Twice

Vincent returns from his “bathroom break,” in which he was actually making calls to find out if anyone had learned anything about Alfie’s case. He returns with nothing and urges Alfie to continue his story, given that he has no other options.

Alfie went to university to pursue Gianna, but for the entirety of their first year, they never became more than friends. Gianna dated another man, who broke up with her when he graduated; while Alfie was able to comfort Gianna in that moment, they never truly connected. During summer, Gianna and Alfie met up once in Philadelphia and spent the day at the zoo. They connected deeply, and Gianna held Alfie’s hand. That same day, however, Alfie’s father was hit by a drunk driver and had to have his leg amputated.

Vincent is fully invested in the story now and pushes Alfie to tell him what happened to his father. Alfie was told he would have to care for his father, who would not only need physical help, but mental help as well. Alfie used his gift to go back and reverse the accident, but it meant staying home instead of going out with Gianna. The result was that he and Gianna never had their moment of connection, except in Alfie’s memory. Vincent is starting to believe Alfie’s story, or at least parts of it, and tells Alfie to keep reading.

Alfie and Gianna remained friends at school, but Alfie was weighed down by the knowledge that they had once connected in another timeline. His attempts to use this to his advantage failed, and Gianna remained confused by him. Alfie took to sleeping with multiple women to fill the void, but all it did was remind him of Gianna and how disappointed she would be, so he went back in time and avoided it. Still, it did not give him his virginity back, and he could not reverse the emotional damage he had done to himself. Alfie saw Gianna taking photos of birds one day, and she could sense that he was sleeping with someone. She told him he was breaking her heart.

Alfie managed to convince Gianna to meet up with him the following summer, and the day of their meeting just happened to have a major storm. Alfie went to the department store where they planned to meet and bought an elephant necklace for Gianna, then he found her at the doors. Just as they both entered the revolving doors, which were powered rather than manual, the power went out, trapping them both inside. Alfie took the moment to confess his love for Gianna, and she admitted she had been waiting to hear it. He showed her the necklace that he bought, and they kissed through the glass.

Vincent congratulates Alfie on finally getting the woman of his dreams, but Alfie’s sullen expression alludes to the eventual reality of their parting ways. When Alfie asks Vincent if he has ever experienced real love, Vincent is defensive and turns the conversation back on Alfie. Vincent then gets a call and finds out that Alfie also wired two-hundred thousand dollars to Zimbabwe, increasing his suspicions of Alfie.

Alfie decides to skip ahead to just before his and Gianna’s wedding, but Vincent cuts him off.

Vincent wants to hear about how Alfie and Gianna got engaged and insists that Alfie go back to tell that part of the story. Perplexed, Alfie does as Vincent asks. Vincent figures out that Gianna is the one who left Alfie, and he wonders why Alfie would then send her so much money.

After college, Gianna and Alfie moved in together, and Alfie convinced Gianna to move to New York with him temporarily so he could pursue music. They lived in a tiny apartment with Alfie’s piano crammed inside and found that living in close quarters brought them closer together. They made love often, everything was picturesque, and Alfie continues to long for those days. 

One day, Gianna asked Alfie if he ever sang to anyone else, and when he said he hadn’t, she was glad. She told him she was waiting for him since they met in Africa and always knew they would get together. Alfie confessed his ability to go back in time, but Gianna thought he was joking and admitted that she wouldn’t change anything about her past. She believed that doing so might change everything else and didn’t want to interfere with fate. In response, Alfie went back two minutes and didn’t confess his gift at all. He sang to her and proposed marriage.

Alfie starts asking Vincent about his two wives. Vincent starts talking, but he soon realizes he shouldn’t be discussing his own life and turns the conversation back on Alfie and his notebook.

Before the wedding, Gianna and Alfie went to visit his yaya again, but she looked older this time. After exchanging pleasantries with Gianna, Alfie’s yaya asked for time alone with him, during which she asked him if he was seriously in love. When Alfie said he was, his yaya warned him not to use his gift to try and change or improve his relationship because it would only fail. 

She explained that she loved a man growing up who her parents did not approve of, so she went back in time and married Alfie’s grandfather instead. When she came to regret her choice, she sought out the original man, but he had no interest in her, much like what happened to Alfie with Lizzie. Alfie could tell his yaya was serious, but he shrugged off her warnings, believing he would never fall for the same failures as she did. He asked his yaya why she didn’t just go back to being younger again so she could live longer, and she answered that she already had many times, and it was now time to accept what was ahead instead.

Alfie’s yaya died soon after, and Alfie admits he has made many mistakes with his gift. Vincent reveals that he plans to talk to Gianna, who just happens to be in the Bahamas, too. Alfie folds a page in his notebook and wonders what Vincent and Gianna might discuss.