5

I didn't know if this "Noah Clark" and the other "Noah Clark" were the same person.

I quickly asked, "What's the name of the community we're living in now?"

Noah's big eyes twinkled. He said, "Mom, I know, you're testing my basic knowledge!"

I patted his head. "Good boy."

"We live in No. 8, Danontand residence. My dad's name is Luke Clark. Mom's name is...

"Stella Harris.

"Mom's name is Stella Harris. Grandpa's name is..."

I heard Noah almost reciting the names of all his ancestors. I quickly covered his mouth.

"Alright, I know you're very smart." I yawned. For some reason, I suddenly felt very sleepy.

"At this time, little kids should be in bed. You won't grow tall if you don't sleep."

Noah lay next to me. He stared at me and asked nervously, "Mom, will you still be here tomorrow?"

I reached out and touched his little face. I pulled him into my arms. "Of course, I will always be here."

Noah smiled sweetly. He gave me a big kiss on the cheek. "Goodnight, Mom!"

My heart felt warm. I held him tightly in my arms.

The current Noah, cute and clever, was a completely different person from the older Noah.

Maybe it was just a simple coincidence of the same name.

With that thought, I drifted off to sleep.

6

"Lazy girl, get up! Lazy girl, get up!"

In the morning, I was woken up by the familiar sound of my phone's ringtone.

I instinctively turned off the alarm. In my grogginess, I suddenly realized something was off.

I sat up in shock. What I saw was still the setup of my rental room.

I pinched myself hard to make sure I wasn't dreaming.

"Ouch!"

It hurt so much that tears nearly came out. It definitely wasn't a dream.

Could it be that everything that happened last night was just a dream?

I didn't have time to think more about it. Today was my second day at work, and I couldn't be late.

When I arrived at the kindergarten, I happened to run into the first batch of parents dropping off their kids.

"Good morning, Ms. Harris."

The familiar childish voice rang out. I looked up.

It was Noah. He was holding a little boy. Both were dressed in black and white baseball uniforms and wore baseball caps, looking like brothers.

I took the child. "Good morning, Wyatt Clark."

"Mom, what's today's date?"

Noah slightly tilted his chin up.

I was a bit dazed. The younger Noah and the current Noah inexplicably overlapped in my mind.

They looked so alike.

I took out my phone and glanced at it. "Today is October 2, 2022."

Noah seemed to smile slightly. His voice was a bit hoarse and had a youthful tone. "Then you have to remember today."

I was puzzled. "Why?"

"Because today is the first day I'm picking you up from work."

I found it strange. "We're not that close. I can take the subway home."

Noah didn't say anything. His blue eyes stared at me without blinking.

His gaze made me feel uneasy. "Then you can wait outside."

After saying that, I went to check on the other kids.

I thought Noah would get impatient or leave after a while.

To my surprise, during class, Noah was sitting on a bench outside the kindergarten reading a book. He looked even more well-behaved than the kids in the kindergarten.

The principal came over and told me that Noah was kidnapped when he was little. Since then, his mental state hadn't been quite right. It seemed like he was looking for someone.

I nodded to show my understanding. If it weren't for Noah's innocent-looking face, I would have really thought he was a creep.

"Goodbye, Teacher!" said one child.

"Goodbye, Teacher!" said another.

"Goodbye!" I said.

I stood at the kindergarten entrance and said goodbye to the students. Wyatt skipped out and held my hand.

He looked up at me and said, "Teacher, Uncle said tonight we are going home with you."

I was about to refuse. I looked up. Noah was walking over.

"Let's go." he said.

His tone was relaxed. He picked up Wyatt. He carried my bag with his other hand.

It felt like he had done this many times before.

"Where are we going?

"I want to go home!" I said.

"I want to go to the amusement park!" Wyatt said.

Wyatt and I answered at the same time.

Noah smiled. He turned to Wyatt and said, "How about we let Mom decide?"

Wyatt pouted. He grumbled but agreed.

But what he said was strange. Let me decide? It sounded like Wyatt was my child.

The three of us walked down the road. Noah held Wyatt's hand. The sunset stretched our shadows long and close together.

The evening breeze lifted my hair. I turned my head and said sternly, "Noah, can you stop calling me Mom?"

Noah blinked and said, "Why?"

"Because it's easy for people to misunderstand." I kicked a small stone on the road. "I'm only 22. People might think I'm your stepmom."

Noah raised his eyebrows and said, "Alright. But you're the one who always talks nonsense."

"When did I talk nonsense?" I said. For some reason, I thought of that dream I had last night.

I asked cautiously, "Do you believe in parallel universes or time travel?"

This question made me sound like a teenage girl.

To my surprise, Noah thought for a moment and said, "I believe it."

"Huh?" I said.

He paused and looked into the distance. "Someone asked me the same question before. I didn't believe it then.

"But..." he said.

He turned his head and smiled. "Now, I believe. I'm willing to believe anything you say," he said.

We were near the subway station. I waved my hand and said, "You should go back. Stay safe on your way."

He stood still, holding the child, and smiled at me. "Stella, see you tomorrow," he said.

I looked down at my phone. Tomorrow was the weekend. I doubted we would see each other.

8

"Again?!" I said.

After falling asleep again, I opened my eyes. I couldn't believe I had traveled back to the past again.

This time, I wasn't on a busy street. I was in a strange alley.

I looked at the small ads on the wall. The date on them was August 23, 2007.

The date I traveled to was already five years later.

I walked around the alley before coming out. I sat on a bench by the road.

This time, I decided to sit here and wait for dawn. As long as it got light, I could go back.

It was late summer. It wasn't too cold. The evening breeze felt comfortable on my face.

In front of me, a group of elementary school students rode bicycles home after school.

Only one child was left behind. He walked alone. His backpack looked huge on his thin back.

The group of kids in front had almost left, but he was still dragging his feet. Suddenly, I felt playful and whistled at him. "Hurry up and catch up! Or a bad guy might grab you later."

He stood still and looked up. After seeing me clearly, he seemed shocked.

That's when I realized he was a very good-looking little boy. His skin was fair. His eyes were blue and bright. He looked as beautiful as a doll in a display window.

At that moment, his mouth was slightly open. It seemed like tears were welling up in his eyes. His small fists were clenched.

I thought my joke had scared him. I quickly stood up and apologized, "Don't cry, don't cry. I was just teasing you," I said.

He still looked angry. I walked over and was about to pat his head, but he pushed me hard.

I was caught off guard and almost fell.

He stood there with red eyes. Tears fell from his eyes one by one.

He yelled at me, "I hate you! You're not trustworthy!"

I was confused. Did we know each other?

But he continued crying and complaining, "You promised not to leave the next day, but you still did. I hate you!"

I suddenly realized and quickly squatted down. I carefully looked at his face. Although he was crying, he still had a bit of his childhood look.

He was soft and cute.

My maternal instincts kicked in. I pulled him into my arms and softly comforted him, "It's all my fault. Don't be angry, okay?"

"No! No! I hate you!" he shouted.

He cried and pushed me hard. His small fists pounded on me. It looked scary, but it didn't hurt at all.

After a long while, he slowly calmed down. His eyes were wet and red. He sniffled and asked, "Why did you lie?"

I took out a tissue and wiped his tears. My heart ached a little, but I didn't know how to explain.

After all, time travel was too advanced for a little child to understand.

Seeing that I didn't answer, he started to sob again, as if he was about to cry loudly.

I had no choice but to ask him, "Noah, do you believe in parallel universes or time travel?"

Noah still had a tear hanging at the corner of his eye. He stared at me blankly for a long time before he spoke, "Mom, do you think I'm a three-year-old kid?

"I won first prize in the city's children's physics competition when I was six.

"What you're talking about only exists in science fiction novels. Stop trying to fool me," he said.