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I believe I can see the future
'Cause I repeat the same routine
I think I used to have a purpose
But then again, that might have been a dream
Elias fumbled for the phone on his bedside table to turn his 6:30 AM alarm off. He awoke to that stupid Nine Inch Nails song every morning, ever since he got his own dorm back at university years ago. He'd meant to change that stupid alarm tone a year ago, but he never got around to it. It was just part of the schedule now.
He rose from his bed, showered, dressed, and headed downstairs. Removing a breakfast sandwich from the freezer, he placed it in the microwave, and started the coffee machine. Staring out the window at the back yard was one of the few moments of peace and respite he had in a day, and he could only savor it for so long, before it was over. The grass swayed gently in the breeze, like a rhythm of green, combining with the rocking of the branches in the tree, making it look almost like—
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Breakfast was ready. He pulled the egg sandwich from the microwave.
"Fuck! Ah, god…"
Nuclear hot, the edges of the packaging burned his fingertips. Elias placed them in his mouth for a moment, cooling them, before returning his focus to the snack. Coffee entered his thermos, and thermos and sandwich entered his bag for the ride to work. Stepping out the door and onto the bus, he took a sip from his thermos, when a man jostled him from behind, slightly splashing the front of his dress shirt with coffee.
"H-hey! Watch where you're going, man!"
The man simply scowled at him, throwing up a middle finger before moving to the back of the bus. Elias simply shook his head, blowing it off. Another day in paradise. He opened his laptop, holding it gingerly on his lap alongside his coffee and sandwich, and began to finish up the lesson plan for today's class.
"Transitioning… between… dimensions… without… projection or transpos… ition."
He marked the end of the sentence with a strike of the chalkboard just as a student in the audience popped her gum.
"Now, what does that entail? Anybody?"
The class remained dead silent.
"Well, let's talk about it. Higher or lower spatial dimensions are inaccessible to people. Well, technically any higher or lower dimension is inaccessible, but we're not talking about time travel. Rising to the fourth spatial dimension is an unknown… and lowering to the second spatial dimension is physically impossible except by way of projection or transposition. And these are what kinds of transformations, class? Say it with me: destructive transformations."
A gentle murmur from the class agreed with him.
"They're not one to one, something gets left behind. Or altered in a way that can't be fixed, so we want a way outside of these two."
The girl in the front row raised her hand.
"Yes, Danielle?"
"Professor Halberstram? What's the point of this? Like, are we trying to go to another dimension for some reason? I don't really see the meaning."
Elias closed his eyes for a moment, trying to reserve a snide remark.
"Well, let's work with a thought experiment for a second. Imagine you've been placed in a box, with no windows or doors. How do you get out?"
She thinks for a moment.
"Well, um… I guess I would get out the same way I got in?"
"Sure! How did you get in?"
"Like, through the door?"
"Okay, they've bricked it off."
"Through the window?"
"We started this by saying there were no windows or doors."
"Well like, then how did I get in?"
"You imagined yourself in the box"
"Well if I imagined myself in the box, how do I get out of it?"
"You imagine yourself out of the box."
"That's stupid. You can't imagine yourself out of a box in real life."
"No, Danielle, I suspect you couldn't, but some of your more esteemed colleagues might be able to figure it out."
The class chuckled as she went a little red in the face and folded her arms. Just then, the clock ticked over to 4 PM.
"Alright folks, that's our time today. I want readings of Greene, pages two thirty to two forty eight, and there will be a quiz on Monday! Stay safe this weekend."
Even before the end of his words, people were already shuffling out of the room. All but one, standing behind Elias.
"Yes? Can I help?"
"Yeah, uh… about earlier… what's the box represent?"
He turned to face the student. Mark Davies, this was the second time he'd taken his class.
"Oh, the box is a metaphor, for… you know, what you think outside of. In higher spatial dimensions you can take different routes around things, it gives you more tools to work with. Trying to escape the box in three dimensions doesn't work, but if you think in higher dimensions you can use a transformation to move the box inside out, meaning everything inside the box is outside and everything outside is inside. It's called a tesseract."
"Like from The Avengers."
Elias sighed. "No, not really. It's… look up a picture on your phone when you get home."
"Alright, I think I get it. I appreciate your help, teach."
"Lets hope it helps you pass my class this time, hmm?"
Mark laughed. "Let's hope!" He stepped out of the room, slapping the top of the doorframe as he left, leaving Elias alone.
The day was over. Elias took the bus home, reading the textbook at the same time as the students. He tripped on his doorstep when he got home, dropping his keys on the ground before putting them in the lock finally. Great. Just the kind of day he was having. He took his dress shirt off, throwing it on the counter. He'd set his alarm thirty minutes earlier tomorrow to get the coffee stain out. He threw a microwave lasagna in to cook, and ate it while starting on the quiz for his students before he went to bed.
As he laid there, drifting off to sleep, Elias Halberstram thought of the future. He couldn't live like this forever, right? Tomorrow he'd go out to the bar, maybe find a date. Next week, he'd put in for that position. Next month, he'd apply for that new apartment. Things were going to change soon.
I believe I can see the future
'Cause I repeat the same routine
I think I used to have a purpose
But then again, that might have been a dream
Elias fumbled for the phone on his bedside table to turn his 6:30 AM alarm off. He awoke to that stupid Nine Inch Nails song every morning, ever since he got his own dorm back at university years ago. He'd meant to change that stupid alarm tone a year ago, but he never got around to it. It was just part of the schedule now.
He rose from his bed, showered, dressed, and headed downstairs. Removing a breakfast sandwich from the freezer, he placed it in the microwave, and started the coffee machine. Staring out the window at the back yard was one of the few moments of peace and respite he had in a day, and he could only savor it for so long, before it was over. The grass was eerily still today. He squinted. Usually the wind blew through here, swaying the grass and rocked the branches of the—
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Breakfast was ready. He pulled the egg sandwich from the microwave.
"Fuck! Ah, god…"
Nuclear hot, the edges of the packaging burned his fingertips. Elias placed them in his mouth for a moment, cooling them, before returning his focus to the snack. Coffee entered his thermos, and thermos and sandwich entered his bag for the ride to work. Stepping out the door and onto the bus, he took a sip from his thermos, when a man jostled him from behind, slightly splashing the front of his dress shirt with coffee.
"H-hey! Watch where you're going, man!"
The man hissed at him, a low guttural throat sound that made the hairs on the back of Elias's neck stand up. After retreating to his seat, Elias simply shook his head, blowing it off. Another day in paradise. He opened his laptop, holding it gingerly on his lap alongside his coffee and sandwich, and began to finish up the lesson plan for today's class.
He was late for his class. Somehow, after three years of tenure, he'd gotten lost. It wasn't as if he paid attention anymore: it was obvious that he took the stairs right after the front entrance, two rights, a left, and his door was on the right. That was five rights ago. Every time he took his second right, he found himself right back in the same hallway. It didn't make any sense at all, how could he turn right more than four times and not be right back where he started? Finally, the halls gave way to the one just outside his classroom, and he sighed a breath of relief. Hurriedly, he walked towards his door — and stopped dead in his tracks. One of his students, Mark, was hunched over in the hallway. Blood covered the floor.
"Mark! Are you—"
He started walking down the hallway, and Mark turned his head to look at him. Elias's eyes widened in horror. Mark's face was contorted and twisted, his nose missing, his eyes pupilless. Mark shrieked, and began to stand, revealing the half eaten body of Danielle Whitman, another student in his class. Elias dropped his bag to the floor and started back down the hall. He could hear the steps of Mark behind him, catching up, faster. The squeak of sneakers, and the wet slaps of bloody hands, on all fours, chasing him, closer still, even closer, and finally—
Elias shut the door to his classroom behind him, dropping the shooting security lock into the frame. The door rocked on it's hinges as Mark… or whatever he'd become, slammed against the door. Evidently dissuaded, the shadow beneath the doorframe moved away slowly. He tried to catch his breath for a moment. What had just happened? Did Mark… eat Danielle?
"I think you've seen enough for one day, Dr. Halberstram."
Elias turned frantically, catching a short glimpse of a man in a black suit and tie place his palm to Elias's chest, and everything went black.
I believe I can see the future
'Cause I repeat the same routine
I think I used to have a purpose
But then again, that might have been a dream
Elias fumbled for the phone on his bedside table to turn his 6:30 AM alarm off. He awoke to that stupid Nine Inch Nails song every morning, ever since he got his own dorm back at university years ago. He'd meant to change that stupid alarm tone a year ago, but he never got around to it. It was just part of the schedule now.
He rose from his bed, and walked to the bathroom to shower. He toweled off, ready to leave, but writing caught his eye. Elias looked over to the mirror, steam outlined words written on the glass.
YOU HAVE TO GET OUT, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE
Hmm. Weird prank. Did he leave that for himself drunk? Didn't matter too much.
Elias Halberstram went downstairs to fix himself a breakfast sandwich and a thermos of coffee.