Jacob Haliday is in his junior year of high school. He is often very shy and anxious which leads to regular struggles in speaking with his pears. This is especially true with his crush. A petite girl with beautiful hazel eyes, glowing red locks of hair and a smile that makes Jacob quiver each time he sees it.

“Paulina,” Jacob says under his breath in a trance. He could stare at her for hours on end. “If I could only bring up the courage to talk to you.”

Jacob sat there wondering to himself what would happen if he were to go up to her. He imagined her all red-faced as he confessed his feelings to which she’d reply, ‘YES, I’ll go out with you!’ But those were only his daydreams. That would never happen. He’d have to have a million chances to do it and that was not possible.

“I wish I was able to just turn back time every time I made a mistake. Then I’d have no worries asking her out,” Jason gazed at the stars for some time and as his eyes began to close, he lay down and slept.

…

The next morning, Jacob woke up with a sharp pain in his side. He rolled over and saw a TV remote. Except this one had only one button with what looked like a rewind symbol. Out of curiosity, Jacob presses the button.

Click

<<< 

From a long rest, Jacob wakes up with a sharp pain in his side. “Wait…” Jacob lifts his covers revealing the same remote where he had just found it. Jacob realizes he has just rewound time.

With a look of awe on his face, Jacob picks up the remote again, examining it. Once again it had the one button, and it shined as sunlight began to slip through his curtains.

Unsure if he’s hallucinating, Jacob tests it again. He leaves his room and heads down the stairs. He presses his thumb on the button.

Click

<<< 

There he is on his bed again. A devilish smirk now spreads across his face. Jacob, having grown fond of his new toy, decides he’s going to bring it to school with him as he has some new plans for the day.

“This is going to be fun,” Jacob mumbles to himself as the bus pulls into the school. Jacob gets out of the bus and immediately as he’s in the building rushes to the girl’s bathroom. He waits for a few to enter and goes in himself. As girls scream and faculty gather in the hall, Jacob laughs out loud. “Ha, look at all your faces!” Jacob yells right before he presses the button.

Click

<<< 

Now Jacob is back in the hall as if nothing ever happened. Jacob continues down the hall and enters his first class. Being closest to the teacher’s desk, he waits until right before the teacher Miss Mallard is about to sit and yanks the chair away, knocking it to the floor.

“JACOB!” Miss Mallard yells as her face is red with rage. “Later, I’d like to see you in DE- “

Click

<<< 

Jacob sits down at his desk chuckling to himself. Miss Mallard gives him a confused look and asks, “what’s so funny?”

“Nothing, just something I saw coming in,” Jacob replies as Miss Mallard shrugs it off, unaware of anything happening.

Later on in the class, Jacob turns to the student behind him. He says the most rude, profane things that could possibly come out of a person. Right as a fist is about to collide with his face, Jacob presses the button.

Click

<<< 

“Maybe I won’t do that again,” Jacob whispers to himself as he notices a slight soreness in his cheek. He turns back to his schoolwork with little recollection of what they were doing in class. He sits there silently as the teacher speaks until the bell rings.

Jacob’s next class is chemistry. However, because Mr. Axel is out today, it’s a study hall for the whole class.

Then it hits him. Paulina Griffin is in his next class. Why has he been wasting his time with these pranks? He realizes this is his chance to ask out his crush.

Jacob enters his chemistry classroom right as the second bell rings and sure enough, she is there. Jacob sits at the table next to the one Paulina is at as this class has no assigned seating. He waits for the sub to call out for attendance and then he’s ready to make his move.

Jacob stands up. He walks over to Paulina’s table. And as Jacob is about to call out to his crush, he trips over a chair, landing with his face on the linoleum floor.

Click

<<< 

Jacob immediately rewinds in order to save himself the embarrassment. He tries again and walks over. Making sure that he doesn’t trip again, he stops across the table from Paulina and…

Click

<<< 

He could not bring himself to say anything. Realizing that talking to her may be too difficult, Jacob takes out some paper and writes a note to her. He balls it up and tosses it over to her.

He misses and the sub sees it. She gives him a glare of disapproval and walks it to the trash.

Click

<<< 

This time, Jacob tries to toss it again and focuses for better aim. He successfully lands it on Paulina’s table.

After a couple minutes Paulina notices, rolls her eyes and throws it in recycling.

“At least she’s recycling it unlike the teacher,” Jacob grumbles under his breath.

Click

<<< 

Jacob decides this time to stand up and deliver the note himself, making sure that it’s perfectly readable. He doesn’t crinkle it this time so it’s not mistaken for trash again.

Jacob walks by Paulina’s table and sets it down flat. He circles around back to his table and watches as Paulina reads his note.

Paulina stands up and walks up to him, handing him the note and says, “I think this is yours.”

Jacob is perplexed as she immediately leaves. He looks down at the paper and sees that he’d given her his chemistry notes. Jacob puts his hand to his forehead and presses the button yet again.

Click

<<< 

Jacob is becoming desperate and attempts to send the note through a paper airplane.

“No paper airplanes in class Jacob!” The sub scolds him and Jacob has to reset.

Click

<<< 

Jacob asks his friend next to him to get Paulina’s attention for him and he just laughs. “Wait, you're into her? Seriously?!”

Jacob rolls his eyes.

Click

<<< 

Jacob writes himself a speech for Paulina. He goes up to her and says “Hi, I… j-j-just w-w-w…” He couldn’t get it out as he became entranced by her beauty.

“Hel- “

Click

<<< 

‘Wait, what was she going to say?’ Jacob thought to himself as he had prematurely rewinded. ‘Why couldn’t I just wait a moment?’

Jacob tries again but, sadly to no avail.

Click

<<< 

He tries again.

Click

<<< 

And again.

Click

<<< 

And again.

Click

<<< 

He keeps failing.

Click

<<< 

And failing.

Click

<<< 

And failing.

Click

<<< 

Jacob has become frustrated. He screams “HOW IS THIS EVER GOING TO WORK!!!”

Everyone in the room, even Paulina stares at him. He realizes he has made a major fool of himself and he begins bawling out from his eyes.

“I wish none of this had ever happened. I wish I never got this damn remote. I wish I had never ever tried this in the first place,” and with that Jacob put his thumb to the remote, “this is the last time I’m ever using this.”

Click

<<< 

…

Jacob awakens once more in his bed. There is no pain in his side. He’s not lying on anything as he had been the last two times. Jacob wonders to himself, “was all of that just a dream, did none of that happen?”

He sits up on his bed and checks the time, it’s 2:00 in the afternoon meaning he missed school. He sits there for a moment. He feels relief. All of his screw-ups today never mattered. In fact, they never even happened. He could now live in peace knowing that fact. Jacob was grateful as he learned a new lesson as not to bother with love and crushes.

Though, if Jacob hadn’t overslept, he might have found an envelope taped up to his locker before it was taken down by the custodial staff. Jacob, however, will never know this and will spend the rest of his life in lonesomeness.