THE MOMENT
"You guys want to buy a temporal paradox?" Darla tilted her head as she asked. It was an unexpected request, although the two young men eagerly nodded.
"Yeah, the sign says 20 bucks," one of them pointed at the sign she posted that morning. It was already just about lunch time, and her garage sale was winding down. It'd been relatively successful and she sold most of the bigger items she'd been wanting to get rid of. She updated the sign as she went, and did what she could to keep visitors stopping by.
"Do you guys know what a temporal paradox is?" She asked.
"It's time stuff," the blonde teen nodded.
"Everyone knows what paradoxes are," the brunette one added. If she hadn't already heard them say they didn't have a clue, Darla was sure she would have figured it out after that exchange. It was clear they were being broad because they had no idea.
"Sold," Darla giggled to herself and grabbed a digital alarm clock from her table of wares. "That'll be $20, please," she said.
"Wait!" The brunette teen grabbed his friend's hand as he presented the bill. "How do we know it works?" It was barely noon; but, Darla had been up since before dawn. It was a long day and she was feeling a bit worn out. That was the only reason she was entertaining the interaction; it was fun.
"Do you know what it's supposed to do?" She asked.
"Make a paradox," the brunette teen answered even as the blonde one shrugged. "But.. I guess I don't know what form that might take...," he at least gave himself a way out without seeming uneducated.
"I'm selling it to you, and I'm saying it works," Darla nodded with a friendly, amused smile. "Obviously, you don't have to buy it. But, if you do, it's on you to prove to me that it doesn't work if you're going to try and return it." She wasn't trying to take their money exactly; she was just having fun. Anyone else would've seen through her already, but not these two youngsters. She was giving them plenty of opportunity to walk away, and if they decided to give her their money, she was willing to take it. Hopefully, they'd both learn something from the $20 lesson she was offering.
"We'll take it," the brunette nodded and let his blonde friend complete the transaction.
"Really?" Darla was having doubts now. It didn't sit quite right with her. "I'm sorry, I can't do that. It's just a broken alarm clock, doesn't even work," she giggled. "Temporal Paradoxes don't exist for one thing, and for another, they're entirely conceptual. It can't really be .. physically packaged," she smiled.
"$30 is our final offer," the brunette added a $10 bill.
"I was just bored, and wrote 'Temporal Paradox' on the sign," she shook her head. "It's not a real thing."
"We're not paying more than $30," the blonde said. "It's a waste to try and haggle us up."
"Seriously, the clock doesn't work...," she said.
"$35, not a penny more," the brunette dropped another bill.
"Okay! Take it!" Darla decided to take the $35 rather than risk taking more of their money. They seemed intent on the deal.
"Thank you," the blonde nodded as he accepted the alarm clock.
"You're a great negotiator," the brunette chuckled as he gave her a warm nod of approval. "See you around!" he waved, and they both walked away.
Darla looked around at the few items she had left. It was only a couple of tables worth of stray tchotchkes; but, there were still two other broken digital alarm clocks. The garage sale was her way of getting to know her new neighbors, and cutting down the clutter she brought over to her new home. She had every intention of informing prospective buyers about the broken clocks, with the assumption that there might be one person willing to buy them for parts. But now, she had a new idea. She walked to the sign and updated it now that she'd made the sale.
"Let's see what happens," she shrugged with a giggle as she admired her work.
[Temporal Paradoxes - $50]