Sidestep (A Short Story)
Sunday, 21. January 2007, 11:00:42
Nearly out of milk …
First time since moving into the new place.
Better head up to the shop.
Corner store’s only about three blocks away.
Long blocks, though.
Nice walk, though.
Figure it’ll cost an arm and a leg there, but there you go. When you need milk, you need milk. Coffee’s no good without it … gives me heartburn.
Bit hot this morning, even though it’s early.
Yup, I was right. Damn … four dollars … !
Still … nice enough shop.
This walk back’s all right, too. Bit of a breeze. Not too much traffic …
What the hell is that … ?
God damn … ! Sun’s right in my eyes … !
Hang on … how’s that possi … ?
Did the sun just … shift?
Can’t see …
What the hell was all that about … ?
Sun’s … normal … now.
Now I can see.
What the hell just happened, then … ?
Weird.
Aw, fuck it. Too tired to care.
Actually … something like that … think it’d bother me more …
The sun doesn’t just …
… some kinda weird light in my eyes …
Ah, well …
Yeah …
Yeah … that’s it …
Still recovering from the move …
Although …
… ahh! Forget it.
Home.
What the … ?
Wh … where’s my table an’ chairs … ?
Son. Of. A. Bitch!
Someone stole ‘em!
Aw, for fuck’s sake!
Quick … back out to the footpath … look up and down the street … !
Nothing.
Typical.
How someone steals an outdoor table and chair setting and gets away so quickly is beyond me … !
Worthless asking if the neighbours saw anything, too. Large properties out here. Lots of trees …
… more that I remembered, actually …
Aw, I dunno.
Must be that I haven’t settled in yet.
Only been here about three weeks.
Yeah …
Still recovering from the move and haven’t had time to really look around the neighbourhood.
Feel so … fuzzy in the head …
Exhausted.
Coffee!
Milk’s getting heavy, anyway … better get inside.
Hey … door’s a little harder to open than I remember. Key’s a bit stiff …
Ah, well. Maybe the lock needs oil.
Okay, put the milk …
What. The. Fuck … ?
Have I … have I got the right house … ?
I got …
Everything’s …
… different …
… yeah … this is my house …
… but … how’s my furniture all different?
What’s my ‘fridge doin’ over th … ?
An’ my table … my …
… it’s all been … moved … !
But … I’ve only been gone – what – fifteen minutes?
How can … ?
What was that … ?
Someone’s in the bathroom!
Comin’ out … !
Who the fuck are you … ?
What the hell are you doin’ in my house … ?
You what … ? Your house? This is my bloody house! I just moved in … !
You what … ? You’ve been here for the last ten years … ? I’ve been here for three weeks and haven’t seen …
Just who the hell … ?”
Oh, shit … !
Okay! Okay … !
I’m goin’!
Fuckin’ psycho!
Point that fuckin’ knife at me … !
I’m goin’ … !
My bloody house, ya bastard … !
Fuck’s sake … !
Runnin’ away from my own bloody house!
Who the fuck does that bastard … ?!
Shit!
He’s not … he’s not followin’ me … !
Left my phone … my keys …
Fine.
Shop has a phone.
Head back there an’ call the police … fuckin’ sort this out … !
Knife or no knife … !
Ahh … !
That … light … !
That light again … !
What … is … this … ?!
Huh?
I can … see again … !
I can …
… fuck it! Don’t care!
Forget it! Forget the shop and the police, too! I’m goin’ back there! That’s my fuckin’ house … !
There … !
Brandish a knife at me, ya bastard … ! Let’s see if you …
… what the … ?
Outdoor setting … ?
But … it was … gone before … ?
Fuck it. Sort it out later …
Door’s locked … fuck the keys … left ‘em inside, anyway … !
Kick the … !
All right, ya bastard! Try an’ wave a fuckin’ knife at me now, ya … !
Hey … !
Hey … !
Where are … ?
What … the … ?
My … my stuff … my … furniture …
… it’s all back where …
… I’ve been gone less than a minute … !
How does someone move every piece of furniture in my house in less than a minute … ?
An’ where’s …
… not here …
… he’s not …
… where, then … ?
Nobody’s here but me … !
Everything’s … like it was before …
Hang on …
… did this really … ?
That …
… light …
Comin’ back from the shop and headin’ up there again …
… that light …
… where did it take me … ?
Copyright © 2007 by David Scott Aubrey
All Rights Reserved
880 Words
This short story is a work of fiction. Any and all names, characters and/or incidents are either products of my imagination or are used fictitiously. Where any such resemblance may exist to actual persons (living or dead), actual events or locales, it is purely coincidental.
Please don't assume that my characters speak for me or carry my own opinions on various matters in any way, shape or form (though some might - you never can tell).
(47%)
WIDGETIZE
angel292005 # 21. January 2007, 19:29
questions so many questions.......grrr. Man, that dude really did need some coffee. I sort of feel that way when I first wake up all confused and disoriented and keep telling myself, yeah, I will sort that out later, yeah I can relate.
clean # 22. January 2007, 00:29
It boils down to this guy went for a walk and - for some unknown reason - ended up in a parallel reality (a universe very similar to our own, but with subtle differences). Then he got zapped back to his own. All of which happened without his volition.
Now, given that some scientists support the validity of the Many Worlds Theory, it would (hopefully) put the unsettling question in the back of the mind of the reader; "What if something like that happened to me?"
Ah, well. That's what I get for working on my story in an alternate reality.
angel292005 # 22. January 2007, 16:05
Another good short.
Margorn # 22. January 2007, 16:15
p.s. I've understand everything clearly
clean # 23. January 2007, 00:25
Marcin ... thank you. I'm a sucker for all that sort of thing: time travel, alternate realities, etc. Feel free to give your opinion, too! It's all good!
hungryghost # 24. January 2007, 07:06
and was anyone parked outside the house? It's possible - the patio furniture was moved.
Hmmm.
Suddenly it dawns. The light - not alternate universe, but high-beam of space-ship. All of which means that there was an Alien probe of sorts!
Sorry, I'm being silly. Blame the drugs which I'm on. Yesh.
clean # 24. January 2007, 10:16