Another six years had passed, and life had shifted in ways that even 12-year-old Kenith couldn’t fully explain. The dreams he had been having—the strange, vivid flashes of a life that didn’t seem like his—had only grown more intense. At first, they had been scattered moments of playing in stadiums as Uncle Riley, scoring goals in front of roaring crowds. But over the past year, those dreams had started to feel more like memories, not just dreams. Memories of being Riley at 16, of being someone else entirely. And now, a new layer had been added: strange recollections of using a mysterious app on a laptop to change everything. To become someone new.
Kenith had always been a curious kid, and as these memories solidified in his mind, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong—something was deeply off about his life. He didn’t know how or why, but he was sure of one thing: at some point in time, he had been his Uncle Riley. He didn’t just remember playing soccer as Riley, he remembered being him. He remembered a life before being Kenith, a life that involved his dad, something about an app, and… the destruction of a laptop.
It made no sense, yet everything inside him screamed that it was true.
Whenever Uncle Riley came to visit every couple of months, Kenith would ask him questions—innocent, probing questions about his uncle’s life, about his teenage years. And with every answer, Kenith’s memories aligned. Riley would casually mention something about soccer, about the friends he had at 16, and it matched perfectly with what Kenith remembered. These weren’t just coincidences. These were pieces of a puzzle, and with each visit, Kenith put more of it together.
But then came the most confusing part of all: the memories of being his dad at 16. Flashes of standing in front of a glowing screen, of typing something into an app that could change anything. Of feeling a surge of excitement, of making a decision that felt final. And then, the memory of smashing the laptop. Destroying the only way back.
It was all too bizarre, too surreal to be true. But it was. He knew it was.
Kenith had tried to put the pieces together on his own, sneaking onto his dad’s computer at night, searching through files, looking for something—anything—that could explain what had happened. He remembered an app, something powerful, something hidden, but he couldn’t find it. No matter how many hours he spent searching, the app seemed to have vanished. He was beginning to think it was all just some strange, unexplainable trick of his mind.
But then, one afternoon, an opportunity presented itself.
His dad, Jeff, had been in his home office all day, working on something important. Kenith knew this was his chance. With the help of his twin brother, Sam, who had always been good at distractions, Kenith slipped into the office while their dad was momentarily occupied.
Now, sitting at his dad’s desk, Kenith’s heart raced. His hands trembled as he moved the mouse and began clicking through folders, hoping—praying—that this time, he would find something. Sam was doing his part, keeping Dad busy in the backyard, but Kenith knew his time was limited.
He opened folder after folder, his eyes scanning the contents with increasing frustration. Nothing. He was about to give up when, almost by instinct, he opened a hidden folder buried deep in the system. And there it was—a file with a familiar name. A name he had almost forgotten.
Chronicle.
Kenith’s breath caught in his throat as he clicked on the file, his fingers trembling. The app loaded, and the glowing blue interface appeared on the screen. The same eerie glow from his fragmented memories.
It was real. It was all real.
Kenith stared at the screen, his mind swirling with emotions—shock, confusion, anger, and, most of all, betrayal. Yes, he had known deep down that it was true. His dreams, his memories—they weren’t just figments of his imagination. He had been Riley. He had lived a different life. And his dad… his dad, the man he loved and looked up to, had used this app to make him into Kenith.
Kenith’s mouth went dry as the weight of it all settled in. His dad—his loving, caring dad—had made him into his own son. He had erased Riley and turned him into Kenith, and all of this had been a lie. A lie wrapped in love and family, but a lie nonetheless.
He sat there, frozen, staring at the screen. His heart pounded in his chest, his thoughts racing as he tried to process it all. What do I do now? His mind screamed for answers, but there were none that made sense.
Part of him wanted to confront his dad, to demand to know why he had done this, to ask how he could take away Riley’s life and rewrite it. But another part of him—the part that had been Kenith for twelve years—felt a strange, reluctant acceptance. He was Kenith now. He had lived a good life as Kenith. He had friends, a family who loved him, and a twin brother who was his best friend. In many ways, this life had been wonderful.
But how could he ignore the fact that his entire existence had been manufactured?
Kenith swallowed hard, his eyes still locked on the glowing app. He was overwhelmed, torn between two identities—Riley, the person he once was, and Kenith, the person he had become.
He could feel the tug of both lives pulling at him. Riley had been erased, but now, those memories were flooding back. And yet, he was also Kenith, a boy who had grown up loved and happy. Could he live with knowing the truth? Could he continue to be Kenith, knowing he had once been someone else?
He closed the app, his hands shaking as he stood up from the desk. His mind was a whirlwind of conflicting emotions, but one thing was clear: the truth, as shocking as it was, didn’t change who he was now.
He was Kenith.
He loved his dad. He loved his mom. And even though this revelation had shattered something deep inside him, it didn’t change the fact that, in the end, he had lived a good life.
As Kenith stepped out of the office, he heard his dad laughing with Sam in the backyard. The sound hit him like a wave, reminding him of the bond they shared—the love that had always been there. For a moment, he stood there, frozen, wondering what he should do next.
Should he confront his dad? Should he let it go?
The weight of the decision pressed down on him, but as he walked toward the door, his mind settled on one thought: no matter who he had been before, he was Kenith now. And maybe, just maybe, that was enough.
For now, he would keep the truth to himself.