Their parents decided to take a short nap before dinner, leaving Ryan and Gemma alone in the hotel lobby. Ryan stood on the balcony, still wearing the damp bikini under a beach coverup. He could feel the occasional stare from strangers as they had walked through the hotel lobby, and it gave him a strange thrill.
Gemma joined him, leaning against the railing.
"That was actually kind of fun today," she admitted quietly.
"Yeah," Ryan agreed, surprised by the genuine smile that crossed his face, "It was."
“It’s funny seeing you …being me. You've done pretty well, actually," Gemma said, nudging him with her elbow.
Gemma studied him for a moment, then turned back to the view. The sun was beginning to set, painting the sky in brilliant oranges and pinks.
"This is so bizarre. I keep forgetting I'm in your body until I catch my reflection or hear your voice coming out of my mouth."
"Tell me about it," Ryan murmured, running his fingers through Gemma's long hair. It was still damp from their swim, the salt water making it slightly coarse.
He'd been so caught up in his own secret thrill that he hadn't considered what this experience might be like for Gemma.
"How are you handling all this?" he asked.
Gemma shrugged, shoulders awkward in Ryan's broader frame, "It's... different. Everything feels heavy. And I keep hitting my head on things because I'm not used to being this tall. And don't get me started on using the bathroom."
Ryan winced at the thought of his sister having to touch his …penis.
“Look at us,” he tried to change the topic, “Just a brother and sister hanging out. Like nothing ever happened.”
Gemma turned to him, her expression softening, “Yeah, it’s kind of nice, isn’t it? To indulge for a while…”
If only she knew how much he’d been indulging.
Ryan traced the contours of his face, “I can’t believe I’m literally you. Like, obviously we time traveled and everything, but, as we’re standing here, it all feels so strangely …normal. Like, here we are, and it’s like, I’m you. And I’m 15-years-old. You’re 17. And that’s just how it is.”
“I get what you mean. Like, it’s like you have the body you have. It becomes hard to separate yourself from it.”
“We traveled back in time to 2014, treating it like a capsule. A memory. But this isn’t a memory. It’s real.”
Gemma stared into Ryan’s eyes, thinking about what he had said, expecting to see some hint of her brother in them. But they were her own eyes.
She shook her head, “Let’s go back to the room.”
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