Homer is devastated. He has lost his Kora and her apple pies. Homer enters Dr. Candella’s Wish Machine to find answers for his ruined life.
Homer wouldn’t tell me what it was he wanted to find out. It was of small matter anyway. I was sure no one could bring anything with them from an alternate world. Only belatedly, after I agreed to let Homer enter the Wish Machine did I remember Wanda Benoit’s Guess What prize of the little heart that I brought from the Thurman Butts event. I also recalled the Little Giant locomotive exchange, Horace’s keys and the engagement ring Ms. Collyburn brought back after her visit in the Wish Machine. Was it possible for Homer to repeat what happened to me? Since that phenomenon was not always repeated, I doubted Homer would bring anything back from his trip. I agreed to allow Homer to enter the Wish Machine.
* * *
Fifteen minutes later Homer awoke from his trance. For five minutes he did not believe he was back in R-Prime. The poor fellow blinked and shook his head with amazement when I told him how long he had been in the Wish Machine.
“You say I was there for only 15 minutes, professor?”
He looked to me slack-jawed, unable to accept that truth.
“Yes, Homer,” I said.
“How can that be? I lived in that world for two years’”
I did not bother to explain the Second Law of Reality; time speeds vary in alternate realities. Even when he looked at the clock above my desk and saw the date on my desk calendar, confirming my statement, he could still hardly believe it.
He smelled like apple pie. I saw that he had something clutched tightly in his hand but his fist was closed tightly and I could not tell what it was. When I asked him to record his experience, he did so but I could tell he was in a hurry to leave.
“I was on vacation a second time from my job as a janitor. It was just like before. On my way to the Grand Canyon, I came to Rooster Flats again. It was exactly like the first time. When I saw Kora’s apple pie sign I stopped at her restaurant and went in and ordered apple pie. It tasted just as good as before. Kora came out of the kitchen with another piece of pie.
When I saw her again I nearly went mad because I remembered that she had thrown me over for Armand Bolivar. I hid my feelings because I saw right away she didn’t know who I was and didn’t remember anything about our past life together. It was the first time she ever saw me. I nearly gave in because she looked so beautiful and her apple pie smelled wonderful. I gritted my teeth because I knew this was not like the first time. This time I was here to get my revenge.”
“That night I went to her house. Like the first time, she baked me an apple pie. This time I watched where she hid her special spice. I saw her go in the kitchen and take a Maximo coffee can out from under the kitchen sink. This time I was gonna make sure I would get a hold of Kora’s secret spice.”
Homer’s unusual tale had me on the edge of my chair with anticipation. Instead. Homer lapsed into silence. He had a happy grin and when I prompted him to tell me I wanted to know what happened next. Instead, he persisted in a stubborn silence.
“That’s all there was, professor. I just woke up and came back here.”
I knew there was more. He was holding something back. Homer got up to go refusing to take my check. He left my office and I heard no more from him for a week.
Next episode: What had Homer found that he refused to reveal? The next episode tells all… Homer realizes his dream. At the pinnacle of his joy apple pie is his undoing.
Gene Paleno is an author and illustrator living in Witter Springs.
