The Life and Times of Johnny Plotpoint

"Do you want coffee?"

"Yes." Johnny was sure about that. It seemed crucial that he have coffee for some reason. Most of the time, he passed on the coffee, but for some reason, he couldn't pass it up. Things were starting to turn around. This is how it's supposed to be, he thought. She asks questions, I know the answers. Just like always.

"What kind?" She asked, expecting another five minutes of question and answer.

"Mexican Chipulte" he said, confident that everything was back to normal.

The waitress looked like she had been slapped. It was more than just surprise at the fact that he knew what he wanted. It looked like he had just insulted her mother. "Just a minute, hon. I'll have to check with the baristas on that one." She left without writing down the name of the coffee.

Johnny sat at his table for a while, waiting for the waitress to return. He picked up a spoon and looked at the back of it. He could see his reflection-twisted and misshapen. He turned the spoon around to get a better view, but his reflection just turned upside down. He put the spoon back down on the table and picked up a chrome napkin dispenser. He looked at his reflection in the chrome and liked it much better. He checked his hair, then set the dispenser back down on the table. He pulled out his pack of cigarettes and shook it to get one out. It flew out and landed on the table.

He looked around to see if anyone had been watching. At a table over by the counter, the waitress was talking to an older gentleman who had a computer in front of him, but she seemed interested in what he was doing and he didn't think she had seen him.

He picked up the cigarette and pulled his zippo® brand windproof lighter out of his pocket. He flipped open the zippo® and struck it in one motion. It jumped out of his hand and clattered across the table. He picked it up and looked at it. It wasn't supposed to do that. He struck it three more times before it finally lit.

Johnny tossed the cigarette up at his face and tried to catch it in his mouth. It hit him in the eye and bounced back down onto the table. His lighter ran out of fluid and sputtered before going out completely. He looked at it, then over at the cigarette. His eye hurt.

Johnny felt an uneasiness come over him. Suddenly this little coffee shop felt very small and Johnny, for the first time in his life, felt like he didn't belong here. This wasn't his world. He looked around for anything he could find - that he could connect with.

In the inside pocket of his leather jacket was his copy of Astounding Science Fiction that he had bought back up the road. He had read the magazine many times, and he liked it a lot - one of the few things he liked or disliked. He pulled the magazine out of his jacket. It looked much like it had when he bought it - a few more creases here and there, but it was basically in good shape.