The Invitation

The Middle

The moon was full with an orange hue to it, displaying a perfect metaphor for her current emotional state: tainted. She wondered if, when she'd wished for a man who would make her feel the way René did last night, she should have specified that she wanted him to stick around for longer than just one full experience.

Snap!

Candace flinched at the sound of a stick breaking nearby, her thoughts immediately jumping to those of a stranger's footsteps. Although she wasn't far from the firehouse, she knew she was just far enough to disappear without the ability to engage anyone's help first. Making her way back towards the building, she heard her fears being fulfilled as more snapping wood followed behind her.

Just as she broke into a run, the voice she'd had running in her head non-stop since yesterday filled her ears, calling her name. She stopped and turned to face René.

"I'm sorry I frightened you."

"You wouldn't have if I'd known to expect you here. Maybe if you left a note, a number...anything?"

"I'm...I'm sorry."

Candace waited for him to continue, but when nothing more followed, she quickly angered.

"Is that it? Nothing else? No explanation?"

"None that would matter."

"Well, try me. I'd appreciate pretty much any attempt. Poof! Gone. No note, no number. Then it turns out people are looking for you in Switzerland of all places, and poof! You're here. Wait – how did you even know to come here? Are you a murderer on the run come to clean up loose ends? A stalker?"

"A time traveler."

"Damn it! I always get that one wrong."

"I did say it wouldn't matter."

"So, you just made something up to prove that?"

"No."

They stood staring at one another for several moments. Finally, he let out a sigh.

"I needed to find you and saw that you were tagged in a photo on the firehouse's social media account not too long ago. I assumed you would still be here and headed over."

"Hmm, noted. Alright, we've checked off that box – stalker. Two more to go."

"I went to review my time window early this morning and became trapped in limbo when I tried to cross over. Something changed in the stream and I can't return until it's sorted out in one way or another."

"Now you're pretending to be serious."

"I am serious, truly."

"Look, you're not impressing me. They pull people with PhD's to spout off about all sorts of nonsense on TV shows all the time. Can't you just be an adult here and tell me you left because you didn't want to see me again, or because you're married, or-"

"It wouldn't be fair to lie to you like that."

Candace crossed her arms and stared at him, completely perplexed at the situation. Hell, what did she have to lose at this point? There was at least a good story here.

"Okay, I'll bite," she replied, keeping her sarcasm to a minimum. "You've traveled back in time to what, tell me I shouldn't sleep with the guy I came with? Will he knock me up and walk out?"

"What? What guy? What is his name?"

"It's a little late to be jealous, don't you think?"

"Candace, please."