THE MOMENT
"I didn't make it up...," Reed mumbled to himself as he walked away from the information desk. The library was his last stop in his sudden search to go back home. He left work about an hour ago in the same sour mood he'd spent most of his 20s in. He wasn't prepared for how different the world was once he moved out on his own.
He didn't have any family to call on for help. The few friends he thought he had seemed to forget he ever existed. He got mugged on his first night and needed to stay in a homeless shelter until he got back on his feet. He didn't take long; once he decided something he knew how to make it happen. He worked hard to build a nice, quiet life for himself. It wasn't easy. Some mix-up somewhere in the government lost his entire past. He started mopping floors for cash under the table and several years later he had everything he thought he ever wanted. He was more or less comfortable. Except for Spring.
Once Spring hit, love was in the air for everyone except him. Today, he'd had enough of living his life alone. Reed decided to head back home and see if he could re-light any of his old flames. It started off as a simple whim. He checked his phone for flights but for some reason, none of the airlines he tried could find his hometown.
He called a couple of travel agencies as he walked his usual route home but no one had heard of it. Finally, he noticed he was walking past the library. He'd ignored it every day for years; but, this time he had a random thought. The library probably had an information desk; and, he needed information. It was enough to change his direction and he turned to walk in.
After the clerk said she'd never heard of his hometown, Reed sighed, nodded, then turned to leave while mumbling to himself. He walked out of the library and only made it as far as the main sidewalk when someone interrupted him.
"Excuse me," she said. He turned to see a young blonde, blue-eyed girl had followed him out of the library.
"Yeah?" he asked.
"I've heard of your town...," she said. Reed looked the young girl up and down. She didn't look any older than 14. Her tan skin showed she preferred to spend time in the sun.
"How is it you've heard of it when no one else has?" he asked. Reed was ready to give up the short-lived search. He had no idea why he felt the sudden need to go home; but, it seemed to be passing now. It helped that he was starting to believe everyone else. Maybe he had made it up. He had a pretty comfortable life and didn't see the use in changing things around.
"Well...," the young girl gave him the same appraisal that he gave her. She looked him up and down and only hesitated a moment. "...you won't find it on this Earth; but, I can tell you how to get home if you want. Or, I can take you there."
"It's not on this Earth, huh?" he asked. He shook his head at the ridiculous thought. But, instead of arguing in anger, he decided to poke holes in her suggestion. "Then, how'd I get to this Earth?"
"You're a Unique Soul; but, you haven't been awakened yet," she replied. "You have the ability to Traverse between universes. Sometimes slumbering Estrellas like you accidentally Traverse without meaning to."
"Uhuh," Reed nodded, unconvinced. Even though he wasn't convinced, his life began to replay in his mind. Along with the big changes like no one knowing who he was, Reed noticed other tiny oddities here and there. A children's book title that wasn't spelled the way he remembered or the occasional historical blip that didn't sound quite right. Subconsciously he always avoided digging into the past too much. "And how do you know this?"
"I can see your aura," The girl looked at him and her eyes glowed with brilliant golden light. "It tells me what you are and that you're still slumbering," she said.
"That's a neat trick...," Reed said. He meant to be dismissive but after seeing her eyes glow he wasn't sure what to believe. "...is it something I can learn?"
"Actually, yes!" the girl nodded. She spoke in an animated manner and used her hands a lot. As she answered him this time, he couldn't help but notice blue text appear on her bare wrist. She was moving too fast for him to read it but it was clearly in English; he thought he saw the word 'game'.
"Sorry," she said suddenly. "I gotta get going, my team needs me. But, let's do this!" she stuck her hand out as if offering him a handshake.
"What..?" Reed asked as he accepted her hand. The moment their hands clasped together a flash of black covered them but it was over before he registered it. Reed thought he blinked for a moment. By the time he figured out that he didn't, he was in a new location. He was surrounded by aisles of books. He was in a library but it wasn't the one he just walked out of.
"Hello, Molly...," a woman's voice startled Reed. He spun around and found a beautiful librarian. Her nametag said, 'Lenna'. "...You're not back for the book already, are you?" The blonde shook her head, then gestured at Reed with her thumb.
"Sorry, I don't mean to impose. But, I have to be somewhere and he just discovered the multiverse. He's a Unique and I don't have a Mundo lined up so I brought him here. Would you share your node with him and get him up to speed? Please??" She begged when Lenna didn't immediately agree.
"When you're done with the book I lent you, I'll show you the library at the Nexus Academy so you can pick out another one...." she added.
"Oh, alright. Good luck on your game," Lenna waved. Molly waved at both of them as she sank into a black hole at her feet. It disappeared when she was gone.
"Reed's mind hadn't completely caught up to the present yet. He did not feel like he was in any danger and Lenna seemed friendly enough, even if she was from another universe. His eyes widened when he registered that train of thought.
He was in another universe. Again, apparently. It seemed like a longhsot, but after meeting Molly he felt like luck was on his side for once. Lenna still seemed to be deciding what to do with him, and he broke the silence.
"This is going to sound weird... but I guess I came from another universe," he chuckled. "That's weird enough on its own. Have you ever heard of town called...," He hesitated by taking a breath. Everyone else laughed at him when they heard it. But, he hoped things might be different now. "...Winchestertonfieldville?"
Lenna blinked for a moment. Then, her smile grew broad when she laughed. Reed hung his head until she spoke up.
"Of course, I've heard of it," she said. "I grew up there."