A World without Life

Ever since I was little, I could stop time. At the age of five, everything around me would stop for a second. I was very young and didn’t quite understand it. It didn’t happen very often, so I think that’s why I forgot about it. It was only later that it came back. When I was 12 years old, Déjà vu showed its ugly face. It started in class with the teacher asking “Alright, now, what is the answer for question…?” and he paused for a second or so, like he was holding his breath. He was no longer Mr. Brown, but an identical wax model of Mr. Brown. He stopped long enough for me to actually start paying attention, put on a puzzled face, and have a question that rhymed with “What the duck is going on?”
“…five? Anyone? Yes, you Dan.” Just like that he came back after being stuck for a moment like a scratched CD or a damaged vinyl. As soon as I began to think something was wrong he came back. I looked around the room for someone with my reflection their face. Someone who was thinking the same as me, sitting down completely dumbfounded. Someone to whom I could say, “I know right? What was that?” But no one was doing what I was doing; I was the odd one out. They were all either staring blankly half-dead or sitting up straight with their hand held high almost touching the ceiling.
“Emit…” I turned around almost getting whiplash expecting a lecture. But I looked up only to find a motionless Mr. Brown staring at me with a pitiful face that would have been shaking side to side and letting out a sigh. “Again?” I asked myself “What is happening?” I started to panic.
“What?” I yelled. No answer. I stood up and screamed “What?!” No answer. “God damn it! Just speak!” I roared before opening my eyes finding Mr. Brown startled, wide-eyed, and leaning back. I looked around the class, spotting familiar expressions staring back at me. I slowly sat down not knowing what they heard me yell. “I’m sorry” was all I could say. I couldn’t blame them; if anything I felt the same way they did- confused, scared, and distraught.

It went on like this every day for the rest of my last year of elementary school. I didn’t overreact anymore, I just waited patiently. The lengths of the frozen moments were on average four to six seconds. It was horrible because the school days didn’t just appear longer; they actually were, for me anyway. Other than this nothing changed. I was kind of a loner and didn’t bother with social interactions. So, I just kept living and not living life in a way until I graduated from elementary school. The summer came and I was excited to do absolutely nothing. And technically I was right but in a boring way. Every time I did something, I had to wait. Everything would freeze and I would be stuck in time resulting in longer lines, longer conversations with my parents, longer video buffering. My life was a bad internet connection. It was somewhat, but not completely the worst stutter in the world. My world was constantly freezing like God was continuously pressing pause/play on his remote controller watching my miserable life, moment by moment. It was torture, until I decided to venture into the mysterious dimension that was: outside.
I took walks in the park and around my neighborhood. Suburbia was pretty boring except for its comforting silence, once time stopped. The summer was also a time for discovery. When I tried to ride my bike, inertia won and I bailed. I got up with a pounding headache and found my bike standing up right without the kickstand. I came to the conclusion that all living and non-living things stop except for me while in this frozen moment, which I called: “Limbo.” I couldn’t tell anyone about Limbo because obviously they would think I’m weirder than they already believed me to be. And so, I started training with experiments.
I can’t move any objects or people, which means I couldn’t escape a car crash or any vehicle unless there was an opening. Though the thought occurred to me that everything that I was wearing or carrying didn’t stop. I could only assume that I could stop time outside of a small area which covers my body like a force field that wraps around me like a timeless suit. I also, couldn’t become a superhero, for I wouldn’t be able to get the people out of the building- that was a disappointment. I also tried to eat, but no part of the food would move like trying to eat an inedible decoration, which was expected, being an object. I came up with a theory. I was still living during my time Limbo, though I wasn’t sure how it affected me. So, I thought that time stopped while I was in Limbo and resumed when I left. I didn’t know much about Limbo and the mysteries it held, but I wanted to take hold of this opportunity. And I did because by the time summer ended, I had learned to use my power.

Upon entering high school, I didn’t have much experience with my newly controlled power. Even so, it did have its uses. I could remain in Limbo for approximately ten seconds. The disadvantage to my power was not knowing the length of time in Limbo, for all I had was my brain. So I became really good at counting. I was like Rain Man except I needed to stop time to count. Still it was an amazing ability. No longer did I have to rush to take down notes. Sometimes when I was bored in class, I would pause people to see if they made funny faces. And I was never late for class. It got even better as time went on.
By my senior year, I could stay in Limbo for a full minute, and boy did that come in handy. I got to go to the bathroom without ruining my pants. However, I do have to exit Limbo to wash my hands, because the water won’t flow. I could even imagine what it would feel like to be frozen underwater like a caveman in a glacier. Lines were short as well, but my favourite perk was just being in the picture - a picture of everything around me. This ability of mine was a tool to find beauty in the world. Birds in mid-flight like they’re hanging from strings attached to the sky, the still smile of a beautiful girl, a maze of suspended snowflakes filling my vision like seeing through the static of a disconnected television. The wind ran through the air lined with leaves. I loved living in Limbo, and I realized how bad this was. I became comfortable living in a world of isolation. I heard nothing but saw everything. The thought of this power being bestowed on me was frightening. For it must have been some fluke. No one should be capable of what I can do. I asked myself many times “Is this alright?”
I went to university to study photography and film. I wanted to work with frozen moments. On my first day, I was late and used Limbo. I was running and turned a corner and hit something hard like a hammer hitting a nail. I fell back to the ground and started rubbing my forehead and looked up to see a girl doing the same thing. That’s how I met Alice, a brunette with a face like a doll – perfectly crafted. Our eyes met.
“Sorry, sir” she said “I’m a little late.”
Reason made me leave my state of awe. “Wait, how are you moving?” Why was she moving? Indeed. Apparently the answer was in the first thing she said to me. Alice and I were the same age, however, when she first saw me; she thought I was about 2 years older, which was later explained by her theory. Alice was studying physics and religion. She was trying to learn everything about our shared power. We started hanging out in and out of Limbo. After years of being alone, I finally met someone I could talk to. Alice’s theory of our power was that our bodies were in another world, but remained in a timeless place. As time went on in one world, the time stopped in the other. So, we aged no matter what. I was wrong to think I was stopping time. We were stuck between two worlds with Limbo being neither past, nor present, nor future. We were living in another world but placed in the world we knew only left to roam.
“Wow” I said “I think you may be right.”
“It’s just a theory” she said.
“Yes, but if you are right, I don’t think we should do it anymore” I said.
“You mean enter Limbo?” she asked.
“Yes, I think we shouldn’t be able to live two lives; especially since we’re not even living a life in our second one. To live in another world while living in a frozen world is meaningless. It’s not a life without the experience. I don’t want to grow old and not get to actually live. We have to leave Limbo for good, and live our life.” I said.
“You’re right” she said.
“You promise?”
“Yes, I promise” she said.
So, we walked down the street, listening to loud voices and seeing the bustling traffic. We sat down in the store and talked while time thawed and flowed around us. The birds flapped their wings, the snow fell, the leaves flew, and the beautiful girl’s smile danced in front of me.