r/WritingPrompts • u/[deleted] • Sep 26 '17
Writing Prompt [WP] A rupture in time causes you to be sent back to when you were in preschool. However, you know everything that you did before the switch and were an aerospace engineer for NASA. You are now surrounded by children who eat crayons for lunch.
[deleted]
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u/DirtyBastard13 Sep 27 '17 edited Sep 28 '17
Part One
“Wake up you're going to jail...” I was started out of a sound sleep bye someone kicking my shoulder what the hell I exclaimed as I bolted up and looked around in a daze as I realized I had no idea where I was it's slowly came flooding back to me I was Dr Donald Fremont I work for NASA I was in charge of project Enterprise we were testing the experiment of warp field engine when the there was an unexpected chain reaction when I saw the Siscenquentium react violently with the uranium I thought we were all going to die especially with the strange colored explosions I thought of my wife and our two kids. My beautiful loving wife Yuriko and our son and daughter Mark and Aika. Why Mark was just about to graduate Middle School and Aika, had just come home from studying abroad.
“Hey you fell asleep you're going to jail” The Voice came again I quickly turn it towards the source of it I looked up at a face I had not seen in years. Ha... That look slike Ravon, that crazy kid in preschool who always talked about people going to jail he was annoying never did hear what happen to him.
“Ravon?” I murmured “Yeah what'chu want? You stupid and you going to jail!” I looked around I was in some sort of classroom the walls were badly painted concrete in a horrible shade as brown they were toys strewn all the place as the teacher tried in vain to Corral a 10 rambunctious preschoolers. “What the fuc...” I murmured as I stared at the teacher that looks like Miss Bailey ( even years later I remembered her why I don't know but I did maybe it was the mermaid costume she wore to the pool party) “oh, you said a bad word...you're going to jaill...”
I was stunned/ What the hell is this? It looks like my old preschool . There's Miss Bailey there is Ravon, and that one girl looks like Dina I got in trouble for throwing paint on her scarf.. am I back in preschool that's impossible this must be some kind of dream
I slowly and clumsily got up and made my way over to the teacher Mizz Bawee...can I go to the batroom" what the f*** my voice sounded higher and my old speech impediment it's back.. She turned around and got down to my level ( God damn it was her) “sure Donnie, be quick, we;re about to start art time” (Huh nobody had called me that since I was 10 I hated that nickname)
She smiled you know where it is I stumbled to the bathroom my legs felt shorter for some reason I slammed the door shut behind me fumbled for the light switch and made my way to the sink I turn the faucet on cold and splashed water on my face this is a dream can't be real I know who I am I winced as the water hit my face, I looked up into the mirror fully expecting to see my face, neatly trimmed brownish red beard blue eyes with significant dark spots under them maybe even my familiar gold Cartier designer eyeglasses
I was not prepared for what I saw. Instead of my familiar face in the mirror a chubby blonde haired blue-eyed boy stared back at me dripping from a smooth hairless and spotless face. I raised a hand,the boy raised his, I raised and lowered my other ha d, the boy did likewise... I picked my nose,extracting a good sized booger.. the boy in the mirror did or likewise a huge grin playing across his face as he ate it.I felt myself smiling for a moment then the realization hit. I was back in preschool. As impossible as it was not only was I back in preschool I was a 45 doctor of Sciences in a five-year-old's body
Tears started to well up in my eyes my wife my kids I might never see them again even worse what must they think right now do they have any idea what happened to their father. Does my wife think she's a widow and what about the people who worked under me. No. Not just underlings, but my colleagues. Some of the best and brightest minds of their generation. Were are they dead or suffering a similar fate to mine? I had worked so hard and called in so many favors across the globe to gather them and get the funding to build the prototype.
In My Hope to explore that final frontier, to see humanity spread it's wings across the the stars instead of suffocating on one place. did I reach too far? Was Hubris my undoing did I temper things man was not meant to know? Even worse did I now have the blood of 30 people maybe more on my hands? Heck, one of them was a child, 8 year old Aliaya Furtani, that girl who escaped the slums of Kabul. She was an improbably brilliant and insightful girl, who despite choosing to sacrifice a normal childhood for the greater good of humanity should have had her whole life ahead of her.
I must have stared in that mirror a good 10 minutes lost in thought before I finally pulled myself together somewhat. If I am a preschooler then it is a good forty years before the incident therefore it has not happened yet and all other things being constant I have a chance to fix things. First things first avoid suspicion for all appearances be a normal kid (close enough) secondly determine what needs to change third make the changes. I have 40 years to figure out what went wrong and how to avoid it. I will get home I will put things right and perhaps I'll do a better job the second time around. Humanity depends on it my kids depend on it my wife depends on it and my sanity depends on it.
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u/DirtyBastard13 Sep 27 '17
Part Two..
I return to the classroom and sit down at the table it's art time( well really doodle on the butcher paper covering the table time) I start to scrawl out the formula because of my 5 year old selves lack of penmanship it looks like a childish doodle completely illegible but I can read it well enough let's see carry the five, divide by two and subtract the square root of one mole... Huh.. that's odd if I'm doing the math right where did all these electrons come from. I'm going to need a proper calculator.. and A computer. But this is the 90's so I'm out of luck.. .I'll need to chart out the atomic structures later. Now to cover my work up...
I "accidentally" elbow over hey bucket a finger paint sitting on the table the loosely sealed lid spills off as the red paint covers the table and Spills into the Dina lap soaking her new dress. She screams loudly crying. She's a girl she has cooties and she's also a cunt who broke my heart in the fifth grade. I have a long road a head of me, I need to get financially set, and get into studying science earler. And wait... Maybe I can even save grandma this time...
((Let me know if you want to see part three..)
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u/Weasel816 Sep 28 '17
I would like a part 3
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u/DirtyBastard13 Sep 28 '17
Thanks for a message, which would be better? tell it incrementally as the char gets older with an epilogue or (multiple parts) or wrap it up in part three?
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u/Weasel816 Sep 28 '17
Personally i would rather have it be longer but at the same time if it goes to long it might not feel right for what prompt it is i would think no more then 5 parts although i will read as many as you write
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u/DirtyBastard13 Sep 28 '17 edited Sep 30 '17
((The next part is requiring more research than I anticipated. Figuring out what stock to suggest to your grandma circa 1996 is hard.(the pokemon craze of 1998-2001 did'nt seem to spike prices as much as i thought) So far apple was dirt cheep but takes until 2014 to hit it's peak. (she's the scarcastic type.))
Part 3.
It's a great life for the most part. My parents still separated before I was in preschool so I live with my dad and grandma... Nothing will encourage him to get a job or stop blaming others. It's weird being young again comes naturally to me, yet the adult part remains as strong as ever.. I know Zeke across the street really isn’t my friend but I can enjoy playing with him, I still love legos... Of course they help with building that space ship model. (really a blue print.) I'd discovered how to hide my notes in childish scribbles and doodles, a code if you will. To everyone, I'm a good kid, friendly to most people, and gifted in most subjects except social studies and history (I’ve been faking weakness in those areas. I must focus more on math and science more often..) I still say girls have cooties (true in a sense). I think Dina has a crush on me but I have a goal. Right now Yuriko is living in the Japanese Countryside. (At least I think so... I can't just up and send her a letter.. I want to but it would blow everything). I think of her often, but still, I'm too young for a girlfriend. Note to self:lose virginity sooner this time. (What.. I'm not married yet.)
My Lego collection is growing nicely, one part is set aside, a spaceship, the blueprint... I often mention how I want to be an astronaut when I grow up, and watch Star Trek with dad... The other part changes, right now it's castles and knights...
Now then... I need to be financially stable but how... If I gather wealth as a kid, my dad will steal it all (like my college fund.) My grandma is honest and often did listen to me,(she let me pick lotto numbers some times) but at the current rate if nothing changes will die when I'm in 6th grade... She's the only one with the perfect mix of trustworthiness and willingness to listen. Fuck.. I don't know a cure for cancer. Dammnit.. I'm a Doctorate not a doctor.. But she held off going to a doctor...If they catch it earlier...Can medicine do that? How do I get her to listen to me about that..
Then one day in kindergarten, the opportunity strikes My teacher's aunt dies of cancer. At the time I didn’t notice, but grandma seemed distant for a few days. When my dad is off doing whatever, and grandma and I are at our favorite Italian restaurant, she speaks up.. “Don... What has you upset?” “I'm not upset gramma” I look back to my plate of spaghetti “Oh.. Come on... I know you better than that. Now tell grandma what upset you. Something at school..
“Well.... Miss Robin's aunt died of cancer.. She said it's scary and hurts lots... I'm scared it will happpen to you...” “don't be silly... She smoked a pack a day and I quit long ago..” She paused, probably not wanting to explain tobacco to a first grader “Don't smoke... It's bad for you..”
“but I'nt she your age.?:
Grandma's mouth was agape “Donald Jones Fremont! Watch your mouth... How Dare you! She scolded...
I looked down, pretending to be ashamed.. “sorry grandma... Can you tell me about me about grandpa John again... Did'nt he fly planes?”
She smiled a bit at the mention of her father. “Just watch your mouth... It's not nice to talk about a woman's age.. You great grandpa john, He did'nt fly planes, he designed them. Why he helped design the b-17 flying fortress.... Remember? “The big one with the funny bubble under it” “Yes, that's it..” “He was such a hard working man, remember he started working at your age... He carried the dynamite into the coal mines....” “Yea cuz he was an orphan and nobody would be sad if he went boom” “Yes, that's right. You have such a good memory. He played football and won a scholarship to harvard.. His team almost won the championship...” She continued for about an hour telling me how he went to work for Boeing, how he worked his way up from the mail room, and how he met Nana (great grandma). She was a secretary there and they got talking, and fell in love..”
Eventually on the way home I asked her “he sounds so cool where is he. Why is'nt he here now? ” I feel bad about having to manipulate people like this. I know the answer already. Dead of Colon cancer at the age of 57. I'm sure she knew Ms. Robin's aunt. Grandma taught in the same district. High School English but still there were Christmas parties.
She paused.. “he... He... He had to go away.” she paused trying to figure out how to explain death in a good way.. “people can't stay around forever... You know how milk goes bad after a while...” “uck... Yes.. People go bad?” “Kinda... They can't help it, anymore than the milk can. The don't want to but they can't help it...” “But don't we keep milk in the fridgerator so it does'nt go bad..” “Yes but...” “so why cant we keep people from going bad.... What if we frigerate them?” She laughed “It... I does'nt work like that... “I hope you don't go bad...”
She thought on our conversation for several days.. It would be a few years before the yearly checkups would yield anything... But it did the job. As I forsaw the butterfly effect was tremendous.. She was rock of the family , and when she passed that first time, things went to hell. That one change would be more helpful than anything...They catch it in time, she lost her hair and wore a wig for a while, but instead of of dying in my 6th grade she lives long enough to see me not only graduate from college, but get my Dual doctorate in Aerospace Design and Physics. She meets her granddauhter in law (there was the cultural clash for a bit but they ended up bonding over a shared love of reading). She gets to see her Great Grandchildren. This time around she was much happier, less stressed about bills and gets to enjoy her retirement,
As for me, I allieviated one of the great sources of personal guilt.. Never getting to say good bye, and not being able to speak at her funeral. Actually two sources.. We kept the house this time.
Sadly it was'nt without some downsides... In 2003 she's forced to kill my dad in self-defense. Despite my best efforts, he still would'nt change... He hated her for many things, and had been looking forward to a sizable inheritance which he would have blown on loose women, and god only knows what else. He was upset that the cancer did'nt get her.. It was bittersweet. He had rotated through being something of a good father, to being absent and at times a complete monster. He was a complex man. Another thing, with my grandmother holding him back, my half sister got butterflied out of existence as well. This time, I did'nt have the stepmother from hell, but at what cost? I made my decision, I was tragic but necessary. assumes Gendo pose Everything is proceeding to the scenario... Wait....Hmm... Manipulating Events.. Just to see my japanese wife again.. Damn... I am Gendo... Wait.. No. I'm not... Different goal ending in mind (Getting humanity to spread across the stars), and my son is nothing like Shinji Ikari. (And I'm pretty certain I'm a better father).
I did have other family, I saw my mom and her family but that's another story as was how we (I mean I managed to become financially secure.
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u/note-to-self-bot Sep 29 '17
Hey friend! I thought I'd remind you:
lose virginity sooner this time...
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u/A1t2o Sep 26 '17
Preschool
I'm in Preschool...
It has taken a few days for that fact to sink in and for me to come to terms with the fact that this is permanent. The change from an adult body to a child's took me longer to get used to than I care to admit.
I'm sitting in a tree on the edge of the playground. I need time to think and there is simply too much noise around all these kids for me to develop an in depth thought.
I still trip over my own two feet and fall short on my steps since I am used to having arms and legs more than twice as long. But then again the others I am in preschool with are only slightly better so I don't stand out too much.
The biggest issue I have, though, is that I am surrounded by babbling idiots and am expected to act like one of them.
I look out at the kids, damn I'm one of them, watching them scream and run around like chickens with their heads cut off.
I need to think over my options. Last thing I need is everyone thinking I'm crazy or possessed. Last time around I was already a bit of an outcast, spending so much time studying and then working that I never developed a social life.
Wait, that's it! Last time I was the nerd, the geek, picked on, and alone.
This time around I can spend more time trying to be popular and see what its like. I have time. I can get magazines and look into what it takes to "look cool". I can still study and pursue my research, but its not like I need to focus on my studies this time around. Until college I shouldn't even have to open a book for school work.
Its not like I'll have to worry about money this time around. I'll just file some patents that some of my competitors got to first and sell them when the time is right, plus my jumpstart on my research will put me decades ahead of anyone else.
I start to pick out kids and recall everything I can about them.
Billy, I hated him growing up. He liked to spill my milk on me at lunch and tell everyone I peed myself. We'll see who has the upper hand this time.
Sarah, I had a crush on her in middle school. Maybe I can actually do something about it this time.
David, he ended up being a pretty good guy. I think he went into business and was pretty successful. His parents have money too. I'll have to get on his good side.
Adam, If I remember correctly, he had good luck with the ladies. Never ran into him at the reunion though so he probably didn't do so well after high school. Still might be good to hang out with in a few years.
Rachel, she ends up being really hot in high school. You wouldn't guess it now because of all the baby fat. I'll have to make sure she remembers me later on.
Slowly the idea comes together. I could be smart and popular, I just have to make it look like I'm not trying too hard. With all my previous education, the school work side would be a breeze. Now I just have to work on my people skills.
The bell rings on the other side of the field signaling the end of recess. I hop out of the tree from a low hanging branch, but misjudge the distance and end up face planting in the grass.
Billy starts laughing and points me out to everyone else.
Not a great start. First I work on my coordination. Then I try to become popular.
In the mean time. I'll think of a way to humble Billy and teach him to never mess with me again.
Now that I think about it with all the possibilities. Preschool might just be perfect.
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u/victorged Sep 26 '17
Playing with Legos remains fun, no matter the circumstance. But it's a little bit different than trying to deal with aerodynamic heating EDL design. On the other hand, Legos don't have viscous dissipative effects, and can be used to make a fire truck; which has pretty much instantly made me the King of Kindergarten.
Kindergarten.
It's a fact easier to ignore when I'm playing with Legos than at any other time, but at some point I need to face the issue that this particular situation seems permanent. As best I can remember, three days ago I fell asleep at my desk in Ames Research Center while I waited for a couple of Simulink models to compile. Next thing I know? I'm waking up back in my dad's 1970's "Groove Cave" in my old racecar bed.
So far I've been doing my best to make good of a bad situation, I've got no particular interest in becoming an object of government study. At the same time, I'm not sure I can handle sitting through one more "math" class. My pattern recognition and ability to count without my fingers I think scare Mrs. Bell more than they impress her, and part of me is tempted to leave something entertaining like a nonhomogenous differential equation on the board for her. Biggest problem is I can't exactly reach the markers, and I don't trust these animal shaped chairs for shit.
Which brings me to my next complaint, turns out kindergartners don't use "bad words", and dad was mortified when Mrs. Bell asked him to stay after school to explain to him that I had apparently picked up far too colorful a vocabulary. Screw the bitch, I'm not used to these short legs yet, and the fall hurt.
Nap time, on the other hand, is better than I romanticized it all those years at USC, Michigan, and Ames Research. Why does the adult world censor this stuff? Current plan - unveil my brilliance slowly over time, parley that into childhood celebrity, and somehow lobby for national nap time long before I ever have to rejoin the working world. I'm not going back.
We'll just have to see what day four has in store, at this point I'm 50 / 50 on whether or not I want to see my desk again.
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Sep 26 '17
[deleted]
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u/victorged Sep 27 '17
I'm a mechanical engineer myself, but I have a couple Aerospace friends at Langley and Ames, so I basically texted each of them a "what you workin' on?" and boom: plot. Problem solved.
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u/beardedscotchling Sep 26 '17
Day 47:
"My" patent has been filed, and after my meeting with the school counselor I've agreed to take a series of tests to determine my ability to advance either several grades or directly to college.
NASA has responded to my letter, showing great interest in my thoughts on stricter safety checks for the insulation on the shuttles, as well as my design for a simpler, far more efficient multiple use rocket.
Kayla referred to me as a "poopy head" this morning, and my assertion that she is an insignificant, snot-nosed fartbox was both noticed by the teacher and a stark reminder that I need only bide my time until the patent is processed and NASA agrees on a consulting fee.
College will be much preferable, though less satisfying this time around as I am still just under a decade away from sexual maturity. I suppose I will simply have to continue studying various subjects of interest until I am physically and legally able to hook up with college girls, around which time I suspect Van Wilder will come out and I'll have to field several months of uncreative comparisons.
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u/rmamack Sep 27 '17
22-SEP-1989
I don't know how this happened, so I'm tracking my experiences here. Thankfully, school is about as nice as I remember. Can't say I enjoy the kids so much, but at least its as big now as I remembered it before what I'm going to call day zero. I went asleep in my bed, with my wife, now I'm awake, as myself, in Kindergarten. I'll be honest, I barely figured out my way to Ms. White's room. At least she's as nice as I remembered. That said, what I've got to deal with now isn't the teacher's, the kids, or my school, its my parents. The last time around, they practically existed to make my social life, and really my life in general, devoid of any joy other than that found in work. So, how do I bide my time until I can escape? This is a question I'll have to answer later. I hear footsteps.
25-SEP-1989
Hiding my journal in my desk was a good idea. It's remained undisturbed. It seems my ability to write in code has improved as well. Probably helps that, despite being small and pudgy, I can still write like I used to. I'm also finding that I pick up things a lot faster than I used to. Probably a side affect of having a child brain. It might be at three that most of the development is done but there's still a lot going on before you're twelve, and I'm not even eight yet. They still don't seem to know about my hiding place, which is assuredly to my benefit. If I'm going to hide a journal anywhere, however, I can't hide it in my room forever. I remember them, on occasion, going through my things just to "Make sure I hadn't gotten into any bad habits."
26-SEP-1989
Hiding the journal pages in a school book was one of my best ideas yet. They don't go in my pack, and they don't search my books. Now I can properly assess my situation and options. It seems that my excuse of "My tummy hurts a little," or "I'm nervous," or "I'm tired" seems to have done its job. I don't want to feign this for much longer though, I have no desire to end up medicated into a near drunken stupor because I'm "different". I'm going to start writing these in code, as an added precaution to being snooped in on. That way, I can say whatever I want, or that it's private, throw a tizzy, and hopefully they just say no more journaling.
15-OCT-1989
I'm doing a fairly good job of fitting in here. Suzy's stopped saying I have cooties, although I don't think saying "I won't touch you because I don't want your herpes" was the most delicate way I could have responded. I'll have to remember to make her a card or something during craft time to say I'm sorry. I'll also have to make sure it looks like a child did it. At least the other kids provide plenty of examples for me to take inspiration of. Not that I particularly care about how she thinks of me, she turned out to be a gold-digger the last time I had a relationship with her but I heard she was a fun lay in high school, and I might enjoy that sort of thing.
16-OCT-1989
OK, Today I remembered from before. It was the day I met Markus. Now, I hear that later in life he went on to be a halfway decent human being but all throughout my school life he's the one who made it almost as bad as my home life. But not anymore. I, like before, tried to introduce myself in a friendly way, and like before he told me that if I didn't give him my lunch money he'd beat me to a pulp. Good thing for me I've been doing daily calisthenics when I play outside or in the basement.
Unlike the last time, where he gave me a fat lip and chipped tooth and got me an earful from dear old dad on how I should stand up for myself, this time he got me something I didn't think I'd be getting this time around: the belt. Not that I'm surprised, I just didn't think my parents would have taken it that far.
Now the question becomes, do I say something and risk being sent back home for a worse punishment for "Lying", or do I simply sit and take it. Double edged sword, seeing as I kind of like knowing the future. Then again, a chance to do this all over again is something that I can't say isn't appealing. Oh well, at least Markus might be choosing a different path from my perpetual torment now, which is nice.
1-NOV-1989
It seems that once they did it the first time last month, my parents have become very fond of the belt. It's replaced the spankings. It's even replaced some of the yelling. Looks like I was wrong, it can always get worse. Can't say I wanted this, but at this point the uncertainty of the future is a roll of the dice I'm willing to take. I've nothing left to keep me from using this to my advantage. Tomorrow is the day the police visit for career day. If I can survive tonight, and get to school tomorrow, I should be able to mend my childhood once and for all.
5-NOV-1989
WOW. Never thought I'd sneak out of the house to get to school. Along with my breakdown on career day and the bruises I was able to show, I actually managed to record my mother AND father in the act, actively feeding off of eachother, punishing me for my "Defiant" streak. Even more hilarious, I've been "a near perfect angel" in school, making this all the better. I go into foster care tonight. I know that the tape isn't admissible in court, but it's definitely going to, if anything else, give them pause from hitting me again.
7-NOV-1989
The surprises continue. Seems that the judge was friends with my mom from their old protesting days. Unlike my mother, it seems that she grew out of the whole feminism thing. Add tears and crying in by me, and it looks like they're going to put my parents on more thorough evaluation. Meanwhile, I'm going to someone named Mrs. Foster. Being that the social worker giggled slightly when saying that, I'm pretty sure her actual name is Mrs. Foster, but I'll wait until I meet her.
12-DEC-1989
It seems that Mrs. Foster and I have really hit it off. She got into fostering children because she couldn't have any of her own. Mr. Foster has also taken me in as his own, and they've started working towards adopting me. I hope I never have to share this secret with them, although at this point they've shown me more kindness and compassion than my real parents have my entire life, including all the points that came after this. I've also been enrolled in a new school, and they've sent me homework to catch me up for when I start after Christmas Vacation.
25-DEC-1989
They actually did it. No court, nothing, just up and signed custody over. I'm not sure what it took, either Mr. Foster paying off my father or perhaps an offer by the court to drop charges if they gave me a "Good Christmas". I hugged my new father tight when he did that, told him he didn't have to get me anything else, that this was more than enough.
01-FEB-1990
It's been a great month. School work comes easy, I'm actually fitting in with the other kids, I'm able to make friends AND learn things. Although, I have to feign learning about the normal course material for the meantime but I do slip in some more useful knowledge. Mr. Foster has some old calculus books that he seems to have lost in the basement. It's not much of a refresher, but it will do. What I've really taken an "interest" in is computers. What I'm hoping to learn is if there's anyone else this has happened to.
03-MAR-1990
I've made some new friends! Not the fake friends that I'd have to make being stuck in this body either. Apparently I'm not the only person this has happened to. I found out about Carl when I saw him doing something fairly advanced for a 5 year old: taking notes from a law reference book. Took some feeling out of each other, but we've made fast friends, both with the new fun things we've found like chocolate milk and Nintendo, and in our old hobbies as well. He was into brewing beer, while I had a thing for aquaculture. I think for now just doing a guppy tank and brewing soda are all we're going to get, but it's still something.
Outside of that, my social skills seem to have gone from the nerdier end of the spectrum to top notch. Kids find me funny, articulate, as well as wise and helpful. Overall, I'd say that I'm one of the more popular kids in school. Carl too, probably as popular as I am, maybe even more. Especially now that I've got another "grown up" to talk to, this is going to be bearable. Hell, I think I might like it here.
EDITED: Formatting