Shattered Time

                                                           Chapter 1: The Unending Nightmare

The alarm clock rings and yells "It's 7, wake up, wake up!" "Time to wake up, it's time for work!" I groan as I turn off the alarm and prepare for work. "Mom, we have to go to work!" I yell as I walk downstairs. I see my mom already up and setting up breakfast. Her hair is pinned up in a ponytail and she has a sweet smile plastered on her face while she puts maple syrup on top of the freshly made pancakes made by the Pancake-Maker 3000. "Sweetie, there's no rush, we have plenty of time to eat. Grab a chair and eat," she says brightly, though the sparkle in her eyes has been gone ever since my dad died in a severe car accident. I sit down and start eating the pancakes.

We arrive at Dominoes and Mom turns the sign from "Closed" to "Open!" A few hours pass and customers rush in. I stare at the clock, "10 o'clock Saturday, 3000." A man with a black hoodie walks in suspiciously, one hand behind his back. I look at him curiously, and suddenly, he pulls out a gun and shoots a bullet in the air. Everyone freezes and looks at him with concern, fear, and terror. "Everyone, get on the floor! And you!" he says, pointing his gun at me. "Give me all the money from the cash register if you want her to live!" The robber demands, pointing the gun towards Mom. I take all the money from the cash register without hesitation. The robber grabs the money harshly from my hand, a sly smirk appearing on his face as a shot rings out. Blood drains from my body and I freeze in disbelief. My blood boils with anger, and I lunge at the robber, but I'm too late—he shoots me in the head. Everything goes black.

I wake up to the sound of my alarm clock, "It's 7, wake up, wake up!" "Time to wake up, it's time for work!" "Was this all one big nightmare?" I whisper to myself. I get off my bed, trying to collect my thoughts. I go downstairs, and there she is, Mom, putting syrup on my pancakes. I rush up to her and give her a warm hug. She hugs me back, surprised, smiling when I let her go. "Hurry up and eat your pancakes, we don't want to be late for work."

At the cash register, I notice the clock, "10 o'clock Saturday, 3000." The mysterious man enters again. "This is some major déjà vu," I think to myself. "Have your hands up and give me all the money if you don't want to get shot!" I quickly take out my phone and dial 911, while Mom quickly gets out the money. The robber grabs my phone and shoots me straight in the head. I fall back, hitting the floor. Everything goes black, and I wake up again, to the stupid alarm clock.

Frustration, anger, and confusion overwhelm me once more. Once again, Mom and I enter the store. I see a man come in, wearing a black leather suit, his hair slicked back, looking professional like he came straight out of a spy movie. He takes out his phone to answer a call, a serious expression on his face. "Yes, the change is done. I don't see anyone coming in," I walk up to the man, who suddenly cuts the phone call and puts it away. I give him a suspicious look, quickly correcting my expression. "Hello, welcome to Domino, what would you like to order?" He looks at the menu and orders a cheese pizza. "Your order will come shortly."

Some time passes, and the man finishes eating, pays, and leaves. I realize he's left his wallet on the table. I pick it up, and a business card falls out, "Mark Golagen, timeline government agent." I take out my phone and snap a picture of the man's card. Maybe I'm not going crazy after all. I push the door and start sprinting to catch up to Mark. I finally catch up to him and hand him his wallet. He looks at me, stunned, and grabs the wallet. "Thank you," he says, starting to walk away. "Wait!" I yell, and Mark turns to look at me. "I have a question to ask... On your card it said that you work for the government and that you are a time agent?" I say with a confused look. "Why the confused stare? I might just be an agent who fixes clocks for the government," he chuckles. But there was something odd about the chuckle, it seemed... fake, like he was trying to hide something. He lets out a sigh and says, "Where I work isn't any of your business, boy. Go back to making pizzas in your crappy restaurant," Mark says.