“Yes, but there’s also a world where we missed the bus,” I protested. “So what’s the point? There’s no meaning to any of it. There’s no plan.”

“Not at all. It simply means in a different world, there’s a different plan.”

A sad smile creased my face. “I’ve always envied the strength of your beliefs, Roscoe. I wish I shared them. If there’s been one good thing about being here, it’s seeing you again. I’m going to miss you.”

“Are you saying you have to go?”

“You were right all along. I don’t belong here.”

“Will you follow this other Dylan again? And stop him this time?”

“No, it’s time for me to go back to where I came from and face what I left behind. That’s what you said I should do, isn’t it? Say the word and go home. I was a fool to think I could change the world.”

Roscoe squatted in the sand and let it run through his fingers. Then he spoke to me softly. “Actually, I’ve changed my mind about that.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t think you’re ready to go home, Dylan. That’s not who you are. If you believe in what you’re doing, the worst thing you can do is give up. The fact that you failed doesn’t mean that you should quit. The friend I’ve known my whole life would never give up.”

“You really think I should try again? After everything that happened here? What if I make it worse wherever I go next?”

He shrugged and looked up at me. “What if you make it better?”

“I appreciate the vote of confidence, Roscoe, but even if you’re right, it’s a moot point. The only thing I can do is go back home. I have no way to go anywhere else. I can’t chase him, even if I wanted to.”

“Why not?”

“I have no way back into the portal without Eve Brier.”

He flinched at the sound of the name. “Eve Brier?”

“She’s the therapist who sent me here. The idea of trying to bridge the Many Worlds was her idea. But as far as I can tell, she doesn’t exist in this world. There’s no record of her anywhere.”

Roscoe dipped his hand in the cool water and shook his head. “God really does work hard to make things come together.”

“What do you mean?”

“I know her,” he replied.

“What?”

“Well, I don’t know if she’s your Eve Brier. She’s not a therapist, that’s for sure. But I do know an Eve Brier, and I’m not surprised you wouldn’t find any record of her online. She’s a drug addict. Homeless, has been for years. She comes into the parish sometimes when we’re preparing meals.”

“An addict?”