I would like to dedicate this story to all the females in my life who have, in one way or another, taught me about love:
My mom, my sis, my female friends, my girlfriends, my loves, and my heartbreaks

	Temptation comes in many forms.  Usually, it's a whisper or a nagging feeling you get . . . an urge to do something you know you're not suppose to do.  However, folklore has it that the devil just might make a personal appearance if he wants your soul badly enough.  Old blues stories about the crossroads may have been forgotten, but not lost.  And who can forget the devil tempting Jesus?  I don't know why, but the devil chose to tempt me.  He didn't use power, riches, or even fame, but something even more tempting: love.  It happened a year ago right after my weekly lunch meeting with Mary . . .

	Mary stood up from the table because she had to leave a little early today.  I stood up too to give her the usual hug.
	"I'll see you next week at the usual time," I said to her as I hugged her small frame.  Her thin, short, brown hair rubbed up against my cheek as I lowered my head a little to take her in a little more.
	"Definitely!  Have a good weekend and week!"
	"You too!"
	She squeezed my neck as I squeezed her torso, then we let go.  I noticed she wasn't as skinny as she was back in the college days, but had definitely put on some fat after having her kids.  It wasn't a lot of fat, but she had enough fat to give her body more curves than it had before.  You could tell she had kids.  However, for a mom, she still looked very attractive, which I'm sure her husband had no complaints about.  Jeez, that was a little superficial of me.
	As she walked away, a bit of nostalgia came over me.  It seemed like forever since we first got to know each other.  We'd been through a ton of stuff together and all of it seemed like a blur.  I don't even remember when I realized I loved her.  It must've been right before she met the man who became her husband, because that was the time I remember being really happy with her.  Oh, we had happy moments after she met her husband and even after she got married to him, but the ones that stick out are the ones before her marriage.
	I really value her friendship.  I mean, she was and is one of my best friends.  Even if I can't have her as more than a friend, I choose to enjoy every little moment I have with her.  No matter how little the moments were and are, good or bad, I cherish them.  And you know what?  It really is okay. She was so happy the day she got married that I vowed to finally put my feelings for her away because there was no turning back. My desire for more has lessened over time. They're pretty much gone now.  A little part of me will always have that desire, but I don't have to let it consume me as it once did.  And it helps to know that she's incredibly happy with her husband and family.  However, I wonder sometimes what could've happened if I had the opportunity to tell her how I felt.
	Why did I feel this sudden nostalgia?
	"A better question, how would you like that chance?"
	The question got me by surprise because it flowed seamlessly after the question I had just asked myself.  I noticed the waiter that had just served us had said it.  I could only say, "What?"
	"Sir, how would you like a chance to go back and redo things right?"
	I sat back down and looked at the check.  "We all want chances to go back and redo things, but we never get them."  Of course, I said that not realizing the waiter actually knew specifically what I wanted.
	"Well, I can give it to you."
	I looked up from the check.  "What did you say?"
	The waiter smiled.  For some reason, I got chills when he did.  He had that kind of smile that only practical jokers have when they're about to see their joke happen, but his smile was much more malevolent.  I can't even remember the rest of his face because of that smile.  The next thing he said gave me more shivers.
	"How would you like a chance to see what would've happened if you had told her your feelings?  Maybe things would've worked out in your favor?"
	I had seen scenarios like this before in the movies.  Usually, the main character ends up coming back to their original reality because the alternate one isn't what they expected it to be.  However, the argument is pretty weak, because alternate realities imply alternate personalities we could have.  Putting one personality into a different reality doesn't guarantee happiness in that new reality.  But this is assuming reality jumping is possible.
	"You wouldn't have to worry about that sir; I'd make sure you're happy in the other reality."
	I realized then that, "Are you reading my mind?"
	The waiter smiled that smile again, then reached into his shirt pocket (he was dressed in a white, long-sleeved Oxford shirt and black slacks) pulled out a business card, and handed it to me.  I looked it over quickly, but all that was printed on it, in small red Times New Roman font was . . .
	"Luke C. Leffer, making your dreams come true."
	"It's my business to know what people want and to give it to them."
	I looked up at the waiter.  "You have to understand my skepticism."
	"Of course, of course.  I'll tell you what, come back here later today, around nine-ish.  That's when I get off.  We can talk more then."
	And with that, he took the dirty dishes and walked off.  I had to sit in my seat for a little while to check if what just happened was real or not.  I looked at the business card again, put it in my pants pocket, and paid the bill on my way out.

	As you can imagine, I couldn't concentrate on anything else that day.  My last couple hours of work were filled with daydreams and speculations about what this Luke meant about knowing what people wanted and giving it to them.  Could he really give me what I had dreamed of?  I decided I had to go meet him, even if it was just to see what this man would do.
	
	I went back to the restaurant and waited in front of the entrance.  It was about 9:10 when Mr. Leffer came out.
	"Hello, nice to see you again!  I take it you've considered my offer?"
	"I must say, it's quite intriguing.  What exactly are you going to do?"
	He smiled that smile of his and I got shivers.
	"Why, just snap my fingers!"
	And with that, he snapped his fingers and everything went black . . .

	I was awoken by an alarm going off.  Before opening my eyes, I tried reaching over to my left to turn it off.  Instead of an alarm, or even a side table, my hand swatted nothing.
	I was about to open my eyes when a husky female voice said, "Mmm, sorry, I forgot to reset the alarm.  We've still got a half hour."  After a tap, the alarm stopped ringing.
	I recognized the voice.  "Thanks Mary."
	"mmr hmmrmm."
	I felt her put her arms around my torso and her head on my chest.  I put my arms around her and settled back into the pillow for some more sleep.  As I was falling back to sleep, my mind processed everything that happened.  A second later, I realized what just happened and my eyes snapped open to see what was going on.  I was in bed.  I looked down to see I was in bed with a woman, but not just any woman, it was Mary.
	I blurted out, "Ummmmm . . . what's going on here?"
	"Shut up and go back to sleep," she tiredly said.
	"But this isn't right, what about your husband?"
	Mary lifted her head, looked up at me, and smiled.  "Did you have another one of those strange dreams where you're NOT my husband?"
	"I'm not your husband."
	She giggled.  "You're funny."  She gave me a peck on the lips and put her head back down on my chest.  "You're not dreaming anymore, so snap out of it.  We can still get 20 more minutes."
	I tried to remember what happened before the alarm had gone off.  I recalled going to meet that waiter and that the waiter was in the business of making dreams come true, or something like that.  Then there was the fact that I was in bed with Mary and, from her reactions, she seemed to think I, of all people, was her husband.  Did I switch bodies or something?  I looked down to see my skin was its usual color, so that couldn't be it.  I decided to test the situation.
	"Mary, let's make love."
	That drew another giggle from her and she looked up at me.  "Oh, so now you're back to normal."
	I didn't have time to be surprised by the reaction because Mary scooted up on top of me and started kissing passionately.  I use to have dreams about doing this with Mary and seeing as how I was actually doing it now, I just put all questions in my mind aside and went with it.  I wrapped my arms around her and returned the kiss.  My body went into automatic and I just enjoyed what was happening . . .

	Getting ready for work was pretty interesting, since I had to find my way around a bathroom where I didn't know where anything was.  Mary took it all in stride and kept laughing at me, thinking I was still joking around.  Of course, this continued as I got dressed, ate breakfast, and left for work.  She left too, although I couldn't really figure out what she did and I didn't want to ask.  That would just make me look stupider than I was already acting.  As for me, I headed to where I usually go for work, hoping that didn't change.
	Thankfully, it didn't.  I walked into the building and people I recognized greeted me.  As I sat down at my desk, I wondered again how all this happened and what that waiter had done.
	"To answer your question, I changed your past."
	I turned around and there was the waiter, but he was dressed in the same kind of work clothes as I was.
	"How did you get here?"
	"Oh, I work here now.  I was a waiter before because I had a client at that restaurant, but that didn't work out, so now I'm here to watch over you."
	"Okay, but what was that you said before about changing my past?"
	"Ah, yes, the inevitable 'space-time continuum' question.  Let me ask you a question in return.  You remember that time before Mary met her husband?  That time when you wish you could've told her your feelings?"
	"Of course."
	"Well, you told her, and all of this is the result."
	"But I don't remember doing it."
	"So?  You got what you finally wanted.  You and Mary, in love, forever.  Aw, excuse me while I gag."
	I thought about that: Mary and me, together and in love, with kids and grandkids to look forward to, not to mention growing old.  I couldn't help but smile.
	"See?  It's what you've always wanted."
	I looked at Mr. Leffer and said, "Thank you, how can I repay you?"
	"Simple: every once in a while, I'll ask you to do me a favor and you do it."
	"What kind of favors are these?"
	Mr. Leffer smiled that chilling smile.  "That's nothing you have to worry about.  It'll usually have to do with a new client of mine."
	I nodded.  "Alright.  Thanks again."
	"You're welcome, enjoy your new life.  Oh, and if you have any questions, you have my card in your wallet.  There's a number on there you can call.  Bye now."  And he walked off.
	With these new revelations, I got back to work.  Speaking of which, I had to figure out what I was working on first.

	Work flew by very quickly as it always did.  The trip home was more interesting than work was, because I had to remember where home was.  After getting lost for half an hour, I stopped by a gas station and used the phone book to look up my address.
	"Mary, I'm home!"
	There was now answer.  I walked around the house to get acquainted with it.  First were the essentials: bathroom and kitchen.  In the kitchen was the phone and answering machine, of which I noticed there were a couple messages.  I pressed play to hear them.
	First was Mary herself.  "Sorry sweetie, but I'll be home later than usual.  One of my patients had a relapse, so I need to stay and take care of him.  Go ahead and have dinner without me.  Love you!  Bye!"
	Speaking of dinner, I took a look in the refrigerator to see what was available.
	After a beep, another female voice spoke.  "Hello Mary, this is doctor Coats.  I have the results of your test.  Just give me a call back and I can give you the results over the phone or I can give them to you in person.  I'll be free tomorrow afternoon, so just let me know.  Bye."
	I found some steaks and quickly decided to grill one up.  The Mary in my original reality didn't eat meat much, so I left the other one alone just in case.
	Another beep and another voice came on, this time male.  "Hey, it's Frankie, just wanted to let you guys know you don't have to play at mass this Sunday.  Something came up and I'll be out of town, so Tony will be doing the mass with his band.  There'll be practice on Monday as usual, so I'll see you guys then.  Have a wonderful weekend!  Buh bye!"
	There was another beep, but no message afterward.  I made a mental note to tell Mary about the messages on the machine and to ask her what test the doctor was talking about.  I found some frozen corn in the freezer and heated that up in the microwave while I grilled the steak on the stove using the grill attachments.  After cooking the steak to a nice medium, I put it on a plate along with the corn, poured a glass of V8 splash, took out a cup of yogurt for dessert, said grace, and dug right in.
	
	After dinner and cleaning up, I looked around the house some more.  It was a nice place with two bedrooms (one with a full bath connected to it), a half bath, an office, and the living room, which was separated from the kitchen by a change from carpet to tile flooring.  I walked into the office and looked around.  There were two desks at opposite sides of the room, both adjacent to the door.  The desk to the right had not just a computer, but a printer, stereo system, and papers, lots of papers.  On the far side of the desk were several musical instruments: soprano sax, electric bass, keyboard, and an electric guitar.  I guess I must've used this room for recording songs.
	The other desk was much neater and didn't have nearly as many things.  There was just a notepad and a pencil holder visible.  Around the desk hanging on the wall were framed certificates with Mary's name on them.  It was pretty obvious who spent more time in here.
	Out of boredom, I sat down at my desk and turned on the computer.  After a couple seconds to boot up, the computer was ready to go.  I looked at some of the programs available and in a half-hour, I was surfing the internet (we had a digital cable connection) and listening to the music that was saved on the computer.  The music was pretty good; it seemed I had the same taste here as I did in my other life.  My other life . . .that felt weird to think about.
	As I was pondering this last thought, I felt a pair of skinny arms wrap around my upper torso and a kiss on my right cheek.
	"Hunny, I'm home," Mary said coyly.
	I turned my head to give her a kiss on the lips.
	"Hey.  I was just checking out some stuff."
	Mary looked at the webpage I was looking at and also nodded her head to the music.
	"I really liked this song.  I'm sure the Rices appreciated it in their wedding."
	"The Rices' wedding?"
	"Of course, silly.  You're probably thinking of the other ballad you wrote.  That one was for the Sanderlins."
	I nodded to pretend understanding.  "Thanks for clearing that up."
	Mary gave me a quick peck on the lips.  "That's what I'm here for."
Mary unwrapped her arms from my torso and stood up straight.  She used a hand to ruffle up my hair a little.  "Oh, thanks for heating me one of the steaks."  The sarcasm dripped from her lips.
	"Hey, I didn't know you wanted one.  Oh, before I forget, you have a message from Doctor Coats and Frankie left us a message saying Tony's going to be subbing this weekend with his band, so we don't have to play."
	"Okay."
	Mary walked out of the room and I heard her play the messages while she took out some silverware and started grilling her own steak.
	"Hey, what was that message from Dr. Coats about?"
	"The results must be in from the checkup."
	"What checkup?"
	"Are you still acting dumb like you did this morning?"
	"Ummmmm, maybe?"
	She let out an exasperated sigh.  "Your sperm count came out okay, so I went to get checked to see what our problem was."
	"Problem?"
	"Our baby making problem?"
	"Oh, right."
	Mary walked over to the doorway.  "Are you sure you're alright?  You've been acting strange . . . I thought this morning was just an act."
	"I'm fine, hun."
	"You sure?  I can have Robert check on you."
	"I said I'm fine, it must be stress or something."
	"Oooookay, if you say so."
	Mary went back to attend to her food and I breathed a little sigh of relief.  I couldn't exactly tell her what my real reason was for not remembering anything.
	"Let me know what the doctor says."
	"Will do."
	The rest of the day wasn't too eventful.  We just watched some Friday night shows.  David Letterman was funny as always.  After the shows, we just went to bed, cuddling and enjoying each other's presence.

	Saturday morning's routine was similar to Friday's, except we didn't make love.  We wanted to see what the results of Mary's exam were first.
	"Doesn't Dr. Coats have Saturday off?" I asked as I brushed my teeth.
	"Yes, but she's usually in her office during the afternoon to get some paperwork done.  I'll stop by on my way home."
	I thought about asking her where she was going, but to avoid anymore suspicions, I nodded.
	We finished our routines and Mary went off to wherever she needed to go.  I didn't know what else to do, so I went back into the office and messed around on the computer.  I mostly just surfed around the web as my mind wandered.
What will it be like to live out the rest of my life in this reality?  In the previous one, I was content with my existence.  Being an engineer and musician on the side was very rewarding, but I wouldn't say I was totally happy.  I felt like I had missed my opportunity to have someone in my life, partly because of Mary, partly because I didn't want to go through all the crap that dating entailed.  I figured if it happened, it happened.  I left it to God to send someone for me to be with.  But, the other side of that is that God doesn't help you unless you try.  I had been rejected a couple times and it always left me devastated.  I also had female friends, but being in the friend zone is always the worst place to be.  People say it's best to start out as friends, but they forget that doing that usually results in one way feelings and it's not a guarantee both people will feel the same way, hence a lot of friendships end.  I thought that was just stupid, but oh well, that was life for you.  The best way around one way feelings is to ignore them and focus on the friendship, and I think that's the option most people forget about.
	Was it really good to get what you want?  I was surprised by this thought, because I had not doubted my experience so far.  This is the happiest I've ever been, sure, and Mary seems really happy too, but the image of her with her kids and her husband from the previous life came back to me.  She looked really happy in that reality, maybe more so than in this one, and I had no doubt it was because of her kids.  She had all she wanted in that reality, but in this new one, we didn't have kids yet.  I thought about why we didn't have kids yet and then I remembered the events of the last few days.  There was a problem, but what was it?  And what if we can't have kids?  Will Mary ever reach the same state of happiness she did in the other reality?
	I got what I wanted, so why should I worry about that?  This new thought surprised me more than the previous train of thought.  It seemed so selfish.  I wanted Mary to be happy more than anything else and I still did, but I didn't think about that when I decided to stay in this reality.  Why?  Shouldn't I have?  No, I didn't, I only thought about what I wanted.
This started to really bother me when I heard the door close, announcing Mary's arrival back home.  I snapped back to the present and walked out to greet her.
	"Hey hun, welcome . . ."
	I couldn't finish the sentence because of what I saw.  Mary was standing in front of the front door, her head down, her face covered by her hands as she wept.  I immediately walked over and held her.  She leaned into me.
	"What's wrong?" I asked.
	Mary cried for a few seconds before answering in as calm a voice as she could.  "I can't have a baby."
	As soon as she said that, my stomach tightened and I felt sick.  I had just thought about that a little bit ago and tried to dismiss it.  I knew that Mary wouldn't ever be as happy here as she was in the other reality.  Why this?  The answer came quickly; it was obvious this was the price I had to pay.  .  . no, the price Mary had to pay for what I wanted.  That thought made me feel angry, but also resentful.  I got what I wanted, sure, but at the expense of the one person I loved the most.
	I couldn't say anything else and neither could Mary.  All I could do was hold her and let her cry.

	It was hard to sleep that night.  Mary and I talked for a long time, about our disappointments and lost hopes, and about the possible options of adopting or taking in a foster child.  But it was still a huge blow to us, and I still felt very guilty.
	The next day, we both felt a little better.  The world seemed a lot less dull, but it was Sunday, so we had some time to just lie in our bed before we had to get up and go to church.  As I held Mary in my arms, I started to rationalize things out.  This wasn't a totally bad situation.  We do still have the options of adoption or fostering a child.  Although it wouldn't be like having our own and going through pregnancy and the birth process, we'd still have a child of our own.  We'd love the child and care for the child and he or she would be our own.  Mary could still be happy.  But I couldn't forget how happy she was in the other reality.  Why couldn't I just forget about that and move on?
	Mary looked at the clock next to the bed.  "It's nine, hun.  We better get going."
	"Okay"
	I kissed the top of her head and we did our usual morning routine, this time getting ready for church.

	We arrived at St. Vincent's Catholic Church at 10:50, just enough time to find a good seat before the 11 a.m. mass started.  The church had a circular shape to it.  The alter was placed in the middle of the circle.  Sloping upward, the high roof of the church was at its highest above the alter.  The alter itself sat atop a stage of sorts, a raised platform shaped in a circle to match the shape of the church.  Behind the alter was where the music group stayed.
	The pews of the church formed ever increasing semi-circles around the alter.  There was a break in each semi-circle at the halfway point, which created an unobstructed pathway from the entrance of the church to the alter.  Everybody had to walk down this middle isle to get to a seat.  Mary and I walked down it and picked the row 4th from the front.  We chose to sit as far left of the alter as possible so we could see Tony's group playing the music.  It felt pretty strange being in the congregation, since I was normally involved in playing the music.
	Right at 11, Tony's group started playing the opening hymn and everyone in the church stood up.  Father Mark walked down the main isle, preceded by the readers and the alter boy, who was carrying the crucifix.  Reaching the alter, the readers sat down in the front pews, the alter boy walked to the right side to put away the crucifix, and Father Mark walked up the steps of the platform to the alter.  He bent down to kiss it, then walked around it to the back of the alter where his seat was.  He faced the congregation and the opening hymn ended.
	I didn't pay too much attention to the next couple parts of the mass, even though I should have.  The first and second readings just went by as I turned things over in my head.  I just couldn't stop thinking about everything that had happened in the past couple of days.  I thought about my having made a deal with the devil and now being in church and I couldn't help but see the irony.  What should I pray for?  Should I thank God for letting me make the deal that resulted in my happiness?  Of course I couldn't do that, that same deal had taken away Mary's happiness.  Okay, then how could God allow me to do that?  If He knew this would happen, then what was His purpose in allowing me to make a deal with the devil himself?  Was it to teach me some sort of lesson?  After all, everything happens for a reason, right?  But what was the reason for what I'm going through?  I don't believe God makes others suffer to teach us lessons.  Suffering is created by humans, therefore it's up to us to relieve it when other people suffer.  God leaves it up to us to learn our own lessons.  But where is the lesson here?
	After reading the gospel, Father Mark walked forward and stood in front of the alter to give his homily.
	"True love . . . what is that?  If you look at society's view of love, it is very, very distorted.  Watch a couple shows, like those Bachelor reality shows, or sitcoms.  Or look at the divorce rate, how high it is.  People go into relationships nowadays asking, 'What will I get out of this?  Will this make me happy?'"  Father Mark took both his hands and pointed at himself.  "Me.  That's what it's all about.  And if I don't get what I want or expect, then I want to get out of this relationship.  If you want a good example of this, just look at J-Lo."
	Everyone chuckled at his last comment.
	Father Mark put his hands down.  "But seriously, we know from the Gospel today that this is not true love.  True love isn't about what you can get out of a relationship."  He pointed at himself again.  "It's about what I . . ." he pointed out at everyone in the congregation, "can give you.  This is true love.  God gave us his only son Jesus to die for our sins.  THAT'S true love.  And Jesus willingly gave up his life for our sins.  That's true love.  We must be willing to give ourselves completely to the people we love.
	"People tell me, 'Father Mark, I don't like to come to mass because I don't get anything out of it.'"  Father Mark pointed at himself.  "Again, that's a me thing.  That's not love.  We should want to come to mass so we can offer God something, even if it's just an hour of our time.
	"Of course, true love isn't easy.  There WILL be tough times, that's a guarantee; perhaps the only guarantee.  Priests and lay people have gotten burned out because they gave too much, but this is not true love either.  If you give yourself out of true love, then it's not like working.  You'll have a seemingly infinite amount of energy from all the people you give yourself to, because they'll give back to you.  God will make sure of that.
	"The same is true for marital relationships.  If you give yourself completely to your spouse, then you will get back more in return than what you have given up.  This doesn't mean you should be completely dependent on them for everything, that's a common mistake.  But you should be willing to give your complete self.  For those who are with a potential mate, this is how to gauge whether you two should be thinking of marriage or not.
	"Remember, if it's about me . . ." he pointed to himself again, "then it's not true love."  He pointed out.  "When it's about other people, then the love you feel is true.  And only then are you really following God's will."
	Father Mark turned around, walked back to his chair behind the alter, and sat down.  During the following moments of silence, I thought about his homily.  He was right, true love isn't about getting something out of a relationship, but giving to a relationship.  I realized that I did want Mary to be happy more than anything else.  Although I had not been feeling true love before, I now felt it and knew what had to be done.  Right after I thought that, Father Mark stood up and we said the Nicene Creed.

	After the mass, we went out to lunch at the same place she and I went to every week in the other reality.  I found this pretty ironic, of course.  It seems there are constants no matter what reality one is in.
	Mary and I ordered drinks and sat in silence for a little bit before I started talking.
	"Did you pay attention to the homily today?" I asked.
	"Yes I did, why?"
	"I was just wondering what you thought about it.  Do you agree with what Father Mark said about true love?"
	"Yes, I do.  Don't you?"
	"Yeah, but there's a little catch I can think of."
	"What is it?"
	"Well, shouldn't true love make you and your mate happy?"
	Mary scrunched her eyebrows together and tilted her head to her right slightly.  "I would think so."
	"I don't know . . . it seems to me that there could be this situation where you could truly love someone and maybe you're happy, but the other person isn't as happy as they could be.  Shouldn't true love make both of you happy to the fullest?"
	"Yes and no.  I don't think you should depend on someone else for your happiness, it should come from within."
	"You should truly love yourself first?"
	Mary smiled, "That's what I was getting at.  We're on the same wavelength."
	I had to smile at that comment.
	"You should truly love yourself first, and then when God sends you your mate, then it should only add to your happiness.  You shouldn't be depending on them for happiness."
	"So if you feel like you can't be happy without them, then that's not true love either?"
	"Exxxxactly!"
	At that moment, I felt sad because I knew that I had to get out of this reality and get back to the original one.  But I also felt thankful, because I was able to experience happiness with Mary for a little while, and also because Mary herself gave me the truth I was looking for all this time.
	The rest of the meal and the rest of the day went by fast.  I enjoyed my last moments with Mary like they were my last, and in a way, they were.  And when she went to sleep in my arms that night, I thanked God for letting her be in my life, no matter what her role was.

	The next morning, we went through our usual morning routine.  I felt a tinge of heartache after we kissed each other goodbye and left for our workplaces, but I was now determined to set everything right.  Immediately after I clocked into work, I went looking for Luke C. Leffer.  I asked around and finally found him working in the human resources department in the basement.  As I walked towards his desk, he looked up at me.
	"To answer your question, the human resources department lets me look out for future clients."
	"Um . . . okay.  So I suppose you know why I'm here?"
	He smiled that smile and I got shivers again.  "Of course.  You want everything back to the way it was.  Typical."
	I raised my right eyebrow.  "Typical?"
	Mr. Leffer opened a desk drawer and looked through a bunch of folders.  "Yes, typical.  You're not the first client of mine to change their mind about their new reality.  I thought for sure, though, that you wouldn't.  Ah, here it is. . ."
	He pulled out a folder, put it on his desk, and opened it.
	"What I have here is your file.  I'm gonna have to terminate your account.  But if you change your mind," he smiled, "I'll find you."
	Mr. Leffer took a stamp and stamped some papers in my file.  As he did this, I asked him, "Why are you being so easy going about this?"
	Mr. Leffer chuckled.  "Free will.  I can't make you do something you don't want to.  Although I can be very persuasive, in the end, it's your decision whether to stay in this reality or not.  People have more control over their destinies than they believe."
	I nodded in understanding.  "What happens next?"
	"When I finish stamping this last document, you'll immediately go back to your former reality right where you left it."
	"Will I remember all of this?"
	"If you want to."
	"Okay . . . I don't know what to say.  Thanks?"
	Mr. Leffer looked up and smiled again.  As he did, his hand fell, pressing the stamp on the last document, and making everything go black.

	My alarm started ringing, and I immediately reached over to my left to turn it off.  I hit the snooze button and the alarm stopped.  I turned over to my other side to embrace Mary, but felt nobody there.  I opened my eyes and remembered what had just happened.  I turned onto my back and stared at the ceiling for ten minutes, just thinking about the events of the past couple of days.  When the alarm went off again, I hit the snooze button and got up for work.

	As Mary approached me at our weekly lunch meeting, I couldn't help but notice how much happier she looked in this reality compared to the one I was in.  She bounced a bit more as she walked.  She stood up a little straighter.  And a smile played on the corners of her mouth.  Seeing these signs reassured me that I had made the right decision.
	I stood up to greet her.  As I hugged her small frame, her thin, short, brown hair rubbed up against my cheek and I lowered my head a little to take her in a little more.
	She said, "Whoa, really happy to see me today?"
	"You have no idea."
	We let go of each other and sat down.  "So how was your weekend?"
	I smiled at her.  "Too eventful to describe."
	"Really?  Are you gonna tell me about it, or just sit there smiling?"
	"I don't know if I can."
	She humphed.  "Being secretive, I see.  I'll get it out of you eventually."
	"We'll see."
	We looked over the menu which we both had memorized.  Then, without warning, Mary dropped her menu on the table, leaned forward, and whispered, "I'm pregnant."
	I looked up from the menu.  "What?"
	She practically shouted this time, "I'm pregnant!"
	My jaw dropped.  "Again?"
	She nodded vigorously as her smile threatened to reach her ears.
	I picked up my jaw from the floor and processed the information in my mind.  I hadn't seen her even close to this happy in the other reality.  Her sadness there was almost unbearable and I had wanted to give her happiness, which she now seemed to have.  My mind finally came to this realization: Mary was incredibly happy.  No, more than happy . . . she was overjoyed.
	Seeing her like this should've made me sadder, but it didn't.  Instead, I felt very, very happy for her.  It didn't matter who was responsible, the important thing was her utter joy.  I smiled as big as I could in return.
	More sincere than anything else I've ever said in my life, I said, "I'm happy for you, Mary."
	"Thank you very much!"
	And with that, we continued our weekly routine, with the exception of discussing the baby's new name.