The very second I entered my apartment I raced over to the second bedroom, which I used as my workshop. I didn’t bother turning on the lights, changing my clothes, or even removing my shoes or handbag. I just had to get back to work!

The workshop room was a mess, I’ll admit. My collection of 3D printers and CNC milling machines lined the wall behind me, whirring as they sculpted the various bits and bobs that I needed. In front of me was my PC, which I woke up to reveal the schematics of the project. Surrounding the three monitors were shelves overflowing with tools, little prototypes, and half-finished circuitry, punctuated by the occasional Pokémon figurine. Various sheets of notes and diagrams were strewn all over the floor.

And on the main table, to my right, was the center of my attention. A small device, about the size and shape of a thick marker, that had taken multiple years and a small fortune to develop.

But now, it was almost done. Very soon, I’d able to–

*DING*

Oh, the last component has finished printing!

I gently lifted the last piece I needed from the 3D printer, and removed all the supports. Now comes the tricky bit: installation.

Let’s see… some solder here… a bolt there…

… maybe some hot glue would fix this…

… be careful not to cross those wires…

Before I knew it, the time had passed to 3:45 AM. A mix of exhaustion and sleep-deprivation made the room look blurry, but I couldn’t help but grin stupidly. The device was complete, at long last.

It gave off a blue-green glow as I held it in my hand. This is something that physicists have spent their entire lives trying to understand, but now, I have done it. I have succeeded where they didn’t.

A time machine!

… or more accurately, a “spacetime machine”, because it can take you to any time and place of your choosing. But that's not as catchy.

I’d put in a little touch display on the side to input the desired time and place. The display was working, but the device itself, that’s yet to be seen.

I collapsed onto my chair. My eyes then fell on a framed picture I kept on one of the shelves. One of me and my parents, taken just before I left for college. Back when I still looked like a boy, and my parents still loved me.

This is why I made the device... I can change that now.

Now that I have a time machine, I can go back and fix everything! I can try to plant the idea that this– all of this— was for the better. And then, once past me comes out to them, they’ll actually accept me instead of casting me out like they did in my time!

Yes, I can do it!

My heart racing with excitement, I set the destination for 12th March, 2013, Bangalore, India. I then took a deep breath, and pressed the big red button. The caesium core activated and the device glowed brilliantly. I closed my eyes, and felt a jerking sensation behind my navel.


WHOOOOOOOOSH