A Timeless Journey (23 page)

The restaurants in the future were divided by the Global AI system in three grades. The lowest was the Grade C diners, where you could have a quick standard meal, then came the more serious restaurants of Grade B and finally, the fancy restaurants of Grade A rating, which provided an excellent quality followed by a very expensive bill. The Grade A restaurants had a star rating of their own, starting with one star and building up the stars depending on merit. It wasn’t easy in this reality to get an A grading and to earn a star the restaurant had to serve exceptionally good quality food in an art form.

We placed our order on the virtual screen and while waiting for the meal to arrive, I decided to make Luna the happiest woman alive. I solemnly asked Luna to stand up and, since she wasn’t familiar with this old fashioned kind of request, she gave me a confused look. Nevertheless, she obeyed. I went down on one knee, just as we would propose marriage to someone in our reality and with a smile on my face, gave her one of those sweet looks before speaking.

“Luna, I have thought long and hard about your request to have a child together and I will be honoured to accept being a father to your child.”

Luna jumped up and down, clapping her hands. “Oh Scotty my love, I have been expecting this moment. You have made me so happy and I want to shout it out loud.”

“I knew this would make you happy,” I said, smiling at her reaction.

“Wait, are you sure about this? You didn’t take this decision just because I asked you? Have you?”

“I have never been so sure of anything in my life. I took this decision two days ago and thought to surprise you tonight over a romantic dinner.”

“You certainly succeeded. I am very happy now, thank you!”

Luna threw herself in my arms as she kept jumping up and down from joy. Looking at her, made me feel good and I smiled kindly at her innocent reaction of happiness. No matter what the future had in store for us, I was going to be a father and this thought somehow felt just right.

I had chosen as a background, a flowery field somewhere in the 26
th
century’s countryside and everything felt just like a dream. Luna, filled with excitement, couldn’t stop talking for most of the time we spent in the eatery. She kept repeating over and over the plans she had made for our girl, once it arrived in this world.

I felt overpowered by her happiness and my mind failed to register every word Luna was saying about the baby, but given to what I know now, it makes a lot of sense why she thought we were going to have a baby girl. As I recall some of the things she said, I wonder why I wasn’t able at the time to notice the peculiar details of her knowledge about our near future. It won’t be long until I reveal this mystery, but not before I share with you the events that occurred in between.

Three hours later, we went to a chaos club to celebrate and it was the funniest experience you could ever imagine. Everyone in the club had different songs in their earphones and each danced to a different tune making everyone’s movement comical. Being a part of this chaotic environment was something incredibly surreal and fun. Luna and I had synchronised our Links to play the same song and, as we danced on, I understood the real taste of freedom in enjoying the silliness within.

We left the club at around four in the morning and flew back towards our apartment in the Laguna city, a little drunk and tired but very happy. It was the happiest I had been since returning from the space holiday and, in a feel-good mood, I felt asleep next to the woman I loved.

28

You know that feeling when you are asleep and a sweet familiar voice makes you smile before you have a chance to open your eyes? This is how I felt on hearing Luna’s voice the morning after.

“Scotty, wake up my sweet love.”

“What time is it?” I asked with my eyes still half closed.

“A quarter past twelve in the afternoon and I have prepared a meal for you.”

I stretched my arms as I struggled to fully wake up. My eyes opened, I looked at Luna’s angelic face and drawn by lust, I pulled her towards me, allowing her body to fall on top of mine. Taken by surprise, she released a scream and then giggled before we shared a passionate morning kiss. After this pleasant awakening, I used the steamer before joining Luna for the late breakfast.

Luna had made sure to prepare a special breakfast for me. Asparagus wrapped in Parma prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella, vine tomatoes, all fresh products from the Italian region of the Europian continent and toasted integral bread awaited for me on the dining table. Luna seemed eager to make me happy. Last night’s decision to have a child had made her very content and it made for a joyful view watching her bouncing around the apartment with a sweet smile on her beautiful face.

After the meal, Luna and I started a serious conversation about the way she preferred to conceive the baby. Being from an old world, I was inclined not to trust the new scientific methods. I wanted her to have the baby in the traditional natural way. However, regardless what I wanted, it was her decision and hers only. Luna quickly proved that she knew me well enough to know what I wanted. 

“I know you want me to conceive and carry the baby in the natural way and I will be happy to do this for you.”

“How do you know what I was thinking?” I asked rhetorically, surprised by her accurate observation and, since I didn’t expect an answer back, continued talking. “Anyway, it is your body, your decision and I don’t want to impose my wishes onto you. You have to choose whatever feels comfortable for you.”

“I like the idea of having a part of your DNA inside me and besides, I think every woman should try at least once the natural way as a part of bonding with the child, something that I have missed growing up as you know.”

“Thank you Luna, it means a lot to me.”

“I know you well! I couldn’t sleep from excitement and this is why this morning I took a trip to the genetic repair centre and reversed the genetic settings on my conceiving genes.”

“You did what? I’m confused.”

“Sometimes I forget the era you come from. Every sexually matured woman genetically modifies her ovaries in order to avoid conceiving until they are ready to have a child the natural way. When the interested parties have talked through the idea of having a child and they have made the final decision, they go at the genetic repair centre and temporarily reverse the genetic modification.”

‘Genetically modified birth control, wow, what a brilliant idea, I’m impressed…wait a minute, does that mean the next time you and I will make carnal love, we’ll be trying for a baby?”

“Yes, unless you changed your mind,” Luna replied in a vague, unsecure tone of voice.

“Oh no, I haven’t. I guess I am not used to how fast things move in this reality, that’s all.”

“That’s good, because today we are going to have a sex marathon.” She smiled and transferred her look in the direction of the privacy room.

Luna’s idea took me even more by surprise, not that I was against it, on the contrary, I loved her idea. It was more about the way she expressed herself, direct and innocent and this was one of the reasons why I loved her. Everything that had happened from the moment I opened my eyes, made sense. Luna waking up early to go to the GRC, the meal she prepared and the happy mood she was in, it seemed all planned, although it was spontaneous. I looked forward to having a whole day in the privacy room with her.

During my time in the IEF, I never dreamed I was going to have the life I was having, just a year after my release. In fact, I never thought it would be possible for me to integrate so well into this new futuristic life. To find myself locked in the privacy room with the most beautiful girl I have ever met and trying to create a new life together, was just mind-blowing.

That Sunday turned out to be one of the most special days I’ve had with Luna and the week that followed was equally as good. We had sex every day that week just to make sure it would work and the following Wednesday, we decided to request Luna’s link device for a body scan to find out if she was indeed pregnant.

Luna did the scan on Wednesday morning and her Link was going to give Luna the results after she travelled to work. The scan results would be first registered in the main and local government systems and then the concerned person would be informed of the outcome of the results. It was only for legal reasons that it took a few hours to receive the results.

Professor Chang kept insisting on the length of the hot summer of 2003 in Europe, as if the fact that it was warmer than usual that year, had made a difference in policy making of the European leaders of the time. My mind was focused on Luna as I waited eagerly for the news. No matter what professor Chang or Ms. A tried to say to me that day, I found it hard to concentrate.

The personal bio microchip inside Luna was able to detect any changes as soon as it happened, but couldn’t release the information until the person involved formally asked for a scan. After the scan this morning, the information was passed to the government AI systems for registering and then passed back to Link who was instructed to inform Luna about the results, if there was any.

I kept connecting with Luna via Link and every time I asked there was no news. According to Luna, it was later that day that she was expecting the Link to inform her about any new developments and she begged me not to call her again while she was working. The system made sure the information was stored correctly and the decision to have a child was mutual, before it fully accepted the results. I was aware of my euphoric behaviour for most of the morning, filled with impatience and eagerness in learning if I was going to be a father.

Professor Chang noticed my distraction and asked if I needed help with anything. I didn’t fancy telling anyone just yet and limited my explanation by simply saying it was a personal matter. He understood my lack of focus wasn’t going to help anyone and politely asked me to take a wander around the museum until break time and clear my head. I thanked him for his understanding and took the cube down to the old part of the museum. I needed to be near the main entrance in order to exit as soon as the lunch break arrived.

Finally, after a torturous wait, the clock hit half past twelve in the afternoon. It was time for my hour long break. My working hours were from nine in the morning until four in the afternoon with a lunch break between half past twelve and half past one in the afternoon. Like clockwork, at half past twelve from Monday to Thursday, there was an amazing display on the walkways and the moving lanes of old Manhattan. Millions of people rushed on the streets of New York, almost at the same time, to have their lunch break, in a park, in a grade C eatery or other similar places. It was chaotic, furiously fast, mesmerizing to witness and beautiful to physically experience the mad rush.

Luna’s sweet whisper penetrated my brain through the Link and made my chest tremble.

“Scotty, I am outside waiting. Are you coming out?”

She sounded happy and mysterious at the same time. I wanted to ask her right away, but for some reason, I just couldn’t bring myself to talk.

Eventually I managed to string three words together and answered. “I’m coming out.”

Luna was already waiting by the entrance. As I made my way out, I tried in vain to read the answer I was looking for on her facial expression. Her poker face made it impossible.

“So, tell me are you with child?” I asked her impatiently, as I rested my right hand on her shoulder.

“Scotty, have some patience please,” she replied without giving away anything I could cling on.

“The suspense is killing me, please tell.” I begged.

“Come on my love. Let’s take a walk in the park.”

Luna kept a serious face and I just couldn’t tell if it was good news or not, so I followed her with my chest trembling from strong emotions. All kinds of thoughts kept my mind occupied and I started to doubt in mine and her ability to have children. Not being able to fully understand the scientific logic behind the genetic therapy, I had my doubts about long term effects on genetic birth control, which I thought it may have rendered Luna or me infertile. Being from a far less developed world, I wasn’t to know how the advanced the genetic science was in the future.

We walked in silence on the shiny pathway under the scorching August sun, holding hands, when Luna finally decided to put me out of my misery. She stopped walking and faced me with a neutral smile on her face.

“Dearest Scott, as you are aware Link was supposed to release the information to me this morning. It informed me that we are going to have a baby by next May.”

All my doubts magically disappeared and the accumulated stress of not knowing turned to joy when I realised I was going to be a father.

“Oh Luna thank you, this is the best news ever. I never thought I would feel like this. Why did you have to torture me by prolonging the agony?”

“I thought some solemnity would be a more romantic choice and the look on your face when I told you will be in my memory forever.”

“I am so happy right now! I believe to have superpowers, because I feel like flying right now, thank you!”

I kissed her and the seriousness of the fact that I was going to be a father started to sink in. There was no way back after this, and I had to consider denying the chance to return to the 21
st
century if another opportunity came along. The thought of missing my child growing up sent chills down my spine. I couldn’t leave Luna, not now, not ever.

We sat on the sun-kissed summer grass, before Luna lay on her back and put her head on my lap. She stared at the blue skies with a sweet smile on her face while both of her hands rested on her abdomen. She was happy and peaceful and it made me question myself as to why I wasn’t feeling as happy as she was. My initial happiness had lost its way in the labyrinths of my worrisome thoughts. Don’t get me wrong, I felt happy, very happy to expect a child with the woman I loved, but I had these doubts in my mind if I was doing the right thing by having a child 560 years into the future and the real prospect of denying the chance to return home.

The position I was in, certainly wasn’t something that happens every day. If I had to go back home without the possibility of being able to return to the future and then create another family in the 21
st
century, not only would it create a paradox, but imagine a descendant from my old reality getting together with a child of mine in future.

I tried to convince myself that I belonged to the 26
th
century now and should be able to lead a normal life and yet, somehow my doubts where sculptured deep inside my mind, ruining the genuine happiness I felt.

Sadly, it was time to return to work. I promised Luna once we returned to our apartment, I was going to cook an old fashioned organic meal for her to celebrate the wonderful news and then I left. I returned to the institute and professor Chang and Ms. A noticed that my mood had changed for the better. They insisted on knowing what had happened during my break to make me so happy, but I wasn’t ready to share the good news with anyone else just yet. It was mine and Luna’s to enjoy before we announced it to the world.

I simply sufficed by telling them I had some great news and that was it. I promised to them I intended to share my good news in a near future, but not on the day. The rest of my working day went faster than I predicted. It wasn't long and we found ourselves in our apartment. There was this sweet silence and an exchange of joyful looks between us, mostly due to the news sinking in mixed with a sense of incredibility for what we had achieved.

Later that evening after the meal, Luna and I cuddled up in front of Holo projection to watch a romantic tale-trail. We were surrounded by a feel-good aura. The only person, who risked ruining this happiness, was me. As much as I loved living in this reality, for some reason I still kept thinking of temporarily returning home and let my family know of my newfound life. Now that we were going to be a real family, the urge to let my parents know that I was safe and a proud father-to-be, grew strongly inside me.

I had been in the future for fifteen months by then and during this time, I had seen amazing things, I had travelled in space, I had seen inventions beyond my imagination and most importantly, I had fallen in love with the most beautiful girl and we were about to have a baby as a symbol of our love.

Only a fool would give up the entire future a head and believe me when I say, I had no plan to leave this beautiful reality behind, or forward as in this case, but the knowledge that my family was suffering in vain while I enjoyed a much better life, kept eating me up from inside.

With time, as the baby started to grow inside Luna, my mind returned to the normal routine and the fact that I was going to be a father, had started to slowly crystallise into the seriousness of parenthood. The worrying thoughts about my family were substituted by the thoughts of a different nature.