Why Me? [ONC 2021]

5. The Theory

I sat there in stunned silence. In all the things that can happen in my life, what does this mean?

"When will I be ready? What do I need to be ready for? Who needs to protect me? Why do I need protection? And will someone please, please, tell me what the hell is going on," I said. My voice increased in volume with each question. Anger was beginning to take hold.

"Hey, man, take a breath. I'm here, we will figure this out," said Samar.

His smiling face could not hide his concern. He was definitely worried about this. Samar has been known to harbour the odd conspiracy theory, and even voiced one to two, but I was never certain he really, deep down, believed in them. I saw the theories he espoused as a cry for attention. We didn't have many friends as kids, but we always had each other.

He and I were 'geeks', in the old terminology. A name that resurfaced during our teenage years. In the past geeks were socially shunned, but it became a badge of honour of sorts at one point, and was a popular moniker for many years in the early half of the twenty first century, but it has waned again since.

I stood, stormed over to the large window and took a few deep breaths. I looked out over the night time scene of the city and that helped me to centre myself.

The twinkling fairy lights on a window across the road in another housing block caught my eye and I stared at them a moment or two. "I just want answers," I said to the window. To the world. "Yesterday, heck, even this morning, everything was 'normal'. It was sane. The world has become strange and insane now."

"I get you, but we will get answers. Let it be for now and order some pizza-" Samar said.

I turned to Samar. "More pizza?" I said with a smirk on my face as I patted my belly.

"Yes, some pizza," Samar smiled. "With a beer or three and a holo-movie, maybe a classic, to take your mind off it all. You can have the bed in spare room when you want to sleep. Today has been long and traumatic. Tomorrow will look better, I promise," he said.

Samar ordered pizza, I clicked through the films on offer on Flix+.

"That one!" Samar screamed and pointed. "That's a classic." He laughed.

I didn't recognise the film, but then I'm not a film sort of guy. Samar was a complete film-nut, he even had a few posters from old movies,  all recreations, decorating his walls. I didn't watch movies, so I didn't recognise any of them.  I tended to use holo-booths for my entertainment. Fighting dragons of myth or flying through the air in experimental shuttle planes. Sitting here with Samar though was a pleasant change. Even though I wasn't really watching the movie, I was enjoying the company.

There was a chime at the door ten minutes into the movie; pizza had arrived.

Samar returned with two pizza boxes and threw one into my lap. "Eat up," he said.

He flopped into his chair, pulled out a slice and took a bite. "You can't beat a piping hot slice," he said through a mouthful.

I took a bite of a slice of mine and immediately knew what he meant.  We both laughed as a string of cheese dropped down my chin.

"Hey, I have been thinking," Samar said. "What if this was all part of some elaborate hoax?"

"Hoax? You mean that guy didn't really die in front of me?" I spat a lump of cheese as I spoke.

"No, nononono. I mean, what if this is all a big misunderstanding and then others have taken the baton up and just run with it," he said.

"I don't get it," I said. "You're Samar. King of the Conspiracy Theory. In fact multiple theories at one point if I remember correctly. And you're not curious?" I laughed.

Samar laughed back, but I saw something in his face.

"What?" I said.

Samar tried to change subject, "Nothing, man. Let's just watch the movie" His face started to flush, and I knew there was something.

"Pause movie!" I commanded, and the holo projector froze the playback. The shocked face of a young child staring at a mythical creature bowing to her friend glowed against the far wall.

"Hey, I was watching that," Samar said.

"Come on. Spill," I said.

Samar sighed and closed his pizza box. "Movie off," he said with resignation. "OK. You're right. There is a theory rattling around up here," and he tapped his temple. "But it's not fully formed yet."

"Just cut to it then," I said.

Samar took a swig of his beer, and then another. I just raised my eyebrows at him. He sighed again, and then began.

"It's all on your Dad. That picture is off. Way off. I tried to find when it was taken, but there was no time stamp in it. Nothing. It's clean. Like it has been scrubbed, or taken before digital photography," he said. He left that thought hanging in the air.

He took a moment or two, and Samar was waving his hands in a circular, trying to urge me on in my thinking.

Then it hit me, "Digital photography has been around for over one hundred years," I said. A scary thought was forming in my mind.

"It has," said Samar.

"But if that is the case-" I  started.

"Yes?"

"If that is the case then that means-" the thought in my head was not really fully formed either.

"If that is the case, then this image was taken in the twentieth century," said Samar.

"Can we corroborate that theory at all?" I asked.

"The building. If we can find that building anywhere in the world then we can verify when it was built. If we can't then either it's a movie set, or it's a hidden location and our theory is all hogwash," Samar said.