Missing the Same Bus Stop Before the Meeting

Missing the Same Bus Stop Before the Meeting

I was late for work and kept missing the same bus stop on my usual route. The street looked like my neighborhood but also like the town I grew up in, mixed together. I went into the corner shop for coffee and my old classmate from high school was behind the counter, except she also felt like my current neighbor, same face somehow. She said I already paid yesterday, in another version of this morning. I checked my phone and the date kept flipping between this year and 2014. I tried to call my partner to explain I’d be late, but the call connected to me answering from our kitchen, telling myself not to take that bus. I hung up, embarrassed, and ran for the next one, but my legs barely moved. When I finally got on, everyone was me at different ages, looking tired. I just wanted to get to the office before the meeting started.