THE MOMENT
The sky was blue again; but, that didn't mean much on its own. Lawrence regularly saw blue skies as part of his travels to different realities. He'd seen red, purple, pink and a half dozen shades of each over the years; but, blue was always the most exciting. It was the most normal, and he wanted to think he was finally back home on Earth. Usually when he landed in a new universe, he was often out in nature somewhere. A dense forest, the foothills of a mountain, and even deserted islands on a few occasions. It was always an extended task to track down signs of civilization. When he did, it was rarely human civilization. That's what excited him the most about this new world. He landed in the middle of a modern human city.
It didn't take much effort to play it cool. Truth be told, he'd enjoyed his extended, unintentional sabbatical. It was almost freeing not having to deal with others. And, when his goal was simply 'get through the day', it was surprisingly easy to stay focused. He'd met elves, dwarves, dragons, unicorns and several other creatures he never learned the name of. Even after locating civilization, he only wanted to get his multiversal bearings and tried to avoid contact when he could. But, he'd grown tired of all that recently, and he wondered what more there was in the multiverse. As many universes as he'd been to, he began to think it was only a small section. Arriving in the city couldn't have happened at a better time even if he planned it.
The moment he realized where he was, he found a back alley to change back into his original clothes. They seemed a few years behind the style of the few strangers he saw. However, he'd done his best to keep them clean and in good repair. Once he started wearing clothes from whatever universe he was in, he brought the old suit with him to every new world, thinking it might finally be Earth again. He was a few years older than when he first started, but they still fit perfectly. He was groomed enough that he felt comfortable engaging conversation with strangers, and he headed out of the alley.
He was immediately assaulted by long-forgotten sounds, and most importantly, scents. The first thing he saw was a diner named 'Glory's' with pictures of the menu in the window, at the same time he smelled food. He was drawn to and rushed in without a second thought, and he was already seated on a stool by the time he remembered that money existed.
"Afternoon, hon. What can I get you?" A green-haired waitress in a pink uniform grinned at him from the other side of the counter.
"Uh... ice water please...," Lawrence replied. He was about to hop off the stool and leave, but the waitress had impeccable timing and ruined that plan. "... that's, free, right?" he asked. She was human, and this was Earth; but, he didn't want to make any assumptions just yet. He'd seen several Earth-like planets, even if the population he met weren't human.
"You know, I can't say I recognize you," the waitress shook her head in answer to his question. Lawrence felt defeated then and there; but, she kept talking. "I'm Glory Rose," she pointed at her nametag. "...and, I'm the owner, so if I don't recognize you that means it's probably your first time here, am I right?" she asked. Lawrence barely nodded. He was about to answer fully, but Glory Rose kept right on explaining.
"I don't know your circumstances, but if you found your way here that's good enough for me; at least the first time around," she giggled. She'd asked what he wanted assuming he had an idea already; but now, she made the effort of opening the menu and placing it on the counter. "First timer's get a free meal at my discrection, pick anything you like hon. Take your time, I'll be back to check on you in a bit. How about a drink?" she asked.
"Coffee please!" Lawrence nodded. He'd been infected by her smile and his own grin was ear to ear.
"Coming up," she nodded, then turned to head back into the kitchen.
"Wow... maybe I am back...," Lawrence mused to himself as he studied the menu. Burger basket with fries, fried chicken, meatloaf, it was all the comfort he'd been missing. And, Glory Rose being generous easily made her the most human person he'd met in years.
"SPEEDY PICKUP!" Glory Rose startled him when she came out of the kitchen with a yell. There was a bit of commotion and he turned to see some of the patrons get up to open the doors. At the same time, Glory Rose set a white to-go bag on the counter. "This might be a surprise to you; don't move, it'll be over in a blink," she said.
"Huh?" As he asked, a speeding blur whizzed in and out of the diner through the open doors. In less than a second, the food was gone.
"Thanks guys!" Glory waved to the patrons at the door and they returned to their seats letting the door close.
"What the heck was that!?" Lawrence asked. He had an idea. Still, he wasn't sure what to make of it.
"Well, that settles that, you're not from around here, are you?" Glory Rose asked. "Super powers are common on this Earth, everyone knows that. Are you from a different Earth?" Lawrence was stunned. If she guessed correctly, that meant she probably knew more about it than him.
"You know that can happen??" He asked the question even as he answered her with a vigorous nod.
"Oh sure, this Earth knows all about the Multiverse. And,.. it seems like you don't. What's your favorite number?" she asked.
"35!" Lawrence answered her faster than he'd ever answered any other question. It was like the number was just dying to get out with the right question. It happened so fast it startled him because he was in the middle of a thought when he blurted out his response. "... why do I have a favorite number?" he asked. He didn't actually expect her to answer him, but he was still processing the situation. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that he did have a fondness for the number 35, though he'd never noticed it before. It was always subtle, but there.
"The 'why' is too involved for me to explain it," Glory nodded. "But, I will tell you, it's related to why you've been Traversing between Earths."
"I've visited other planets too...," he said. "Actually, it's rare that I find Earth-like planets." Glory gave a small, polite laugh and shook her head.
"Not to ruin it for you, but they've all been 'Earth'," she said. "Earth' is the only planet in the universe, in any universe."
"But, I've met locals...," Lawrence shook his head. "Elves, dragons. Their planets had different names...," he said.
"So do a cougar and a puma," Glory shrugged with the permanent smile she seemed to always have. 'The locals may call it something different; but, from a broader perspective, they're all essentially 'Earth'. Don't worry though," she added to try and put him at ease.
"By the time you're done with your lunch, I'll have someone here to give you the full talk. In a few hours, you'll know all about what you can do, and how to get back home, if you want to."