Part 1Bringing Her Home

Flying home for the holidays with my girlfriend to meet my parents. After we took off, I went to the restroom.

When I came out, the woman in the seat next to me was gone.

I called a flight attendant, but she insisted I had boarded the plane alone.

I asked the other passengers. They all said the seat beside me had been empty the entire time.

But I know, I’m absolutely certain, that I got on this plane with my girlfriend. She had just peeled an orange for me, telling me to eat it when I got back from the restroom.

How could she have just vanished?

I stared at the peeled orange on my tray table and demanded they search the cargo hold and the cockpit.

My outburst forced the plane to make an emergency landing at the nearest airport.

The airport police came aboard. They searched every inch of the plane but found no trace of my girlfriend. They couldn't even find a record of her ever existing.

They called my parents. My parents told them I’d always been single, that I’d never had a girlfriend.

In the end, I was committed to a psychiatric hospital. The other patients beat me to death.

When I opened my eyes, I was back on the plane, on the day I was supposed to take my girlfriend home to meet my parents.

* * *

"Alex, what are you spacing out for? It's time to board. Let's get to the gate."

My girlfriend, Sarah, waved our two boarding passes with a smile.

Seeing her gentle face, a shiver ran down my spine. I was back. I had been reborn.

I'm twenty-seven, and Sarah and I have been together for three years. I decided to finally take her home to meet my parents for the holidays.

I never imagined that this one decision would lead to her vanishing without a trace, and to my own death.

Thinking back on my previous life, my mind is still a complete fog.

I can’t figure it out. How could a living, breathing person like Sarah just disappear mid-flight?

Why did the flight attendant and all the passengers, who I know saw us board together, all sing the same tune, insisting they’d never seen her?

And my parents… they’ve always doted on me. They knew we’d been dating for three years. Why would they lie and say I’d never had a girlfriend?

"Alex, you look terrible. Are you feeling okay?" Sarah was looking at me, her brow furrowed with concern.

A pang of grief hit me. For three years, she had been nothing but good to me. She knew I had a sensitive stomach, and though she’d never cooked before, she learned just for me, preparing three meals a day without fail. In over a thousand days together, we never once had a fight.

That’s why her disappearance in my past life had driven me mad, why I had risked everything to find her.

I still don’t know what really happened then, but I refuse to let history repeat itself.

I looked at Sarah, my voice tight with a fear that was all too real.

"Maybe… maybe we shouldn't take this flight. We could change it, or take a train instead."

Sarah blinked, then her expression softened into a fond smile.

"What are you talking about, silly?"

"It's the holiday travel rush. There aren't any other tickets."

"We spent three days trying to get these. If we cancel them, we won't be able to go home at all."

She was right. Changing our plans was impossible. But the thought of getting on this specific plane, knowing it led to one of us dead and the other missing, made my stomach churn with anxiety.

What could I do? Was there no other way?

Wait.

In my last life, the reason I was sent to a psych ward was because no one except me could prove Sarah had ever been on that plane.

So this time, all I need to do is create undeniable proof that she boarded with me.

With that thought, I pulled out my phone. Arm in arm with Sarah, I started snapping pictures of us as we walked through the gate, down the jet bridge, and onto the plane. I documented everything until we were in our seats and the cabin doors were sealed.

Then, I posted a photo dump to my social media feed with the caption: "Boarded and ready to go! Taking the girl home to meet the parents."

The post immediately started racking up likes and comments:

"So sweet! Wishing you guys the best~"

"Wow, meeting the parents! It's getting serious! Congrats!"

"Safe travels! Can't wait for the wedding!"

Just to be safe, I took one more photo of us holding our boarding passes together and sent it to my family's group chat.

"Mom, Dad, Sarah and I are on the plane. We'll land in three hours."

My mom replied instantly: "We finally get to meet our future daughter-in-law! Your father and I have already bought all the groceries. We're just waiting for you to get home!"