This
Diary is the Property of Remi Lucan
Let
me tell you about the first time I met Mr. Smith. I was eighteen and it was
mid-June 2014. I was looking for a part-time job while I was mulling over
whether I should attend community college for the Fall semester or not. I
didn’t jump into college right after I graduated that year, I was in no hurry
to attend community college; in fact, I didn’t know what I wanted to do in
life. I did not have a set goal. Well, Life happens, and some things turn out
differently than what expected. It was on that day, an ordinary day like
any other day, the day I met the man who changed my life forever. I decided to
take a hike at one of my favorite hiking spots, the Menifee Cross Trails. There
are many small trails that weave in and out of the hills. It’s usually a
2.7-mile hike but if you do the other trails around, it adds up to a good
workout; my best friend Leila and I hiked up there a few times in the past. She
was at work that day, and I was bored so I drove my Honda electric plugin
hybrid to where most people park their cars on a dirt lot, close to the main
road. There were two other vehicles parked there belonging to the most
dedicated hikers that go almost every day. I had my brown leather backpack that
I bought from an army surplus shop, I wore my olive-green safari button up
shirt and khaki shorts with my ankle high rust brown hiking boots.
I reached the top of one of the smaller hills and took a breather. I looked around, and at a distance, my eyes rested on the metal cross that is erected on top of one of the larger hills in the area. I don’t know who put it there, but it is the main attraction and one of the reasons people enjoy hiking toward the cross.
There
was a slight fog that lingered until midday and after it lifted, my
surroundings didn’t seem as ominous as they did when I first ventured out for a
hike. I saw one or two hikers on one of the distant hills. I took a sip from my
water bottle and put it back into my backpack. After I rested for a bit, I
started my descent. I saw another trail ahead of me and took it but suddenly
something happened, something unexpected, unnerving, and abstruse. A strange
static electricity surrounded me, my heart pounded in my chest, and everything
became quiet, too quiet. No traffic from the road sounded, no birds not even
other people chatting at a distance although I probably couldn’t hear them
anyways. I stood there waiting, waiting for something.
I
don’t know what it was, but something kept nudging me to run but I didn’t. I
heard a strange whooshing, humming sound behind me. I spun around and
something shimmered in front of me; I jumped with a start. I stepped back as an
ominous 7-foot-high jet-black monolith suddenly appeared out of nowhere! I
froze and held my breath for a second, my eyes wide with fear and dismay. "What the Fuck,” I mouthed, as the force of the
strange monolith materialized; a sudden whirlwind swooshed my hair back. The
wind dissipated and I looked around to see if anyone else noticed this
miraculous oddity. I stood there dumbfounded and confused.
“What the Hell,” I said.
I walked around it; the smooth slick surface was cold to the touch, and I got
zapped by static.
“Ouch,”
I jerked my hand back. The monolith is 38 inches in length, 25 inches in width
and 7 feet high. What the Hell is this? I pondered, as I
looked with wide addled eyes. Suddenly a man walked out of the monolith. I ran
behind it. The man who was possibly in his late 20’s, stepped onto the trail.
He looked around from side to side. He was wearing a brown pinstriped blazer,
with a white button up shirt underneath and a pair of denim jeans with black
high-top sneakers. He didn’t notice me, not at first. I was standing behind the
monolith, and I furtively peeked around the corner. He walked away from the
monolith in the direction I was heading. Leave, don’t follow, I
thought, but my curiosity prevailed, and I followed him clandestinely. He
stopped midway and stood there looking around with his hands in his pocket. He
shook his head and sighed. He turned around to head back to the monolith; our
eyes met, he looked at me, surprised with inquisitive eyes.
“Are you one of the
locals?” I just stared at him. He smiled. I was speechless. I didn’t know what
to say. He had an accent which sounded British.
“Who are you,” I finally got the courage to ask.
“You can call me Mr. Smith,” he said, and his eyes scanned
my appearance.
“How did you get here,” I asked.
He smiled and took a step closer, “I was traveling and
stumbled upon this place.” He continued looking at me with curiosity and with a
hint of sensual interest in his eyes. I took another step back. “If you really
want to know, I will show you, but if you don’t then you can be on your way. I
won’t stop you,” he said nonchalantly. I gulped. He stepped closer to me and
took my hand; I jerked it away and took a step back.
“Don’t worry little lady, I promise you’ll enjoy this
ride and I’ll bring you right back.” He gestured with his hand toward the
monolith.
“Please let me show you, trust me.” He reached for my hand again, a warm sensation flowed through my body. I didn’t pull away. I felt embarrassed because this strange man who just walked out of a monolith was inviting me to go with him. This strange man is possibly 10 years older than me; I should’ve run away but there was something about his beautiful brown eyes that pulled me into him, his smile, and the glow around him was magnetizing, not to mention that monolith. Where did he come from, I thought. When he touched me, I forgot about my ex-boyfriend, I even forgot my name, until he asked me, “What’s your name?”
“Um, my name is Remi,” I said, diffidently. He grinned flirtatiously. His eyes continue to casually scan my appearance. We walked toward the monolith; I saw one person looking down from one of the hills. He is probably as flabbergasted as I was when the monolith appeared.
“Come on, step into my pad,” he
gestured with his hand, holding a coy smile, he winked. I looked at the
monolith, confused. There is no writing on it, a simple black slick surface,
cold to the touch as I mentioned earlier. The door slid open I jumped back with
a start. He walked in, I cautiously followed. When I walked in, my mouth
dropped, my eyes shot open, and I gasped. “Welcome to my pad.” He was excited
to see the astonished look on my face.
“This is a Time Dimensional Spacecraft. TDSC for short.” I looked around, then it occurred to me that I was inside an actual spacecraft, an alien spacecraft. “Wait a minute,” I said and stepped outside and walked around the monolith, looking at it in dismay. It hit me that the exterior does not match the interior in size. I ran back inside.
“It’s bigger on the inside!” I shouted with excitement, I should’ve been scared, I should’ve run but I was so intrigued by the whole experience, I wanted to know more about this mysterious man and his strange monolith. He chuckled and was thrilled to see how excited I was.
“I knew you’d be
impressed,” he said, with a self-satisfied grin on his face. My heart pounded;
my eyes couldn’t get enough of the interior.
“Do you want to take a trip with me?" he asked.
My heart stopped and I took a deep breath, my eyes wide with astonishment; I
did not know what to say.
“You have beautiful eyes,” he said staring at me curiously, looking at me with contemplative eyes, he seemed to be pondering on whether he should or shouldn't take me. I also noticed that his dark brown eyes scanned my appearance in a flirtatious manner. I looked away shyly. There was an awkward silence for a moment. “Um, is this a spaceship? Am I being abducted?” I took a step back toward the door. The door is not visible on the outside, but it is on the inside. “No, if you want to leave that’s up to you, we’re still on the trail you were on.” He stepped closer to me, and stared into my eyes, musingly, setting his arms akimbo. “I’m sure that the one person you saw earlier is nearing the TDSC and probably calling someone on his phone and soon more people will come,” he said with a soft smile, as his eyes rested on me. “If you want to come with me, we can take a trip wherever you want, and I’ll bring you back before dinner. I can travel through time. We can go anywhere you wish.” I was still hesitant.
“Don’t be afraid, once
you get to know me, you’ll see what a cool guy I am,” he smiled and winked. I
chuckled nervously, as my eyes looked around in the room, the jet-black smooth
surface, with intricate geometric design on the walls and floors, was peculiar
to me. I can see two control panels on each side, situated against the walls,
and the floor reflected the ceiling’s surface. The one thing that stood
out at the center of the was a strange black pillar with crystals on it. I set
my backpack down on the floor and walked toward it.
“What is this?” I asked as I circled
around it. I pointed at the strange pillar at the center where multicolored
quartz crystals lay on the surface. One of them was glowing.
“No, don’t touch it,” he said, alarmed.
I jerked my hand back.
“What are they?”
“They are what controls this ship,” he
said. I thought about this fantastic opportunity in front of me.
“I think I’ll take you up on that offer
but,” I paused.
“But what?”
“I hope you’ll bring me back before
dinnertime,” I said with a nervous chuckle. I find him attractive, and I think
he senses it. I am flattered that this strange being from another world wants
to take me on a trip with him but I’m still skeptical and I should be, what if
he never brings me back. We stood face to face; the glow of the crystals
accentuated my soft features.
“How old are you? I don’t want to be in trouble for taking along an underage girl with me on my,” he paused, “Adventures,” he fingered quoted. “Can you imagine the trouble I’d be in?” he added, in a playful manner.
My life is quite boring right now; I have
no boyfriend and no set goal in life, so I mulled over his offer.
“Um, I am 20,” I lied and diffidently looked
away. I really am 18 and my birthday will be in October, but I didn’t tell him
that. I looked at him curiously and he stared at me, contemplatively.
“Okay, well you look young,” he
said, while touching the crystals on the panel. Each one glowed when he touched
them.
"I just look younger, people always tell me that, but I am 20, my birthday is in four months.” He walked over to me and touched my cheek with his fingers, kissing my forehead. I blushed and he smiled.
“Where would you like to go?” he asked.
He tapped a red crystal. A black metal chair appeared a few feet away from him.
He took off his brown pinstriped blazer and tossed it on the chair. I thought
about what he said, “Well, if you are a real time traveler, I would like to
visit the 1970’s,” I said.
“Any particular year in mind?” he asked.
“Yeah, 1976, my grandmother told me it was a good year,” I shrugged and smiled coyly. He scoffed and smiled at me. “Okay, let’s go then,” he said, with ebullience. He told me to touch a blue crystal. “But I thought you didn’t want me to touch the crystals?”
“I’m giving you permission,” he said. He
told me to think about my grandmother and the year 1976. I closed my eyes and
imagined what it would be like to be there.
This book will be published under a different pen name
A link to another Excerpt related to A Time Traveler's Companion
(trigger warnings: age gap romance, sexual situations)
A Video of the interior of the Monolith
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