The future did not announce itself with novelty.
It arrived disguised as routine.
Aaliyah noticed it one afternoon while standing in line at a small bookstore she had passed a hundred times without entering. She wasn't there for research. She wasn't there to meet anyone. She hadn't planned to come at all.
She had simply walked in.
The realization struck her gently, without drama.
This is what unclaimed time feels like.
She flipped through a book she didn't intend to buy, reading a paragraph here and there, letting interest guide her instead of obligation. The clerk rang up another customer. Someone laughed near the window. Outside, traffic moved in its familiar, indifferent flow.
Nothing required her.
Nothing waited on her response.
And still, everything functioned.
At home later, Rowan watched her set the book down on the table.
"You look like you found something," Rowan said.
Aaliyah smiled. "I think I found room."
Rowan leaned against the counter. "For what?"
