Welcome back. The journey between two worlds continues.
Chapter 02 – Puzzle
He took a few steps back and looked at the car. It had no resemblance to any Volkswagen he knew. Or any car he had ever seen, for that matter. With the little knowledge he had about cars, he would dare say this looked like a Tesla and a Lexus had a kid.
“Damn, I’m really late…”
As soon as he touched the door handle, he saw the same blue field enveloping the car. He looked around, hoping to see someone, anyone, who could confirm or deny what he was seeing. Either answer would be definitive.
But there was nobody around.
A sharp squeak made him look up. A seagull. Here? They were tens of kilometers from the ocean.
“That’s odd,” he thought, and with rehearsed move opened the car door, threw the bag on the passenger seat, and almost dropped the last piece of sandwich. He filled his mouth with it, put on the seatbelt, and had a quick check in the mirrors. Everything was as it should be. No adjustments needed. This proves once more that this is indeed his car.
He lifted his hand to press the start button near the steering wheel, but there was no button.
“What now?” he said, looking around.
“Oh, here it is…” he said victoriously, pressing the little blue button near the gear lever with the obvious “Start/Stop” written on it.
“Good morning, Nathan,” a soft female voice said as soon as he pushed the button. “We are a bit late, but the traffic looks OK. We can reach work without being late and without breaking any speed limits. We don’t want to be late again, Nathan, do we?”
“Jesus. That was scary. The car is talking now?” he said, looking around, somehow hoping someone was in the car with him.
“Are you OK, Nathan? Yesterday you said your chronic headaches subsided.”
“What?”
“I can send a notification to Mr. Brawnson that you have an emergency. Should I plot the route to Dr. Thomas?”
“Doctor who now? Wait… no. Work. I’m late, damn it.”
“Certainly,” she said, and the car started moving. Instinctively, Nathan grabbed the steering wheel and pressed the brake.
“Did you forget something, Nathan? Would you like to switch to manual mode?”
“Do I want to… what now? Are you really what I think you are or… damn it…”
“Nathan, are you OK? I think we should really see Dr. Thomas. From the looks of it, you’re experiencing fragmented memories again.”
“Fragmented memories my as…” A high‑pitched sound cut him off.
“What the f…” Another high‑pitched sound.
“Stop it! What’s going on?”
“As per your instruction, Nathan, no swearing is allowed in the car. Remember?”
“I told you that!? And who are you then?
“I’m ANDLAI, the Assisted Navigation Deep Learning AI. But you call me Sara. Without an ‘h’. You are very particular about that. When drunk, you even call me Sis. So, Nathan, please relax. I’ll let you know when we reach Dr. Thomas. We just received the appointment confirmation. Mr. Brawnson has already received the notification for a day off. So, relax. I will let you know when we arrive.”
The car’s glass darkened, soft music started playing, and he felt the car moving while the seat adjusted until it was almost in a vertical resting position.
He really wanted to say something, to stop the nonsense or make sense of it, but he couldn’t. Not physically. He simply couldn’t, because somehow seeing a doctor felt like the right course of action. Even though it made no sense, it felt right.
“This must be some kind of sci‑fi nonsense,” he muttered, and before he knew it, he fell asleep.
“Nathan. Nathan. We arrived,” Sara said softly as the seat adjusted back.
“What?” he said, trying to get his bearings by scanning the surroundings through the now‑transparent glass. “Where?”
“Dr. Thomas. Is waiting for you,” Sara said and opened the door. “Go on. I will wait for you.”
Nathan was still unconvinced this was the right move, so he dragged his feet as he exited the car. As soon as he was on the clear, the door closed behind him, followed by a short beep, the sound of the doors locking. The car drove off, leaving him standing there, puzzled, without a clue what to do next. With a precise maneuver, it occupied a rather tight parking spot.
“Mr. Crossword? Nathan Crossword?”
A young lady stood there, wearing a pink blouse,transparent enough to reveal the blue bra underneath, and a short dark‑blue skirt. Nathan smiled and nodded.
“Dr. Thomas is expecting you. Please follow me.”
He suddenly felt uncontrollably happy. And so, he simply followed her, looking almost hypnotized.
They passed through the sliding doors. The receptionist paused her conversation on the phone and, almost giggling, said, “Welcome, Mr. Crossword,” before quickly returning to her call. “Are you serious? He did that?” Nathan heard as the young lady stopped in front of the elevator.
“Third floor, Mr. Crossword,” she said, as if he had asked, making a soft gesture toward the lift. He found it a bit odd and wanted to ask for a few details about this Dr. Thomas. But a soft bell sounded, announcing the elevator’s arrival, and the doors opened.
He could barely feel the lift moving, and without the small display showing the floor numbers, he could have sworn it wasn’t moving at all.
But the surprises weren’t done.
Stepping out of the elevator felt like stepping into a botanical garden. The huge, curved glass, the soft light, the flowers, the plants, big and small. Even the leather chairs surrounded by greenery felt like part of the garden.
“Have a seat, please,” the young lady said softly. “Dr. Thomas will be with you in a minute.”
Without delay, she turned around and returned to the lift. Nathan raised his hand, and as he opened his mouth, the last thing he saw was her smile before the doors closed.
He needed a moment to process what he was seeing. He couldn’t recognize anything, and yet, as soon as he sat down, he picked up a magazine without even checking if he knew it was there. He opened it,and immediately jumped up, throwing it on the floor.
“For crying out loud, what just happened?”
“Nathan? You may come in now,” a voice said behind him making him to turn around.
He had imagined Dr. Thomas as a middle‑aged man with grey hair and the beginning of baldness. But instead, he saw a stunning woman with long dark hair, dark eyes behind small glasses, and a breathtaking figure. He could barely process what he was seeing, and for a moment he wondered if he was on some kind of candid‑camera show.
“You may come in, please,” Dr. Thomas repeated after he failed to react.
He shook his head as if waking up, and with precise, freakishly precise movements, as if rehearsed countless times, he picked up the magazine, placed it exactly where it had been, pivoted 90 degrees on his left heel, and walked toward her.
As he got closer, he caught her perfume. Light, familiar, almost mesmerizing.
“Please, Nathan, come in,” she said, letting him brush slightly past her as he entered.
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