I believed that was a dream the first time it took place.
I looked into a microscope in the lab while studying a collection of entangled quantum particles. While I examined the vibrant shapes closely and wished for their disclosure of truths, something altered. Around me everything vanished, and I became a part of the particles while I moved in a cosmic dance of energy and possibility.
Before my eyes flashed colors I did not know existed and an immense understanding engulfed my being. For a brief, eternal moment, I understood everything: the essential influences of the universe and the detailed behaviors of subatomic entities.
“Brianne?” Alessandro’s expression filled with worry overpowered the ill-defined fog. “Are you alright? You look pale.”
I closed my eyes to clear my vision. In the doorway, I saw Alessandro with a mound of files in his arms and visible concern.
I told Alessandro I was okay, but my voice seemed odd. For a moment, I experienced dizziness.
In the blink of an eye, he reached me and had his hand supported on my back. He recommended I sit in a nearby chair. You’ve been working yourself too hard recently. We all have.”
I raised my head without thinking and kept wondering about the event. Should I tell him? What words am I supposed to use to describe something I feel I lack understanding of?
I answered by admitting his point while maintaining a smile. I believe I need to take a break.
His eyebrows lowered, and his gaze met mine. I considered that he would question me further. He simply nodded as he bent down to gently touch my forehead with a kiss.
He proposed that you take the rest of today without working again. “I can handle things here.”
A small part of me wished to assert myself and return to my job as though everything was normal again. My experience felt strangely unreal and caused me to wobble and question everything.
I agree with you. Taking some time off may benefit me.
As I returned to my room, my Swiss thoughts rolled over several possibilities. What happened in the lab? Did the tensions and exhaustion distract me? Or could it be something different an unforeseen consequence of our investigation into quantum entanglement?
I remained lost for the entire day while juggling thoughts about my experience. During that evening, I thought my feelings were due to an exceptionally intense imagination.
And then it happened again.
At the moment of showering, the heat caressed my aching muscles. When I leaned my head back to wash my hair, the world changed. As I looked around me, the water beads turned rigid, forming transparent orbs that hid entire galaxies. The molecules of the water were visually distinct and revealed their relationship with hydrogen and oxygen.
I felt a presence hovering outside that realm. A huge and unknown presence hovered and remained. Instead of using my hand to connect with it, I projected my mind.
All of a sudden, I was on the floor beside the shower as it continued to run, and my heartbeat throbbed as if I had run a marathon. Slowly I realized someone was knocking loudly.
“Brianne? Brianne, are you okay?” Zoe’s high tone pierced the confusion in my thoughts.
I answered by sounding a bit unsettled, saying I was good. “Just… slipped. I’ll be out in a minute.”
I shut off the shower and stood up while holding onto the sink. In the mirror right now I saw my face wide-eyed and pale. I detected another feeling that I couldn’t identify. A delicate luminescence might appear on my face. A strange glint in my eyes?
I rubbed my forehead to try and dispel the fog. I was being ridiculous. I was obviously allowing the strain from our work to affect me.
As the time went by, it felt impossible to characterize what was occurring as only stress or exhaustion. The… occurrences started occurring more often. On occasion, they occur as swift moments a flash of cosmic insight while preparing my morning coffee or a view of quantum truths while trimming my teeth. At different moments, they turned into deeper experiences that made me feel overwhelmed and tired.
I suppressed my issues and went ahead as if all was well. I recognized Alessandro’s eyes filling with concern as Zoe often raised her eyebrows at me when I was distracted.
After that initial event, we discovered this issue one week later. In a team gathering focused on our latest revelations, it took place once more. During Alessandro’s presentation on equations, a moment later I was suddenly in a different place. Everywhere. Nowhere.
Flashing patterns orbited me as I looked. Math was floating around us and exposing the mysteries of the cosmos. I observed the past alongside the future laid out before me as a tapestry. The awareness I felt from before appeared again but was now just near enough.
“Brianne!”
The urgency in Alessandro’s tone brought me back from my trance. I raised my head and noticed both of them staring at me in shock with large, frightened stares.
“W-what?” I wiped my lips while my throat was parched and my head felt like bursting.
You shone brightly as Zoe spoke in a tone nearly inaudible. “And floating. The chair appeared six inches below Brianne flight.
I glanced at myself and suddenly recognized that I was standing rather than in my chair. During my experience, I stood after leaving my chair and now stood tall without any recollection of the movement.
I…” I began, but words failed me. How can I describe this when I’m not sure of what’s happening either? And Lucy isn’t helping because she has been quiet for a while now.
He moved towards me calmly as if he thought I would run away or rise again. “What’s wrong with you? He gently asked. Gently inquiring what was happening to me, he stated. And don’t say it’s nothing. We have all seen you seem different these days.
I glanced alternately from Alessandro to Zoe and back again and observed their anxiety and fear in their eyes. In that instance, I came to the realization that I needed to discuss this with someone else. I needed assistance to understand what was occurring.
So I told them everything. I saw distinct visions and a deep connection to an immense unknown. Listening to my talk changed their expressions from worry to wonder and curiosity.
Immediately after I concluded my statement, I waited a significant amount of quiet. Zoe made a quiet sound. She answered back that studies evidently was leading to unusual consequences.
Alessandro did not say anything while maintaining an unusual look on his face. I realized why he spoke so little only after we were by ourselves that night.
In the study laden with books and papers alongside my friends, I sat to understand what was unfolding for me. I kept trying to illustrate the feeling of being part of the quantum world.
I remarked that I can discern the essence of reality’s code while finding it hard to describe it. In the same way, we’ve been exploring theories on entanglement I feel it and experience it personally.
I turned my gaze to see Alessandro staring at me and showing no emotion. “Alessandro?” I said, suddenly uncertain. “What’s wrong?”
He exhaled heavily and brushed his hair aside a habit I knew meant he felt annoyed. Although he claimed there was no issue, his tone indicated otherwise. It’s definitely challenging to process.
I grabbed his hand and held it. “I know. I’m still struggling to understand it completely. I believe we’ll work together to find a solution. Like we always do.”
Alessandro removed his hand and stood up quickly. Standing up straight, he questioned if we were still in this together. From what I can see, you seem to have surpassed the need for my support. Beyond any of us, really.”
I looked at him with surprise over the harshness in his tone. “What are you talking about? Of course, I need you. I need all of you. These skills are beyond my comprehension. I don’t know how to handle them or what they represent.
But you’ll succeed,” Alessandro announced while he walked back and forth. “You’ll figure it out. You always do. And then what? You will depart to connect with the universe as we remain stuck in our confusion using outdated methods.
Suddenly, I understood. I faced him softly as I stood before him. “Are you… jealous?”
He ceased his stride and took his gaze from me. No sound escaped him for an extended period. Then, so quietly, I almost missed it: “Maybe I am.”
I felt pain deep within as I heard his voice. I traveled to him while bringing him around to face me. I raised my hands to caress Alessandro’s face and replied gently. “Don’t you see?
Skills are not meant to take the place of our efforts together. They’re an extension of it. All the experiences I am going through come from the groundwork we established together.
He embraced my touch and his eyes shut down. “I know that. Logically, I know that. I often think I am slipping away from the experience. Inadequate. You’re in contact with the very core of existence. What gives me the right to rival that?
I embraced him tightly by holding him tightly in my arms. You need not compare yourself to anything. You hold your own place in this universe, Alessandro. You excel in brilliance, complexity and warmth. Additionally, you act as my grounding point. With your support by my side, I would remain anchored in reality.
We kept ourselves in that position for a substantial length of time as we clung to one another. I sensed the stress fading from Alessandro’s body while his breath calmed down.
Finally, he withdrew a bit to connect with my stare. “I’m sorry,” he said softly. I broke down because of my fears. This is truly beyond anything we thought we’d experience. I’m afraid of losing you to all this.
I gave a quick shake and smiled back at him. “You’re not going to lose me. I realize from this how vital you all are to my life. I have the ability to connect to the universe now. Yet how about you and your spouse? You keep me grounded. You help me understand the essential values that are vital.
Alessandro murmured a pause as his face burst into a grin. “So, partners?” he tweeted back in a nod to those conversations from the distant past.
I answered with a kiss to confirm my vow.
Approaching the others again together, I noticed something important.