This evening, near the fire, as the storm rages again and a furious wind shakes the trees in the garden, I relive through the events of this year. I know I am lucky. I have a beautiful and loving wife, and a charming and ever so helpful sister. And then there is Melissa: a tender ghost from my childhood, whose protector may be an alien from another galaxy. What more could a man wish for? Moreover what more could a writer in search of stories wish for? 

In my mind I have revisited Gabrielle’s old house many times. But I have not been invited back yet. Could it be that Melissa’s teacher has changed her mind? 

Sarah has asked me the question, as only she could identify the most logical explanation for the charade: isn’t Gabrielle a good proxy for an older Melissa? I think not. Whomever Gabrielle is, she is not Melissa, but her own “person,” from out of this world or not. 

We talked about this last night, Sarah’s view was that “Gabrielle – the past/Melissa – the future” explains quite a few remarkable facts about recent events: Gabrielle’s evident knowledge of the little town, of Melissa’s youth, her apparent control over Melissa’s actions, at least with regard to me. And so far, I have only really met Gabrielle, with Melissa’s apparitions, either second hand, or as in a dream… It is true that I have only seen my friend through Gabrielle’s suggestions, or should I say under her influence?

So, as of last night, the conclusion is that we wait and see, as we have done so far. Sarah agrees that I should not seek to visit the house again without a clear invitation from either of them. As a matter of fact I don’t think I could even find the place… 

The sky tonight is too cloudy to see Andromeda, so I am merely imagining that world, remembering the immense structure Gabrielle showed me: was it as old as the pyramids of Egypt? Older perhaps? I then remember what Gabrielle said about her, or her species’s presence in this world.

I took a look at Melissa’s page, and noticed that she and Jane are now friends. There is even a picture of Jane, or rather of Jane’s avatar, in a building that looks like an art gallery. The strange thing is that I don’t think it’s on Chi. Is it that Jane and Melissa have met again, elsewhere? Did Jane asked to be “added?” I will have to ask her when I next speak with her. And, if I get a chance to see Gabrielle, or Melissa, I will ask them how they “edited” the screenshot Jane had taken of that beach.

As I look out of the bay window, listening to the rain falling in the night, battering the flower beds, I think back to the old town, the narrow streets, the medieval houses… I think of a girl waiting for me at the school gate.

Photo: © 2023 Honoré Dupuis, Musée Magritte, Bruxelles

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