Love and the Time Travel Paradox

06:20AM

She woke up to a shoulder pain and a pencil impression on her cheek. Her body shivered badly from the cold.

A quick massage dealt with the shoulder pain. The pencil impression would have to fade on its own.

A glance out the window revealed clouded skies.

06:40AM

She couldn't get her hot bath until the apartment manager got back.

The manager's daughter was a good person. Hard-working. But she wouldn't be able to fix it.

This bath was not going to be pleasant.

But she was a shinobi. She had faced worse, she supposed.

07:20AM

Her ex-student came pounding on her front door and making a general racket. Only he had the audacity to shout at the top of his lungs in early hours like this. She dragged him in before the neighbors started a shouting chorus of their own.

The blond demanded that she step out of the apartment for fresh air. And he wanted her to do it now.

She told him that she already did, the day before. And that she was planning to once more in a couple of minutes.

She was rewarded with big blue eyes, a bear hug, and a paper bag that contained her favorite doughnuts, along with a paper cup of coffee. He even got a newspaper for her.

After a long spiel about his last diplomatic mission, he asked her if she was going to work at the hospital today.

She told him the truth.

No.

But he was undaunted. He said that he was looking forward to the day he could get check ups from her again.

She thought it was sweet of him to say so.

When she was the last person anyone would want to get a physical from.

08:00AM

The blond finally left in a flurry of orange.

08:02AM

The bag of doughnuts taunted her from the kitchen table.

For her old student's sake, she tasted one.

...Nothing.

She dropped the rest of the doughnut back into the bag. The coffee was placed inside the fridge. The newspaper was untouched.

If she had time, she would just force herself to eat them when she got back. For dinner, maybe.

08:20AM

Today she spent about the same amount of time as yesterday just standing at the door.

At least this time around, she wasn't unsure where to go.

The playground near the old hospital. The ancient swing set beckoned to her. And she would definitely be answering the call.

But first, a trip to the convenience store for another supply raid.

08:32AM

The air conditioning inside the store wasn't working. Stepping inside almost felt like stepping into a sauna even with the open windows. At least it wasn't summertime.

And judging by the cleared out shelves, she made the right call to buy those alcoholic chocolates too.

She pretended to read a magazine when the same cashier from yesterday kept giving her strange looks again.

09:10AM

The trees and the grass looked different.

Shinier. Happier.

It was all thanks to the rain from the day before.

The road that led to the abandoned playground was muddy, and she almost tripped from how sticky it was. But it didn't bother her, even when the mud clung to her boots. She even splashed some puddles.

She came to a halt after passing through the entrance. Someone was already at the playground.

Run.

Stay.

Her feet carried her forwards, making the decision for her.

09:11AM

It was him.

The man from yesterday.

He came earlier this time around, she observed. But he'd ignored the swing she claimed the day before, choosing to sit on the other one instead.

She spotted an empty lunchbox and an umbrella on the closest bench. He probably had his breakfast here.

To her surprise, he gave her a nod and a slight smile when their eyes met across the clearing.

"Good morning."

For a brief moment, she felt at a loss for words.

She just needed to return the friendly greeting. Yes. Nothing to it.

But it had been so long since she'd spoken to someone that wasn't her son, her master, her blond student, or her ex. Someone who wasn't one of those four and who wasn't giving her pitying, judgmental looks.

"Um. Good morning."

She pushed her hair out of her face and sat down on her swing.

If the air felt awkward because of her gruff response, he did not show that it affected him.

09:25AM

Unlike yesterday, she couldn't do anything too strange because she wasn't alone. This man sitting in the swing next to hers had been nothing but courteous and accommodating. And she didn't want to return his decency by ruining his reading time.

And so she sat and drank quietly, staring at her surroundings.

Not like there was any great lack of things to look at.

To her, all of the plants and trees somehow appeared even more beautiful than before. She could feel the beginnings of a smile tug at her lips the longer she looked.

It was the same old scenery she was used to seeing all these years. She shouldn't act like it was all new, because it wasn't.

But sitting like this, semi-alone in a playground that nobody visited anymore was just felt so good to her.

Even now, just looking at that sandbox for example, brought back memories of her days as a little girl.

What was it about childhood that never lets you go? Despite falling and breaking so hard you have a difficult time believing you were ever a child at one point?

09:50AM

Her student had been very persistent in buying her food.

She recalled this morning, and all the other times he dropped in just to give her take out from a restaurant, fresh fruit, her favorite doughnuts, ice cream...

And she always made sure to eat what he brought her because she didn't think she could lie to his face if she tried to throw them away.

The second can of beer was almost done. There were two more cans to go.

Today was the first time he'd given her coffee. He got it despite not knowing what she liked. And he probably wanted to get some kind of feedback next time so he could get her something that she preferred.

The blond was very sweet for doing this.

She didn't have the heart to tell him that she couldn't taste the food. Those blue eyes were devastating when he was sad.

With a smack of her lips, the rest of the beer had been downed.

10:14AM

She had to acknowledge that one day, they would find her here.

And one day, this playground would cease to be her little haven outside her apartment.

Which was a shame, really. All of her usual haunts, the places she frequented in the past, just didn't hold that same appeal as before. If this playground was invaded... she wouldn't know where else to go.

And her student had been so happy to learn that she'd taken those first steps outside on her own accord.

She would end up disappointing him. And in turn, disappoint herself.

She didn't feel any smarter at thirty than when she was fifteen.

Not even the creamy chocolate she was currently eating was making her feel any better.

10:29AM

"Are you on a vacation?"

She froze, mid-sip. Emerald eyes darted to the man next to her.

He had been silent the whole time, keeping to himself. Her own thoughts had gotten darker and darker, to the point that she had stopped admiring the beauty of nature. She'd nearly forgotten that he was there in the process.

His question was politely curious. He'd closed his book, and it rested on his lap as he looked at her. It was innocent enough, and it gave her a clear chance to refuse answering his inquiry without offending him.

Still, her voice came out harder and more accusing than she meant it to be.

"What about you?"

To her, he reeked of success. It was in his cultured tone, his manners, his presence. Just thinking about it made her feel even more rotten.

There was a slight hint of a smile on his lips.

"I am on a break from work."

Her eyes widened. She never would have guessed that they were both hiding out in this place for the same reason.

He looked so pleased with himself and yet so guilty at this admission, it was kind of funny.

If he was willing to lay it out on the table, then so was she.

"And I'm just knocking back a couple beers in an abandoned playground on a week day."

As if unable to help himself, he chuckled along with her.

10:31AM

Jade eyes flickered to the remaining beer cans before returning to her face.

"Perhaps you should eat something."

She arched her eyebrow at him.

"You seem to know a lot about this subject."

He solemnly shook his head.

"I do not drink. Although I am acquainted with several people who do, in my line of work."

Feeling mischievous, she set down her beer on the ground and rifled through her handbag. She pulled out a whole pile of assorted chocolates and held it up for him to see.

"How about these? Will they do?"

His eyes widened.

She snickered.

"I can see it in your eyes. You think I'm nuts."

He recovered at an admirably quick rate, but she didn't stop and talked right over whatever he'd been about to say.

"It's okay. I promise I'm saner than most. I'm just another human being, full of little quirks and flaws."

10:34AM

She was putting the chocolate back into her bag when he spoke quietly.

"I believe you."

Her hand froze, and then resumed its motions.

The conversation died, and neither of them tried to restart it. Something else entirely had taken its place.

And it felt very comfortable to her.

10:50AM

She hadn't yet gotten around to opening that last can of beer, but the sunlight was streaming through the clouds.

Even from the playground, sheltered in solitude, she could feel the rest of the village come to life.

"Well, It's about time for me to go. The sun's coming out, so..."

She didn't finish her sentence, and stood up from the swing. She already had both of her bags in hand and was ready to leave.

He also rose from his seat.

Now that they were both standing, she saw that he wasn't a giant by any means, just maybe three or four inches taller than her. But his average height didn't detract from the sheer force of his presence at all.

"You do not enjoy the sunlight?"

"It's okay, but I prefer cloudy days."

The deep stare he gave her was so unexpected, it stole her breath away.

"So do I."

She tried to cover up the strange feeling that ballooned inside her by babbling.

"Well, maybe we'll see each other again some time. I mean, it can't always be sunny."

This time when he smiled at her, she thought for the first time that he was very charming. In a brusque, yet disarming way.

Her feet swiftly carried her away from the man, the swing set and out of the playground.

11:47AM

That letter hadn't been there when she left her condo. She was sure of it.

Of all the things she expected to happen to her on her list, this ranked near the bottom. But there was no changing the fact that this letter had been slipped underneath the crack in her door.

As a kunoichi first and foremost, she made sure that the perimeter was secure before attempting to pick it up off the floor.

12:06PM

The envelope itself was rather old. At least, that was the sense she got from studying it despite its pristine appearance.

It wasn't a sealed envelope, either. Didn't the sender worry about losing the contents?

Inside, there was only a single piece of paper.

The handwriting was that of a child, making her eyebrows rise even higher. The message written was very short and to the point:

Please come back soon. I miss you so much.

She bit her lip. She could almost imagine a small child painstakingly writing these words, pouring out their emotions onto the page. And yet unable to truly express themselves beyond their desires. The image was so lonely, she dashed it away immediately.

It wasn't addressed to anyone, and there was no return address. Yet she was very sure that it was meant for her, because a lot of people knew where she lived. And it had been slid underneath her front door. Coincidences just didn't exist in her line of work.

At the back of her mind, she was still concerned. This could be some kind of prank, or trap, with intent to bring her harm.

If she were honest, she almost preferred that it was a trap and not a lonely child. It would be easier to deal with.

Besides, she didn't remember becoming acquainted with any children recently, and her son was still on his survival camping trip with his Academy classmates so it wasn't him.

It was confusing her to no end.

And so she placed the letter back inside the envelope, and hid it away under her mattress.

She would think about it later.

03:00PM

The bright afternoon sun shining down upon her face was what roused her from her impromptu nap.

She did not feel like watching television after last night.

In the corner of her bedroom stood her bookcase, with all of her books for personal reading. Her medical tomes were all in the living room bookcase.

The man from the park had been reading a copy of Mysteries of the Universe yesterday.

It wasn't as if she had anything better to do, anyways.

So she grabbed the first volume and plopped back onto her bed to read.

05:27PM

If she took another cold bath, she would scream.

And she didn't think she could wait an entire week for the apartment manager to return.

With a defeated sigh, she pulled out a long unused kettle from a cabinet, filled it with water, and then set it to boil on a long unused stove.

The bath she had later wasn't hot, but warm was still better than cold.

07:00PM

She didn't want to put it off any longer than she had to.

Now was the time to eat the food that her meddling blond student had gotten for her.

It was of course tasteless and bland as always. Nothing took away her appetite as effectively as it did now. But she still had a reluctant, fond grin on her lips as she choked down the doughnuts and coffee.

It really was thanks to him that her body hadn't wasted away completely, those first dark months.

09:20PM

She made sure to fall asleep underneath the comforter this time.

The letter that she found, the one with the childish scrawl, was in her hand.

TBC...