in the
Times
. Life of the modern woman,
Lean In
and all that. But to see it spelled out in the life of someone I’ve come to care about …” Dr. Sexton reached across the kitchen island and took Jennifer’s hand. “And that’s when I knew. I knew
you
were the one this app was for. That you, more than any teenage Cinderella, truly deserved to be granted a wish. And a feeling came over me. I wanted to be the one to grant it.”
Jennifer’s throat tightened. She looked away. It had been a terribly difficult three years—the hardest of her life. Could her phone really tell that story to a stranger? The invasion of her privacy, somehow, seemed secondary to the fact that Dr. Sexton, using only these digital clues and some chance encounters in their building, seemed to know her so well.
“As we know now, however,” Dr. Sexton said, withdrawing her hand with a sigh, “it was a mistake. An arrogant and dangerous one. Thankfully, I took one true precaution,which was to ensure the app’s disappearance should it be used without my knowledge.”
“I noticed that,” Jennifer said, sitting forward in her chair. “And I wanted to thank you,” she went on, “for choosing me. Because you’re right. My life
is
full of unrelenting pressures. Sometimes I feel like I can’t possibly manage it all. Sometimes,” she said, “making my life work seems more impossible than time travel!” She laughed. Dr. Sexton did not. “It scared me using the app today,” Jennifer said, looking up at her and holding her gaze. “But I don’t think you made a mistake.”
Dr. Sexton said nothing. Her look of sympathy and affection had been replaced by a coolly skeptical expression.
“I need it back,” Jennifer said, as levelly as she could.
At that, Dr. Sexton outright scowled. “Out of the question. As soon as you leave here tonight, in fact, I am going to destroy it.”
“You’re going to
what
?”
“Destroy it. And all evidence that it ever existed.”
“What if I tell someone?”
“What, that you traveled in time through your cell phone? Who would believe that?”
“Nobody,” Jennifer muttered, thinking back to her conversation with Vinita earlier that day.
“I’m sorry,” Dr. Sexton said, “but my mind is made up.”
“So no one will ever know that you did this? That you have achieved the most significant breakthrough in the history of science?”
“Aside from the discovery of nuclear fission? Yes. And we all know how that turned out.”
“But couldn’t you use it for something peaceful? To travel to other planets? Discover life in other parts of the universe?”
“I couldn’t care less about life in other parts of the universe. Carl Sagan and all that alien mumbo jumbo. Whatnonsense.” Jennifer winced slightly. “My concern is behaving with integrity and morality with regard to human life
right here on our planet
. First do no harm,” she said. And then she repeated herself, closing her eyes tightly. “
First do no harm.
When I was caught up in the sheer science of it, when I was in the deepest throes of my obsession, I chose not to think about its implications. But now that I have achieved it, I can think of nothing else. The accolades don’t matter to me. I have never required more than my own intellectual satisfaction. And I have fulfilled it beyond my wildest dreams.”
Jennifer put her head in her hands.
“Dr. Sexton,” she said, looking up, trying to recapture the connection they had shared just moments ago. “
I
am a human being, right here on this planet. And you saw something in me—or in my phone—that meant something to you.” Dr. Sexton narrowed her eyes. “My phone didn’t tell you the half of it. My ex-husband, who basically abandoned us for two years after the divorce, has been spying on me, saying I work too much and using it against me to try to take away time with the children.” Her voice broke. “The worst part is, he’s right. I’ve been forced to take on
Times
. Life of the modern woman,
Lean In
and all that. But to see it spelled out in the life of someone I’ve come to care about …” Dr. Sexton reached across the kitchen island and took Jennifer’s hand. “And that’s when I knew. I knew
you
were the one this app was for. That you, more than any teenage Cinderella, truly deserved to be granted a wish. And a feeling came over me. I wanted to be the one to grant it.”
Jennifer’s throat tightened. She looked away. It had been a terribly difficult three years—the hardest of her life. Could her phone really tell that story to a stranger? The invasion of her privacy, somehow, seemed secondary to the fact that Dr. Sexton, using only these digital clues and some chance encounters in their building, seemed to know her so well.
“As we know now, however,” Dr. Sexton said, withdrawing her hand with a sigh, “it was a mistake. An arrogant and dangerous one. Thankfully, I took one true precaution,which was to ensure the app’s disappearance should it be used without my knowledge.”
“I noticed that,” Jennifer said, sitting forward in her chair. “And I wanted to thank you,” she went on, “for choosing me. Because you’re right. My life
is
full of unrelenting pressures. Sometimes I feel like I can’t possibly manage it all. Sometimes,” she said, “making my life work seems more impossible than time travel!” She laughed. Dr. Sexton did not. “It scared me using the app today,” Jennifer said, looking up at her and holding her gaze. “But I don’t think you made a mistake.”
Dr. Sexton said nothing. Her look of sympathy and affection had been replaced by a coolly skeptical expression.
“I need it back,” Jennifer said, as levelly as she could.
At that, Dr. Sexton outright scowled. “Out of the question. As soon as you leave here tonight, in fact, I am going to destroy it.”
“You’re going to
what
?”
“Destroy it. And all evidence that it ever existed.”
“What if I tell someone?”
“What, that you traveled in time through your cell phone? Who would believe that?”
“Nobody,” Jennifer muttered, thinking back to her conversation with Vinita earlier that day.
“I’m sorry,” Dr. Sexton said, “but my mind is made up.”
“So no one will ever know that you did this? That you have achieved the most significant breakthrough in the history of science?”
“Aside from the discovery of nuclear fission? Yes. And we all know how that turned out.”
“But couldn’t you use it for something peaceful? To travel to other planets? Discover life in other parts of the universe?”
“I couldn’t care less about life in other parts of the universe. Carl Sagan and all that alien mumbo jumbo. Whatnonsense.” Jennifer winced slightly. “My concern is behaving with integrity and morality with regard to human life
right here on our planet
. First do no harm,” she said. And then she repeated herself, closing her eyes tightly. “
First do no harm.
When I was caught up in the sheer science of it, when I was in the deepest throes of my obsession, I chose not to think about its implications. But now that I have achieved it, I can think of nothing else. The accolades don’t matter to me. I have never required more than my own intellectual satisfaction. And I have fulfilled it beyond my wildest dreams.”
Jennifer put her head in her hands.
“Dr. Sexton,” she said, looking up, trying to recapture the connection they had shared just moments ago. “
I
am a human being, right here on this planet. And you saw something in me—or in my phone—that meant something to you.” Dr. Sexton narrowed her eyes. “My phone didn’t tell you the half of it. My ex-husband, who basically abandoned us for two years after the divorce, has been spying on me, saying I work too much and using it against me to try to take away time with the children.” Her voice broke. “The worst part is, he’s right. I’ve been forced to take on
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