The Calendar
A Short Fantasy Story
Leaves blew down the sidewalk on the chilly fall day. Devin shoved his hands in his coat pockets to help them warm up a bit. He cursed himself for not wearing a thicker jacket, being that it was much colder than he anticipated.
Yet even the cold wouldn’t wholly ruin Devin’s mood. He needed this breath of fresh air before the big presentation he’d be giving later that day. Just thinking about it gave him anxiety, but he quickly stopped that train of thought by looking at his surroundings.
A little antique store squished between two more significant buildings was not too far down the city block. It looked out of place with its dirty red bricks and a worn-down sign that read “Mary’s Antique Shop.” The windows were slightly tinted, though it looked like they hadn’t been cleaned in years.
Compared to the tall buildings next to the little shop with large white brick, one with elegant architecture that people paid close attention to. They were corporate-owned businesses with the money for flair.
How the little antique shop was still in business after all these years was beyond Devin’s understanding. Especially given its state, it was a wonder if anyone ever visited such a store. And with that in mind, Devin decided to enter the shop, thinking it would give him the distraction he needed while also answering his curiosity.
The door dinged as it creaked open, slamming shut behind Devin, causing him to jump. He wasn’t expecting the door to swing back so forcefully, but upon observing the place, it fits with the rest of the items in there.
Knick knacks were strewn about, hung off the ceiling, and attached to the walls. Wooden shelving units held a random assortment of toys to books, having no organization whatsoever. Near the back were more oversized items such as an old piano that looked like it was in its last years at best, a wooden table holding other miscellaneous items, and television from the 1970s.
Devin wandered around the store, amazed by what he saw, feeling like he stepped back in time. Walking the aisles, he held up various items to check condition, seeing whether they were purchasable in any way. For most things, sadly not. The building’s owner who ran the store didn’t keep anything in good condition.
He made his way to the back of the store, observing the larger items up close. The piano had keys missing, and several strings were cut. The table was badly splintered with more items in worthless condition. And the television didn’t even have a back half to it that gave it any functionality. Devin didn’t understand if this was a store or a trash heap.
“Hello?” Devin called out, realizing he didn’t see any employees handling the store. No one answered him, even after a couple more attempts. Whoever worked here was either deaf or not here, which confused Devin as to why the store was open then.
Devin wandered to the back of the store, towards the only door there. He cracked it open, immediately bombarded by a rotten smell mixed with sulfur. The room was dark, but upon flicking the light on, which flickered randomly, Devin saw a tiny empty office. It looked like it hadn’t been used in a long time. The weird symbol painted in red on the wall right above the desk was the only thing to note. Devin didn’t recognize it as anything in particular but still felt off by its presence.
Not able to stand the smell anymore, Devin closed the door and walked back through the store towards the front door. He had had enough of the place, still unsure what the point of it was doing here. It was clear the building was an old antique store, but it didn’t look in business anymore, nor did it look like it belonged in this year.
Nearing the front door, Devin noticed a calendar in his peripheral vision. Though it looked old and the pages were slightly torn, the date showed the current year, including the current month of November. Devin walked over to it, looking at the images of shadow people staring back at him on the page above the month. It was in a forest under a purple sky. Devin didn’t recognize the picture from anything but was intrigued by it, if not frightened.
He flipped to December the next month, seeing a similar picture of the shadow people on a simple background. That was when Devin noticed the same strange symbol from the office on the page, in the upper right corner of the picture.
Devin flipped again to January, seeing a similar picture and the same symbol. The room felt colder now than before, and Devin looked outside instinctively to gawk at the snowfall. It was still autumn in his mind, still November, and though it was possible for snowfall in November where he lived, it was usually near the end of the month, not the beginning.
Furthermore, the snowfall was heavy, covering at least afoot. How Devin didn’t take note of this sooner, nor how it fell so quickly baffled him. Devin could have sworn that before he was about to leave, there was no snow on the ground before seeing the calendar. It didn’t make sense.
Devin looked back at the calendar, having a ridiculous thought about it. He flipped to February, then March, looking outside as he did so. The snow melted rapidly before his eyes while the rain took its place. People strolled by, faster than humanly possible, while cars looked to be flying. Then everything slowed to normal.
Devin stood there, jaw as low as it could go, staring outside at the absurdity of what he was witnessing. He cracked the front door, peering out to verify the world was in March, not November. He wondered whether the windows were a trick, but they were not.
Backing inside, Devin went to the calendar and flipped a few more pages to make it to June. The rain stopped, and heat soaked the area, causing Devin to feel warm in his light jacket. People walked in typical summer clothing as they went about their days like nothing was wrong. Devin just stared.
He stared for a long while, contemplating over his discovery. He wondered if he were simply crazy. Nothing made sense to him anymore. Time itself just changed the way it worked, or it always worked this way, and Devin just discovered it.
He didn’t know what to do with the information he had. Telling people might make them accuse him of being ridiculous, but something like this couldn’t be passed up. He had to try. Devin took the calendar with him and rushed out of the store, leaving the world in June as he planned his next move.
It took time, but eventually, Devin found an audience with a company specializing in technological innovation. He didn’t know where else to turn if his discovery was science or fantasy came to life. Anything felt worth it, so he turned to the first group that would grant him an audience.
“Hello,” Devin said, “My name is Devin Lock. I have discovered something truly remarkable.”
“Hello, Devin,” one of the board members said, “Please, tell us what you found.”
Devin revealed the calendar.
“A calendar?” another man asked, looking puzzled.
“Not just any calendar,” Devin began, “This one can move us forward and potentially back in time.”
“That is how calendars work,” the same man said.
Devin realized the explanation wasn’t enough, “No, what I mean is it is literally can teleport us ahead in time. It was just November for me, and I flipped through this calendar to June, and now it’s June.”
The group looked at each other, still completely confused by Devin’s claims. He knew they didn’t believe him, and he was prepared for that.
“Here, watch,” Devin said. Once everyone was looking, Devin started on June, the current month, and flipped several pages to September, when fall would start.
At first, nothing happened, which worried Devin. He looked outside to see if leaves were falling, but they weren’t. Devin flipped a few more pages to December. The outside still showed beautiful sunshine without snow in sight. Devin checked his phone, which read it was 75 degrees outside and that the month was still, in fact, June.
“Any day now, Devin,” said a woman behind him.
Devin didn’t look back; he just stared outside for what felt like an eternity. He didn’t even object when security eventually came in and escorted him out. His expression never changed. Confusion.
Days went by after Devin’s humiliation. He didn’t know what to do with himself. Time forwarded for him. He missed his presentation for months. The company he worked for fired him. He had nothing but his long-overdue apartment that was about to evict him.
This calendar was his focus, his obsession. He thought he had something.
“You’re going back,” he said to the calendar as if it would understand him. “We’re going back. I have to make this right.”
Devin took the calendar and marched back to the antique store. It looked as run down as it did when he first laid eyes on it. Devin walked in, calling out for the owner to see if they were around, but to no avail.
He placed the calendar back on the wall where it originally was. Then…he flipped the dates back, all the way to November when he first discovered this filthy place. Once there, Devin looked outside as he took out his phone. The outside looked right. There were leaves on the ground. And for confirmation, his phone read the correct date.
Relieved, Devin pushed on the front door to head out, but it didn’t budge. He went harder with no give to the door, as if it was glued in place. Devin called out to the people walking past, smacking on the door for their attention. No one looked over.
He turned around in frustration, determined to use the items in the store to break the windows if he had to. He had enough of the place for a lifetime.
Devin stopped abruptly when he saw the shadow people standing all around him. There was no expression on their black voided faces, but two white eyes stared back at him. The things floated half a foot off the ground. There was also a sudden ice-cold chill to the room.
Devin tried to take a step back but couldn’t as his body pressed up again the front door. He remained speechless, unable to form words.
“Devin,” one of the shadows said, though the voice echoed all around him, so it was impossible to tell who said it. Instead, Devin kept looking between them all.
“You have broken the rules, Devin,” said the same echo.
“Wha- what rules?” Devin said, his voice shaking.
“You may go forward,” the voice replied, “But you can never go back.”
“What?”
“Time must not be changed once it has happened. You will face judgment now for your foolishness.”
Before Devin could say any more to defend himself, the shadows covered the distance between them and Devin in less than a second. He felt a spike of ice shoot through his body, and the last thing he heard was a scream off in the distance.
This story was written and published from Reedsy’s prompts on Reedsy’s Weekly Prompt Contests: Set your story during a sudden change of season….
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