Tim wakes up in a cold sweat. However, it isn't night terror's that are the culprit this time. This time Tim is anxious. A queasy feeling rises in the pit of his stomach. Saturday is finally here. Tim considers Saturday a free day. A day where he doesn't have to deal with the drama that surrounds him at school. He makes it a point each Saturday to enjoy every moment of it. This Saturday is different. He has to spend part of it with her. He is way past regret. In fact he regretted it almost immediately. He never in a million years thought she would accept. Maybe George was right. Maybe Cindy really does want to get him alone. Maybe he played right into her hands without even realizing it. To think she might be 3 steps ahead of him sends a shiver down his spine. He doesn't want to go through with it but at this point he has no choice.

Since there is no way he is spending a dime of his own money on Cindy, he decides to have a picnic in the park. He finds a musty old blanket in the attic that would be perfect. He gets his mother to buy the necessary ingredients that will comprise their meal. Once he convinces her his date is with a real girl, she becomes willing to do whatever it takes to make that date a success.

His father tells him not to do anything that he himself would not do and Tim responds by saying that Cindy is probably expecting him to at the very least talk to her. Tim's father amends his advice by saying that Tim should probably tone done the sarcasm to which Tim responds that it probably isn't going to happen.

He decides to make bacon and tomato sandwiches. A normal person would have also included lettuce in the equation but Tim isn't fond of lettuce so he leaves that part out. A normal person would also use bread but Tim isn't fond of bread either so he substitutes that with English Muffins. He lightly toasts the English muffins in the toaster and cooks the bacon in the air fryer until the bacon is nice and crisp, just the way he likes it. He realizes that he has no idea if Cindy will also like the Bacon sandwiches but her preferences are not what is important here. If he is going to spend time with someone he doesn't like, he is at least going to enjoy some aspect of the encounter. He grabs a few bottles of water. His mother gives him a tin of brownies to share with what she thinks is the object of his affection. Tim insists that isn't necessary but his mother won’t take no for an answer. Rather than argue with his mother Tim just packs the tin with his other stuff and heads out to the park.

He agreed to meet Cindy at 10:30 and while he has met his part of the bargain, Cindy is nowhere to be found. Did she get cold feet? Did she just want to make a fool out of him? He spreads out the blanket in the shade of a nearby tree and sits down. Even if Cindy doesn't show up, he will still enjoy his lunch and it's always good to get some exercise. Fifteen minutes pass and Cindy is still a no show. However, the person who does show up is Brad and his posse.

"What have we here?" Brad asks not really expecting an answer, "Having a picnic all by yourself?" He shakes his head, "That is just so sad and pathetic. I really feel for you. You know, because you're so pathetic I think we'll do you a favor and cut you some slack." Brad continues, "Just one thing, we've built up quite an appetite, I'm sure you brought

enough food that you can share, seeing as we're being all nice to you and everything."

Before Tim could react, one of Brad's friends grabs Tim's basket and open's it up.

"Hey, he's got some BLT's in here." the unnamed goon announces as he throws a bag with a sandwich in it to Brad. Brad looks at it for a moment.

"Hey, where’s the lettuce? No wonder you're here all by yourself, you can't even make a BLT right." Brad opens the bag and takes a huge bite. "Hey, this is pretty good, guys, you need to taste these sandwiches." The three boys eat all of Tim's sandwiches and take his bottles of water for good measure. They leave Tim sitting there all by himself.

Tim isn't angry. Life just sucks, that's all. Tim didn't know why but the boys left his brownies behind. He takes one a bites into it. He just sits there. After an hour Cindy still does not make an appearance. She saw her opening and took it. She made a fool out of him. He can appreciate that. Maybe now she will leave him alone.

Monday Tim is walking down a hall at school when he hears a familiar voice. He doesn't want to stop but he does anyway. "Tim, I'm sorry I didn't make it on Saturday." Yeah, sure you are, Tim thinks but doesn't say out loud. "I forgot that the family was going to visit my grandparents. They live 90 minutes away and I couldn't get out of it. I wanted to though. Let me make it up to you." Cindy says by way of apology.

"You don't have to. You made a fool out of me. You really got me good. I can appreciate that." Tim says with no malice or ill will in his voice as he walks away from her.

"But I want to." Cindy says as her voice trails off watching him walk away.

Another day begins. It begins a lot like the day before. An alarm goes off. Impatient commuters use the horns of their cars to communicate their impatience. Tim wakes up in a cold sweat. His heart rate is up. His hands griping the bedsheets below him instinctively bracing himself against a terror he did not now remember. It happened again. The night terrors that often torment him in his sleep. He never remembers the dreams, he only remembers the feeling those dreams produce and the involuntary reactions of his body to those dreams.

Tim gets up and prepares himself for the school day that lies before him. He braces himself for the boring lectures and social humiliation that awaits him. Tim has gotten to the point where he dosen’t care. He could be mad. He could wish for some kind of revenge against his tormentors. Rage could be seething just beneath the surface until it got to the point that his mind snaps but it doesn’t. There is no rage, only indifference. A quiet acceptance of fate.

Tim enters a dilapidated building badly in need of repair. It’s clear it’s best days have been long forgotten. A wave of dispair washes over all who enter it’s hallowed halls of learning. Soon upon entering Tim is spotted by an individual who mass towers over him and the individual is not happy.

“Hey Dweeb, That paper you gave me got a ‘D’. If my grades drop I wont get to play football anymore.” The towering individual speaks with both anger and disgust with a hint of entitlement sprinkled in for good measure. “You better fix it.”

Tim is use to being ordered about like a slave and he obeys his orders without question. There are worse things than being used and being used was a perferrable state than the alternative. Tim is unmoved by the tone of the towering individual.

“Don’t worry, I got this.” Tim answers with the tone of confidence that let the towering individual know that Tim would not let him down.

“You better.” was all the towering individual could say in reponse. With that situation defused, Tim proceeds to class. The bell is close to ringing and he doesn’t want to be late. He hears a voice calling him from behind. He doesn’t want to be rude and ignore the voice but he also doesn’t want to be late to class. He turns to confirm who the owner of the voice is. It is Cindy. He weighs the social cost of ignoring Cindy to the time cost of being late to class. Against his better judgement he stops and waits for Cindy to catch up with him.

“Guess who has a crush on you?” She says teasing.

“No one has a crush on me.” Tim replies.

“I heard that Kelly has a crush on you.” She follows up.

“Kelly does not have a crush on me.” Tim reinforces.

“Oh, you thought I meant Kelly Richards,” Cindy states,” I meant Kelly Franklin.” and after saying that she doubled over laughing.

“Very funny.” Tim replies. Kelly Richards was the most popular girl in school, Kelly Franklin was a guy. Tim is used to Cindy teasing him. It has gotten to the point where nothing she says can get a rise out of him. She sees this lack of response as a challenge and vows that she would get him good one day.

The bell rings. They are both late to class. The teacher givse Tim and Cindy both a slip of paper which indicates they will be attending detention later that afternoon. Tim tries to stay awake during the boring lecture. He feels the stare of several individuals that make him feel like an ant under a magifying glass.

In between classes when the students shuffle their way between point A and point B, Tim sees one of the few friends he possesses. George was also a social outcast and their suffering was a shared experience.

“Hey Tim, you should come over later. I got that new VR headset.” George says.

“Sorry, Cindy got me detention.” Tim shoots back.

“Again!, I think she does that on purpose. Maybe she secretly wants to be alone with you.” George teases.

The thought of being alone with Cindy makes Tim want to throw up. Cindy is higher up on the social ladder than both Tim or George but it isn’t by much. To suggest that Cindy was the one who had a crush on him was a thought that Tim doesn’t want to entertain.

“I’ll talk to you later.” Tim states as he is going to make sure he isn’t late to his next class.

The day flows like molasses until finally the time comes for detention. Tim enters the room to find a usual group of deplorables who all eye him with mutual disgust. Tim takes a seat and starts on homework. Cindy comes in a few minutes later and takes the desk right next to him. She smiles like a cat who had just cornered a mouse and is about to play with it against it’s will. Cindy starts making Tim feel uncofortable and is fully aware of it. When he has finally had enough he decides to turn the tables on her.

“Do you want to go out?” He asks her.

“What?” She says shocked. She is taken completely by surprise at this turn of events.

“You know, on a date?” He follows up. Tim’s voice sounds irritated.

“What?” She repeats still not quite getting it. Tim decides it is time to make Cindy really uncomfortable. He gets up from his desk, walks around it and gets on his knees to beg. Everyone’s eyes are now fully fixed on Tim and Cindy except for the teacher who is lost in some app he is unsing on his phone.

“Will you please go out with me?” Tim begs.

“No!” Cindy shoot back, “Why would you even think that?” She follows up.

“Look, the truth is I think about you all the time and you’re the one girl who actually talks to me. I can’t stand it anymore. You have to go out with me.” Tim explains. Tim is lying. He knows that Cindy will never go out with him but maybe if she thinks he has a crush on her she will leave him alone for awhile.

The expression on Cindy’s face changes and softens.

“I didn’t know you felt that way.”, She says with a tenderness that took Tim completely by surprise. “Of course I’ll go out with you.” Tim’s gambit completely backfires. He thinks that she will run for the hills but instead she accepts his invitation. Now he has to take her out. Tim swallows hard but he can’t admit he is just trying to get back at her.

“Thank you.” is all he can say in response.

My grandpa was 30 and my grandma was 19 when they got married. My grandma's parents hated my grandpa but she married him anyway. That's pretty much all I know about it. My grandpa was one of the smartest people I ever met and made millions of dollars over the course of his life which I never got to see a penny of. They never got divorced and were married for something like 5 or 6 decades.

I have a plastic heart

and a plastic brain

I have no pride

and I feel no pain

I'll say it again because I need to

I'll say it again because I want to

I'll say it again

say it again

say it again

I don't want to fall in love

cause there's nothing behind the illusion

I don't want to fall in love

I don't want to give in to the delusion

I have a plastic body

and a plastic face

I get no pity

and I have no grace

I'll say it again because I need to

I'll say it again because I want to

I'll say it again

say it again

say it again

I don't want to fall in love

cause there's nothing behind the illusion

I don't want to fall in love

I don't want to give in to the delusion

When you tell me that you care

I know there's nothing really there

you just wanna take the best of me

I don't want to fall in love

cause there's nothing behind the illusion

I don't want to fall in love

I don't want to give in to the delusion

I have a plastic heart

and a plastic brain

I have no pride

and I feel no pain

I'll say it again because I need to

I'll say it again because I want to

I'll say it again

say it again

say it again

I don't want to fall in love

cause there's nothing behind the illusion

I don't want to fall in love

I don't want to give in to the delusion

I don't want to fall in love

In a world thats gone so mad

The one thing that I wish I had

is your attention

your attention

In a world that seems so sad

You know I wouldn't feel so bad

With some attention

some attention

So why don't you come on over here

and give me some of your attention

In a world that doesn't care

It's nice to know somebody's there

if some attention

some attention

In a world that feels so cold

You know I wouldn't feel so old

With some attention

some attention

So why don't you come on over here

and give me some of your attention

It's never quite enough

I watch the people pass me by

It's never quite enough

It makes a body want to cry

In a world that doesn't care

It's nice to know somebody's there

if some attention

some attention

In a world that feels so cold

You know I wouldn't feel so old

With some attention

some attention

So why don't you come on over here

and give me some of your attention

In a world thats gone so mad

The one thing that I wish I had

is your attention

I wake up in my bed. The constellations on my ceiling have vanished. I get up and walk over to my window and look out over the city. I let the computer pick my clothes and walk into the kitchen. My eggs and toast are waiting for me. Nia is sitting waiting for me.

“I miss mom making us breakfast.” Nia tells me.

“I miss that too.” I tell her even though it only happened with me a couple of times. I sit down and eat. Nia just stares at me.

“Are you going to just keep staring at me?” I ask her.

“I’m just anxious to get all this over with.” Nia says.

“It will be over soon enough.” I tell her. I causally eat my breakfast and then we take a walk until we come to the museum. Once inside Nia knows exactly where to go and I have to keep up with her. Soon we are in the room where the AI is supposed to be.

“What do we do now?” Nia asks.

“I don’t know” I tell her. After a few minutes we hear a voice.

“Welcome Katy, I’ve been waiting for you.” The voice says. It’s the same thing it has said to me each time I’ve been here.

“I want the future where humanity starts over” I interrupt the computer.

“That option has already been selected, please choose again.” The voice tells me.

“Then I want the future with simple technology.” I ask again.

“That option has also already been selected, please choose again.” The voice continues.

“I want the future with amazing technology.” I say even though we are already there.

“That option has also already been selected, please choose again.” The voice continues.

“I want the future with limited technology.” I ask as more of a question rather than a answer.

“Take this and upload it in the past.” The computer says. A thumb drive appears along with a time cube.

“But’s that’s the Doctor’s future.” Nia tells me, “The future where I’m dead.”

“But we can use the time cube to go back in time. We don’t have to upload the information.” I tell her.

I grab her hand and look into one of the tiny holes. There is a flash of light and when our sight returns to us....

We are in the computer room in the project building. The Doctor is here and he is busy uploading something.

“What are you doing?” Nia asks the Doctor.

“I’m choosing the future I want.” The Doctor says, “You’re too late.”

“You mean too late to upload this” I tell him as I show him the thumb drive.

“Give me that.” He orders me.

“You want the future with amazing technology.” I tell him, “but this will take you back to your future.”

“I will not go back to my future.” The doctor says as he starts walking toward me, “Now give me that.”

“Come and get it.” I tell him as I exit the room and start running. The doctor runs past Nia and follows me. The Doctor catches up to me and snatches the thumb drive out of my hand.

“I won’t have you changing the future.” He tells me. He takes out a time cube and grabs my hand and looks into one of the tiny holes. There is a flash of light and when our sight returns to us.....

We are standing in the middle of a woods. There are no buildings anywhere except for the project station.

“What happened?” He demands, “What did you do?”

“While you were chasing me Nia uploaded the future we wanted.” I explain.

“You tricked me!” The Doctor says, “Now we’re stuck here. Do you realize what you’ve done? We’re the last two people on Earth.”

“I won the game.” I tell the Doctor triumphantly.

“No. You didn’t. I did.” a voice says from behind me. I turn around and it’s Jake.

“What do you mean you did?” I ask.

“You almost won. You played a good game but just not good enough.” He says.

“What do you mean?” I asked him.

“I’m the other player in the game.” Jake explains, “The game really screws with your mind but you have to admit it was pretty amazing.”

“I thought I was playing the game by myself?” I said.

“That’s what the game wanted you to believe. It really messes with your head until you don’t know what to believe but once I realized that you were a real person, it was easy. I gave you the future you wanted and then convinced you to change it to the future I wanted.” He explained.

“This is what you wanted?” I asked him, “What about Nia?”

“Nia is just a character controlled by the simulation.” He says, “You have to admit this game was fun.”

“Yeah, but I hate losing.” I tell him.

“Why don’t you let me make it up to you?” He offers.

“What do you have in mind?” I ask.

“Take a walk with me in the real world and I’ll show you.” He says. I think it over. He’s kind of cute in the simulation but I have no idea what he looks like in real life. Should I really take a chance?

“Okay.” I decide.

“Great. Just tell me I won and the game will end.” He says. I’m about to say it but then something occurs to me.

“No. You tell me I won and the game will end.” I say back as I fold my arms.

“That’s not how it works.” He tells me.

“I think you’re lying.” I tell him, “I think I really did win the game and you’re just trying to make me think I didn’t.”

“Neither one of you won the game.” A voice says behind me. Both Jake and I turn around and it’s Nia, “I’m the one who won. I played all three of you.”

“What are you talking about?” I ask her.

“There are really four players in the game. You, Jake, the Doctor, and myself. Once I realized there were four possible outcomes in the game I knew there had to be four players. Each one of us were trying to decide a different outcome. The Doctor wanted the future with amazing technology. You wanted the future with simple technology, Jake wanted the future with limited technology, and I wanted to start over.” Nia explains.

Jake and the Doctor look at Nia with their mouths open. None of us realized Nia was a player in the game.

“Don’t feel bad, I’ve had a lot of experience playing the game. None of you even stood a chance against me.” Nia boasts.

“I don’t know what to say.” I tell her.

“I don’t know what to say either.” The Doctor says.

“Well, better luck next time I guess.” Jake offers.

“Oh luck has nothing to do with it.” Nia explains, “This is a strategy game.”

Jake comes back in the room. He looks at me with concerned eyes but doesn’t speak.

“Jake, do you have a sister?” I ask him.

“No.” He answers which pretty much tells me we aren’t going to find Lisa here anywhere.

“I want to go for a walk. Would you walk with me?” I ask Jake.

“Sure. If the Doctor says it’s okay. I’ll go get him.” Jake answers. Jake leaves and comes back with the Doctor.

“Is it okay if Jake takes me for a walk?” I ask the Doctor.

“I don’t see any reason why he can’t” The Doctor answers, “Just don’t overdue it.”

“I won’t. I promise.” I tell the Doctor. I try to stand up but I stagger a bit. Jake keeps me from falling.

“Watch it.” Jake says. After a few moments I don’t feel so dizzy.

“I’m okay.” I say, “Can we go now?”

“Alright, just take it easy.” He tells me. Everyone is in the next room.

“I’m going for a walk with Jake.” I say to everyone there.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” My father asks me.

“I’m with Jake. I’ll be fine.” I tell him.

“Do you want me to go with you?” Nia asks.

“No, I think I’ll be alright.” I tell her. I can tell she doesn’t want to let me out of her sight but she doesn’t push it.

“Okay” She answers weakly.

Jake and I exit the apartment and soon I’m down the lift and out the door. Once I get out the door I stop and take in everything. I am trying to figure out where in the woods I would be if the woods were still here.

“Are you okay?” Jake asks.

“Stop worrying about me.” I tell him, “I’m fine.”

“You’ve been in a coma for a long time, I’m going to worry about you.” He answers.

“You don’t have to.” I tell him.

“Yes, I do.” He tells me back.

“Which direction is the lake?” I ask Jake. Jake doesn’t answer but points towards the lake. I don’t see the lake from where I’m standing but it’s the best reference point I can think of. The small village was quite a distance from the lake so it’s actually a good thing I can’t see it. I’m just not sure how far away from the lake we are. I close my eyes and try to get a picture in my head. With my eyes closed I turn my body until it feels like I’m pointing in the right direction.

“I want to walk this way.” I tell him.

“Okay.” He says. There are walkways and squares all over the city. It kind of reminds me of a maze. We walk for a long time.

“Can we stop now and rest.” Jake asks. There are some benches in the square so we both sit down. I look directly in front of me and I see a museum. It’s an artificial intelligence museum which seems kind of odd.

“I want to go into the Artificial Intelligence museum.” I tell Jake.

“Really?” he says, “You want to go for a walk and now you want to go into the artificial intelligence museum? You are trying to get rid of me?”

“You don’t think artificial intelligence is interesting?” I ask him.

“No, it’s pretty common.” He answers.

“It wasn’t always common.” I tell him back.

“Well, it is now.” He shoots back.

“Let’s go” I say as I drag him by the arm into the museum. Once we enter the museum, it’s like walking back in time. It’s starts with computers learning how to play simple games like checkers and chess and then advances all the way to computers controlling the operations of vast cities. I find the whole thing really interesting but I can tell Jake would rather watch paint dry. I’m not sure what I’m doing here or what I’m looking for but I just hope I know it when I see it. I’m not seeing it. After a while Jake has had enough.

“Can we go now?” Jake says after he can’t take it anymore.

“Yeah, we can go now.” I tell Jake. Jake and I walk back to the apartment. It’s a long walk. As I am walking something starts gnawing at the back of my mind. I try to bring it forward but it’s not ready yet.

“Jake, I don’t remember being your girlfriend.” I tell him.

“That’s okay. The Doctor said you might not remember but not to worry. Your memories will come back in time.” Jake answers.

“So you’re okay with me not remembering?” I ask him.

“Yeah, I’m okay with you not remembering because you will remember.” Jake answers.

“What if I don’t?” I ask.

“You will” Jake says confidently.

“Thanks for being so understanding.” I tell him back. I can start to see why Nia fell in love with him. He’s not really my type though. On our way back to our apartment it hits me. When we get back to the apartment, I tell Nia I want to talk to her privately.

“I’ve got an idea.” I tell her, “You know that computer that Lisa was building?”

“Yeah.” She answers.

“I think it still exists.” I answer her back.

“Why do you think that?” Nia asks.

“Because there’s this museum about Artificial Intelligence and the inside reminds me of the inside of the Project Building.” I tell her, “and I think the computer that Lisa built is still there are it still works.”

“So what do you want to do?” Nia asks me.

“Tomorrow, You and I are going to go there and find it.” I say, “And when we do it will fix everything.”