"Would you believe me if I told you that this is a true story?" The man said.
"No. I beleive this story falls square in the box labeled 'unbelievable'," the other man said.
"Ha! Yeah, I guess so. But I wish you would believe me. It all really happened, I'm not making this up, you know?" The man said.
"It's a good story, though. I'm trying to wrap my brain around it all. But is it really important that I believe it's true? I mean, I'm definitely interested - I really want to hear more." The other man said.
"Yeah, I suppose that's enough. What am I thinking, of course that's enough - of course it's unbelievable," said the man.
"How about truly unbelievable?" The other man said with a laugh.
"Sure. Well, it's good, to finally be able tell this story to someone, and I appreciate that you are interested. And available," the man said.
"Yes, even if I never believe the story, I still want to hear the rest. I want to understand it," said the other man, "and I'm not going anywhere. How long have we been at this anway?"
"About a week, right? Let me think. Yeah, today is the seventh day."
"See? I'm in it. Keep going. I'm anxious to hear more," the other man said.
"Fair enough," said the man.
"I'm glad our lives are simple enough to be able to just sit here with nothing else to do, with no other obligations," the other man said, taking a finishing gulp of coffee and setting it down where the Barista could see - for a refill.
"Simple? Or pathetic? Ah, well. I wouldn't have it any other way, you know? What more is there? It's a good life, in my opinion, to have time to just sit around with interesting people sharing stories, drinking coffee," the man said.
"And beer," the other man said smiling.
"Yes, sir. So, where did I leave off yesterday?" The man said.
"Oh, well goodness - uh, you were telling me about Danny's theories about paradox and, um, how the city and time were in some kind of 'time knot', as he called it, or, I mean, as Edgar had called it. But then you said you were getting ahead of yourself. You backed up to tell about when the mystery amnesia guy started remembering again. Tell me, does he ever remember his name at least? That would certainly help the story," said the other man.
"Yes, right. When his memory starts coming back. Ok, here's where the story really gets interesting - I know, I know, I've said that before... Yes, they learn his name, but not until much later, if we get that far. But Edgar, of course, gives him a name - that everyone else hated at first, but eventually accepted," said the man.
"What name?" Asked the other man.
"Time Ghost," the man said. The other man raised an eyebrow.
"I'm jumping ahead again. OK, listen to this..." The storyteller said, took a breath, and then continued.
The sun had barely risen when a man stepped through the doorway of West Oak Coffee Bar in Denton, TX. A barista was finishing up his preparations for the day and was behind the bar, setting out clean cups for the impending, uncaffeinated hoard. Besides the barista, the place was empty. The man lumbered in and sat down at the bar.
"A cappuccino please," the man said.
"Extra shot?" asked the Barista.
"You know it," he said.
"Sure thing," and the barista went to work.
The man sat quietly, staring off into an unseen horizon, his hands folded in front of his face, providing head support. He closed his eyes. After awhile, he noticed the cappuccino in front of him - the dark brown foam spiraled around, struggling with some lighter foam, forming a ying yang symbol. He looked around and saw that the place had filled up with a bit more people. He must have zoned out again, he thought. He sipped his drink, ruining the frothy symbol and continued to stare.
"Hey, what drink is that?" He heard someone ask.
"Hmm?" He said, looking around.
"What are you drinking? I usually just have coffee myself. Nothing fancy. That looks fancy," the other man said.
"Oh, it's a cappuccino. I wouldn't call it fancy. You should try one. If you like milky drinks," the man said.
"Eh, milk and I don't get along," said the other man.
"That's too bad. It's good," said the man. The barista, listening in, spoke up.
"You should try an espresso, it'll change your world."
"Oh really? I don't know. Seems like it would be too strong for me," said the other man.
"I'll give you some Topo Chico to help reset the pallet, if you need it," the barista said.
"Ok, I'll give it a shot. I love Topo Chico. Muy refrescante."
At the mention of Topo Chico, the man chuckled, shook his head, and then took another sip of his cappucino.
"What? What did I say?" said the other man.
"Oh, it's not you. Topo Chico. It just reminded me of a story," the man said.
"Yeah? I'm in the mood for a story. Let's hear it," the other man said. The barista set a glass down full of Topo Chico, and told him drink up.
"Oh boy. I don't know if we have enough time to tell you this story. It would take longer than just today - if not a whole week," said the man.
"You know, to be honest, I'm between jobs right now, as they say. My days consist of pretty much this - sitting and chatting with friends and strangers. I've got nothing better to do, and lately I've grown a little bored. So don't shy a way from an epic story on my account. You're not going to waste my time. But I'm sure you've got things to do," the other man said. His eyes were bright and he was grinning. He was clearly egging him on.
"Looks like we're in the same canoe. I have nothing but time. Ok, I would love to share this story with someone - it needs to be told," the other man said and rubbed his forehead. The barista brought the shot of espresso over to the other man.
"Here you go. Sip on it. Try to enjoy all the nuances of flavor. I'll get you some more Topo, just in case."
"Thanks." He held up the small cup and addressed the man, "Well, here's to new experiences and old stories."
"You bet. If I can figure out how to begin this thing," the man said.
"I've heard the beginning is a good place to start," quipped the other man.
"The beginning... is complicated. In a way, there's more than one beginning to this story - and a lot of context I need to cover," the man said slowly, staring distantly.
"Well, pick one then, and start there - fill in the context as you go," the other man said and took his first sip of espresso, coughed a little, and then took a swig of Topo Chico.
"Hmmm, right. Very well. I'll begin. And feel free to chime in with any questions if you have any," said the storyteller.
"Ok, proceed - I'm listening." said the listener.
"Ok, let me tell you a story about a fluky group of reluctant locals named Edgar, Danny, and Val. For them, the story starts not too long ago right out there on the courthouse lawn - where something very unlikely happened that would change their lives forever..."
Edgar stared down at the strange, waterlogged man who was lying on the ground. He looked unconscious.
"So..." Edgar said, glancing around at the others. "Now what?" They were all standing around the man who had just collapsed after a crazed outburst yelling something about water. "What should we do?"
"We aren't doing anything, Edwin. I'm out. I don't want to get involved," said Val.
"Uh, It's Edgar," said Edgar.
"Whatever - Edgar, Eddie. You guys can handle this," Val said.
"No, no, no - please no - I hate the name Eddie. It's Edgar," he said.
"Oh, then I will definitely call you Eddie," Val said with laugh and an impish grin. Edgar was dumbstruck, and more than a little annoyed. Val took a step back and maintained her distance. "I'm not getting hepatitis or ebola or whatever he has. I'm leaving for Italy tomorrow and I need to get home, finish packing. I'm finally getting out of this town and I won't let anything screw that up. I do not want to get caught up in any distracting drama. Good luck," Val said.
"Guys, we need to help him. Val, you've had some first aid training right?" said Nick.
Though they were all strangers, they all knew Nick. He was that type person that seemingly had always been around - he came with downtown. If you knew the square, you knew Nick. They had all been at the square, separately enjoying the leisure of a Saturday night, when they were interrupted by this distressed man. Danny was the first to find him, struggling up the stairs coming up from the Courthouse basement. Danny tried to help him, but the man was crazed and incoherent. The chaos of the situation had then unwillingly entangled the others, and now the wet, strange man was there on the ground.
"I still can't get a cell signal. How about y'all?" Edgar held his phone up in the air. The others shook their heads. They had tried to call for an ambulance, but no one could call out.
"I'll run into Jupiter House and try to call an ambulance from there, Val, can you check on him, please? See what you can do in the mean time." Nick said.
"Dang it, Nick," Val said and uncrossed her arms sighing. "Fine. Step aside. I'll handle it. He better not hurl on me."
Nick ran off towards the coffee shop and Val kneeled down to check on the man. She noticed the necklace he was wearing - there was an amulet with strange symbols on the chain. As she checked his pulse, she quickly removed it from the man's neck and put it in her pocket. Danny and Edgar were talking and didn't notice.
"Edgar right?" Danny asked.
"Yes, that's right. Not Eddie. Edgar Martin. And you're Danny?"
Danny nodded and took off his round spectacles and wiped them with his tweed jacket, "Yes, Danny Vogel." The two shook hands. "Edgar, I am currently without transportation. Do you have a vehicle? In case we need to take him?"
"I have a really small car. Not really big enough for all of us," said Edgar.
"Val, do you have a car?" Danny asked.
"Nope. I sold it yesterday. I won't be needing it anymore," Val said as she checked the man's breathing. "But I'm afraid we're going to need one, if we can't get an ambulance. His breathing is very shallow. His pulse is weak and his heartbeat is erratic. We need to get him to the hospital - right. now."
"Wait, here comes Nick, I'm sure an ambulance is on the way," Danny said. Nick ran up, out of breath.
"I couldn't make the call. Their landline was out and no one else had a signal either. I don't know what's going on." Nick said, catching his breath.
"Oh man," Edgar said. "Are we in a Zombie movie? This is how it starts. Don't let that guy bite you, Val."
"Don't be stupid, Eddie. Where are you parked? Let's get him to your car quickly," Val said, "Help me pick him up".
"It's not... Ugh, it's right over there." Edgar pointed in the direction of spaces surrounding the square. Nick, ran over to help Val. "I can fit him and two others and me. It'll be a tight fit. Really tight," Edgar said.
"I have my Ruckus, I'll help you get him in the car. Then I can drive ahead and meet you at Presby," Nick said. He and Val picked up the man, each taking an arm around their necks to drag him to the car.
"This isn't going to work - Danny, Edgar - grab his legs and let's carry him that way," Nick said.
Danny and Edgar each grabbed a leg and they awkwardly carried him to Edgar's car.
"Why is he so wet? It's like he just got out of a pool." Edgar said. The clothes the man wore were dripping, leaving a wet trail as they shuffled on. It made it difficult to carry him.
"He was like that when I found him. I almost slipped on a big puddle in the basement of the Courthouse and then I followed the trail of water outside. I couldn't tell where the water came from." Danny said.
"I don't think I want to know," said Val. They reached Edgar's car, a Ford Pinto. "You've got to be kidding me."
"I told you it was small," Edgar said.
"You're going the wrong way!" Val yelled. She had been doing a lot of yelling at Edgar.
"Do you want to drive? Please! I know where I'm going. This way is faster," Edgar said. He was exasperated and exhausted from the ordeal of trying to get the still unconscious man in the car. After many graceless attempts, they barely fit him in the back seat behind Edgar. Danny was sitting beside him.
"How is this way faster?! You're going the opposite way!" Val said. The Pinto's tires squealed as Edgar swerved to avoid a pothole. Everyone strained to brace themselves.
"I appreciate your haste, Edgar, but if you could please ease up a bit on the stunt driving, we have no seat belts back here," Danny said as his head slammed against the side of the car.
"Sorry," Edgar said as he made another quick turn on residential street past a cemetery. "Val, how else would you get... Oh!" The street ahead was blocked off by construction and Edgar slammed on the brakes. Danny flew forward between the front seats and the unconscious man slumped further down in his seat.
"Eddie!" Val yelled and hit him in the shoulder. "That's it! I've had it, let me drive now." Edgar ignored her and threw the car in reverse. The car angrily complied but not without a whine. Edgar saw the detour sign and turned.
"When did they start redoing this street? Seriously, this town is always in a constant, unusable state of improvement," Edgar said, shifting into third.
"That's progress for you," Danny said settling back in his seat and adjusting his glasses, "always looking like destruction." Suddenly, music blared through the Pinto's speakers and Edgar hit the dash until volume lessened.
"Sorry, it does that sometimes. A couple hits usually turns it back off," Edgar said and hit the dash again, but nothing happened.
For the next hour, we're playing little known hits from the 1970s...
"Eddie! Please! Where are you going? Let me drive!" Val screamed. She seriously thought about grabbing the wheel and forcing them to stop.
♫ I'm so alone, my love without you - You're part of everything I do ♫
"Val, have you ever heard of a shortcut? I know Denton streets like my own mother's face (God rest her soul). I've lived here my whole life! This is the fastest way over to the Golden Triangle Mall and the hospital area. Just trust me!" Edgar said, punching the gas and hitting the dash again with no luck.
"The mall?" Val said quietly, staring at Edgar with wide eyes. "Eddie. You idiot! You were supposed to go to PRESBYTERIAN!! Which was so close to downtown! Why the hell are you going to Denton Regional?!"
"I... wait, Denton Regional? I thought Regional was the one by UNT?" Edgar said. He heard Danny chuckle. "No really, Presby is the one next to the highway, near Chuy's and all that, right?"
"Oh man, Edgar, that's Denton Regional. Presbyterian is on the opposite side of town." Danny said, looking over at the man - he couldn't tell if the the man was still breathing or not.
♫ Welcome home, welcome - Come on in, and close the door - You've been gone, too long ♫
Val's face was red. But she took a deep breath and looked back at Danny.
"How's he doing?" She asked.
"I don't know, it doesn't seem like he's breathing." Danny said.
"Does he still have a pulse?" Val said calmly. Edgar hit the dash one more time. This time the radio was silenced, but only for a moment, then it came back.
"Eddie! My God! You are the most, frustrating..." Val said, her hands giving emphasis to her vehemence.
♫ Welcome home, welcome - Come on in, and close the door ♫
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I got them confused! I had no idea. I didn't do it on purpose. We'll get him there, we're almost there." Edgar said. A faint putrid smell filled the car as they passed the landfill. Edgar rolled down the window out of habit.
"Roll up your window! The smell is outside! What is wrong with you!" Val said. She was nearing her limit of patience with Edgar and Edgar could sense it. While the two up front continued quarreling, Danny felt the man's wrist for a pulse. He couldn't feel anything. He felt the man's neck. No pulse. He felt again.
"Val." Danny said.
"...this stupid car! Can you please shut this music off? Why don't these dials work? What a piece of junk!" Val was yelling.
"It was my parents car! It has sentimental value!" Edgar yelled and gave the dash another smack. Danny was worried. He couldn't feel a pulse. He wasn't sure what to do. The man was dead. It was too late. What should he do? Was it too late to do CPR? He stared at the man's face. It was slack. Expressionless. Danny looked at Val who was still arguing.
"Val." Danny said. He looked back at the man. The dead man.
♫ There are so many lonely people - Why must they ever be apart ♫
The music on the radio became garbled for a moment, then it became unbearably filled with static. Edgar gave the dash a token hit while they continued to argue. Danny looked at the others and swallowed. His mouth was dry. He looked back at the man, and gasped. The man's eyes were open, staring at Danny. Danny sat frozen. With his mouth agape, Danny looked at the man's eyes. They were deep blue, wet eyes. The man stared back at him but said nothing. Danny's heart was racing. The man opened his mouth, like he was about to speak, and then the man vanished. The music suddenly stopped.
"Finally! I fixed it." Edgar said.
"Oh well done, Mr. Fix-it. Your problem solving skills know no bounds," Val said sarcastically.
"Guys." Danny said.
"Why do you have to be so critical?" Edgar said.
"Guys. He's gone." Danny said.
"Why do you have to be so stupid?" Val said.
"Val! Edgar!" Danny yelled. They both stopped talking.
"He's gone." Danny said.
"What? What do you mean gone? He's dead?" Edgar said.
"Yes. Well, no. He was dead. But then he wasn't. No, he's just gone." Danny said chuckling. He was trying to handle this sanely, but he felt dizzy. Val looked back to ask him what he meant and saw the empty seat. She screamed, reached over, and grabbed the steering wheel, jerking the car to the side of the road.
"What are you doing! Val stop!" Edgar screamed in a panic and wrestled back control. He straightened the car out and slammed on the brakes. "What is going on?!" Edgar turned towards Danny in the back and saw that the man was no longer there.
"Sweet beard of Gandalf! Where the hell did he go?" Edgar exclaimed. He threw open the car door and jumped out. Stumbling around the Pinto, he looked around for the man, looking under the car and then staring back at where they had come from. "What? What? What, what, what?!"
"Danny, what happened? Did he jump out the back?" Val said as she struggled out of the car. Both doors were open as Danny wiggled out from the back.
"He couldn't have," Edgar said, staring off up the road, trying to find him. "The hatch is broken, hasn't opened in years."
"No, he just vanished. Poof. Right in front of me. He was just staring at me, and then he wasn't." Danny said and then guffawed. "Excuse me, I'm sorry. I'm a bit shaken up. I think I'm going to be sick."
"He didn't just vanish. That's impossible. He must have fallen out somehow. We have to find him." Val said and started to run back up the road. Danny turned and threw up in the grass next to the road. Val stopped and went back to Danny.
"Are you ok?" Val asked. Danny wiped his mouth and nodded. His eyes were tearing up. He shook his head trying to clear the numbness and confusion.
"I mean," Edgar said, walking up the road a ways. "He couldn't have fallen out. How could he? There's no door back where he was. It's Ford Pinto!" Behind him, Val comforted Danny and then walked around the car one more time. Edgar stopped again, looked back at Danny and then back up the road.
"Danny, what the hell? What did you do?" Edgar said and squinted, trying to see further, tilting his head a bit, to see if he could see a figure up the road. Danny didn't respond. "Danny. Tell us what happened again?" Edgar looked back at Danny, but Danny wasn't there.
"Danny?" Edgar said, walking back. He saw Val on the other side of the car, staring forward to where they were headed, seeing if the man took off running somehow.
"Val, where's Danny?" Edgar looked towards the grassy field, but didn't see him there. He looked back to ask Val again, but Val wasn't there.
"Val?" Edgar said, squeamishly.
"Danny?" He wasn't there. "Val?" But there was no one. Edgar turned towards the road and grimaced. The Pinto sat on the empty road with the engine still running, the two doors ajar. The driver's side made an annoying, almost ancient buzzing sound. Without warning, the radio kicked on loudly and the music played on once again - but Edgar, Danny, and Val were gone.