Page 49 of Time Loops & Meet Cutes
“I had a feeling you’d like it.”
“Yeah? What do you mean, exactly?” I’m repeating a conversation we’ve had before, knowing this will lead where I want.
He shrugs, then goes to pull a pint. “I don’t know. Just did. It’s the oddest thing.” He sets the beer in front of me.
Okay. Here it goes. “We’ve actually met dozens of times. That’s why you knew my beer.”
“Dozens?No. You seem familiar, but there’s no way I couldhave met you dozens of times and not remembered your name.”
“You forget our encounters, but I don’t.” I grip the cold glass in my right hand as I prepare to tell him the truth. “I’m trapped in a time loop. I’m reliving June twentieth over and over again.”
He laughs, but it quickly fades. “Wait. You’re serious?”
“Yeah. I’ll prove it to you.” The words come out in a rush. “There won’t be any other customers until 3:25, at which point a man and a woman in their forties will walk in, both wearing Jays jerseys. He’ll order the stout. She’ll go with the IPA.”
When the couple enters at exactly 3:25, Cam serves them with a smile, but his gaze keeps darting toward me.
“So, who’s next?” he asks after they’ve claimed a table.
I tell him about the group of men two minutes before they enter. I predict their outfits. Their beer orders. Their food order: nachos without green onions.
Once they’ve been served, Cam returns to me. His usual smile is absent. “How are you doing this?”
“Like I said, I’m stuck in a time loop.”
“Is anyone else stuck with you?”
“I’ve found one other woman in the same situation. Her name is Avery. Once, I brought her here to meet you.”
He regards me for a moment. “Maybe you just know all these people and told them when to come in and what to order.”
“They’re not acting as if they know me, though.”
“True. But you could have asked that they not say hello. I know it’s far-fetched, but…”
“Not as far-fetched as me repeating the day? Yeah, I get it.” I consider what else I can tell him. “Earlier today, you got Iron Goddess milk tea.” I name the tea shop. “I also know quite abit about you because we’ve been on lots of dates. If I introduce myself to you and we get to talking, you slip me your number and we meet up later at the night market at Mel Lastman Square, where you’re going to talk to a vendor. You get bulgogi poutine and taiyaki.”
“Those do sound like things I’d order. What else do you know?”
“Your parents are from Taiwan. You have a degree in life sciences. You used to be in an all-Asian Matchbox Twenty tribute band.”
“Holy shit,” he whispers.
When he says nothing more, I wonder if I’ve screwed this up. Is he really creeped out? I might have to try again tomorrow. Ease into it a little more, though it’s hard to ease into something like this.
“The news,” he says at last. “If you’ve lived this day over and over—”
“Well, a Canada goose will cause a power outage in Scarborough later today. Also, a very famous actor who’s known for being devoted to his wife? His affair with a makeup artist will become public around four forty-five on social media. You’ll see. The taproom gets busier, but there will be a lull at that time. Pull out your phone then and check.”
“I can’t believe we’ve gone on so many dates and I don’t remember them.”
“Your subconscious seems to remember a few things. The first time I said I didn’t know much about beer and you gave me something to try, you started with a pale ale, then a pilsner, before going to the Corktown Hefeweizen. But now, you always start with the Corktown, like you did today.”
“Huh. I’m sorry, I’m just having trouble wrapping my head around this.”
“I know. When it first started happening to me, it was a struggle to accept it.”
“How many times have you lived this day?” he asks.
