As I put things away in my closet, I saw a white dress I didn't recognize. Upon pulling it out, I recalled buying it with my mom. It was on clearance somewhere for five dollars and it fit me; it had been much too good of a deal to pass up (though I had no need for a beautiful white dress at the time). The dress looked out of place in the chaos of my bedroom - it stood out from the work t-shirts, sunglasses, and jeans that littered every surface.
Without thinking about it, I slipped out of my clothes. I stood for a moment and looked at the dress in front of me. I was acutely aware of my surroundings: the Current playing faintly from the living room, one of my neighbor's mowing his lawn, the fan sending a cool breeze across my bare skin. Goosebumps raised on my arms as I stepped into the dress. I tugged up the zipper in back and smoothed the layers of fabric.
I turned around and found a stranger staring back at me from the mirror. The woman I saw was me, but different. I was five or ten years my future self - married and beginning my very own life. My face looked older - untouched by makeup, but time had done its work etching my features deeper into my skin. My eyes held the same gleam they have now.
Breath caught in my throat, I brushed the hair out of my eyes and my reflection changed again. This version of me was maybe ten or fifteen years ahead. I had children, two of them. I was harping at them to clean their rooms, hoping that I was raising them well, and praying that they live their lives to the fullest.
I raised a hand to my heart in disbelief and saw my mother staring back at me. Her life would become mine, for better or for worse.
My hands shook slightly as I unzipped the dress and let it fall to the floor under me. Cautiously, I hung it up and put it back in my closet.
I don't need that dress yet; it can wait a while.
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