The Girl Who Doesn't Fit In

Ruth wasn't having a good day. She didn't have a good morning after getting up late, which she admitted was her own fault. Her alarm had woken her up at 6.15 and she felt unusually awake when it did. I'll be ready in plenty of time today. She thought. How it suddenly then became 6.48 she wasn't sure. Then breakfast didn't go well either. Twelve minutes after entering the kitchen, she only really had a bowl of cereal to show for the time. In reality, most of it had been spent prepping the coffee machine; something she could have done last night but didn't so that was her own fault too. At some point, she remembered that she needed to make two bowls of cereal. In theory, the small Human that lived with her would trot down stairs expectantly though in reality, at least one trip back up stairs was required to instigate their own 'getting up' procedure and another one usually at some point to check that said procedure was still ongoing. After breakfast had been successfully eaten, coffee drank, bags packed, teeth brushed, faces washed, coats on and they were out the door, Ruth bundled what felt like the thirty bags needed for the handover into the car and set off for the mother-in-law's. The drop-off was rapid, the kiss goodbye as short as possible without taking anything away from how much she was going to miss him between now and Sunday evening... She still missed the train and had to drive, most of which felt like a never ending crawl into the city.

Work had not been kind that day either. It wasn't that there was too much to do that day, just that everything had been about as awkward as it could have been. That definitely wasn't her own fault and neither was the usual traffic creeping slowly out of the city. The drive home felt mostly like it was autopilot save for the sudden realisation that getting chicken out of the freezer to defrost for dinner was yet another thing she hadn't done that morning. By the time she pulled onto her street, Ruth had pretty much had enough of today and all she had to look forward to now was a cook-from-frozen pizza and a beer. She pulled onto her drive as usual, got out of her car as usual, turned to the house as usual and only then did she notice what was so unusual today. Yes, Ruth's day was bad enough already without coming home to find an elaborate victorian hot air balloon had crashed through her roof into her loft.

    Running inside, she caught a glimpse of a face in the hall mirror, it just wasn't hers. Neither was the large hairdo it sported. The over-sized bright red flares weren't hers either but they weren't in the mirror - she was wearing them. She made for the lounge, the lurid colour scheme, patterned carpet and yellow net curtains of the hall assaulting her vision. She felt feint, the colours became a blur. She awoke with her face on the cold, hard floor. All she could see was greasy lino and a lot of mess.

    "Tea?" A voice asks. She looks up to see a man sat calmly at the kitchen table with a pot and two cups and saucers. He is wearing a dark velvet jacket with two rows of silver buttons over a thick red and gold patterned waistcoat, slim maroon trousers and black leather, heeled ankle boots. "You passed out." He explained. "My balloon creates a kind of bubble; you walked through it. It's quite disorientating. I can explain, but I warn you, it's a bit weird... Milk?"

Ruth carefully brought herself to her feet.     "Yes please... I think." She said as she looked around her kitchen at the laminate cupboard fronts and formica worktop that she knew hers didn't have. "Balloon?" She said. "Bubble?" Her gaze returned to the man. "So... I'm not dreaming?" She pulled out an ancient wooden stool with a leather seat top, steadied herself and slowly lowered herself onto it. Her hands trembled as she reached for the porcelain cup with the freshly poured tea in front of her. "Anddd youuu arrre?" She asked nervously.

The man finished stirring his tea, gently tapped the spoon on the edge of the cup and rested it on the saucer. He raised the cup to his lips, pausing. "I am a time traveller." He answered with a wry smile before taking a sip and quietly setting the cup back down. "I am an explorer. I am an adventurer... I am not what you expected... And I am very sorry I crashed my balloon into your roof." He let the revelation hang before a realisation suddenly burst upon his face. "My name!" He exclaimed. "You were just asking my name!" He beamed a warm smile at his folly.