The sky was clear and the clouds had vanished into the upper layers of the atmosphere. The wind was blowing towards the east and made eerie sounds as it blew through the trees. The road was pretty quiet and very few people were passing by. A young lad was walking his way to the supermarket. Winter announced its arrival on the weekend and not many people were at the supermarket. Places like supermarkets are supposed to be filled with people on weekends but this supermarket was pretty small and had very few varieties which made it unpopular. The young lad bought his groceries and left the market.
While walking back down the discreet road, he saw an old man sitting with his small stall open selling items. When he took a closer look to the stall he saw the old man was selling old and antique items which could be used again. There was an old carpet, an antique flower vase, a small painting in a frame and a stunning watch. He took the watch in his hand and started to observe all the details. There were 3 buttons on the side, 2 on one side and 1 on the other. It had roman numbers but they were fixed horizontally.
“How much for this?”, he asked but the old man had an unstirring look on his face and said nothing. He repeated his question but the old man gave him his smile again. On the side of the stall a board was kept which had all the prices written on it. It was for $100, so the young lad kept the watch back and moved forward when the old man called out to him and said he would give it to him for $70.
After hearing the cost fall down he decided to buy it and keep it in his showcase. The old man took the money and told him about how old the watch was and how to read time on it. He took a deep breath for a second and warned him not to use the single button. He wore the watch on his wrist but he received a sudden shock from it. He quickly removed it and threw it away rubbing his wrist. He went back to the old man to give it back to him but it seemed that he had left already. He went home and kept his watch but soon he realised that there was a watch symbol engraved on his hand with blood. He kept washing his hand several times but it didn't go. He started guessing that the watch had probably engraved a mark on his wrist. He grabbed the watch and saw nothing on its back. To kill his curiosity he wore it again but it didn't have any effect on him so he decided to keep it.
He noticed that the time on the watch was wrong so he changed the time. It was 3:00 pm so he fixed the timing but something incredibly weird occurred. He lost his senses and blacked out.
After a moment he woke up again but found himself somewhere else. It was a vast forest which had huge mountains. He thought he was dreaming so he pinched his cheek but nothing happened. Soon he realized that he was wearing different clothes and had a different hairstyle, only his watch was with him. He had read many stories like this but never had he thought he would be stuck in one.
He was wearing a zookeeper’s uniform with binoculars hanging in his neck and black shoes. Seeing how prepared he looked for adventure he decided to look around and find someone. While walking he saw a man walking with a stick in his hand. He was wearing a hood so his face was covered. He kept walking and walking until he noticed him standing there. When the old man looked up to him, he realized that it was a young man who looked like he was in his 40s. He seemed like he was in a rush so he just waved at the boy and kept walking. Rather than stopping and talking to him he decided to follow him quietly. He kept walking and walking and he reached the townside. He was very happy after finally seeing the townside. While following him, he realized that everyone in the town was greeting him as he walked. He finally reached a small building which looked pretty old. He looked around the town and realized that it was a town in Vietnam.
He went and followed him till his room. The young man entered his room with a smile. The young man was about to close the door when he stopped it with his feet and peeped inside. He saw his wife holding their baby girl in her hand and a 9 year old boy standing beside the women. The two children were hugging and clinging to him as soon as he entered the room as if they already knew about his arrival.
He looked at the calendar and it said 1955 .
He realized that he was not only teleported to a different place but he had gone in the past. Vietnam was a beautiful and quiet place. The population was not much but it was a peaceful place.It was near the sea so it had cool weather. He went back and looked around the town. Everyone was happy and busy with their work. He decided to go back to his present so he changed the time on his watch to 6:00pm but he again lost his senses and blacked out.
After waking up he thought he came back but he was rather standing in front of a wooden house. It was quiet there and the house was located far from a town or city. It was in the woods. This time he was dressed in shorts and tshirt like a teenager. He had a pie in his hand and he realized that it was for the people of the house. He walked towards the door and knocked at it. It took a while to open the door but when it opened the boy was shocked to see who was the owner of the house. It was the same old man who sold him the watch. He had the same small eyes and frosty hair. The old man gave him a smile and asked him to come inside. He entered his small yet cozy house which didn't have much furniture but all the necessities. The old man spoke “We are still in the same neighbourhood but we don't meet often.” and laughed with wrinkles. The boy asked him about his family, but as soon as he asked him the old man’s mood dropped down.
“They all died in the war. In Vietnam in 1955.” The old man showed a picture of his family from his wallet. It suddenly hit the boy that the young man who he met in 1955 was the same old man. “Could you please tell me more about what occurred at the war.” asked the boy. “Long ago there was a war between North Vietnam and South Vietnam. The North was supported by China while the South was supported by the United States and other anti-communist allies. The war was from 1955 to 1975. All the citizens of Vietnam had to leave their hometown. I left with my family too but while we were on the bus was separated from my family. I didnt even imagine something worse could happen” he said with tears in his eyes and continued.
“A bomb was already planted in the bus my wife and children were in, and I didn’t know about the explosion until I reached Laos. I lost my family in just a few seconds and I couldn't believe it. I was in immense pain without my family but I had to move on and make a living so I moved here and now teach kids.”
The boy was too stunned to speak. He just greeted the old man and left. As soon as he left he quickly changed the time to 12:00pm and somehow he came back to his present. He wondered about the pain the old man must have gone through and yet he was smiling. He realized that the problems in his life were much less painful than what the old man had to encounter and understood that it was important to keep smiling and moving ahead in life. He kept the old watch on his table and went to meet the old man again.
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