Chapter 7
"Are you sure it'll work? Do you think it'll even work? What if you're wrong? What if you're only trying to save yourself, and that's not worth all the effort and energy that it takes to build a house out of nothing? You'd still be left destitute after that, wouldn't you?" Mimi asked worriedly.
"Don't worry!" Lapizo responded cheerfully. "This plan is perfect! If it doesn't work, well, that means that this whole thing was a mistake."
"You really believe that's how everything works out?" Mimi retorted.
Lapizo shrugged sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "What else am I supposed to say?"
Mimi groaned loudly. She placed her head in her hands. Lapizo giggled and grabbed her shoulders, attempting to pull her away from her face. "Come on! Stop being so negative! This will work! Trust me! I trust me!"
Mimi pulled herself away and looked into Lapizo's blue eyes. Her face softened a little bit as she sighed resignedly.
She looked towards the window. Lapizo followed her gaze. The rainstorm outside seemed to be getting worse. The sky was darkening as the sun disappeared into the horizon.
Lapizo cleared his throat nervously. "Hey, um... about earlier today--"
Before he had the chance to finish talking, Mimi interrupted him. "No, don't apologize anymore. I understand. Just promise me that you won't disappear like that again, okay?"
Lapizo nodded.
Mimi gave him a warm smile, causing Lapizo to return her smile hesitantly. The smile faded as soon as Mimi spoke again. "What did you mean when you said that you didn't understand anything about all of this? You're always so quick to jump to conclusions. I don't understand."
"Well," Lapizo started. "In my world... we're not the only people who live here. Other dimensions exist, other human worlds. There are countless universes in existence, each one of which is entirely separate from ours."
"So that's true?" Mimi gasped. "Other dimensions? So... how many? How are you able to see these parallel Universes through your telescope? I thought telescopes didn't work."
"That's because they don't. It's very difficult to create the exact space where I have to stand so I can focus the telescope on our universe. For those kinds of things that work perfectly for us, I have to rely on a lot less science. A few years ago, my father realised that it wouldn't work for me, since I don't need to physically be standing in one place to use a telescope. And that's why we built a telescope on the roof of the house, so that I could see our world from afar. We can also communicate with our other Universes through it. My father found out how to do it during an expedition into another dimension. The other world is very beautiful and quite fascinating, but unfortunately, most humans don't take advantage of its beauty, which is why my family hasn't visited it often ever since I was a child. That's why I've never had a girlfriend. I've always felt lonely without having one."
Mimi listened intently, enthralled by what she was hearing. She was curious as to why Lapizo had said such strange things earlier.
"So what happens now? Will I have to move somewhere else?"
"Hang on…" Lapizo paused and leaned back to look at Mimi, squinting slightly as he did so. He glanced over his shoulder, then returned his gaze to Mimi. "Where am I exactly, anyway? I never saw this apartment before."
The confusion in Lapizo's expression was apparent, and Mimi blushed slightly. She averted her eyes and fidgeted nervously with her fingers. "Yours was destroyed by fire," she replied quietly. "I moved in."
"Oh…" Lapizo mumbled quietly. "...Sorry. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories..."
Mimi forced herself to look straight at him. "No, that's alright! I've already forgiven you. Besides, it's nice to see you after all this time," she smiled. "But... do you remember anything about your past life? I don't mean the ones you knew in your world, but the real one. What exactly happened to you in the other one? Do you remember much?"
"Ah... yes..." Lapizo thought about it. "...Most of it, actually," he finally answered, "but…" He furrowed his eyebrows and sighed deeply, "I'm not sure.