I lunged toward the phone, disbelief cracking my voice. "Mom, what are you talking about? You know Amy and I have been together for three years! You've been waiting for me to bring her home to meet you!"
My mother went quiet for two seconds, then sounded even more confused.
"Ernest, what on earth are you saying? Your father and I nag you every year to find a girlfriend, and you always tell us you're not interested in dating."
"You've been single your entire life. How could you possibly have a girlfriend of three years?"
What was happening?
Why was my mother denying my relationship—exactly the same way she had in my previous life?
But I'd posted on social media. My friends could vouch for me.
I spun back to Gray, words tumbling out in a frantic rush. "My friends can back me up. I posted about it—they all know I was flying home today with my girlfriend to introduce her to my parents!"
Gray contacted the friends I named, the ones who had commented under my posts.
Every single response came back identical.
"What post? I never saw anything like that."
"Ernest Fox? He's famously single. Always has been. There's no way he has a girlfriend."