As you arrived to your house with the black box hidden inside your backpack. You try your best to examine what is this strange box what you have.
You quickly greet your mother as you arrive in the house. Your mother coughs as a response and ignores you completely. She is too busy watching TV and eating junk food. While you crash at your room you feel loud knock on your doorframe.
"John. Did you forget that I had a birthday today." My sister Junie says to me with a somewhat dissapointed tone.
I quickly nod and apologize. The thing is, for my sister, this is the last birthday what she will have in this household. My mother will take me to another city because of her reasons and leaves Junie with the house. For a 18-years-old she sure has her money problems taken care of.
"I left some cake for you in the fridge. Take it when you feel like it." Junie continued while shaking her head dissapointenly at me. Then she closed the door and let me be on my own.
I know that Junie has her own problems and it would have been nice if I could just go back in time and redeem my lost time to her somehow. Sadly, I just don't have enough time at my hands.
I opened the backpack and took the black box outside of it. Then after examining it further I noticed that it had an closet battery case inside it.
"I wonder what kind of batteries it has?" I pondered while I screwed the back side open. It had two AA-batteries inside it. They were pretty antique, but not that uncommon for today. I unplugged both of them and inserted new ones from my old Gameboy. The screen flashed green and the keypads started to glow. In the screen it asked me to enter the year.
With more fiddling around I noticed that you can be more specific down to the seconds. Also there was an additional options. First option was 'Space-time transfer' which was on as a default option. Second additional option was 'Placement transfer'. I had no idea what they both meant, but I think they were cool. Quickly I decided to leave the Space-time transfer on and typed, January 1st 2045. The time was going to be the same.
The display showed my typed year as 'Currently Selected Year'. It also showed weirdly 'Current Year' and 'Previously Selected Year'. They couldn't be changed, but were just displaying themselves there.
When I pressed the button I noticed that nothing really happened. Everything was same. Desk, table and the chair in which I was sitting was still there. 'Current Year' in the Display had changed to the year I typed and the 'Previously Selected Year' stayed the same.
I tossed the black junk on my bed and decided to go for that cake.
The in front of me was somewhat stuck. I tried my best to push it further and with all my strenght just barely opening it. With the force I put in it slammed the door open.
Then I heard sudden screaming. Male and Female. Both of them sounded different. Was mom having friend over?
"Mooom, it's me John!" I yelled.
"John? John!?" Yelled the mysterious voice from the living room. "Is it really you, John?"
"Yes, it's me Mom. Is there any cake left in the fridge and by the way, I think the door needs more oil in it." I responded.
"Whoever you are in there just stay there while we call the cops." said the male voice.
"Hey, Mom, I know that you are having friend, but could you ask him to not make any jokes." I said.
Suddenly there was a huge silence and I got a feeling that something was going to to happen. I carefully tip-toed myself back towards the black box and put it in my pocket just in case. I had a feeling that this really was a time machine and I might have had arrived at wrong time.
Behind me I could feel two pairs of eyes staring at me.
"John! It is you!" Mysterious female voice yelled.
As I turned my face towards them I saw a older lady and man staring at me. Man didn't look that happy at me, but the old lady seemed to be more than inviting.
"Umm, I am sorry. I might have accidentally crashed he by accident and..." I tried to explain while searching for my backpack.
"John. It has been 22 years since I saw you." Lady said.
"Um! Wait what?" I respoded "Who are you then if you know who I am? And Why it has been that long?"
"John, it's me. Junie." Lady said while trying to approach me very slowly with open arms. She was trying to gesture that I should hug her or something. So I did.
"Umm, Junie. What's going on? Who is this man next to you and why are you so old?" I asked.
"I could ask you the same thing John. Where have you been all these years?" Lady cried while tightly hugging me.
"Honey, I'll be at kitchen." said the man and left.
We sat on my bed for a while and she told me that I had suddenly dissapeared on the moving day. Junie tried her best to search me and since our Mother didn't care that much. Junie took it on itself to search for me.
"And as such, I became a police officer." Junie said with a huge smile.
"Why did you even run away?" Junie asked me while twirling his hair.
"I didn't. I've been here whole time." I responded.
"Like, like, in what sense?" Junie pried.
"Like in that sense that I never left." I said.
"Well, alright, let's drop that for now. I clearly see that you have an amnesia or something similar from a trauma." Junie murmured herself.
She rose up from the bed and asked me to follow her to the kitchen. In which, the man was eating.
"So, who is he and what does he do in that cursed room?" Man asked.
"Mike, he is my lost brother." Junie explained.
"Come again?" Mike abruptly responded. "You are telling me that this kid has been in that room for that whole time, or what?"
Junie approached the man and whispered something to his ear. After which he calmed down and started to act more friendlier.
"Ah, I see, you are in safe hands.. umm... Johnny?" Mike said.
We ate and talked at little bit until Junie told me, "You know what John. We need to get you a new license as soon as possible."
I turned my head as a reponse.
"In the year 2038 they passed a law that every citizen has to have a 'Citizen Permit' which allows you to do almost anything." Junie said.
I really wanted to ask more about it, but I started to think that even my exitence here can cause serious problem. I legit had a time travelling device in my pocket. There was nod denying it. My sister wouldn't be this convincing with her act about this serious matters. Also this man, Mike, he might be her boyfriend or something. I really don't trust him.
After the meal I asked if I could excuse myself so I could go to the men's room. And with a polite bow I quickly went inside the bathroom, closed the door and panicked.
"Oh fuck, I just quickly see what ever they have in here. Setup the date in this device to approriate date and just leave this place." I thought out loud.
There were futuristic shampoo, soap, sleeping medicine, painkillers, condoms, viagra and toothpaste inside the glass door above the sink. I pocketed them all. Then with swift typings I re-entered the date which I was more familiar with and then before leaving I opened the bathroom door.
I felt a quick spinning inside my stomach and just like that I was in familiar looking bathroom. In one piece. Everything that I took from "Junie's bathroom" was now inside my pockets. No harm done, I guess. I don't think they will miss these.
I hastly walked back to my room and noticed that my backpack was lying next to my laptop desk.
Quickly I watched the black device and noticed that I had typed day too early.
In a sense it wasn't a huge mistake, but I felt that what if I meet my doppelganger or something. Then I looked at the setting and found and new option under the 'Placement transfer' -option. 'Syncronize now', I wonder whatever that means. I pressed it and suddenly everything next to me started to wave and spin.
Lights were waving, I felt like speeding towards something and then like a 'pop'. I was somewhere outside. I still had my device on my hand and pockets were filled the the "future" goodies. It was midday. I had no idea what was going on and where I were. Then I remembered. Oh right. I was about get the latest game console preorder... Or was I... Was this it?
I then rushed back to home more earlier than I should had to. Everything looked same outside. The frontyard. Apartment itself. Keys opened the door outside and when I approached inside the home the sweet smell covered my whole nose.
Back in the home mother and sister was baking something. Oh right, the cake. They are still making it for my sister.
"Hi, I'm back!" I yelled from the front door.
"Hey, John, did you get the preorder?" Junie asked while whipping the cream.
"Ye- yea... I got it." I responded with a weird feeling inside my head.
"I also got you have gift..." I continued and handed her the shampoo.
"Oh you shouldn't have had to..." My sister said and patted me with her free arm.
Mother groaned and ate some candies from the bag what was left in the kitchen table.
I went back in my room and let out a huge sigh. This is big. More than big. I have a miniature time machine at my hands. I should be very careful how I use it and when I use it. Or should I?