Alex Gold
Emperor
- Local time
- Today 3:28 PM
- Messages
- 2,035
- Age
- 26
- Pronouns
- He/Him
I stare at the letter in front of me. I notice that the letter is written in my handwriting, but I don't remember ever sending a letter to myself. I tried to think back, did I ever get so shitfaced drunk that I might have done it by accident. That seemed really unlikely so I dismissed that option.
I noticed the date it was posted on - "2040 ? That can't be right" . I turned the envelope round my hand, wondering who would pull such a ridiculous prank on me. "Got to be that prankster Ravi. Always wanting to make Tik Toks pranking people, that asshole." He looked back at the writing again. "Well, if Ravi did this, then he somehow managed to copy my handwriting as well. Props to him."
I decided that I couldn't wait any longer. I needed to know what was inside. After a few minutes and way too much exertion later, I finally tore open the letter. I reached inside, and got - nothing. I shook the envelope but nothing came out.
"Well, that was a bit of a disappoi--" I was saying, when the letter moved under my fingers and started me. I let out a gasp and let the letter fall to the ground. Except instead of falling, it stayed put in the air, as if it didn't realize that gravity existed. "What the f-" I managed to say, before the letter started transforming. It started twisting and turning and making weird folds. I just stared at it in astonishment. It finally transformed into a small butterfly.
I was admiring the paper butterfly, while also wondering if I was dreaming,when suddenly it started flying. Before I had time to react, it flew up to me and went straight into my ear. My ear started burning in pain as something went up my ear into my brain. "Aaaagh" , I screamed, clutching my ear tightly.
As suddenly as the pain had started, it had stopped. I let go of my ear and sat down on my sofa, before taking in a deep breath.
"What just happened?" I asked the air. I stared around, looking for the envelope, unwilling to think that it had gone inside me. Suddenly, the wall in front of me started to glow, before a screen came up.
"Sure, this may as well happen." I sighed. The screen flickered a bit before an image of me appeared looking at me. "This really is some weird dream." I mused. "I wonder what happens next."
The image on the screen looked like me but was somewhat older. He looked fitter than me too, though not by much. He was sporting a nice beard and was wearing some strange loose fitting shirt and jeans. He now looked at me and shook his head, "No, you aren't dreaming. I'm actually from the future, and I sent you a letter to my past, which would be your present, This is all very simple.
I shook my head, "This feels like the opposite of simple." He just smiled and paced back and forth. "I forgot that I'm used to this, so it's simple to me, but it's new to you so it's probably really strange and exotic."
"I'll awake from this dream in like 5 minutes, and then I can laugh about it and forget about it after waking up." I thought wistfully. I couldn't wait for the time when I woke up, this was getting stranger and stranger.
"Well, I'm sure you would have many questions to ask for future me. But I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to answer any of them"
"Ok, that's cool" . I yawned, this situation was already losing its allure, I wondered if I could dream about flying instead..
"You're supposed to ask me why I can't tell you much. Well I'll tell you anyways. I can't tell you much about my life - I mean your life - I mean our lives, because then the future will change and the future that I am in will not be the future that you're in"
"So like the bad timeline in Back to the Future Part 2. Got it. Don't worry"
"Well I guess. It's been so long since I've seen that movie, that I don't really get that reference. Anyways,..."
"Oh wait, Back to the Future Part 2 had them going to the future and changing stuff up and then coming to the present. So it's the present that's changed for them, not the future. Or maybe the future has also been changed ? Wait, I don't think these two situations are that comparable…"
"Hey, stop interrupting ! Anyways, you can't ask me what to do. But I can tell you what to do."
"How does that work. That's a bit hypocritical"
"So, I have some regrets in life" future me sighed, "and I would like them to not be regrets anymore. If I tell you to do something, will you be able to do it ? "
"But then if I do something that you told me to do then the future will change right ? "
"Well not necessarily. I've selected something that you can do that won't change the future in any significant way but it will change my memories of the past so that I can be rid of these regrets."
"That's just an excuse for you to change up the future while not telling me anything about the future. I see through your tricks, old man "
"Who are you calling old ? You're calling yourself old ! You know that right?"
"Well I'm not old yet."
"I feel like we've veered way off the topic of conversation. I just wanted to ask you - to go ask out that girl Rachel that sits behind you in biology class. You won't regret it."
"Rachel ? I hardly know her. Well, I'm guessing me and Rachel get married in the future then. If I don't do anything then we'll still be married. So I don't have to ask her out."
"Me and Rachel may or may not have been married. Maybe my regret is that I always wanted Rachel but I'm a sad broken old man in my present. Or that I have married Rachel and I regret not asking her out earlier. Either way, there's no harm in asking her out, it's beneficial for you too. So that you don't get any regrets like me."
I shake my head, "I don't know how me asking her out doesn't affect the future that much but alright then., I'll ask her. You happy now ? Now leave me alone."
"I was always a bit rude. Well anyways. Good bye."
And the screen disappeared and I was left to my thoughts.
What just happened. DId I really talk to my future self ? That couldn't possibly be true. I pinched myself to see if I was dreaming. It felt real enough. But somehow I still felt like I was in some fantasyland. "What was all that about Rachel" I thought, "she's really pretty and also way out of my league. Was that somehow my subconscious telling me that I had to ask her out. Well my subconscious is crazy then. I'm not going to ask her out. She's definitely going to reject me because future me didn't go out with her. Or maybe he did go out with her and didn't like it and he was using reverse psychology by telling me to ask the girl when he really wanted me to not ask her out. He was me after all, and he knew how I behaved"
My head hurt from thinking about all that. I lied down on the sofa and closed my eyes. "Let me take a good long nap and forget about future me, his regrets,and a girl that I have no chance with. I'll wake up and go about the day like nothing happened." I thought. So I closed my eyes, and let my worries wither away for now and hoped that they didn't come back to bite me another day.
I noticed the date it was posted on - "2040 ? That can't be right" . I turned the envelope round my hand, wondering who would pull such a ridiculous prank on me. "Got to be that prankster Ravi. Always wanting to make Tik Toks pranking people, that asshole." He looked back at the writing again. "Well, if Ravi did this, then he somehow managed to copy my handwriting as well. Props to him."
I decided that I couldn't wait any longer. I needed to know what was inside. After a few minutes and way too much exertion later, I finally tore open the letter. I reached inside, and got - nothing. I shook the envelope but nothing came out.
"Well, that was a bit of a disappoi--" I was saying, when the letter moved under my fingers and started me. I let out a gasp and let the letter fall to the ground. Except instead of falling, it stayed put in the air, as if it didn't realize that gravity existed. "What the f-" I managed to say, before the letter started transforming. It started twisting and turning and making weird folds. I just stared at it in astonishment. It finally transformed into a small butterfly.
I was admiring the paper butterfly, while also wondering if I was dreaming,when suddenly it started flying. Before I had time to react, it flew up to me and went straight into my ear. My ear started burning in pain as something went up my ear into my brain. "Aaaagh" , I screamed, clutching my ear tightly.
As suddenly as the pain had started, it had stopped. I let go of my ear and sat down on my sofa, before taking in a deep breath.
"What just happened?" I asked the air. I stared around, looking for the envelope, unwilling to think that it had gone inside me. Suddenly, the wall in front of me started to glow, before a screen came up.
"Sure, this may as well happen." I sighed. The screen flickered a bit before an image of me appeared looking at me. "This really is some weird dream." I mused. "I wonder what happens next."
The image on the screen looked like me but was somewhat older. He looked fitter than me too, though not by much. He was sporting a nice beard and was wearing some strange loose fitting shirt and jeans. He now looked at me and shook his head, "No, you aren't dreaming. I'm actually from the future, and I sent you a letter to my past, which would be your present, This is all very simple.
I shook my head, "This feels like the opposite of simple." He just smiled and paced back and forth. "I forgot that I'm used to this, so it's simple to me, but it's new to you so it's probably really strange and exotic."
"I'll awake from this dream in like 5 minutes, and then I can laugh about it and forget about it after waking up." I thought wistfully. I couldn't wait for the time when I woke up, this was getting stranger and stranger.
"Well, I'm sure you would have many questions to ask for future me. But I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to answer any of them"
"Ok, that's cool" . I yawned, this situation was already losing its allure, I wondered if I could dream about flying instead..
"You're supposed to ask me why I can't tell you much. Well I'll tell you anyways. I can't tell you much about my life - I mean your life - I mean our lives, because then the future will change and the future that I am in will not be the future that you're in"
"So like the bad timeline in Back to the Future Part 2. Got it. Don't worry"
"Well I guess. It's been so long since I've seen that movie, that I don't really get that reference. Anyways,..."
"Oh wait, Back to the Future Part 2 had them going to the future and changing stuff up and then coming to the present. So it's the present that's changed for them, not the future. Or maybe the future has also been changed ? Wait, I don't think these two situations are that comparable…"
"Hey, stop interrupting ! Anyways, you can't ask me what to do. But I can tell you what to do."
"How does that work. That's a bit hypocritical"
"So, I have some regrets in life" future me sighed, "and I would like them to not be regrets anymore. If I tell you to do something, will you be able to do it ? "
"But then if I do something that you told me to do then the future will change right ? "
"Well not necessarily. I've selected something that you can do that won't change the future in any significant way but it will change my memories of the past so that I can be rid of these regrets."
"That's just an excuse for you to change up the future while not telling me anything about the future. I see through your tricks, old man "
"Who are you calling old ? You're calling yourself old ! You know that right?"
"Well I'm not old yet."
"I feel like we've veered way off the topic of conversation. I just wanted to ask you - to go ask out that girl Rachel that sits behind you in biology class. You won't regret it."
"Rachel ? I hardly know her. Well, I'm guessing me and Rachel get married in the future then. If I don't do anything then we'll still be married. So I don't have to ask her out."
"Me and Rachel may or may not have been married. Maybe my regret is that I always wanted Rachel but I'm a sad broken old man in my present. Or that I have married Rachel and I regret not asking her out earlier. Either way, there's no harm in asking her out, it's beneficial for you too. So that you don't get any regrets like me."
I shake my head, "I don't know how me asking her out doesn't affect the future that much but alright then., I'll ask her. You happy now ? Now leave me alone."
"I was always a bit rude. Well anyways. Good bye."
And the screen disappeared and I was left to my thoughts.
What just happened. DId I really talk to my future self ? That couldn't possibly be true. I pinched myself to see if I was dreaming. It felt real enough. But somehow I still felt like I was in some fantasyland. "What was all that about Rachel" I thought, "she's really pretty and also way out of my league. Was that somehow my subconscious telling me that I had to ask her out. Well my subconscious is crazy then. I'm not going to ask her out. She's definitely going to reject me because future me didn't go out with her. Or maybe he did go out with her and didn't like it and he was using reverse psychology by telling me to ask the girl when he really wanted me to not ask her out. He was me after all, and he knew how I behaved"
My head hurt from thinking about all that. I lied down on the sofa and closed my eyes. "Let me take a good long nap and forget about future me, his regrets,and a girl that I have no chance with. I'll wake up and go about the day like nothing happened." I thought. So I closed my eyes, and let my worries wither away for now and hoped that they didn't come back to bite me another day.