When Time Flows West
by Melvyn R. Windham, Jr.
It's not my fault the sexiest girl in the high school was so smart. Becky had long legs, perfect teeth, a cute smile, and long blond hair down to the bottom of her shoulder blades.
As captain of the football team, I thought I would have the pick of the litter, but boy was I wrong. Becky was into dweebs. You know—the kids I used to put in trash cans. She preferred a guy who could talk up all that geek stuff.
Muscles meant nothing to her. My scrambles? My passes? My rating and our twenty-game winning streak? She couldn't care less about me, Kevin Reynolds, the football star.
Tolerance was her style, though. Yeah, she'd talk to me and listen to my pick up lines, but then she'd shut me down faster than a referee armed with a flag, and then she'd walk off with some kids wearing glasses. That only made her even sexier.
I couldn’t stop thinking about her. What did I have to do to catch her attention? One day it hit me. If football didn't interest her, maybe I could learn one of those smart subjects she liked. She was always talking about Stephen Hawking—you know—that wheelchair guy. So I went to the library and checked out a couple of his books.
It opened an entirely new world. His books were easy to read and helped me gain a new perspective. Did you know that we're all made up of small particles, and those are made of even smaller particles? We also follow this Arrow of Time, which is how we experience the world, one minute following another minute.
And wouldn't you know it? Hawking came through for me. One day, I overheard Becky talking with her dweeb friends about black holes. One guy said, "Black holes do nothing but eat things and grow."
I figured it was worth a chance to butt in and impress Becky. I said, "But have you considered Hawking radiation?" You should have seen Becky's eyes explode. In less than two minutes, it was me walking off with her. We went on and on about science.
Before I knew what hit me, we were studying together. We went on a couple of little dates. She even came to one of my games. We were an item for about two weeks when something happened to me.
While we were running our daily mile in PE, I got to thinking about all that cool Hawking stuff. Did we really have to follow the Arrow of Time? Why does time fly by when I play video games? Why does time drag on when I listen to the history teacher?
What about the bugs that only live for a day? How do they fly so fast when I swat at them? What if they experience a lifetime in that one day of existence? Imagine … when they looked at us, did we move so slow that we looked like statues to them?
What if I could control the flow of time like these bugs? Then perhaps I could win this little race I was running against my classmates. Track Jack on the track team always won these races. I may have been the school’s best scrambler, and I had the best throwing arm, but I was by no means the fastest runner.
Just once I wanted to see the look on Jack’s face if I were to beat him at his own game. So I imagined myself controlling time. I willed the track to move slowly beneath my feet. The wind became a low hum as it rustled through the trees in slow motion.
I passed a few classmates, giving them a big smile. They ignored me.
Next up was Becky. I usually lapped her during the third lap, but this time it happened sooner. She was wearing those cute shorts that made her long legs even sexier. I blew her a kiss as I passed. She swatted at me slowly.
I kept pushing forward. If time was indeed doing my bidding, I intended to go all the way. Track Jack was half a lap ahead of me. I pushed and I gained. In the fourth and final lap, the cheerleaders stopped their practice to cheer me on. "Kevin! Kevin!" They sounded like basses in the choir.
Track Jack turned around and saw me coming. He looked surprised, and he ran faster. He wasn’t going to let me win, but that was about to change. I pushed even more, and I came out ahead in the last few yards.
I pounded my fists in the air, and then time flowed back to normal.
"Kevin," said the coach. "What did you eat for breakfast? 6 minutes and 15 seconds—almost a school record. If you had started out that fast … hell … you'll be in the Olympics if you keep this up."
#
I looked forward to the next day when I could try it again and go even faster, but it had to rain. It was a pretty bad thunderstorm.
As we waited for history class to start, Becky and I talked with some of her intelligent friends—that's what I started calling them instead of "dweebs."
My teammates were nearby telling jokes and making fun of anything that moved. Harry, one of my wide receivers, and our practical joker, snuck over to Eugene’s desk as he was starting to sit down. That was one of Becky’s intelligent friends.
Harry quietly pulled Eugene’s chair out from under him, and I shook my head, pointing to Becky, trying to warn Harry not to do it. His eyes told me he got the message, but he did it anyway. Great! Becky would take this out on me.
But there was no time to stop it. Or at least I thought there wasn’t.
The lights in the room dimmed and everyone froze except for me. It was happening again! I was controlling time! Moving fast like an insect, I saw myself moving at normal speeds while the other kids were statues.
I took one step down the aisle and found myself at the front of the room—the whiteboard in my face. Einstein's relativity! Since I was moving so fast, the space between me and the front of the class had contracted, just as Hawking described in his books.
Slowing my sensation of time just a little, the light in the room got a little brighter, and I saw people moving a little faster. Eugene's butt was ever so slowly descending into his chair that wasn't quite there. I worked my way over carefully and nudged the chair just enough.
I went back to Becky and winked at her, but I'm sure she didn't see me. She was so sexy moving in slow motion – just like watching videos moving in slow motion except with a much clearer picture.
With my mission accomplished, I let time flow back to normal.
The room exploded with sound. Everyone jumped up and dropped to the ground. Well, except for Eugene. Someone accidentally kicked his chair out of the way, and he landed with a thud. Oh, well.
Someone asked, "What the hell was that?"
We all got back up.
Harry said, "It was lightning! I saw it flash right in front of my face!"
“Me too!” said Becky.
"Did anyone get hurt? Where did it strike?" someone else said.
“I think it hit my chair,” said Eugene. “Look! It’s burned!”
I wanted to laugh. It wasn't lightning. It was me! Since I moved so fast, I must have killed thousands of air molecules. I made my own thunder!
Mr. Z walked into the room and asked, "Did you guys hear that …?" Then he paused in his tracks when he saw the looks on everyone's faces. "Wow! What did I miss?"
Everyone laughed. Heh! I certainly gave everyone a story to tell their parents, but the hour wasn't up, yet.
As I sat there listening to Mr. Z's monotone drone about Napoleon and his island, I wished the hour would end. I figured I could slow myself down and get past this boring lecture.
As soon as I had that thought, the lights in the room became brighter. Mr. Z's speech became a high pitched "mee mee mee mee mee mee." His arms gesticulated wildly like a broken windmill. I blinked, and when I opened my eyes, Mr. Z was in my face.
I jumped up and screamed. Time was back to normal. Everyone stared at me.
Mr. Z said, "Kevin! What's wrong with you?"
Becky said, “Wake up, Kevin!”
I answered, "Oh, um … sorry about that."
"He wasn't breathing!" said one of the cheerleaders on the verge of tears.
"Kevin,” said Mr. Z, “you need to go to the clinic. You just had an epileptic episode."
"No," I said. "That's not it. I'm fine."
"Don't argue, Kevin. Go to the nurse and she'll check you out."
I got up. It seemed I had no choice. Becky looked so worried. This meant I would miss science class, and that was a little irritating.
#
That night, I lay in my bed staring at all my trophies and thinking about what to do with my newfound powers. I had used them twice that day, and both times it backfired. I tried to save Eugene's butt and scared everyone in the room. I tried to fast forward the teacher's lesson and they all thought it was epilepsy. What good were my powers?
I was already a football star. Could I improve my games? Would it be cheating? There were no rules against running faster.
I already had the girl. Could I do anything else to impress her?
What about being a superhero? I could dodge bullets and get to the other side of the world in no time flat. Didn't that make me practically invincible?
And then there was my father. Could I go back in time and save him? Could I appear in the convenience store and grab that bullet? It would save his life and we could be a complete family again. He missed so much. He never knew I was a football star. If only I could go back …
But what if others found out my secret? Would scientists treat me like a lab rat? What if any Joe Blow could learn this technique? That would change everything. Imagine what could happen if the wrong person got a hold of this kind of power.
I decided to talk it over with Becky. She'd know what to do. Happy with my plan of action, I drifted off to sleep.
#
I knew something was off when I couldn't find my favorite shirt in the morning. After fifteen minutes, I gave up looking.
I walked downstairs and found Mom watching TV, which was unusual for her.
"Mom! I'm already late for school. Where's breakfast?"
"No school today. Terrorists hit Humby Park." She brushed back her long brunette hair. Tears watered her cheeks.
"What? Humby Park?" Why would terrorists hit a small park in the middle of nowhere?
"They froze it solid. Listen …"
It happened overnight. The whole park was frozen—the lake, the fish, the trees, and even a few people that were in the park. A nearly circular area of the park was cordoned off. The newscast showed a bird flying and then falling from the sky when it reached the area. An eerie fog emanated from the quickly thawing park.
The Police Chief urged everyone to stay indoors and refrain from gathering together in public places. They were searching for clues as to who did this and why.
A terrorist attack? Was this my chance to use my powers for good? I could move into super-fast mode and investigate. I could go in, disable the terrorists, expose them, send in an anonymous tip, and still be home in time for dinner.
If only I had my favorite shirt. "Hey mom. Have you seen my shirt?"
She gave me the funniest look—as if I had just interrupted the end of the world. She said, "I washed it yesterday and you had it on last night."
"Hmmm … I can’t find it."
"You're not planning on going anywhere, are you?" She was starting to freak me out … the way she stared into space while she talked. "Kevin! You have to promise me that you won't go anywhere!" She pulled me into an awkward hug. "I dreamt about you last night. Something's not right. You need to stay here. You're all I have, and I don't want to lose you, too."
She let me go and I could breathe again. I said, "It'll be okay. I can take care of myself. I'm just going to visit Becky and see how she's doing." I hated lying to my mother, but how else could I explain to her? This was my chance!
Yet, the terrified look on her face stopped me. She was right about something being off. It was like something I had forgotten to do, and that something terrible had happened, or was about to happen. Still, it made no sense. There was no logical reason for the hair on my arms to stand up.
"You can call her," my mom said as she handed me the phone.
I took it and dialed.
Becky said, "What?" It was rather abrupt and sharp.
"Hey Becky, how are you holding up over there?"
"I don't want to talk right now. I'm still a little freaked out." This reaction seemed somewhat drastic for her. She was usually calm and able to look at everything analytically. That is unless …
"You didn't know anyone who died inside the park, do you?"
"What?" she said. "No! I'm still mad at you. Why are you calling at this very minute? I'm going to hang up now."
"Wait! You're mad at me? What did I do?" Was it my so-called epileptic seizure in class the day before?
"Kevin! We'll talk later … What the heck? That's impossible." She whispered the last part.
"What? What's going on?"
Becky screamed at the top of her lungs. "Kevin! Kevin! No!!" Then there was a loud noise and the phone went dead.
My mom turned to me and asked, "What's happening?"
"I don't know." I looked at the clock. It was 7:45. "She screamed, and then she …"
A loud explosion rattled the house. My mom and I ducked. "What was that?" she said.
That was about ten seconds, and Becky lived about two miles away from us. "I think it was Becky's place. The terrorists! They're over there at her house. That's why she was screaming."
An explosion at her house? Even if I zoomed over there at top speed, was it too late to save her? "We need to go check on her," I said.
"I'm sure she's okay. Maybe the explosion happened outside her window while she was watching. There's another park over there—that small one."
"Come on, mom! Her phone's not picking up. I'm going to go crazy if we don't find out what happened to her."
"Okay. Okay. But promise me you'll stick close to me. Don't go wandering off."
"I promise."
In hindsight, I should have listened to her.
#
Police cars, ambulances, and fire trucks surrounded Becky's house. Dark smoke billowed from each window and a large hole in the side of the house.
The cops refused to let us get close. One of them explained that a hot water heater had exploded.
I said to the cop, "You should have heard her screaming on the phone. The terrorists were in her house."
He answered, "Listen, kid. Why would terrorists go inside to explode a hot water heater? This was an accident and it has nothing to do with the terrorist attacks."
"Is she okay?"
"Kid, you need to go back home where it's safe."
My mother pulled me back and said, "He's right, Kevin. We can't do anything more here. We'll have to wait till they've sorted everything out."
I resisted for a minute or two, and then when I was finally ready to go, the medics brought three rolling stretchers out of the house. Each held a body inside of a bag. Becky, her mother, and her father were dead.
I'm not sure what happened next. It was too much to take in. I yelled at whoever walked on legs. I pushed at people as they surrounded me. I didn't want to be there. Next thing I knew, I was somewhere else.
#
Time slowed down considerably. I was running everywhere and getting nowhere fast. With Einstein's space contraction, I was able to cover longer distances with only a few steps. Yet, I had no idea where to go.
What good were my powers if I had no idea where the terrorists were? They certainly weren't going to wait for me to find them. How long would it be before they attacked again? An hour? Ten minutes?
Becky would know what to do, but now she was gone. I was too late.
Or was I? Just the night before, I was toying with the idea of going backwards in time. Maybe that's what I was supposed to do. If I ever hoped to save my father, this would be a first step … to go back a few minutes to save Becky.
Yes! It all made sense. I didn't know where the terrorists were now, but I knew where they would be at 7:45 that morning. I could save Becky and stop the terrorists at the same time.
Now, if only I could go back in time. I tried to will myself to go backwards, but that didn't work. Then it hit me—the track at the school! It was round like a particle accelerator. I went over to the school.
If Einstein's equations held true, then tachyons, if they existed, would travel backwards in time. That is, if I could speed myself beyond the speed of light, I could go back!
When I got to the track, I started my run. The more I slowed down time, the more the sunlight dimmed, and the more Einstein's space contraction took effect. As I went faster, each lap took fewer and fewer steps. Then I realized that the turns were slowing me down. I couldn't get fast enough without speeding off into the cosmos. I would have to gun it in between turns.
Just as I went into my last turn, I heard my mother's voice in my head. "Promise me you won't go anywhere." My chest burned as I realized I had broken that promise, but what else was I supposed to do?
Then I heard my own voice in my head. "Whatever happens, don't go back. It's not worth it!" Then there was that feeling again, like I had forgotten to do something.
But it was too late. I couldn't stop now. I curved around that last turn, I slowed down time as far as it would go, and I pushed my feet as fast as they would go.
For an instant, everything went pitch black and then there was a bright flash of light. An unseen force pushed against me, as if reminding me that I could go no faster. Daylight slowly returned as I stopped running. I was on the other side of town. I looked behind me and expected to see a straight line of destruction, but instead, saw nothing but cars, houses, trees, and people … all intact.
However, they were all slowly moving backwards! No, it wasn't them. I was the one moving backwards. I did it!
That flash of light was it. I had bounced off the light barrier and was now traveling backward in time. I went into an empty alleyway to hide while I explored my new world. Looking down at my feet as I walked, I saw each leg move a fraction of a second before I moved them. Awesome! The effect made me nauseous.
As I sped time back up toward normal, the effect became less pronounced. The world also moved a little faster. Leaves rose up to the trees. Birds flew backward in a V-formation above me. A strange dust cloud rose up from the pavement in the alleyway.
At first, I thought nothing of that dust cloud, but then as it came closer to me and surrounded me, and my arms and face started burning, I knew something bad was coming, and it was too late. I slammed my eyes closed and shut my mouth and tried to slow time back down around me.
The intense pain lasted only a fraction of a second, and then it was gone. I opened my eyes and screamed. The dust cloud was gone, but my arms were mottled. It was all over my clothes and skin … like someone had taken a sharp microscopic spoon and dug into my body a million times. My chest burned as I managed another scream, letting me know the damage was inside as well.
Then something else rose from the pavement in slow motion toward my face. With the nausea overcoming me, I knew exactly what the green stuff was. I lost it, heaving and heaving as the green stuff flew into my mouth, and then it all disappeared.
I should have been freaking out after all that, but instantly, it all came together. I knew exactly what was going on. When I barfed, it went forward in time, but since I was going backward, I saw it before I experienced it.
And the painful cloud of dust? Those were particles from my clothes and body, which also went forward in time after they removed themselves. But what really attacked me? It was my own body. All of my atomic particles were moving backward in time. My electrons were spinning to the left instead of to the right. I had turned myself into antimatter!
That meant that I could never let time flow at normal speed, or any matter I touched would annihilate me.
Crap!
As long as I stayed out of phase, I seemed to be okay. I had no idea how I'd explain my mottled skin, but that would come later. Now was the time to save Becky. I continued with my plan to go to her house and stop the terrorists.
I thought it was a good idea at the time.
#
Cops and medics swarmed slowly backwards around Becky’s house, which let me know I was still in the explosion’s future. I went around the house looking for terrorists sneaking away, but found none. Then I saw myself with my mother. I looked so upset. And with good reason!
That instant was only a few minutes ago for me, but yet it felt so distant. I wondered … if I had known what to look for back then, would I see my future self running backwards around me in fast motion? Or had I changed the past?
I picked a safe hiding spot in the woods and let time speed up around me. I saw my past self get into the car with my mom, and we backed away. One by one, the cops and medics disappeared, all pulling away backwards in their respective emergency vehicles.
After the last cop left, things slowed around me at my command, but not too close to normal speed. When I saw the "endings" of the explosion, I quickly slowed down time even more. The explosion slowly shrunk into the house. Pieces of wood, glass and metal rose from the ground and came back together, as if all the tiny pieces magically knew where to go.
I went into the house, following the explosion to its source—the water heater. As it shrank, Becky emerged from the grip of the explosion, burns leaving her body and clothes returning to normal. She faced away from the heater, running backwards toward it, clenching her jaws. Her phone rose from the ground and up to her hand. With her mouth wide open, she slowly turned toward the explosion.
The heater came together, and I paused. Where was the bomb I expected to see attached to the heater? What did Becky see that made her scream on the phone? Where were the terrorists?
I approached for a closer look. There was an eerie blue circle on the side of the heater. It looked cold. Then I did what any curious teenager would do. I touched it.
It was hot. Very hot.
I tried to retrieve my burning finger, but the water heater wouldn't let go. It was pulling me in! I pulled back harder, and suddenly the blue circle disappeared and released me – except the tip of my finger was gone.
I screamed at my finger and then at the now perfectly intact water heater. How stupid I was to let my time flow too close to normal! My finger had reacted with the matter inside of the water heater! I looked up toward Becky, fighting back tears of pain.
Her face was twisted in terrible display of revulsion. Why? The explosion hadn't happened yet in her timeline. I stared directly into her eyes and her screams started to die down. She was looking right at me. That's what it was! She could see me and my mottled skin, and my severed finger!
As her eyes locked with mine, her face slowly turned into a sad smile. I could pretend that the sight of me was comforting her, but I knew better. At this point in time, it hadn’t been long enough yet for her to process my hideousness. The smile was only a reaction to our earlier phone conversation … right as she was telling me, "we'll talk later."
I tried to smile in return and I told her, "I'll fix this. I'll find a way." Then I left.
#
Humby Park was next, because I had finally figured it out. There were no terrorists. It was all me! I froze Humby Park, or at least I was about to. I found a safe hiding place just outside the frozen zone and sped up time.
Remember the water heater … how it looked frozen right before I touched it? It was because my finger reacted with the matter inside of the heater. The burn of the annihilation happened backwards because of my time flow, so hot became cold. It froze the side of the water heater and weakened it. Then it exploded under the pressure. I killed Becky!
And Humby Park? I should have realized it before, but to return to a normal forward time flow, I would have to bounce off the light barrier again, and that would take considerable energy … enough to freeze an entire park!
I had no other choice. If I simply let time flow normally backwards and let matter react with me, wherever I was, that whole area would freeze. To minimize casualties, it had to happen where most of the people weren't … Humby Park.
Why did I have to use my powers in the first place? Didn’t I learn after the two disasters from the day before? It was all because of the stupid idea to go back in time to save my dad!
It was dark outside … the night when Humby Park was “attacked.” When was it to happen? I got to pick the time, as it had already happened, and it happened at the exact moment I had chosen or will have chosen to do it, and that moment was now.
I slowed down time around me, got up, and ran as fast as I could toward the frozen park. Just as I expected, the frozen radius receded as I approached. Everything thawed out backwards. A couple making out on a bench unfroze before my eyes. I yelled, "Sorry!" as I whizzed past.
The frozen sphere converged to a point … the exact point where I would perform the bounce. Just as before, I slowed down time to a standstill and I pushed forward. There was a bright flash of light, and again an unseen force tried to slow me down.
But I didn't stop running, because I knew the frozen sphere, now moving forward in time, was expanding behind me. I couldn't let myself freeze now, as I still had to find a way to save Becky. Once I passed the edge of the park, I was safe.
I let time run normally. The park made strange cracking sounds behind me.
The air was warm in my lungs. I pulled in a few big breaths, and then went into a coughing fit. Blood came out and something spongy. Was it too late for me, with my skin and insides mottled, and my fingertip gone? Even the bottom of my shoes were worn down to a thin layer of rubber.
I went around the circle of death in the park over to where I hid a few minutes ago. Sure enough, there I was—the anti-Kevin frozen in very slow backward time, waiting for his moment to get up and reverse his time flow and destroy Humby Park.
That meant there were three of me now in the universe. The original me was sleeping in bed at home, totally oblivious to what was about to happen. The anti-me was now here in front of me travelling backward in time. And I was now the torn-up me travelling forward in time and wondering what to do next.
If I weren’t able to change anything, the anti-Kevin in front of me would eventually run around town backwards, explode Becky’s water heater, and go back to the school track where …
Oh, no!
… he would meet up with my original past self! It would be like matter touching antimatter at the very moment I went back in time. The explosion could annihilate the whole town! To me it was just bouncing off of the light barrier, but to the rest of the world … yeah … I had to find a way to stop the disaster that was yet to come.
#
I went home and found my earlier double fast asleep in my bed. Trying not to wake him, I took off my torn clothes and stashed those in my trashcan. I took a quick shower, which hurt like everything. Blood poured down the drain.
Where did I go wrong? I was doing so well in life. I was supposed to go to college and get married. It wasn't supposed to end this way.
The floor was cold on my feet as I stepped out of the shower. I looked in the mirror and saw for the first time my face covered with the painful potholes and ditches. There had to be a way to stop this. Maybe it was too late for me, but I could save my earlier self. All I had to do was find a way to stop myself from bouncing off the light barrier in the first place. Then I would never become antimatter, and Becky would still be alive.
As I got dressed, I was pleased to find my favorite shirt where I usually left it – on the floor. I put it on, and proceeded with my plan.
I tapped the earlier Kevin on the shoulder. Sure, you’re probably thinking: since I didn't see myself before, wasn't I creating a paradox? Would this rip a hole in the space-time continuum? I didn't care anymore, because I was desperate to do something. If I did nothing, then the whole city would die in a gigantic antimatter explosion in a few hours.
"Wake up," I said, but he didn't stir. I tried again. "Kevin—it's urgent! Wake up!"
He opened his groggy eyes and said, "What is it?"
"You're in danger! Everyone's in danger!"
"What? Who are you?"
Seeing that the universe had not yet collapsed on itself, I continued. "I'm you from the future."
I thought this Kevin might freak out, but he simply rubbed his eyes and said, "Wow. So I figured it out. Did you find a way to save Dad?"
"Listen! You can't go backwards in time! Bad things will happen. Think antimatter and explosions! Just don't do it!"
"Antimatter? Hmmm … I see." But he closed his eyes.
"Not yet!" I said. "You have to promise me!"
"Okay."
"Repeat after me."
He answered, "Repeat after me."
Even though he didn't seem to be fully awake, I continued, hoping for the best. "Whatever happens, do not go back."
He repeated it.
I said, "It's not worth it!"
And he repeated that.
He nodded off again and I said, "Wait! Repeat it all to me. I want to hear it."
"All right. Whatever happens, don't go back. It's not worth it."
"Yes, that's it!" Then I backed out of the room and let him sleep.
Would that be enough? Would I remember the conversation, and decide against going back in time? I wasn’t sure how these paradoxes worked. If this was successful and I stopped myself, would Humby Park still happen? My skin was still mottled—would that change, too? Would the current me cease to exist?
Either way, I realized that I no longer belonged there. This house and the life that lay ahead belonged to the earlier me lying in bed. I was probably dying anyway, with my insides so torn up. I could go out into the woods to die—somewhere where no one would find my body.
But first, I wanted to see my mother one last time. I went to her room and said softly, "Mom?"
A nightlight barely lit her face. She opened her eyes and asked, "What is it Kevin?"
"I found my favorite shirt."
"Good for you."
She wasn't fully awake. I nearly choked on my next words. "I'm going to miss you."
"Miss me?"
"I should have listened to you, but lots of bad things happened. I wanted to save Becky. I wanted to save Dad. You told me to stay and I ran off."
"But you're back, now, aren't you?" she said as she reached for the light.
I didn't want her to see my face all cut up, so I ducked into the hallway.
She said from her room, "Kevin? Are you okay? Where are you?"
Then she got up and walked into my room. I snuck a peek just in time to see her kiss the other Kevin on the forehead.
By the time she looked over in my direction, I was long gone.
#
Humby Park was still frozen. Did that mean that the conversation with myself didn’t work? I wanted to just die, but first I had to keep trying to stop what was coming.
Becky was next. If I could convince her and her family to leave the house, then they wouldn’t die. And then the original me wouldn’t have a reason to go back in time, and they’d all live out their happy lives together. Yes, “they”—him and her—not me.
I went through an open window on the second floor into Becky's bedroom. She only had one sheet over her body. Guilt nearly overcame me, but there wasn't time for that.
"Wake up, Becky," I said.
She jumped up and grabbed a pillow to cover her body. "Kevin! What are you doing in here? It's 4:00 in the morning!"
"Sorry, but I have to warn you. Something terrible is going to happen."
"Get out of here!"
I heard movement down the hall. Her parents! I had to do something quick. Perhaps if she saw my face more clearly …
I flipped on her light and she screamed.
"What did you do to your face? Is this a sick joke?"
"Look at my finger. This is real."
She flung a book at me and yelled, "You're freaking me out! Get out!"
Footsteps ran in the hall. My time was up.
"Listen. There's going to be an explosion in your house at 7:45. You need to …"
The bedroom door opened, and I didn’t wait any longer. I was out of there before her parents could see me.
#
That didn’t work either. Humby Park was still frozen. I went to the school, since I knew it would be empty. I had nowhere else to go.
No matter what I tried, nothing changed to stop myself from going backwards in time. I sat in the physics room considering the futility of it all. It was a Cassandra Complex situation, knowing what was going to happen and unable to change anything.
I should have realized that the timeline abhors a paradox. They just can’t happen. No matter how I tried to change things, the timeline fought back. Telling myself to stay inside didn't do any good. My earlier self must have forgotten the whole conversation.
Talking to my mom created her dream, but my earlier self didn't listen to her, so that didn't do any good, either.
Warning Becky did nothing but freak her out. I'm not sure if she even heard what I said.
So, what was left? That’s why I went to the school. If the whole town had to blow up in a gigantic antimatter explosion, I deserved to be right at the source, and be the first one to die.
After watching my last sunrise, I realized how beautiful life was, and I didn't want it to end. I thought of all the people just now turning on their televisions and learning about the "terrorist attack" on Humby Park. They had no idea that they only had a couple of hours left to live. I killed them all, but I didn't mean to.
Yet, there had to be something else I could try – anything to interrupt the time loop I had created. I went outside and hid behind a bush, waiting until I saw my original self arrive. Then I knew it was a certainty. There I was … right on schedule … beginning the run that would destroy the whole town. It would all be over in less than a minute.
I slowed down time around me. It could make it last as long as I wanted it to. Days? Months? Years? I could sit here for an eternity hating myself, and delay the fateful moment coming just around the corner.
Then, in the distance, I saw the anti-Kevin running backwards toward the track, leaving a straight line of destruction in his wake.
I stood behind my bush between the other two me's.
No, it wasn't good enough! I was Kevin Reynolds, star quarterback. I may have destroyed the city with the misuse of my powers, but I hardly ever lost a game. My passes were perfect, and I hardly ever got sacked.
I hardly ever got sacked …
I didn't care anymore what the timeline had to say about anything. My life was gone. Everything I cared about … gone. I jumped in front of the anti-Kevin, and I tackled him.
I sacked him, and it burned like everything. It was the beginning of an antimatter anti-time explosion. The loop was broken! I interrupted my original light barrier bounce! Would the original me run fast enough to escape the explosion?
Even with time slowed down so much, a brilliant flash of orange expanded and engulfed my anti-partner and me, and then …
#
… I fell out of bed, sweating up a storm. I smelled bacon and eggs. My clock said it was Thursday … the same day Humby Park was attacked?
Was it all a dream?
I found my favorite shirt in the middle of the floor, put it on, and then ran downstairs. "Hi, mom!"
"Better hurry, you're late for school."
"Any disasters today?" I asked.
She laughed and said, "You'll see a disaster if you miss the bus!"
Humby Park never happened? But yet I remembered everything? Had I moved myself to a parallel universe? Had the universe corrected itself? Was it just an overactive imagination?
Then I realized … it just didn't matter. I didn't need those powers. My old life was back! My trophies were on the wall. Another day awaited me at school, and I had already won the girl of my dreams.
I thought of my dad. Could I still save him? Was it worth killing even one other person to make it happen? No, my powers were just too dangerous.
My dad had his time, and I had already said goodbye. Now it was my turn to live, and nothing but my future lay ahead.
