Chapter 3

Author’s note to readers: This chapter contains a portion where the main character does a Bunch of gold tests. Please keep in mind that this is for context in the story and any real gold tests should be done via verifiable methods. An amateur can easily make mistakes when trying to find out wether an item is real or fake.

Opening my eyes, or at least that’s how it seemed, later on, I was met by a man instead of the new surroundings that I was getting used to. Just him and blackness all around.

“How are you feeling, Joshua?” He asked.

He had a thick Ukrainian accent, was going bald, had on glasses, and had a big stomach. Not the kind of stomach where he was fat, more of he ate well type of stomach. He was wearing a lab coat and under that, a set of scrubs.

“Rested, but weak.” I said.

“It should pass.” He said. “How are you liking your new life here in the past?”

“It’s...” I started, but stopped myself. “Who are you?” I asked.

He sighed and sat down next to me.

“A friend.” He said. “You’re on the right track with what you want to do.”

“Oh?” I said, a bit intrigued. “And what would that be?”

“Living your best life.” He said as he looked over at me. “I’m going to be straight with you, Joshua. You’re not dreaming, this isn’t a fantasy, and this isn’t heaven. This is the past, your past ... well, an altered one. My people, we send people back in time. Some of us call it an experiment, others call it a game, and I call it repair work.”

“Are you aliens?” I asked.

“No. We live on a parallel plane to you, and my group is further along in the future, to where we have this technology. So, we send people back in time, and what we’re doing is trying to get the best possible outcome for the future. Not just your future, but the future of humanity, thousands of years from now.” He said.

“What? I don’t get it ... couldn’t you just go back, kill a person off?” I asked.

“Would you?” He asked.

He had a point. I couldn’t see myself going back in time to kill a person off, just to change the future.

“Okay, point taken.” I said. “But why me?” I asked.

“We consider certain people in time Nexus Events. They are so important to the time stream that they can change time just by taking certain actions.” He explained.

“So I’m one of these Nexus thingies?” I asked.

He laughed a deep belly laugh.

“No, you’re just one little spec in the cosmos.” He said.

Well, that was disappointing.

“But you are still important. See, my people, like I said, we send people back in time, and their actions affect others, and those people affect others, and onward until it hits the person who’s the nexus event. We can’t manipulate those people or even those close to them directly.” He said. “So we work on someone else who is further away from the nexus event. We send them back repeatedly until they get the desired results.”

“So I’m not the only one?” I asked.

“No, there are several out there.” He said. “And while you may meet with them, I’ll ask you to refrain from either fighting or having intimate relations with them. It could cause an instability.”

“I’m guessing that’s happened before.” I said.

“Yes, one man was in the army, and another of the people was in the opposing army during a war. We had to convince their superiors to deploy them in areas that were nowhere near each other.” He explained.

“Okay, so guessing that this is the first time I’ve gone back, is there anything to expect?” I asked.

“No, there’s nothing beyond what you want to do.” He sighed. “And there’s no way we’ll know if you played your part right or not until you’re dead again.”

“Okay.” I said trying to think about that.

I mean, the thought is easy to listen to, but the concept ... the concept of merely having to die before knowing if something worked or not was hard to wrap my head around.

“Oh, and watch who you’re telling you’re from the future. I really don’t want to reset you again, like I’m doing now.” He said sternly.

It hadn’t occurred to me that he would have done that.

“Reset me?” I asked.

“Put you back at the beginning point of you waking up.” He said. “Telling people you’re from the future could negatively affect the timeline. Just try to live your best life.”

“I’m sorry.” I said. “In the future, warn the people you’re sending back, though.”

“Good idea.” He said before standing up. “Now, you get some rest. Try not to push yourself too hard.”

And just like that, I was out like a light again.

I woke up to the sound of a heart monitor beeping steadily this time.

“Well, now you can sit with your brother and read to him or something.” Lily said. “I have to go clock in and start my shift on the third floor. Make sure you let me know when Harry comes to pick you up.” She added.

“Yeah, I will mom.” Annie said.

It played out just like it had before, with the two of them hugging before Lily headed off. Annie sighed and came into the room and closed the door. She took off her jacket, revealing her DBZ shirt.

“Hi Josh.” She said, repeating what she told me the first time all over again.

I just let her talk while figuring out how to handle this. I didn’t like lying, but there wasn’t much I could do or say without alerting them all to the truth. I decided to only let selective bits out. She pulled back my sheets and took the sponge and began washing the bottom of my foot. When she got to my toes again, I giggled, then laughed. Her eyes went wide, and she slowly turned her head towards my face, and I gave her a grin.

“Hey beautiful.” I breathed.

“You’re ... you’re awake?! You’re awake!” She exclaimed.

She was loud enough to make my head throb. So I shushed her, motioning for her to calm down.

“I’m guessing I’m a pretty lucky guy if you’re this excited.” I said. “Am I your boyfriend? Oh wait, the other woman said I was supposed to be your brother?”

She nodded, just in shock.

“So, am I the older brother or the younger kind?” I asked.

“Younger.” She choked out before moving closer to where I was laying.

She walked over to a control on the side of the bed and pressed the button so I was sitting up.

“Sorry to say, I don’t remember much from before I woke up.” I said. “Oh, and I’m guessing the other woman was what? Our sister?”

“Mom.” She said softly before climbing on the bed.

She leaned over me and hugged me and began crying. I just put my arms around her and hugged her as she cried.

“Good morning Annie.” The doctor said as he came in the room.

“Hey doc.” I croaked out.

“Oh, you’re awake!” He said as he moved over to the bed.

Annie started to calm down, and let go of me as the doctor began checking on me.

“Yeah, a bit worse for the wear, I’m afraid. I’m having a bit of trouble remembering things.” I said. “And by a bit, I mean, I don’t remember anything before waking up.”

“Well, you had a pretty severe head injury. It caused some swelling in your brain that we were hoping would come down so you could wake up.” He said before grabbing my chart and jotting things down on it. “Can you tell me what you know?”

“As far as I know, I can remember my name is Joshua Williams. I know I’m in a hospital, and since names were said, I know she’s Annie Williams, and that apparently there’s a girl named Cathy who’s hopelessly in love with me.” I said. “So new information doesn’t seem to have a problem sticking in the short term, at least.” I said.

“Probably because of the swelling. We’ll want to keep you overnight at the very least, but since your Mom is a nurse, you should be able to be an outpatient from there. We’ll want to see if anything comes back or if your memory gets worse. I’m sure Annie won’t want to leave your side once you’re home.” He said with a smile.

“Yeah, she seems pretty affectionate. I’m a lucky guy to have someone care so much.” I said, which made her blush. “And I’m sure Annie will be more than happy to fill me in on anything super important that I should know.”

“Well, your vitals seem normal for now. Use the call button if you need anything.” He said.

He put my chart at the end of the bed and headed out of the room, closing the door to give us privacy again.

“I’m glad you’re awake again.” Annie said as she turned back to look at me. “So I guess I should start. I’m your older sister, Annie Lily Williams.”

“Again, sister? I’d prefer it if you were my hot girlfriend.” I said.

She blushed brightly for a moment and began to stutter.

“I’m guessing I’ve never complimented you like that before.” I said.

She shook her head.

“No, we weren’t really close before the accident. You were violent, did drugs, and drank. Cathy hoped that you’d change your ways, and fall in love with her.” Annie said.

“Oh, my.” I said again.

I knew the story that was coming next. It wasn’t pleasant.

“Trust me, it gets worse.” She added. “You and he became friends, and it definitely got worse. Like I said, Jimmy had a mean streak. There was a point where you both would disappear during the days and I’d see neighborhood animals vanishing. I followed you guys one day and watched Jimmy killing a puppy. A fucking puppy! You just stood there, watching him as he laughed doing it.”

“Holy Hell.” I said.

“Again, it’s worse ... After he finished beating it with a steel pole, he began raping its ass ... a partially dead dog, being raped to death while you just stood there. When he started raping it, you started laughing. Like really laughing, like you were enjoying him doing it. The dog was definitely dead by the time he finished and pulled his dick from its ass.” She explained.

“Oh god.” I said.

“He then began beating its body to a bloody pulp while you laughed. It wasn’t a onetime thing either. Same thing almost every day with neighborhood pets. You two would get them to the highway and make it look like they had been mowed down by vehicles.” She told me.

“Oh, hell.” I said as I wished I had not asked and wished I hadn’t had to hear it again.

“Then, on the day Jimmy was taken away, We found him in the woods raping one of the neighborhood boys ... the kid was only ten. He had beaten him up pretty badly. You were sick in bed that day. But Jimmy ... he was taken away, and his family vanished soon after.” Annie told me.

Once again, I put my head in my hands and cried, but this time, Annie grabbed me and pulled me into a hug to comfort me. After I calmed down, she pulled back a little, and I wasn’t sure what was happening until we mutually leaned in to kiss. The kiss turned quickly passionate, with me breaking it after a minute or two so I could catch my breath.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have...” Annie started.

I grabbed her hand.

“You shouldn’t have? I’m the one who ... and after what I put you and Mom through?” I said.

“Well, that’s something I didn’t expect to see.” Mom’s voice came from the doorway.

We both turned to look at her. She walked over to the bed and sat on the edge next to Annie.

“You’re definitely awake, and I heard you lost your memory from Dr. Tanner, but to walk in and see you kissing Annie...” Mom said.

“Yeah, sorry about that.” I said.

“No, it’s just ... before the accident, you were one hundred percent gay.” Mom said. “You and Jimmy...” She added. “But now, you’re looking at Annie and I like...” she stopped and blushed. “Let’s just say I’m sure you’re not gay now.”

“Definitely not.” I said. “But aren’t you mad about the kiss?” I asked.

“Joshua, you don’t remember us at all, do you?” Mom asked.

“Before today? No.” I said.

“Well then, happy birthday, I’m okay with it, but don’t go off screwing without protection.” Mom said making us both blush. “But you both stay put. I want to get a picture of you two now that you’re awake.”

“Okay, Mom, but don’t rush. Wouldn’t want you getting hurt.” I said.

She smiled at me before getting up and walking off. Annie got comfortable in the bed, laying against me with her head resting on my shoulder.

“I can’t believe all of this.” Annie sighed.

“What?” I asked.

“You’re different. After Jimmy got arrested, you hated me. The day you slipped on the ice, I was trying to catch up to you. You were walking on the roadside, slipped and there was so much blood. I admit I was sort of glad that you got hurt. You wouldn’t be a monster anymore. I’m ashamed to admit that I wanted that version of you to die.” She whispered.

“And now you have what you want. A brother who cares?” I asked.

“Who apparently is attracted to me, and Mom is magically okay with it.” Annie said.

I thought about it for the moment.

“Kind of like finding long-lost family. You don’t feel that kind of connection with them, and if you didn’t know you were related, then...” I started.

“Yeah, I think I get it. Just promise that you’ll never be like him.” Annie said.

“I won’t.” I said. “But it’s weird, and it’s going to take some getting used to.”

“What?” She asked.

“Learning all about everyone. I don’t remember any of it.” I said. “And I wouldn’t want my memories to come back if it means going back to what I was.”

Not exactly true, but I couldn’t go into the long explanation of being from the future again. Especially since I knew I was being watched.

“So how old am I?” I asked.

“Well, like Mom said, happy birthday.” Annie said. “Really? It’s my birthday?” I asked.

“Yup. You’re 14 today.” Annie said.

“Are you gonna be okay with watching out for me while I get better?” I asked.

“If you keep being as sweet as you are now...” Annie started. “Wait, did Mom give us permission to have sex too?” She whispered, a bit surprised.

“She said to use protection if we do.” I explained. “She probably thought of that kind of thing being a possibility down the road. She seems pretty down to Earth about it.”

“You think so?” Annie asked. “I mean, I never thought of us like that.”

“I’d ask if you hated the idea, but considering I’ve done this massive One Eighty, you’re now on the fence.” I said.

“If that offends you...” She said.

“No, not at all. I’ll give you the time and space to think on it. I’m not going anywhere tonight.” I said.

“Good, because I’m not sure if I believe it yet ... that you’re different.” Annie said.

“That’s okay, I’m fine with fixing the reputation the old me left.” I said. “Reward or no reward. I think I owe it to myself and everyone else to clean up the mess I made.”

She pulled back and looked at me hard for a moment as Mom reentered the room.

“What’s the matter?” Mom asked.

“It’s ... uh...” Annie started.

“My fault. I think I made her uncomfortable for the moment.” I said. “Sorry.” I added.

“No, it’s okay.” Annie said after a moment. “It was just surprising to hear that out of your mouth.”

“Sorry.” I said.

She turned back around and leaned back into me.

“Don’t apologize for that. It’s a good thing.” She said.

“So, let me come out and ask. Why weren’t you surprised by Annie and I kissing?” I asked, the latter in a hushed tone.

Mom laughed slightly.

“Are you kidding?” Mom asked.

“No.” I said.

“Oh right, I keep forgetting you lost your memories. Annie, Cathy, Lucy and I are lovers.” Mom said in a more hushed tone.

“Oh.” I said feigning ignorance.

“You don’t seem so surprised.” She said.

“No, it kind of makes sense, if I take your reaction into account with what we did. Just par for the course, then.” I said. “I’m shocked, but I’m sure that’ll wear off.” I said. “Though I’d probably have more of a reaction if I wasn’t so weak right now.”

I started to really feel a soreness.

“Speaking of reaction...” I said motioning down.

“Oh, right, your catheter? Probably doesn’t feel too good having an erection with it.” Mom said.

“Not even to that point yet, and it’s uncomfortable.” I said as she moved closer to the bed.

“Do you want me to do it, or...” Mom asked.

She seemed a bit embarrassed by asking. I let out a long sigh.

“Yeah.” I said, looking into her eyes. “I’d prefer you doing it.”

Her eyes lit up.

“Really?” She asked.

“Of course.” I said.

She moved to the bed, and Annie moved out of the way.

“Did you want me to leave?” Annie asked.

“Why? Did you have somewhere you wanted to go? Am I holding you up?” I asked.

“No, it’s just...” She started.

“Oh, I get it.” I said with a smile. “Annie, a moment or two ago, Mom walked in on us kissing, then I’m told that you two are intimate.” I said in a hushed tone. “And now that you’re both considering adding the new me into your love lives, you’re not sure how to take it, right?”

“It isn’t exactly something we’ve done easily in the past.” Mom said in a hushed tone. “And we’ve never had a guy join us.”

“Well, if I’m joining, I’m all in. However, I will tell you that I’m not going to rush you all into anything. I plan on letting you take the lead on it all.” I said in a hushed tone.

The two of them looked at each other for a moment, before Mom leaned in and gave me a soft kiss on the lips.

“We’ll get your sister on some birth control.” Mom whispered just loud enough for me to hear.

She turned to Annie.

“Pick up some condoms when you go home today.” Mom told her quietly before pulling the covers back.

She lifted my smock, and I watched Annie’s eyes go wide at my flaccid cock. Over the next few minutes, Mom moved about the room and got the catheter out of my dick. I let out a sigh of relief when it was finally out. Mom pulled my covers back on before she took care of getting the catheter out of the way.

“Thanks, Mom. I appreciate it.” I said.

“Just remember to hit the call button if you need help getting to the bathroom.” Mom said. “I got myself reassigned to this floor today due to you being here.”

“You didn’t have to go to all that trouble.” I said. “Thank you though. It was sweet of you.”

“You’re welcome, Joshua.” Mom said. “Let me go do my rounds. I’ll be back.” She said before stepping out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Annie rejoined me on the bed.

“It’s okay, you know. I’m just trying to not step on any toes.” I said to her.

“Well, it’s different.” Annie said. “Coming from you. Ever since Jimmy, you stopped caring.”

“I meant it, you know.” I said.

“What?” She asked.

“Putting everything right.” I said.

Annie and I hung out for a while longer, with her finishing my sponge bath and helping another nurse change my head bandages before she called for Harry to pick her up. Harry didn’t come inside to see me, but that was alright. Without Annie there, the room was quiet. Sure it was a private room, with a tv, but sometimes you want someone to interact with. I wished, at the time, that I could talk with SOMEONE about my current situation. But as much as I may want it, I had to trust what the being had said. I decided I’d name him Cosmos, since he hadn’t given me a name to call him. Cosmos had been adamant that I not tell anyone, and I couldn’t interact with others who were affecting things as well. So I was pretty much on my own. I sort of understood why though, if word got out that there was a time traveler, they would be in danger. They’d probably get captured and tortured for information either about what’s going on, or what’s going to happen ... or what happened in their original timeline.

Mom ended up heading home as the night wore on, and I still sat just thinking to myself. Getting up and going to the bathroom wasn’t that hard. It was just hard getting my legs under me. They felt weaker than they had in the first iteration of this timeline. I didn’t have all of that extra energy. Must have been something Cosmos had done. It seemed like that instead of me having bursts of energy with a weaker body, I just had a weaker body that was weaker because I had been ill for so long and not getting regular, normal nutrients. Maybe something about going back initially had given me a boost of energy.

As the room grew dark, another nurse came in to check up on me. She didn’t say anything as she walked up to check my vitals.

“They said you were awake.” She said.

I looked up at her. I could barely tell what she looked like in the glow of light from the window. She had dark skin, black hair she wore in a ponytail, and was wearing blue scrubs.

“Yeah, sorry, I should probably get some rest, but I just keep going over everything I learned today when I woke up.” I said.

“No, I meant in general.” She said.

“Oh.” I said realizing what she meant. “Yeah. Woke up this morning with no memories.” I explained.

“Yeah, that’s what they told me.” She said.

“Well, I’ll try not to be a bother. I’m sure you nurses probably get all sorts of troublesome patients.” I said.

“You wouldn’t believe the horror stories if I told you.” She said before walking back over to the door.

She set some markers, closed the door, and flipped on the lights. Now that I could see her better, I could see that her eyes were brown, and her nails were painted, and she wore sneakers. I would’ve bet she couldn’t have been over 20 years old from her looks alone.

“Let me guess, lots of sleazy patients trying to grope you or ask you out?” I asked.

She giggled as she walked back over to the bed.

“That isn’t even the half of it.” She said as she began doing my vitals again. “Before I became an R.N. I worked in a nursing home as an Aide. Some of those old people were the worst. I had one that waited until I had helped him get his adult diaper off before he turned around and sprayed shit in my face.”

“What the hell?” I asked.

“That is a very polite way to say what I was saying at that point. He laughed about it, too. Said that’s what I got for being one of ‘those people’.” She said, using her fingers to air quote the end.

“Those people?” I asked.

“Black. He was racist as hell.” She said.

“I’m sorry that happened to you.” I sighed. “I can’t think of a pretty young lady like yourself taking such abuse.”

She started laughing.

“Sweetie, I haven’t been ‘young’ in decades. How old do you think I am?” She asked.

“I’d say early twenties.” I said.

“Try fifties.” She said.

“What?” I said, surprised at her remark.

“I actually have a granddaughter that’s your age.” She said. “I’m Sylvia, by the way.”

“Joshua.” I said.

“Yes. I know.” She laughed.

“I’m sure you got to know me better than I know myself right now.” I said with a grin.

“Oh, trust me, your mom told me all about you before the accident.” Sylvia said.

“Yeah, there’s a lot of horrible stuff in my past, so much that I’m not sure I can make up for what I’ve done.” I sighed.

“Don’t try to make up for what you’ve done. Just try to be a good person, a positive influence on the world. Then, those around you will see that you’ve changed for the better. It may not make up for what you’ve done, ever, but it will make them feel better about you, and you feel better about yourself.” She pointed out.

“You’ve got a good point.” I said. “I still don’t believe you’re that old. If I was older, I would’ve asked you out myself.”

She laughed at the comment.

“You’re definitely not the same kid who hit his head.” She laughed. “You’re a sweetie and a charmer.” She added as she finished taking my vitals.

“Thanks for saying that.” I said with a smile.

She leaned in and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

“And if you were a few years older, I might just let you do more than take me on that date.” She whispered to me.

She gave me one more kiss before walking away from next to the bed and putting away the gear. My head swirled at the fact that this older woman had been charmed by me. Hell, she was even older than my original age. She came back over to the bed, and before saying anything more, she took care of changing my bandages.

“Wow, you certainly know what to say to get a young man’s juices flowing.” I said as I finally regained my senses.

“Oh, I could probably get your juices flowing easier than that.” She said with a smirk before returning to her spot near the door.

“Now you’ve got me building up a naughty nurse fantasy.” I said with a smile.

She bit her lower lip for a moment.

“Your mother would kill me if I did that without her knowing.” She said. “So tell you what. If you keep up the new attitude, get good grades, and become a good man, then when you’re old enough, I’ll let you take me on that date.” She offered.

I nodded.

“Alright, I’ll hold you to that, and I look forward to it.” I said with a smile.

Sylvia left the room, shutting off the lights on the way out. And soon enough, I was sleeping. I woke up to being passionately kissed only a couple hours later. When the kiss was broken, the person stepped back into the light, which was only coming in from the window a bit. It was Mom.

“Hey, baby.” She whispered as I suddenly noticed someone was on the bed with me, sucking and licking my cock. “I need you to keep your voice down. We don’t want to disturb the other patients.”

My cock was already partially erect, and being in my younger body, it wouldn’t take much to get me fully ready.

“Who?” I whispered.

The person who was licking stopped.

“That’d be me, sweetie.” Sylvia whispered before going back to her work.

“She called me after your talk, and I let her know that if she really wanted to do this, I didn’t have a problem with it.” Mom explained in a whisper.

“And here I thought I’d have to work hard to get you in bed.” I whispered to Sylvia before running my hand thru her hair.

She pulled her mouth off me again.

“You will. This is a onetime thing, sweetie, and only because it’s been so long since...” She started. “Well, you’ll get the idea.” She added in another whisper.

She gave my cock a few quick jerks to make sure I was hard enough, then adjusted her position. In the light, I could barely make out that she was naked from the waist down, and a moment or two later, she sunk herself down on my dick. She covered her mouth and let out a muffled moan as I bottomed out in her. She was tighter than I expected for someone who claimed to be as old as she was. I’d say it was comparable to a virgin.

“Oh god, that’s big.” She whispered. “Give me a moment to get used to the feeling.”

“Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.” I whispered.

She began grinding slowly on me as Mom moved back over to us.

“She hasn’t been with anyone since her husband passed.” Mom whispered.

Mom leaned into Sylvia’s ear.

“I hope you’re enjoying my son’s cock.” Mom whispered.

“I am.” Sylvia whispered as she began getting into it, going from just grinding to adding a bit of bounce.

She leaned down and put her hands on the bed, next to either side of my rib cage to steady herself, as she began riding my dick.

“Good, because I want you to enjoy it. I want you to make him cum. I want to hear him moan as he sprays his seed inside you.” Mom whispered.

Sylvia let out a small moan at Mom’s words. I reached up inside her shirt, past her bra and cupped her tits. She then leaned down and kissed me passionately.

“Your mom is getting me all worked up.” She whispered. “I want what she said. I want you to cum inside me. Is that okay?” She asked in a whisper.

Before I could answer, she kissed me passionately again, slamming her hips, riding my cock as hard and as fast as she could. It was like she was possessed, and needing my seed to fill her in order for her to be released from the possession. My hands moved from her chest to her ass, as I began thrusting in time with her, trying to maximize both of our pleasure. I felt her pussy get hotter and wetter than it had before and quickly realized that she was cumming. I was close, but not close enough to cum myself. She pulled herself up, arching her body and grounding her groin against mine as she came, her juices leaking out onto my balls. We both were breathing heavily and I felt really worn out. Whatever stamina I had regained from sleeping for that short amount of time was gone. Mom moved over to her and kissed her before helping her slide off me. They both bent down and licked me clean. When they were done, they both stood up. My cock, thankfully, was going soft, probably from my weakened state.

“He didn’t get off.” Sylvia whispered.

“I don’t think he’s up for that at the moment, but you know what that means, right?” Mom whispered.

“What?” Sylvia asked.

“You’re gonna have to come over, check up on him, and make sure he can perform for as long as it takes.” Mom whispered to her.

“You keep talking like that, and I won’t be able to finish my shift.” Sylvia whispered.

She worked to get dressed as Mom moved back over to me.

“I’ll be waiting in the morning to pick you up.” Mom whispered. “Sylvia will get you cleaned up so you can get back to sleep.”