I watched him go to the little room with the drink in his hand. I waited, and then Troy was there. I recognized him; he, of course, didn’t know me. He was much taller than I’d expected, even though I’d known he was going to be tall.

‘Troy,’ I said. He looked down.

‘Ariel?’ he said. He took half a step back.

‘Yeah.’ In spite of everything, I’d half expected him to be like Joe, to be fifteen. ‘Thanks for coming,’ I added lamely.

‘I’ve got no idea what’s happening,’ he said. ‘But yeah. You freaked me out enough to get me over here because that was Joe writing and …’ He looked around, took a deep breath. ‘I mean, Joe’s alive?’ he said quietly. ‘You’ve met him. You must have done. You couldn’t have written that message otherwise. Where is he? Where has he been all this time?’

My conviction that Troy had accidentally killed him and thrown his body into the sea began to waver.

‘Come with me,’ I said, and I led him to the little room. I opened the door.

I don’t know how, but Joe saw Troy and Troy saw Joe.

I didn’t even have to have a hand on Troy’s arm. They saw each other.

46

The door opens and Ariel comes in as usual. Then she ushers in someone else.

And I can see him.

‘Troy.’ It comes out as a whisper. Ariel and I wait. We look at Troy, and he looks right back at me. I watch him taking it in. I’m the Joe he used to know. I am not what he was expecting.

‘Who are you?’ he says. He looks at Ariel, and then back to me, and then to her again. I can see his panic rising. ‘Does Joe have a child? Because you look so much like …’ He can’t finish his sentence, and I don’t blame him.

‘No,’ I say. ‘I’m not Joe’s child. Joe didn’t grow up. It’s me.’

We both look at Ariel.

‘OK,’ she says. ‘Troy? Rewind a moment. You can see him? You can see Joe?’

‘No. Of course not. I can see a boy who looks like Joe. Joe’s son? What happened? How did this …?’

‘You can see him. Oh my God.’ Ariel and I look at each other. It’s magical. I have Troy, twice. I have my Troy in my world and future Troy in Ariel’s.