Letters from Time

Ch 2 - First Letter

A girl was seen sitting near the window, the sunlight coming through the window shining on her beautiful wavy brown hair. Yes, Selene was sitting quietly near the window. Her hands were busy drawing in her shabby sketchbook. She didn't look around at all, she seemed to be busy with her own world.

Suddenly the alarm on her cellphone rang, showing 07:30, time for Selene to go to work. Selene immediately turned off the alarm, put her sketchbook and drawing equipment into the bag that she had prepared earlier. Selene got up to leave her house, not forgetting to say goodbye to her mother.

"Mom, Selene goes to work first," she said a little loudly so that her mother, who was inside the house, could hear her.

"Yes, be careful on the road," said Selene's mother.

Selene stepped forward, she went from her house to her workplace on foot. Her workplace was close to her house so she didn't have to bother taking a vehicle to get there, just walk along the sidewalk then turn left and walk for a while to get to her workplace.

Selene works as a children's book illustrator. Because she is talented in drawing–Selene was immediately accepted to work there, for Selene this job was like a blessing because it was close to her home and of course in accordance with her hobby, especially the salary there was enough to support her and her mother. After her father left, her mother worked hard to finance their needs, now her mother no longer needs to work hard because Selene already has enough income.

Arriving at the office, Selene rushed to her desk and turned on her computer and tablet to draw. She sat comfortably in her work chair ready to do her work. Suddenly a hand patted her shoulder,

"Hey, Selene, let's go for a walk after work, and buy some snacks at the same time," said the person who patted Selene's shoulder–Mirei Karina was her name, she was a year younger than Selene, namely 28 years old, but her behavior was sometimes like a child's, not in keeping with her age and her graceful appearance.

"Just started working and already thinking about traveling, go to work. If you don't finish your work today, you'll work overtime alone, there will be ghosts, do you want that?" Selene teased Mirei, her co-worker.

Mirei immediately grumbled, her lips pouting. Mirei rushed back to her desk, intending to finish her work immediately so that she would not work overtime alone.

***

Time flies, now it's lunch time. They stop for a moment to rest and have lunch. Mirei immediately embraces Selene's arm, she looks so attached to Selene and Selene also doesn't seem to be bothered by her friend's behavior.

They chose to eat together in the company cafeteria. Now they sat in the corner chairs near the window, eating their food and chatting. Selene held a newspaper in her hand, she read it and then let out a small sigh.

"What is that? What did you see in the newspaper?" Mirei asked, looking at her friend.

"This is an advertisement that I put in the newspaper, until now no one has contacted me," Selene replied.

Hearing Selene's answer, Mirei immediately frowned.

"Huh? Do you seriously think anyone will contact you? I thought you were just messing around posting ads like that, you've been posting ads like that for weeks. Will there really be a time traveler who will contact you?" Mirei blurted out without thinking.

"It may sound strange, but it can be explained scientifically," Selene replied, supporting Mirei's statement.

"I guarantee that no one will contact you, even if they do, they will be just playing pranks."

Selene sighed, she chose to remain silent to end the argument. She understood what Mirei meant that it seemed impossible, but for Selene it was something that was not impossible. Selene believed that there were entities from the future that could intersect with the present.

Lunch time was over, time to go back to the workroom and do their respective jobs. All the employees rushed to leave the canteen, including Selene and Mirei.

***

The time had shown 4 pm, time to go home, luckily Selene finished her work on time so she didn't have to work overtime. Selene rushed home, however, suddenly someone pulled her hand.

"You promised earlier that when I finished we would go for a walk," said Mirei, who was now pulling Selene's hand.

"Aren't you working overtime?" Selene asked.

"I have finished all my work today," Mirei replied.

"Hurry up, the restaurant will be closing soon, come on," Mirei said while pulling Selene's hand to follow her.

Now they were in front of the restaurant, the restaurant had just opened. A vintage style restaurant with a European style building design, quite unique and different from most restaurants. They entered the restaurant, sat at one of the tables.

"I'll treat you, just order what you want," said Mirei.

"No need to bother, I have money too," Selene replied.

"Are you mad about earlier? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I'll treat you as an apology, okay?" Mirei said in a low voice.

“It's like this, always bribing. Next time be careful with what you say," Selene replied.

That's how they sometimes have small fights. But they make up again. After they finished enjoying their meal at the restaurant, interspersed with chats and jokes between them. Selene and Mirei got ready to go home. The atmosphere that afternoon felt warm, even though the sky was starting to show a tinge of orange.

Each of them walked towards a different destination. However, Selene's steps did not immediately lead her home. There was one place that always tempted her to stop by–an old bookstore across the small street. The street was not so crowded, lined with rows of trees and plants that seemed to never tire of dancing with the wind.

The bookstore looked simple from the outside, but there was a warmth emanating from behind the glass windows. Purple wisteria trees hung from the roof, almost covering a quarter of the store, creating a fairytale-like atmosphere. The bookstore was like a place

a small escape for Selene, a basecamp–as she calls it–a place where she feels she can be herself.

The owner of the bookstore even knew Selene very well. Esther or often called Mrs. Ester is a middle aged woman who owns the bookstore. She is very friendly and kind, she lets Selene linger in her bookstore, sometimes she even gives Selene some snacks that she made herself. For her, Selene can cure her longing for her grandson who is now out of town.

Arriving at the bookstore, Selene went inside and browsed the antique bookshelves there. Selene's eyes fell on an old book with pages that looked newer than the others.

took it intending to see it, suddenly a letter fell from inside the book. Inside the old book was a letter from don’t know who, no name. Selene flipped through the letter, there was a small writing on the envelope of the letter that said:

"This is what you are looking for"

Selene was shocked when she saw the writing on the letter.

"Could this be the time traveler I'm looking for?" Selene thought.

Without thinking, Selene put the letter into her skirt pocket and put the book back in its place. She rushed out of the shop to go home, so she could see the contents of the letter immediately.