1985

She time traveled every evening, looking back along the years, decades, to a past where he was young.  She could see his face as it is in what it was.  When she came back, she could see his face as it was in what it is.  His neck, shoulders, arms.  She heard his young voice from the past and simultaneously recognized it and heard it in a way she never had before she traveled.  He was slimmer and smoother.  Fresher and less formed.  In the present, he was more solid.  In the past he vibrated.

Is You?

The answer to, "Is you a good boy?" is always yes.  Yes, you are a good boy.  "Who is my little buddy?" also has a standard answer: you is.  You is my little buddy.  Fluffy head, wittle paws, damp wittle chinny chin-chin are all possessed by the same good little buddy.

Great.

When is it too late to still be great?  Child genius means younger than twelve, thirteen at the most.  Music stars shine in their teens.  Olympic athletes peak in their twenties.  Models are done by thirty.  "40 Under 40" lists are self-explanatory.  Stories about people getting rich and retiring young are featuring younger and younger retirees.  Eventually you can become great again, but you have to be pretty old.  The eighty-something who finally got their college degree.  The ninety-year-old who kicks butt as an online gamer.  The 104-year-old power lifter.  What about 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s?  Can I still be great?  Do I still have time?

She's Better Off

In the time it took for Miranda to go grocery shopping and come back, her husband had packed and left.  She noted without conscious acknowledgement that his truck was gone though the idea that he had left on a fire call skimmed across her brain.  Miranda brought in the groceries in two trips.  She unloaded food and goods purchased with her husband in mind.  While unloading the second set of bags, her subconscious mind mentioned she couldn't hear his fire and police scanner, which was always on.  It wasn't until she saw the dust-free rectangle on the side table in the living room that she allowed herself to realize he was gone.  Feet feeling heavier with every step, she trudged upstairs and made herself look at his closet and ill-closed dresser.  She made herself look in the bathroom and saw her own toothbrush missing.  Miranda found it later in the toilet.

"I Lived through a Stupid Coup"

At the start of the fall of their government, no one believed it was the start of anything.  It was stupid.  It was dumb people with big mouths being loud.  A curse of the intelligent is to believe that nobody could be that stupid.  By the time the election rolled around again, it seemed that no one could ignore the depths of stupidity to which so many would sink.

A tank rolled by Hannah's house, tearing up the already ruined street.  She was briefly outraged, then remembered the remaining gas in their SUV had dried out.

Douglas G.

Douglas died in 1995.  Twenty-six years later, a former elementary school classmate tried searching his name again on the internet.  If you had told Douglas at any point while he was alive that someone in the future would be using a computer to search worldwide records for his name and picture, he may not have believed you.  He would have been fairly certain, however, that his obituary would be written by then.  By then, he was dead for three years longer than he had been alive.

Jessica thought it likely that he wouldn't have even remembered her.  After all, the last time they had seen each other was 5th grade.