4058 [the historian]

celeste 2

the pictures they had shown during training did not do the 21st proper justice. the world here, from the small walk we had to 'ops' was unlike anything we had in the future. everything here is colorful and full of life. where i come from, everything is bleak and gray. the people aren't alive. they are but on the inside their existence is miserable. 

the garage they called ops was not like my home back in the future. my home was minimal, a bed and couch taking up the 500 feet i had. i had a computer though, similar to the one philip had here, only older and well slower. 

in ops, philip had a massive set up, multiple monitiors and towers filled with everything one would need. they placed a medical  station in the back, presumably to heal travelers who's medics couldn't. philip had furnished it well here, there were couches and beds and tv's. things i barely had in the future, money was no longer a medium of exchange. we traded our services then, in my case it was hacking and in others it was medical needs or historical recallings. it was how we got everything we needed. but here it was different. things cost money, something i had little knowledge about...

philip lead me towards the couches, motioning for me to sit wherever and than asked, "are you hungry at all?"

the couch was by far the comfiest thing i'd ever sat in, so much better than my bare bones couch back in the future. 

"kinda, what do you have?" i answered him, finally recognizing my needs. i guess i was hungry, i was also incredibly tired too.

"i got some chips?" his voice sounded more like he was questioning himself as he searched through the cabinets. 

"that's fine. hey, after i eat do you care if i lay down for a little?" i asked him as he came back with a small bag of chips. they were something i had never heard of before. doritos? i opened the package and looked at the chips. they looked funny but hey i was hungry. 

"no that's fine. you can take my room", he pointed to an offset room i hadn't noticed before, "it'll be quieter in there."

i nodded and started to eat the chips. they were an unusual flavor, in the future all our food had tasted the same. just gray and the occasional washed out greens on a plate. they claimed it was good for us still full of nutrition, despite the lack of flavor. 

with my mouth somewhat full, " thank you." i gave him a closed mouth smile, though i'm sure i looked fucking ridiculous. he smiled back, telling me it wasn't a problem really. he got up from the other couch and started on something on his computer. i paid no mind really, figuring he probably wanted to be alone for the time being. 

when i finished my chips, not going to lie i had scarfed them down like they were my last meal, i made my way towards his room. the room was offset from the rest of the garage, a large window on the side allowed one to look into or out of the room. philip had managed to put curtains up, which i drew leaving a little gap open. 

i took my shoes off, setting them aside by the wall and climbed into his bed as quickly as i could. i didn't realize how tired my host body truly was until now. his bed was comfier than mine ever had been. everything in the 21st was better than the future would ever be ( for now ). i climbed under the sheets, practically wrapping myself under the covers. i felt bad, the bed was made before i had ruined it but i was too tired to care. 

his pillows and blankets smelt like him, like a woodsy smell. it was soothing, i liked it more than i thought i originally had. 

within minutes of laying down i slept. back in the future i never dreamed. my sleep was always filled with nothing and it always seemed like it had been over in minutes. here though, i actually dreamed.