When Planets Collide

Jennifer arrived at the condo that she and her husband Elliot had rented on Airbnb promptly at 4:00. Since it was a Friday and her boss was aware of her plans for the weekend, she was able to get out a little early. Elliot, on the other hand, was not as fortunate and wouldn’t be arriving for a few more hours. Jennifer didn’t mind though. She still had some time before she needed to get ready for dinner, so relaxing on the balcony that overlooked the pristine beach twelve stories below sounded like a perfect way to waste some time.

Even though the condo was located about 45 minutes from their home, the view and the ambiance of the buildings and the surrounding town made it truly feel like she was miles away. To say she was excited for their weekend getaway would be an understatement. She and Elliot were celebrating their 5th wedding anniversary. Life had gotten busy for the two of them over the last couple of months, so a weekend away was exactly what they needed. As an added bonus, it was Memorial Day weekend, which meant they had an extra day to just relax.

With her freshly poured glass of Moscato in hand, Jennifer grabbed her laptop and headed out onto the balcony. She figured she could use this free time to catch up on the latest news and gossip posted by her friends and family. Jennifer grew up in Massachusetts, so for her, social media seemed to be the only way she was able to stay in the loop sometimes. Elliot had grown up in south Florida, which is where the two of them had moved after graduation, so his family and friends were closer. Jennifer missed her former home sometimes, but every time she saw pictures of her friends and family bundled up in layers of winter gear surrounded by several inches of fresh snow, that homesick feeling would strangely disappear.

Both she and Elliot graduated from Boston College, which is also where the two had met and eventually started dating. When the two of them took the same Algebra 2 class, she could have maybe picked him out in a line up, but past that, they barely knew each other, and they definitely ran in different circles. Elliot was far more serious about his grades and his plan to become an engineer, while Jennifer, on the other hand, was a social butterfly. Sure, she had goals, but she certainly wasn’t in a rush to accomplish them. About a year after their shared Algebra class, Jennifer’s best friend, without knowing that Jennifer and Elliot had actually shared class in the past, set them up on a blind date. Surprisingly, they seemed to click, and they were for the most part inseparable since. Jennifer would frequently tease Elliot by pointing out that since he was Capricorn, and she was a Leo, they balanced each other out. Elliot being an Earth sign seemed to ground Jennifer and brought a sense of stability to her life whenever she needed it; whereas, with Jennifer being a fire sign, she had a tendency to bring new levels of excitement and sometimes maybe a little too much spontaneity into Elliot’s life at times.

So, Jennifer sat on the balcony, sipped her Moscato and enjoyed the perfect weather while she mindlessly scrolled through her Facebook feed. As she was liking different posts with hearts and smiley faces and commenting how she wished she was there to several of her friend’s posts, she came across an article with a title along the lines of 50 historical photos that show what life was really like over 100 years ago. Jennifer loved history and she especially loved old photos. She was sure the article was nothing more than clickbait, but she didn’t care. It was something entertaining to pass the time.

Somewhere around the 20th photo on the list she saw a familiar face. She leaned in to try to get a better view, but the photo was too small. The caption below the photo didn’t provide a name; it just listed the year the photo was taken as 1865. Jennifer took a picture of the image that was displayed on her laptop with her phone and zoomed in as much as she could. The image still wasn’t as clear as she would have liked, but from what she was able to see, almost every feature was identical to the man she loved. The man in the photo appeared to have lighter brown hair, which was similar to Elliot’s; a long beard, which Elliot didn’t have and a prominent nose that was also like Elliot’s. The mouth was slightly different in that the man in the picture had what appeared to be long thin lips, whereas Elliot’s were more defined. The eyes though were what really caught her attention. The man in the photo had almond shaped eyes with eyelids that defined the shape of them and a low brow; all of which were identical to Elliot. If she didn’t know better, she would have bet money that it was Elliot.

Jennifer was excited about her find and couldn’t wait to show Elliot. She tapped on her phone screen and realized she should probably start getting ready. She closed her laptop and saved the photo she had taken on her phone. Perhaps it was just a coincidence, but the resemblance was unbelievable. Elliot had been adopted when he was six months old. He didn’t know anything about his birth family and while he often said he didn’t care to know, surely, he was curious. Not to mention, Jennifer and Elliot were planning on starting a family of their own soon; knowing a little more about Elliot’s genetic past would probably be a good thing. Maybe this man was a great great grandfather or uncle. She didn’t know, but she hoped this photo along with a little research would eventually lead them to a little more information about who his family was.

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Later that evening while Jennifer and Elliot enjoyed an amazing steak dinner and a couple of drinks, Jennifer told him about the link she clicked on and showed him the photo. When Elliot first saw the photo, he seemed to stop breathing for half a second. His eyes went wide, and he seemed to be slightly shocked. But then, as effortlessly as a chameleon blending into its background, he simply handed the phone back to Jennifer, took a bite of his steak and claimed he didn’t see the resemblance.

Jennifer thought that his initial reaction was strange. Elliot wasn’t fazed by much, but with his first reaction, although only for a split second, he seemed to recognize this person.

“I can’t believe you don’t see the resemblance.”

“I really don’t and to be completely honest with you, I don’t feel like digging into my past right now. I just want to enjoy this amazing dinner, the time we have together and not turn over stones that are better left unturned.”

Elliot sounded extremely annoyed. Jennifer didn’t understand. Why was he getting so upset by this? If he didn’t know who this person was, couldn’t they at least laugh about it?

“Fine, I’ll drop it,” she told Elliot in her “sweet” voice. In the back of her mind though, she couldn’t help but think something was off about this whole scenario.

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

The next day was perfect. Jennifer and Elliot woke up early; they walked across the street to the small breakfast and lunch restaurant that had been recommended by the building’s valet and had an amazing breakfast. They did a little shopping and spent the remainder of the day lounging on beach chairs drinking frozen fruity cocktails without a care in the world. Well, almost.

Anyone who has been married to a woman or has been in any type of relationship with a woman knows that when she says the word “fine”, it isn’t really fine and while you might think the conversation is over, it really isn’t, and for Jennifer and Elliot it definitely wasn’t. But she didn’t want to ruin this perfect day, so she kept her thoughts to herself.

However, the next night, their last night at the condo, was different. A thunderstorm was building off the coast, but the view had been amazing as they sat on the balcony and watched the lightning strikes flash across the sky over the ocean. They were convinced that since the rain had not quite reached them that they were probably a safe enough distance away. Finally, Jennifer broke her silence though and like one of those bolts of lightning she hit Elliot with all her questions and all the thoughts that had been stewing in her mind for days. Elliot started to get a little antsy and irritated, but this time Jennifer wasn’t letting it go.

“I don’t understand what the big deal is. Aren’t you curious? We have talked about having kids, don’t you think it would be a good idea to try to find out something about your past? The man in the picture looks just like you, maybe he is a relative. I just don’t understand.”

She didn’t want to push the subject; she knew this was a tough subject for him. Honestly, if Elliot hadn’t reacted the way he had upon seeing the photo initially, she probably wouldn’t have. She just had this feeling that he was hiding something and that is what bothered her the most.

“No” was all Elliot could reply.

What Jennifer wasn’t aware of though was that Elliot knew where exactly he came from, and he was deathly afraid to tell her. He was afraid that if he told her, she would freak out and leave. That’s what happened the first time he told someone about his past and where he came from, so he didn’t want to take that chance again.

After about 10 minutes of neither of them saying anything as they quietly watched the brewing storm, Elliot broke the silence. He very calmly but nervously told her that he needed to tell her something. Before he began, he made her promise that she would let him finish his story before she said anything and most importantly that she would remember just how much he loved her.

Jennifer agreed, but now she was slightly worried.

Elliot began his long story. He explained that he knew exactly who his parents were and more importantly, he knew who the man in the photo was.

It was him.

Jennifer was stunned. She didn’t know what to think, this was ridiculous. She started to ask him a question, but he cut her off and continued.

Elliot explained that he was thousands of years old, and he meant thousands and thousands, like more than their incomes combined thousands of years old. Of course, the body he was currently residing in wasn’t that old, but the essence of who he was; was that old.

Jennifer couldn’t hold back. “This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. Have you lost your mind? Are you joking with me? None of this is funny Elliot.”

Elliot calmly continued. He explained that he was originally from another planet and that while there were still beings like him in existence, there weren’t many. He wasn’t an alien, so to speak, because he resided in a human body and had for years, but at the core of who he was, he was very different. All of this was so difficult for him to explain and based on the perplexed look on Jennifer’s face she wasn’t taking any of this very well.

But he continued.

He went on to explain how his kind had first come to this planet, the role that they played in the genetics of humans; how on his original planet others like him had been considered special and revered and that on this planet there was once a time when others like him were considered Gods. He explained how easy it had been at times throughout history to stay in his current human form for over a hundred years and why at others it was difficult. For example, with the invention of cameras, videos, computers and later the internet and social media, staying in one body for more than a normal life span had become impossible. He should have known that, but he took the risk anyway and didn’t move on, which of course then led to the explanation of how those like him took on new human forms.

Yes indeed, all too much to explain, and way too much for Jennifer to believe. Finally, she had heard enough. She didn’t seem angry or to upset. She needed to digest all of this. She let Elliot know that she was going to bed and simply said that they would talk about everything later. It was getting late, and they had to check out the next morning. She walked to the bedroom and closed the door.

Elliot stood outside the closed bedroom door afraid to open it. He could hear her crying. He sat on the couch with his head in his hands. He felt utterly defeated and was consumed with regret that he had told her the truth.

He knew he had lost her.

A Year Later

Elliot stood beside the woman he loved holding her hand. He almost couldn’t bear the pain she was going through or the pain that he was going through as she squeezed his hand with each contraction and every time she was instructed to push.

Finally, they heard the doctor exclaim, “it’s a girl.”

Jennifer and Elliot were now a family of three. The doctor handed the fragile and freshly cleaned tiny human to Elliot. He pulled the bundled blanket away from her face and as soon as he did that, she opened one eye and while looking directly at him, her tiny lips formed a crooked little grin. A grin he immediately recognized from his past. He didn’t react; he simply smiled and handed their newborn baby girl to Jennifer without saying a word.