Pedestrian

September 21st, 2137

Adam was hanging out in his pajamas, waiting for his girlfriend Sydney to show up. They would take a shower together, get dressed and head out to greet the day. She was usually here by now. "Where is she?" Adam started to ponder as he picked up his phone.

RING RING RING

The caller ID stated a private number was calling, and after a shrug, Adam swiped his finger through the green bubble on the screen. He hit the speaker button and answered.

"Hello, this is Adam."
"Is this Adam Goodwin? Adam Goodwin at 5578 North Brady Way?" An authoritative voice echoed through the room.
"Yes, who are you?"
"I am Sheriff Baskins. Unfortunately, we need you to come identify a body," the booming voice lost a bit of bass when he finished, "There was a bus crash … and we believe we have Sydney Miller."

May 24th, 2140

Adam threw himself into his work and for a while, it paid off. He made several discoveries in his field, nothing flashy or big, but they did build on one another. It showed how, theoretically, one could go back in time. All that was missing was an elegant theorem to wrap it in a bow. Adam was currently working on a device that would regulate the flow of time, and complete his theory. The device ran on the new element that the theory predicted, which it pulled from the air when Adam finally got it to work. The new element was silver and viscous and slowly filled the small container on the prototype controller. The lights came to life and the counters flipped to 0.

"Yes, I knew it would work!" Adam exclaimed just before a flash made him shut his eyes.

When the light fades Adam opens his eyes to find another person staring back at him. The new man was wearing Adam's clothes and holding his brand new invention.

"Who the hell are you?"
"You, obviously, from a few minutes from now. Set your date then the time. Then we switch places." The new Adam replied as he walked around the desk in the middle of the room.
"How do you know this?"
"The me that showed up in front of me told me." The doppelganger reassured the first Adam.
"Does it hurt?" First Adam asked.
"Not really hurt, but there is some pressure."

With that the first Adam got up and walked around the desk while programming the device. He reached the point that the new Adam appeared and looked over at his twin.

"What happens now?"
"Press the button and repeat what I said and settle back into our chair." The new Adam said while sitting back with a grin.

Adam looked down at his device to make sure everything was set correctly then hit the button. A light brighter than he almost could not bear engulfed him. The pressure was almost unbearable as well but did not last as long as the light. When the light faded, again, his eyes were almost open when someone said, "Who the hell are you?"

"I am you, from a few minutes from now," The original Adam stated as he slowly moved to the desk, "Set this date and time. Stand over there and press the button."
"How do you know this?"
"This just happened to me and it's what I was told." The original Adam said.
"Does it hurt?"
"Bright light then pressure." The original Adam replied as he took back his chair.

As the bright light flashed for the last time that day Adam started to wonder aloud, "When was Sydney in that accident?"
After a few quick recalibrations, Adam almost pressed the button, but remembered he needed to be where it occurred, not home, for it to matter.
Adam grabbed his jacket, remembering the weather on September 21st, 2137, and walked outside. He was a few blocks from where it had happened and briskly walked the distance. When he got to the road and saw the current bus drifting by, he put on the jacket and got ready to jump back. The bright light and pressure triggered uncomfortable memories, but he pushed through them and was soon standing at the corner a few minutes before the bus was due to crash on the road.

"A pedestrian causes the accident." Adam kept murmuring under his breath.

He scanned the new landscape through piercing winds that stung his eyes. A ways away Adam saw what could only be another person. He started to run down his sides walkway, screaming and hollering towards the man in the distance. The bus came into view and Adam started to panic. In order to make sure the other man far from the street didn't sprint into the oncoming bus Adam decided to run across the street and stop him.

SPLAT

The right side glass of the city bus broke inward, blood streaming through the small holes in the surface. The bus driver became startled and jerked the steering wheel away from the shattered barrier causing the bus to drift in the air before coming down on its side and throwing everyone around inside. Only two people lost their lives that day. The John Doe that got hit by the bus and the woman, Sydney Miller, that was standing up when the bus flipped.