"She just quit talking to me. I can't figure out what it was that I did that would have caused her to shut me off. Nothing that I did seemed bad to me. I guess we just don't all think the same."
      "Well, one doesn't mention your name around her. She's holding a grudge about something. She won't say what."
      "Oh, well."
      "You're not going to do anything about it?"
      "At this point, why? All we were was friends, and while we did talk rather deeply and personally, there was always a separating difference. She's always been so gloomy and begrudging. Too strict and intolerant. I guess that I'm just her latest victim. You know me. I try to stay positive and forgiving as I can under any given circumstances. And if someone doesn't wish to see me, I'll stay out of their way as well as I can. If and when she decides to tell me what is bothering her, then I'll be willing to make amends and pick up where we left off. She is the one holding the anger, not me. But the next step in reconciliation is hers. She'll have to resolve whatever it is that set her off."
      "If it's a fantasy as you imply, then why not set the record straight with her. That would speed things along."
      "Perhaps. It could also give me reason to hold a grudge. I'd rather just feel hurt than hurt and angry. She'll come around or she won't. I've learned to take life as it comes. I'm not going to push. I have no desire to bring that kind of grief on myself for some supposed offense that refuses to be set before me. It's a fundamental right that the accused be informed of the alledged offense."
      "What you are saying is that her friendship means that little to you."
      "It was a relationship to which I gave much and got less in return. It's not that it means so little. It's just that she is volatile and under stress, and I'm too busy to invest that kind of effort. There are those around her that do still have access to her. If they are bothered by it, then let them take steps. I don't have the reserves to deal with something of that level at this time. I'm too drained and I'm trying my best to maintain a positive mindset so that I can do my work on schedule and not get penalized for not meeting deadlines. If she's going to be that way, then let her. I can't afford to see much of anyone socially these days. I'm too busy. I can't afford to give the problem the time and energy that she feels it deserves. The way I see it is that she's made me one of her scapegoats for her other problems. If that is the way she wants it, fine, as long as it doesn't come round to my door. So far, she's being closed mouth about it. I can live with that. I've lived with it before. No, it doesn't make me happy, but that's her problem. I like her mind, but I don't need her."
      "Seems a shame."
      "I agree. But everyday I see shame that is beyond my control. I don't run other people's lives for them. I don't tell people how to act, especially if they are intelligent and know how to do so already."
      "Did you stop to consider that your silence may only compound the problem?"
      "Sure. But at this point, I don't consider it my problem. From what I understand, she's turned on most everyone. To me, that makes it her problem, and if she wants help from me, let her ask. Until she does, I'll just give her the room."
      "But you were always so good for her. You had a way to get through her anger."
      "Had. Seems I no longer do, from what I've seen. And until I see signs that I've regained it, then I'm not going to waste my time and energy on a case where the problem is not mine. I don't see my effort getting anywhere at the current time. Were she to tell me what she feels that I did wrong, then I might try. The anger is hers. The initiating of the silence is hers. It's hers to deal with until she invites me to share in the problem. Case closed, Henry. If it bothers you so much, then you go work it out into the open."
      "Ted, I wish you'd see it differently."
      "You want me to be softhearted and give her my all. Sorry. This is not a situation where that is called for in my experience. From what life has taught me, it would be like trying to fill a sinkhole. The weight of what I'd add would only make it sink all the faster. Heaven's knows that no one can say that I haven't given of myself in these last two years. I'm at a point where I need to apply time and energy to myself so that I don't become someone else's burden."
      "Sorry, Ted."
      "Under different circumstances, I might decide to go over to her house and confront her. But not now. Had I the knowledge of something that I had done to deserve such cold treatment, then I might go and apologize. But for the life of me, I can't think of a single thing that I've done that I'd call rude. And I'm not going to change my values and risk all the friendships that I have just to accommodate her bad mood. I know that she's had it rough. So have I. I haven't taken it out on her. I'm not the one to blame for this. It has hurt bad enough without wading in for more direct abuse. Now, may we change the subject? Please."
      "Okay, Ted. Can I tell her what you said?"
      "Be my guest. It may make matters worse, but at this point, I don't see them getting worse unless she tries to bring it over here to me."
      "So, how is the project?"
      "Coming along nicely for being this early into it. It still has a long way to go. The work is progressing nicely with nothing to show for it yet. It will be months before it does."
      "Made any tests yet?"
      "Only for individual circuits to see if each functions properly alone. I haven't started combining anything yet. That is somewhere down the road. You know the way I work. Get the individual cells working before I start putting them together. I hate shifting gears from basic assembly to modifying and back. I work better in the long run staying to one type of work at a time. I end up with fewer mistakes that way. Routine is my best modus operandi."
      "We'll good luck on the project. Try to take a vacation every now and then. Doesn't seem quite the same with you being as scarce as you are these days."
      "You know me. On or off. No in between."
      "Well, try an occasional off before long. People are beginning to miss you. Nobody seems to want to disturb you at work."
      "I will."
      "Sheryl said that she'd go out with you, if you were to decide to take a break from the grind."
      "Sheryl, with me? That's a new one."
      "Surprised me, too. I guess your absence has opened a few eyes as to exactly what you give the group. Seems flat with you gone. No spark."
      "Me? I'm always rather quiet."
      "True, but I guess that we've discovered that it's not an unassuming quietness. With you gone, something is definitely missing. Your wry comments, though seldom, do go for quite a ways. There is not the usual break in the rhythm to keep a mood from running itself into the ground. You seem to have the knack of knowing when to shake things around. A regular regulator, as Shelby puts it these days. You are getting more credit, now that you are gone from the scene."
      "Nice to know that I'm appreciated somewhere. I'll see what I can do about taking an evening off. Let me get to the end of a section. I am beginning to feel the effort."
      "You look like you've been busy."
      "You mean I look like hell?"
      "Trying to put it politely."
      "As usual."
      "Well, I'm glad to see you doing well here. I'd better get going before Susan starts wondering where I've strayed. In some ways I envy you for being a bachelor. The freedom seems very attractive at times."
      "I like it, most of the time. We all end up wanting most what we do not have."
      "Dynamistic nature of life."
      "Modern man is never happy while sitting still. Thanks for dropping by, Henry."
      "Hope to see you soon."
      "I'm due for a breather. Won't be long."
      Henry found his way to the door as Ted returned to soldering.

      The following Saturday afternoon, Ted found himself starting to make mistakes of the type that occur from a lack of concentration. He turned to the phone and dialed. It rang three times before there was an answer.
      "Harris's."
      "Randy! Ted here."
      "Hey, stranger. Long time, no see."
      "Well, batten down the hatches, cause you'll see me tonight."
      "Sounds like a winner to me."
      "Uh, Brenda hasn't been in, has she?"
      "No. I heard. She hasn't been in for over a week. Things don't seem to be running too smoothly for her. I heard that she wasn't speaking to you. Sounds like a shame."
      "Yeah. I've kept my distance, figuring it to be the best approach until she signals to me that she wants something different."
      "Giving her room?"
      "Seems the thing to do, considering. Just trying to see if it's likely that she'll be there tonight."
      "Couldn't say, though she has been scarce. I'll pass the word to interested parties, if it would help."
      "Spoil my surprise appearance, but it's probably better to be on the safe side. I think I'd rather do without a scene."
      "What's the problem?"
      "I don't know. I can't think of a thing, and she's not telling me. With people, who can ever be sure?"
      "So true. I'll let word be known."
      "Thanks' Randy."
      Ted dropped the receiver and bathed and dressed, taking his time about it. He stretched often and worked stiff muscles loose. He was intentionally in no hurry. He got dressed in flashier than usual clothes for the event.
      He got in his sports convertible coupe and drove to the bar. There was a crowd waiting. Word had spread at the speed of light and his friends had not taken the leisurely pace that he had. He was surrounded and welcomed and harangued for staying gone for so long. He felt the easiness of good friends return immediately.
      Sheryl took him by the arm and sat him down at her table, in the chair to her right. "Want to sneak off with me after a while?"
      "I was told that you were out gunning for me. Why the sudden interest in me? Run out of prospects?"
      "No. I just realized since you've been missing just how important you really are to us. Just hoping to give you reason not to stay gone so long. Objections?"
      "Let me think about it for a few minutes." he said facetiously.
      "Oh, you. At least you haven't changed on us."
      "Moi? Never. Steady Teddy is my name. Up to no good is my game."
      "And you do it so well." she cooed.
      "At last, credit given where credit is due."
      She playfully slapped his cheek. "Better not encourage you too much."
      "You just might create a monster." remarked David.
      "Never!" returned Ted. "Awaken, perhaps, but what is already made can not be made again."
      He drew a laugh. Bill raised his glass. "A toast to our long lost comrad. An impressive fellow in his absence, noted more when he's gone than when he's present."
      "You're all heart." he replied, and they drained their glasses. Sheryl's arm recaptured his, and the group kept him feeling highly coveted. Ted had a good time with the attention focused upon him, having gone without it for quite a number of days. It went a long way toward restoring his spirit that his days of being diligent at work had drained. Finally the focus on him dwindled back toward a normal level, except for Sheryl's.
      Still attached to his arm, she leaned over and mentioned, "You still haven't given me an answer about tonight."
      "I still haven't made up my mind as to your motives."
      "Are you wondering if I am serious about you?"
      "Part of it. And part of it is wondering why it has taken so long for you to get around to this."
      "You sure do know how to put a girl on the defensive."
      "Not intended. Just stating honestly why I have yet to give you an answer. I will say that I have thought about the two of us together."
      "You never asked."
      "Not my style. I'm not one to push into things. Things will happen if they are right. Pushing too often leads to trouble and artificial situations. I have gained a distaste for those."
      "Do you think that I'm pushing?"
      "A little, but not primarily. I feel that your attention to me is primarily genuine."
      "As if somebody put me up to this?"
      "No. Not that. I don't think that you'd pay any such ideas much mind. More on the order what is more important to you, as in offering for the social gains of your actions or for real feelings that you hold toward me that have finally been realized."
      "Oh. I guess I've come to realize how important you are to me. You've always been there to catch me when I fall, until recently. I guess I realized how little I've given in return for your kindness to me. I feel as if I owe you more than I've given in the past. I've now seen how truly important you are in my life. I've gained a desire to express it, having found what it is like without you there, doing all the things that you do."
      "In that case, I'd be delighted to sneak off with you later."
      She kissed his cheek.
      With the decision made, they turned their attention back to others at the table. The band was setting up on the small stage. Ted went up to the group and said his hellos. He was greeted warmly and they spoke for some time. Ted returned to his table, noticing a rather thin man at one of the tables that averted his gaze from him for the third time.
      Ted took the incident without much concern, having seen urban privacy in public before. When he sat down, he found the man averting his gaze from him again. Ted began to wonder what the man saw in him. He almost stood to go over and introduce himself when he heard an "Uh oh."
      His gaze went to Phil, as did everyone else's at the table. He was looking at the door. Rather than look, he watched the faces at the table turn toward the door. They all looked at Ted in turn to see his reaction, surprised to see him not looking at the door.
      "Brenda?" he asked. Nods were returned and gazes went back to the door. Sheryl squeezed his arm. "You've been spotted. Brrrr. What a chill." Her grip tightened.
      "Are you about ready? May as well leave to save everyone else the unease of her tension."
      Henry came up behind him. "I think you should at least make an attempt at hello to show everyone where you stand."
      "I was just about to leave to avoid a scene."
      "Go talk to her."
      Ted sighed and turned his head and found the man off to the side watching him with extreme intensity. Ted classified it as apprehension. The man looked away when he realized that he was spotted, though it was a delayed reaction.
      Ted felt a shiver go down his spine. He stood up and walked over to the table where Brenda had seated herself with the others that she accompanied. Ted came up behind her, sensing that she knew he was present. He nodded to the familiar faces.
      "Brenda, I do not know why you are mad at me. To my values, I see nothing that deserves such rejection. Be as that may be, you undoubtedly have your reasons. I won't make a scene by asking them. I only wished to express that I am available should you wish to discuss the matter. I will say that I am a bit pained at your actions, not understanding them. But if you feel that I have wronged you and do not care to discuss it, I will manage to adjust to the fact. I hope that things start going better for you. I know it's been very rough, with what your daughter has done to you. You still have my sympathies and best wishes. I hold no grudge."
      He touched her shoulders momentarily, then bowed to the others and walked off. The man was watching him again, and he seemed disappointed to Ted. He went back to his table and touched Sheryl. She stood and hugged him. "That took nerve. I'm ready to go."
      He nodded to her and said to the others. "I hate to make my first appearance so brief. Perhaps at a date in the not too far future I will find it easier to stay longer. Thank you so very much for making my return such an uplifting one. My apologies for the situation. I wish it were otherwise. Maybe next time it will be. I hope so."
      "Have a good night, Ted." responded Phil.
      "Since I'm due, I plan on trying." He bowed and walked toward the door with Sheryl.
      "She's making it awfully rough on you without telling anybody why. All anybody gets out of her is 'That's my business."'
      "I wish I knew, too."
      "Well, cheer up. I'll take your mind off of her."
      "My mind is not on it nearly as much as is everyone else's. What bothers me more is that everyone plays it so big. In my mind, I want to give her the room to solve what is bothering her. I've been too busy to let things of that nature distract me."
      "Excuse me." came a polite voice from behind them. "Ted Foley? Could I have a word with you?"
      "So you know me, after all. I was beginning to wonder."
      "Please, I won't be but a moment."
      "Okay."
      "In private, please."
      "If it's of that sort of nature, talk to me during business hours."
      "I don't think you understand. It is urgent. Time urgent."
      Sheryl patted him on the back. "Go see what he wants. I'll be in your car waiting."
      Ted turned back to the man. "Wait here. I'll be back in a moment."
      "Thank you."
      Ted walked Sheryl to his car. "You sure you don't mind?"
      "I've been patient this long. Just don't take all night."
      "Not a chance. Something about this guy strikes me as odd. Give me a chance to discover what, and we'll discuss it on the road."
      "Okay." She kissed him, pulling him down to do so.
      He returned to the man. "I know that this is going to sound odd, but you should not leave the club with the young lady tonight."
      "You're right, it does sound odd. But that's okay, since it seems to fit the impression that I have of you already. Would you mind introducing yourself, with a bit of background, before I decide to dismiss you as someone to avoid for my own benefit?"
      "My name is Ferris. I have a talent. I see things as they should be and try to set things as they should be, if it is possible."
      "A seer?"
      "Not in those terms. It's rather difficult to explain without seeming even more ridiculous to you than I do already. Just take my word that you need to stay and make things right between yourself and Brenda. It is important."
      "Why is it important?"
      The man searched for the right words. "It has to do with your work."
      "My work?"
      "Your research."
      "I must say that you do have an advantage over me. Are you with the government?"
      "No. Not exactly."
      "Subsidiary to contract?"
      "Closer, but not exactly. I'm really not allowed to discuss it. I wish that you'd just take my word for it. I see grave repercussions if you do not make up with Brenda tonight."
      "How do you know this?"
      The man shrugged. "I just do."
      "I need more details to be convinced."
      "I knew this wouldn't be easy."
      "So this is premeditated and not spontaneous."
      "Please take my word that it is important."
      "Why? What will happen if I don't? Do you know that?"
      Again the man searched for an answer.
      "Not good enough. When you feel that you can be honest with me, look me up at my house."
      He turned to go. The man caught his sleeve. "Please reconsider."
      "Not until you level with me."
      "I can not. That would be worse than your leaving."
      "In that case, good night." Ted turned and walked away, not looking back. He got to the car, looked at Sheryl, smiled and shook his head, letting loose a small laugh. He got in the car and started the engine.
      "What did he want?"
      "He wanted me to stay here and patch things up with Brenda. He said that it was important, but wouldn't, claiming he couldn't, tell me why. Something to do with a talent of his for seeing the right things being done. According to him, I'm doing the wrong thing now. Weird."
      He backed the car out of the parking spot. The man was nowhere to be seen. He drove on out to the street.
      "How do you feel about Brenda?" asked Sheryl.
      "Concerned. I hate to see her in so bad a mood as she's had for quite some time. I want to see her happy. My concern is that she does not wish happiness for herself at this time, or perhaps to say that she is unable to find that which will make her happy. She is too focused on negative events to allow warmth to fill her. We all go through times like that in our life. The real friends are the ones that step back and wait for the normal times to return. That's what I'm trying to do."
      "You don't think that finding out the trouble wouldn't help?"
      "Not in her case. I know all too well how badly she's been burned in the past, repeatedly. That guides her responses. I can't pursue a requital without further triggering negative responses in her. I'm trying to keep those at a minimum to show her that I'll wait for her to come to terms the situation, rather than push her. I know that feeling pushed is the main problem that she faces. I don't want to compound it."
      "Okay. I see your point."
      "I wish everyone did. I'm almost wishing that I had stayed home and watched TV or something safe like that. If not for you, I'd be feeling it firmly."
      Her puzzled look turned to a smile. "You are sweet."
      "I try to stay that way. I try to make it my natural attitude."
      "You have been left behind more than once when you truly deserved to be included. You just don't attract enough attention to yourself."
      "Stay away from trouble that way."
      They drove on to the park. They got out and roamed the grounds, walking, talking, enjoying each other's company. They settled in underneath an oak tree, and sat quietly, comfortably leaning on each other. They felt no need to talk. The slight motions of their bodies did all of the communicating that they needed. They both felt that it was nice to feel the quiet confidence and accord between them. It made them feel as if they did truly fit better than they had previously surmised.
      It was the call of nature that broke them up, and Ted walked her to the public restrooms. Knowing that he was due, he entered the men's section and ran into the man that had caught him in the parking lot of Harris's.
      "Not you again."
      "I'm sorry to bother you."
      "Right. Sure you are."
      "I honestly am. You are making a terrible mistake."
      "I told you. Come clean with me, and I'll give your advice serious consideration. Why you expect me to follow the advice of a stranger that won't be honest with me is beyond me."
      "I told you. I have this talent."
      "And. . . .
      "It's no use. You're as stubborn as ever."
      The man reacted as if he had said too much and walked out in a hurry. Ted decided to keep the incident to himself. He didn't want to bring up the subject with Sheryl. He was tired of discussing it. He met her outside, beginning to wonder about the man's remark about being as stubborn as ever. That indicated that the man knew him previously. He was sure that he'd never known him before.
      He decided to leave the park and head for someplace private. He asked Sheryl where she wanted to go, and she indicated his house. They got in his car and drove to his home. As he was fishing the keys out of his pocket, he noticed a small thin package leaning against the door. He picked it up and set it under his arm, then unlocked the door. He set it down on the coffee table and went to the bar to mix the two of them drinks. He returned to find Sheryl eyeing the package.
      He set the drinks down and took it from her. He opened the wrapper to find a video cassette. It had no label and was in a type of storage box that he had never seen before. He set it on the table.
      "Aren't you going to play it? Might be something racy."
      "Might be something boring."
      "Aren't you curious?"
      "I'm more curious about you."
      "Aw, that's sweet. I have to use the restroom. Get it set up and I'll be back."
      She left and Ted slipped the cassette into the player after turning on the TV. Much to his surprise, it was his own face that appeared.
      "I was afraid that it would come to this. Turn this thing off and put it away if Sheryl is still with you. You've got to get rid of her. Take it from me to me that you truly need to see Brenda tonight."
      Ted was shocked to sit and watch himself on the tape. His image had to be thirty years older than he was at present. He heard the bathroom door open, and he stopped and ejected the tape. He sighed.
      "What is it?"
      "A commercial for electronic parts. Private advertising. Not something for the mood."
      There was a knock on the door. He went to answer it and there was Henry and Susan. "Come on in."
      "We just came to tell you. . . ."
      "Tell me inside." He ushered them in the door. "Tell me what?"
      "After you left, Brenda stood up, growled your name with a few obscenities, then stormed out the door."
      "You came over here to tell me that?"
      "She was really mad, Ted." added Susan.
      He sighed. "Brenda, Brenda, Brenda. I wish I had stayed at home tonight and worked. I'm sick of hearing of her name. People act like she's my wife, for heaven sakes. Sheryl, could I talk you into a rain check? I may as well get this over with so people will shut their traps and leave me alone. I doubt if I'd be decent company after this."
      "Sure. Just don't take too long looking me up."
      "Henry, would you drive Sheryl home or wherever she wants to go? It's the least you can do for interrupting."
      "Uh, yeah, sure."
      "Then go. I want to hear silence. Sorry, Sheryl."
      "I understand."
      The three left. Ted waited for the car to disappear, then turned back to the TV. He turned on the set, returned the cassette to the recorder and rewound the tape. He started it, and all he got was snow. He fast forwarded it with picture and found it to be fully blank. He ejected the tape and hefted it in his hand after a visual inspection revealed nothing showing. It felt funny to him, so he took it into his shop and cut open a side that would not interfere with further playing.
      Inside he found a battery and an electric coil and circuitry. He sat down and removed the circuit board. A number of the components were unfamiliar to him. A test on the oscilloscope showed it to be a medium frequency pulse generator strong enough to drive the coil with a dual spot logic motion detector from an LED. He surmised that it was designed to erase the tape if he rewound it.
      Something of the workmanship told him that the device was of his design. It bore his style that another person might not be able to detect. But he definitely knew that it was a message from his future self. The man's remark in the park restroom about his being as stubborn as ever set in. He realized that the man must be a future associate of his sent to warn him away from a trouble spot. It spelled temporal travel. He wondered why he did not come himself and realized that it probably had to do with some sort of paradox of co-existence.
      It answered much and posed even more questions than it answered. He wondered if his own project had something to do with the possibility of temporal travel. Possibly not, but he realized why he was not being told the full story. Even now, he wondered if his current knowledge would create a problem in the time flux. His image had spelled some reluctance to speak, as if it were a last resort, the smaller of evils. He sighed and tried to quit thinking about it, with little success.
      He stored the remains of the cassette in a box and hid it away where the casual searcher wouldn't find it. It occurred to him that if it vanished, it would be his memory that told someone where to look. He returned to the living quarters of his house and sat down to his drink that he had not yet consumed. He had just polished it off when there came an angry knock at his door.
      "It's open, Brenda. Come in." he called, loud enough to be heard.
      The door opened, and Brenda came in, her eyes smoldering. Instead of letting her take the initiative, he let into her. "Damn you, woman. Do you have any idea what misery your childishness has caused me this evening? I'm of a mind to slug you one good. Sit down!" She was obviously not ready for such treatment, and she reconsidered staying. "I said sit down! I'm not in the mood for your childish anger. I know that life hasn't been fair to you. But I feel that I've been pretty darn good to you, and if this is the way that you want to treat me, then I'm of a good mind to tell you to go take a hike and get lost for good. You know good and well that I've been through just as rough a time as you have, if not worse. My misery has just been of a more reflective nature than yours. If you can't show me the tolerance that I've given you, then shove off. Now tell me what it is that I've done that is so damn wrong."
      Brenda seemed unsure of what to say.
      "Tell me before I lose my temper!"
      "I didn't like what you said about my art work."
      "You mean the time that I tried to encourage you to go back to your painting as a means of getting your feelings out? That was intended to be positive reinforcement. I'm sorry if I stepped on your toes. I had no idea your poor little ego was so fragile. I thought that your perspective on your work was more secure than that. So all this misery that you channeled through a bit of constructive criticism, using me as a scapegoat for your other problems, is why I've had to endure all this crap from everyone that knows both of us. What a pile. And to think that I gave you more credit than that."
      "Why are you so angry? I thought that you said that you held no grudge?"
      "I didn't until a short while ago, when everybody started getting on my case for not doing something about your problems, as if I were responsible for them, which I am not. I've been very busy, sacrificing myself and my enjoyment to an idea that came to me. It's my way of dealing with my own grief and misery. I stay focused, and the bad feelings resolve themselves. While they may not be as volatile as yours, mine are no less intense. I've been just as torn up inside as you are, but I don't take it out on anybody. I still try to give you and everyone the benefit of the doubt. Why you can't do the same, I guess, is the difference between you and me.
      "I suggested to you that you try approaching your art by dealing with relationships as a subject matter. I wasn't trying to tell you that your work stank. I was trying to give you a path through which you could focus and bleed off some of the anger that you are channeling against others. Maybe through your art, you'd discover the cause of some of your feelings for the way you've reacted to your daughter's sleezy behavior. I was trying to direct you to a means of self discovery and catharsis from your problems. You are so buried in your misery that you can't see what other people are doing around you."
      Brenda started crying. Ted stopped talking and let her cry herself out. He made no move to comfort her.
      "I'm sorry, Ted."
      "You should be. But what the heck. What I want is for the matter to be dropped. The quicker that we resolve this and get back to where everyone isn't on my case about you, the better. Do you know what your problem is? You take life too personally. You feel that everything that everyone does is directed at you. It's not. Most people direct things toward themselves, not you. People follow their own standards, not yours. And if you are going to have any chance at happiness in this life, you have got to let people go their own way, within reason, as in short of rape and murder.
      "Wake up, Brenda. I know that you are having a rough time. I've done my best to give you all the room that you need for that. My heart cries for you and the misery that you've suffered. But you expect too much from people, and that is why you have such misery. Until you learn not to not take things as if everything was your business, you are going to be miserable. You are not anywhere near the center of the universe. You're just a little bitty tiny part of it that bears no significance, just like everyone else. Quit taking yourself so seriously. There are far better ways to approach life. Far happier ways. Shape up, unless you're tired of having friends. All you're doing now is getting rid of the friends you have.
      "Now, I'm sick and tired of this whole affair. Can we bury the hatchet, so that the next time that I go out in public, I will be allowed to have some fun, rather than have my nose rubbed in someone else's problems? Heaven knows that I have enough of my own. You don't see me running around trying to set things straight and causing everyone else a pile of grief, as much as I feel like doing so. I want to keep my friends. My friends are important to me. More important than anything I do that is creative or constructive. Can we get beyond this, or do we just call it quits and I just stay away from the people that you frequent until they reject you for treating me the way that you have?"
      "I'm sorry, Ted."
      "I'm not looking for sorry. I'm looking for something other than apologies. Apologies take forever to untangle. I'm looking for forgotten, not forgiven. I've got a mind full of project that has my focus for the time being. I'm looking for interaction that gives me an abundance of energy and inspiration to complete this brain sucker. Anything that slows me down and robs me of impetus gets shut out for the time being. If you're a true friend, you'll see that and give me what I need to get it done, like I've done for you in the past. When you have been busy with your work, I've done the same for you, stepping back, giving to you when you came up for air, and not demanding of you when you were busy. To me, that is being a friend."
      "Okay."
      "Okay, what?"
      "Okay, I'll try to help you."
      "Help me by helping yourself. Lighten up. Forget your daughter. Disown her and be over with it. Turn yourself toward enjoying life. Learn to smile when it rains. Laugh at trouble. Tell it that it has no hold on you. Tell it that you are too strong to let it step on you. Tell your misery to take a hike. Quit taking things so personally. A part of you has to stay detached to survive. Now show me that you are serious with a smile. That's how we'll get through this mess. Laugh at yourself. Laugh at me. Laugh, confound you. That's what I want. I want good energy. I don't want your tears. I want
      your chuckles."
      "It's not easy."
      "Never was. Get your morosity out in private if you must live with it. Share your spirit of strength with your friends and the same will be returned in kind and the strength will chase the blues away. Laugh for me. If you need a joke to get you started, think of how stupid this has all been. That's the second biggest joke I can think of at this given moment."
      "Second biggest? What's the biggest?"
      "The future. Plans and schemes. Hopes and dreams." Ted started laughing. Brenda didn't come close to catching the implications of his hilarity, but the laughter became contagious, and they were soon laughing and hugging.
      She ended up spending the night at his house. They stayed up all night and talked until dawn, catching up on the time that they had missed because of her anger. She headed home with the sun.

      On Monday, Ted found a letter in his mailbox among the usual bills and junkmail. It had no stamp on the envelope. He opened it first, recognizing his own penmanship.
      It read: "Sorry to have ruined your weekend with Sheryl. Take my word that you are better off not getting in too deep with her, as you'd have probably done without my intervention. I'm not going to tell you anything you haven't yet surmised. I'll rather clarify a few things that won't rub fate the wrong way.
      "There are periods in time that we now in my time refer to as thin, as in membrane thickness. These are the times of pivotal fortune, where things are won or loss. You just passed through the thinnest of your life. Settle for the fact that you did the right thing. Knowing too much about it at your current point in time would defeat all the effort I've gone through to see myself through the most critical time of my life. Had you not settled the score with Brenda, she would have done something that would have wrecked your chances of succeeding with the project. As you can surmise, this is not just a personal venture. I had a lot of backing on this, to give you some idea of the scope involved. Things are fine now, settled as they should be. It was touch and go for a while there.
      "Don't let the implications go to your head. Not that my saying thus will stop you, if my memory serves me well. Life will get interesting for you after you finish the project. Stay with it and find out what I already know. It will be worth the trouble, even if it does get you a reputation for being stubborn. Throw this letter away when there is a knock at the door. Destroy it later."
      There was knock on the door. "Well, at least I keep my memory of past events when I get old." Ted crumpled the letter and dumped it the kitchen garbage can with the dated left overs that he had earlier emptied out of his refrigerator. No one would retrieve it to read it. He went to the front door. Sheryl was standing there.
      "I have this rain check. Don't mind that the sun is shining."
      "Come in, come in. Allow me a moment to find some remnants of red carpet. I know I have some laying about somewhere."
      "Get everything settled with Brenda?"
      "I think so."
      "You hope so?"
      "I'm pretty sure I did."
      "I suppose you have proof."
      "Not anymore. Now you and I have spoken enough of Brenda. I don't want her name mentioned again."
      "Whose name do I mention?"
      "Try mine, breathlessly."
      "Teddy, you read my mind."
      "I read my crystal ball."
      "Your crystal ball?"
      "Came with the mail just today."
      "And what does that crystal ball say about you and me?"
      "Make the most of it while it lasts."
      "My kind of crystal ball. Where is this ball of yours?"
      "I threw it away."
      "Oh?"
      "It's a stinker. Besides, you can't live one day at a time with a crystal ball in the house. It takes away all the fun of not knowing and finding out as it happens. How boring it would be knowing the future. There would be no anticipation. And I am filled with anticipation."
      "You don't mind my dropping over in the daytime, do you?"
      "All the better to see you in your splendid glory with, my dear."
      "Don't bother mixing me a drink. You will be more than sufficient."
      "Right this way. The future lies in this direction."
      "Lead on, oh seer of the future. Show me all you see."
      "I seriously doubt that you want to know all. But don't stop. I like what I hear. By the way, do you like stubborn men who dare to cross fate?" said Ted, closing the bedroom door behind them.