Time has reversed 20 years. Everyone retains their memories but cannot mention it

Isis looked down at herself, investigating her body as though being in it for the first time. She could see her toes. She could see her toes! She grasped her belly and sobbed. Tear-filled gasps from the depths of her small five year old frame stifled the room.

Downstairs, her mother gazed at her own reflection in the mirror. She caressed her face from forehead to chin, inspecting it at different angles. So smooth, she thought. She could have stood there for hours still, until she made out the noise from upstairs. She turned in front of the mirror one last time, admiring her thin, tight frame, and made her way up. It felt so good to stretch her muscles, her body no longer aching from the aches of her joints, and cold and hot flashes that early menopause eventually cursed all women with.

The noise was coming from her daughter’s bedroom. She walked faster, enjoying the feel of every footfall.

“Isis.” She turned the knob. “What’s wrong, my doll?” Elaine lifted her up and rocked her in her arms, relishing the feel of the weight of her little girl. “Talk to mama.”

“My baby,” Isis wept, hands pressing an empty stomach.

For a moment Elaine’s eyes opened wide and a knot caught in her throat.

“There’s your doll.” Elaine pointed to the bed. She handed it to her, “here it is.”

Isis pressed the baby doll to her chest still weeping. “My baby.”