The Projectors Dream

Episode 2

I scroll down to find his profile picture and click on it, he looks exactly like the guy I saw in my dream. I read his profile and notice that he is single, and he lives in San Diego. I send him a friend request and wait for a reply.

"Bruce... hi! I'm Emmanuel. Do you think we could meet sometime?" I message him.

"Hi Emmanuel, yes sure. What do you suggest?" He replies.

"How about tomorrow evening?" I ask.

"Sounds good to me, where would you like to meet?" He asks.

"I'll be in front of McDonalds at seven o'clock tonight." I tell him.

"See you then." He says.

The next day at 6pm I pull up to the parking lot of McDonalds. I get out of my car and check for Bruce. I see him sitting on a bench and wave to him. He waves back and stands up.

"Hello Emmanuel." He says.

"Hey Bruce." I say.

He extends his hand and shakes mine. "My name's Bruce, nice to meet you." He says.

"Nice to meet you too." I tell him.

We walk into McDonalds and sit down at a table. I order food while Bruce orders some coffee. While we wait for our meals I tell him about how Stella introduced me to her family yesterday. "So what brings you to New York City?" I ask.

"I'm visiting my brother here." He says.

"Do you live here?" I ask.

"No, I'm from Los Angeles." He says.

"Well, that's pretty far away." I say.

"I know. But it's been really nice being here." He says.

"So how do you know Stella?" I ask.

"We've known each other since high school." He says.

"Wow, that's great!" I exclaim.

"Have you ever been to L.A.? It's beautiful there." He says.

"I've never been." I tell him. "I actually moved here from Florida."

"Oh wow, well, it's certainly different than anything you're used to." He says.

"It's definitely different." I agree. "Do you like Stella?, you know, as a girlfriend?" I ask.

"Yes, she's wonderful." He says.

"I bet you guys are dating right?" I ask.

"I wouldn't say we're 'dating', but yeah, I'd say we're pretty close." He says. My heart sinks, he's in love with her... maybe I can change his future, I think to myself... I grab his hand, he seems shocked at first but I don't give him time to pull away. Suddenly I see his future with Stella projected onto my eyelids, I will for him not to propose to Stella. And all of a sudden His future changes, I see Bruce marrying a Chinese woman named Mei-Ling instead of Stella. The visions end and I let go of his hand.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to freak you out." I say.

"It's fine, just a little strange is all" Bruce replies.

I look at him and smile, "Sorry again."

"That's okay" He says.

"I'm just surprised that you're so far away from your girlfriend." I tell him. "Oh I don't have a girlfriend" He says. "So are you still interested in my friend Stella?" I ask. "You know what? For some reason I think I like my friend Mei-Ling more" He says.

"Really?" I ask.

"Yes," He says. "Stella might be too much for me" He tells me.

"Are you sure?" I ask.

"Yes, I think Mei-Ling is perfect for me." He says.

"I can't believe it!" I say. "Who knows, maybe Mei-Ling will be perfect for you." I smile. We both finish our orders and head out of McDonalds. I thank Bruce for meeting me and drive back home.

I go to bed early that night, exhausted by the events of the day.

On Thursday I go to work and my boss asks me to stay late. I nod and begin working. At 4:30pm I receive a phone call from one of the employees, he tells me that his car has been towed because he parked on a street that doesn't allow parking. "Would you mind taking care of it for me?" He asks.

"Sure thing." I say.

I drive to the impound yard and retrieve his car. When I return to work at 5:15pm my boss asks me to come to his office. I follow him upstairs and he closes the door behind us. "I want to offer you a promotion." He says.

"Oh, really?" I ask.

"Yes, you've worked hard here and deserve it." He says.

"Thank you." I say. "When do I start?" I ask.

"Right away." He says.

"Great." I say.

"Now, why don't you get started immediately?" He asks.

"Of course." I say.

"Good." He says.

I begin typing on my computer. I hear footsteps coming up the stairs. I look up and see my boss leave his office and head downstairs. I see Stella walking up the stairs into my office. "I heard about your promotion, I'm happy for you" She smiles.

"Thanks" I tell her.

"I need to talk to you about something." She says.

"Okay." I say. "What is it?"

"I'm going to take a long holiday this summer." She says.

"That's great!" I tell her.

"I thought I'd go to China." She adds.

"What?! No" I say. Is she still thinking about Bruce? I wonder.

"I was wondering if you could cover for me while I'm gone." She says.

"You're going to China?!" I ask.

"Yes." She says.

She's clearly still in love with Bruce, she wants to be Mei-Ling. What am I going to do l? I can't let this happen. I quickly grab unto her hand but something strange happens, I can't see her future. All I see is the black of my eyelids. I am shocked. I let go of her hand.

"Why did you do that?" She asks.

"I couldn't see your future." I say.

"You can't see my future? What are you talking about?" She asks.

"Erm, nevermind" I say.

"But I need your help! I can't go to China without you covering for me!" She says.

"Yes I can cover for you but please don't go yet" I say.

"Why not?" She asks.

"I have a surprise for you" I tell her.

"What kind of surprise?" She asks.

"Just wait and see." I tell her.

"Okay." She agrees.

"I'll cover for you but only until after the summer." I tell her.

"Thank you!" She exclaims.

I head back to my desk and begin to type up my report. But I can't concentrate, why couldn't I see Stella's future? I can't let her become interested in Bruce again. What happened to my gift? This must be karma, I have to ask my mother what is going on. I leave work early that day, I'm sure my boss will understand, I drive home but when I arrive I can't find my parents anywhere. Oh yes ofcourse they are moving today I think to myself. I will have to call my mother. I dial her number.

"Emmanuel, where are you calling from?" She asks.

"I'm at home Mom, where are you?" I ask.

"We're at our new house." She says.

"You're not at the old house anymore?" I ask.

"We sold it." She says.

"When will you be back?" I ask.

"We're not coming back" she says.

"Huh?" I ask.

"We're not coming back." She repeats.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"We're moving to San Francisco." She says.

"That's a long way away!" I say.

"We're going to visit my sister there." She tells me.

"Why don't you just move to San Diego?" I ask.

"Because we sold our house and we don't have any money." She says.

"Then why did you sell the house?" I ask.

"We had to make some changes." She says.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I ask.

"You never asked." She says. "Look, Mom, I need your help. I'm not having dreams anymore, I can't see anything. What's going on?" I ask. "That's what happens when you try to change the future too often, we call it, the block. Your dreams just end." She explains. "What?! No! How do I get my dreams back?" I ask her. "You'll need to drink a healing remedy, but they're not cheap." She says. "You can buy one or you can make one yourself" she adds. "How do I make one? Can you show me?" I ask.

"Sure, its made of water and your will power." She says.

I hang up and head to the kitchen, I find an empty bottle in the trash and fill it with water. I then add my will power to it. I will it to bring my dreams back. Then I drink all the water.

Nothing happens... I am still unable to see Stella's future.

I go to bed that night worried about my gift.

The next morning I am getting ready for work when I hear a knock at the door. I open the front door and see Bruce standing there. "Hey Bruce!" I say. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see you." He says.

"That's nice of you but I'm busy right now." I tell him.

"Can't I come over later?" He asks.

"No, sorry" I say.

"Are you sure?" He asks.

"Yeah, I'm sure." I say.

He looks disappointed but leaves.

I go to work like normal and get off early. But before I leave my boss calls out to me. "Yes? " I answer. "I'm firing you" He says. "What?! Why?" I say shocked. "I gave you a promotion only for you to slack off the first chance you get, this kind of attitude will not thrive in this business..." He says.

"I'm sorry sir, I just got confused." I apologize.

"Well I guess I have no choice then." He says. "I wish you luck." He says.

I walk out of the building and drive home. Once inside I grab a glass and fill it with water. I will it to restore my gift. Nothing happens. I am still unable to see Stella's future. I call my mother and ask her how much the healing remedy costs, she informs me it is 100,000 US dollars. I nearly gasp. I don't have that kind of money!. I then call Stella and ask her to meet me. She agrees and heads to my house.

Once she arrives I pour the water onto the floor. It begins to glow. A few seconds later it stops glowing and turns back into regular water. I realize that the remedy is working. I drink it and suddenly my gift comes back! I can see everyone's future now, even Stella's. I can't believe it. My gift is back. Thank God. "So why did you want to see me?" Stella asks...

"I want to marry you." I tell her.

"Oh Emmanuel!" She says.

"Yes, I love you." I tell her.

"Are you serious?" She asks. I quickly grab onto her hand all of a sudden I see her future and I'm in it! I see us marrying and having three children but we are so poor!

"Stella, I know we have some problems but I don't want to lose you. Will you marry me?" I ask.

"Yes." She says. "But I heard you got fired, how will we survive?" she adds.

"Don't worry about it, I'll fix it." I promise.

"Okay, but I'll need to give my mom the ring and ask her permission." She says.

"I'll take care of it." I reply. "So where do you want to go on our honeymoon?" I ask.

"We should go to San Francisco" She suggests.

"Okay." I agree.

We get married in August and begin planning our trip. The end.