd said was real.
I was still turning it over when my phone buzzed with another message. This one from my dear friend Leonora:
"Sarah, are you ready? I'm waiting downstairs."
I stared at the screen, my head a tangled mess.
After a moment, I decided to go down and see for myself.
Maybe it was everything Andy had said, but from the first glance I caught of Leonora, something felt off.
She had a smile fixed on her face. "Sarah," she said, "I promise. Today is going to be the most unforgettable day of your life."
I smiled back, but my eyes drifted, almost on their own, to the necklace at her throat.
That necklace. I'd thought it looked familiar before.
Harry had one almost exactly like it. I'd even joked once, asking the two of them whether they'd bought a matching set.
They'd both called it a coincidence at the time, so I'd let it go.
But looking at it now, no matter how I looked at it, it didn't sit right.
"It's just dinner, isn't it?" I asked lightly. "How unforgettable can it be?"
Leonora blinked, her smile sly and secretive. "Oh, you'll see when we get there."
She took my arm and pulled me forward, and the unease in my chest only grew heavier.
At the restaurant entrance, the doors had barely opened when streamers burst overhead with a loud pop, raining down all over me.
