"Paul Levinson - Loose Ends 02 - Little Differences" - читать интересную книгу автора (Levinson Paul)

Little Differences [Story 2 of
the Loose Ends Saga]
Paul Levinson
A DF Books NERDs Release

Copyright ┬й1998 by Paul Levinson

First published in Analog, June 1998

Dion was singing тАЬAbraham, Martin, and JohnтАЭ on the radio.

Jeff was making breakfast.

When Dion got to the part about Bobby, Jeff took the egg he was about to crack and threw it against the
wall. Then he did the same with another. Then he took the whole box and smashed it on the floor, and
stomped on it for good measure.

He was still mopping up the mess and crying when Laura walked in a few minutes later.

тАЬHoney! What's wrong?тАЭ

Jeff shook his head, said nothing. They'd been over this before. He had to steel himself against this kind
of thing. He'd never make it to 1986 if he broke down every time he heard a song about an assassination
he could have stopped. But there was something about that last verseтАФ

Laura pulled him up into her arms, kissed his neck, drew his arms around her.

тАЬI still have egg on my handsтАФтАЭ

тАЬIt's ok, baby,тАЭ she said. тАЬShhh, it's ok.тАЭ She kissed him again.

тАЬIt's just that last verse.тАЭ Jeff said. тАЬI don't think тАШAbraham, Martin, and JohnтАЩ was originally written that
wayтАФwith the verse about Bobby. They just tacked it on, after he was killed. That's why his name's not
in the title. It's bad enough I was here when JFK and now Martin Luther King were murdered, and I did
nothingтАФтАЭ

тАЬYou tried with JFK,тАЭ she said. She stroked his head. тАЬIt wasn't your fault.тАЭ

тАЬI tried and I failed,тАЭ Jeff said. тАЬAnd now Bobby. If his name wasn't in the song at first, maybe he wasn't
supposed to die. Maybe I, we, were supposed to save him. And I did nadaтАФnothing!тАЭ

тАЬWe've got to stay focused on the Challenger,тАЭ Laura said.

тАЬI know,тАЭ Jeff replied.

тАЬThat's the key to all of this,тАЭ she continued. тАЬIf we don't stop it from crashing into that schoolhouse in
Florida and killing all of those kids...тАЭ
Jeff knew she was right. Nothing else mattered compared to changing that reality from his timeline to
Laura's, from a world in which the space program died a final death to one in which just the astronauts
died in the Challenger, and the space program limped along and took wing again in the following