Jordan and Stanley walked out of the office. Stanley scratched his head in disbelief while Jordan put his check in his pocket in satisfaction.

“What was that all about?” Stanley questioned. “I mean, how did—?”

“Stanley, was it?” Jordan interrupted.

“H—How do you know my name? I don’t believe we’ve met.”

“Your name tag.” Jordan pointed out. “I’ve heard a lot about you from a certain friend of mine.”

“Really? Who?”

“While I don’t agree with what they say and what they’re doing, but...” Jordan walked farther away from him with his head hung low. He stopped in his tracks and turned to face Stanley. “Never mind, forget it, my mind went elsewhere.”

“Ok?” Stanley didn't know how to feel about this.

“I want to inform you about that red-headed woman over there.”

“You mean Hilary?” Stanley guessed, pointing.

Jordan nodded. “Stay away from her if you know what’s good for you.”

Stanley took a step back as his mouth gaped open. “What? But why?”

“You may not believe this, but I’m from another timeline, and I’m doing this for your good, so don’t get any ideas—”

“That makes no sense. What did she do?” Stanley questioned.

“I can’t say, just don’t get involved in this, and don’t tell anyone about this either.”

“But why did you even tell me?”

“Isn’t your break over by now?” Jordan pointed out.

Stanley checked his watch. “Oh yeah, you’re right. How did you—?”

“See you later.” Jordan waved and walked away.

Jordan headed toward the other side of the aisles and shelves when he looked over and spotted Hilary talking to another employee while arranging more cans. He looked back and found Stanley talking to people as well. Jordan glanced again and walked over toward Hilary to exchange a conversation with her.

“Hey there, Hilary.” He greeted her.

“Oh, hi, Jordan.” Hilary noticed, stopped what she did, and turned to face him. “Why aren’t you doing your shift?”

“I am. The boss just gave me a promotion,” Jordan puffed out his chest and placed his hands on his hips.

“Aw, that’s not fair,” Hilary muttered, looking at the floor.

Uh oh, she doesn’t seem impressed. I should probably change the subject. “Um, nice weather, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, I guess,” Hilary muttered, rolling her eyes.

“I wasn’t bothering you, was I?” Jordan asked.

“Why do you ask?”

“Well, I was wondering if you weren’t busy—”

“I am.” Hilary interrupted. “I know what you’re going to say too, but my answer is no.”

“W-What was I going to say?”

“Why would I hang out with someone that treats others poorly?” Hilary thundered.

“But—”

“I even heard you were talking bad about me, and I don’t want to listen to you anymore. Goodbye.” Hilary finished as she stormed off in a huff.

Jordan stood there with his head hung low. He sighed in defeat, not sure what to do now. A tap on his shoulder made Jordan spin, only to find Stanley standing there.

“What are you doing?” Stanley asked.

“Ah, I was talking to Hilary,” Jordan replied.

“But didn’t you say that she could be a terrible person?” Stanley reminded him.

“Well, perhaps I was keeping my friends close and my enemies closer,”

“You sure? But she seemed so nice...”

“I can’t seem to watch over her at this rate now, or else she’ll think—”

“Should I go and—?”

“No, I can’t let you get involved.” Jordan interrupted. “I need to do this myself.” He thought about it for a while before his face beamed and sparked an idea. “I think you can help me out. Can you do me a favor?”

“Really? What kind of favor?”

“I’m sorry about before, but I’d like for you to head to the library and get me some tech books. Are you busy?”

“I don’t believe I am.” Stanley shrugged. “But don’t worry, I’ll try my best to help you out if you failed in your previous timeline.”

“Thanks, I appreciate that.”

.-.-.-.

After they finished work for the day, and the two went their separate ways, Jordan waited outside the market near the entrance. Once he exchanged glances to make sure nobody was around, he went to dial up a number again.

“Hey Melody, he’s on his way now. This is your chance. I told you this last night, so are we doing this? Come on; you said you’d agree— What do you mean I never—? Are you seriously—? But I— Ok, I’m sorry! I just wanted to try something different since we get nowhere with our plans. Look, make sure he doesn’t get back to his apartment for the time being!”

Jordan hung up and shoved his phone in his pocket. He looked up at the dark gray skies as the rain continued to pour down. Jordan ran off, placing his hands on his head to avoid getting too much contact with the rain.

Eventually, Jordan made it back to the Willow View apartment and closed the door behind him. He picked up a nearby towel and dried himself off. After wiping his feet on the rug, Jordan trotted toward the cabinets where the Landlord slept and went to steal the key to Stanley’s room. He hurried upstairs toward Stanley’s room and unlocked the door before entering.

Jordan looked around the place, trying to find his phone to put the plan into motion. He spotted a small pocket knife in the drawers and another key. However, not before long of searching the area and finding nothing, the door behind him moved its knob.

Seriously, Melody? I thought I told you—

Jordan panicked and rushed over to crawl under the bed as the door opened fully.

Stanley walked in and placed the towel on the coat rack before closing the door behind him. He had some books carried in his arms as he headed toward his desk and turned on the lamp. Stanley sat down in his chair and opened a book to scrutinize it.

“Alright, made it back, and got the books Jordan asked for,” Stanley concluded to himself. “Thank goodness I could get back before the weather got worse and night fell.” Stanley yawned. “I hope I can be of excellent use to him, though. Although, I should rest up and shower before I get sick...” His eyes drifted and drooped as he fell onto the desk, snoring softly.

When Jordan discovered the golden opportunity, he got out from under the bed. He meandered toward the sleeping Stanley and took out a small pocketknife. “Sorry, but you’ll finally get what’s coming to you, in more ways than you deserve.”