Week 14 Story: Friends Til The End of Time

Growing up Aleksandr and Nikolai were the best of friends. They were practically attached at the hips. Their parents always smiled when their kids would go on and on about their best friend. They often joked that their friendship would last until their deaths.

Sadly, for one of the boys, that joke rang true. Nikolai was dying in a hospital bed at the age of 16 with his family and close friends around him. He knew his time was approaching and he began to say goodbye to his loved ones.

At last, it was Aleksandr’s turn. His eyes began watering but he tried to keep it in.

“Sasha, you know you’ll always be my best friend. And I’ll still be there and have your back even when I’m gone,” spoke Nikolai. “Promise you’ll visit when important things happen, okay?”

There was a small moment of silence and Aleksandr nodded. Both boys burst out into tears and when they hugged, they held on tightly.

Years have passed since Nikolai’s death, and Aleksandr kept true to his promise. When he graduated, he went to Nikolai’s grave and talked for hours about what it would have been like if he was there. Soon enough, it came for the time to settle down and Aleksandr had found someone decent to marry. It’s not that he didn’t love her, it was just that something didn’t feel right. But she was a great person and she was eager to marry him. So after the engagement party, Aleksandr took a trip down to the cemetery.

He talked to Nikolai about his fiance and he explained his honest feelings about it. Even though his friends had been gone for years, Aleksandr could still imagine what his responses would be like. The conversation, surprisingly, went on for hours and Aleksandr had managed to fall asleep as he leaned on Nikolai’s tombstone.

When Aleksandr awoke, he found himself in the middle the cemetery and Nikolai’s grave was missing. He felt different, as well. As he stood up, he froze when he heard a shout coming from somewhere close.

“SASHA!”

Aleksandr looked towards the sound and saw Nikolai standing there, alive and he looked sixteen. He didn’t even hesitate, Aleksandr tackled Nikolai in a hug.
"Wha's going on? I thought you died, I mean you did die. How are you here? And why are you so young?" Rambled Aleksandr.
"First, you're only three months older than me. Second, I did die. And I don't know what happened either. But I do know that it looks like we when back in time. We're both sixteen and there are no signs of me dying anytime soon."
Aleksandr stared at the boy in disbelief, he couldn't believe what was happening.
But not even a second later, those thoughts were gone. Aleksandr's memories of Nikolai's death, his graduation, and his fiance were gone. Nikolai doesn't remember every lying in a hospital bed.
"Let's get out of the cemetery, it feels weird," said Aleksandr.
"You're such a baby, Sasha," teased Nikolai.
The boys talked and laughed as they walked off home. Forgetting all about the alternate timeline that they had come from.

(Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Author's Note:
In the original story, the friend that died persuades the other friend to drink with him in celebration of his wedding. The drink ends up sending him 300 years in the future. The story never spoke about what happened with the friends and I kind of wanted to give it a somewhat happy ending. I also wanted to build up the characters of the two friends. And instead of going into the future, I had him go to an alternate timeline where Nikolai doesn't die and they could continue being friends. I'm not sure if I was clear when I said that they don't remember anything from the other timeline. I wanted it to seem like those memories were erased and they would never know about the other life they lived.

Bibliography:
"The Two Friends" from Russian Fairy Tales by W. R. S. Ralston (1887). Web Source.