The morning cup never felt good and relaxing as she sips another round of coffee. She was greeted by the wind as she hailed towards the bench. Her daughter accompanied her towards the porch. Her wrinkled hand stretched out to her clothes and pulled a pocket watch. There lies a photo of a young couple with both smiles.

"Lovely, isn't it?"

A sudden knock broke the serenity. The daughter quickly went to their front door. With whispers and murmurs, she went back together with a group of teenagers.

The old lady scoffed, who would've paid a visit to an almost century-old lady this time.

"Hello, Alice," A young lady in her early twenties initiated the conversation as the deafening silence cannot answer the question they've meant to ask.

"I'll go get some biscuits." said the elder daughter as she heads to inside the house.

"Now, what does this old lady may offer to you, young lads? I bet this isn't for charity." She chuckled.

Hesitantly, a boy stepped in from the back. Droplets of sweat can be visible from his clean-cut hair. He grabbed a phone-like machine in his pocket, with few taps, he showed the old lady a group photo, it was a picture of the teenagers. "I'm Isaac, ma'am." He zoomed the image to a young man with slicked-back hair.

"Does he look familiar to you?" he asked.

The old lady clenched her pocket watch as she lifted her head twice.

"This is Colton." Isaac started. "Our friend who went missing after the exploration.

One... and two.."

Click.

Graduation hats flew to the skies. College was definitely not for Alice. She left her hometown to pursue the dreams of a young countryside girl, yet all she found as she escaped to the grassy field was a place filled with empty souls. There's no green here. Towering buildings filled the busy streets. City lights were the sole reason why she's still hanging on to this monstrosity, and also the thrilling moments. One summer was all it took to make her appreciate the city.

"Are you sure you won't stay here till your summer break ends, Alisson?" Her mother asked.

Alice rolled her eyes as she packed another set of clothes, "Mom, I told you to stop calling me that name." She sighed, "And yes, I'll be focusing on job careers. There's only a year ahead for me to choose."

"Alisson." Her mother tried to pull her arm gently. Worried about her daughter, she heaved a sigh. "Yes, mom. I won't do anything stupid or get pregnant before I have that rolled paper called a diploma." She laughed.

Yeah, I won't do anything to get pregnant, but I don't know about stuff called stupidity. I can lie to anyone, not to myself. Alice thought.

Long-distance travel made Alice fell asleep. A three-hour-long bus ride, you're pretty lucky if there's no traffic incident. In these long avenues, it's either a government project taking place or someone was dumb enough to not notice the pedestrian lanes, which causes traffic jams. Lucky for her, it was only a hot-headed luxury car owner who arrogantly overtook a public vehicle. Incidents like this usually take another hour-long, waiting for authorized personnel to sum up the situation. Half-awake, half asleep. Alice peaked at the enlarged windows. It was getting dark. It's past 6 o'clock in the evening, yet she's still stuck on the road.

"Geez, even here, there's traffic." A man beside him spoke.

"They're everywhere." She half-baked replied. The stranger chuckled. Alice noticed the man with his clothes is pretty daring. He wore a fitted white long-sleeved onesie; his footwear was silvery.

Power Rangers costume. He'll pass as the Silver or White Ranger. She thought.

She got nothing to do but wait until the tension lightened up; she initiated a conversation with the strange guy. "So, where's the party? I'm into cosplaying, too." She started browsing her phone.

The stranger lifted one of his thick brows. "What cosplay?"

"You know.. with all the.."

"Oh! This?" The stranger amusingly flaunted. "This is a suit, matched with—" A loud honk interrupted their neat conversation. The driver instructed them to change vehicles. An old car like what they're riding tends to malfunction nowadays.

Irritated, Alice quickly grabbed her bag and headed to the doors. Leaving the stranger behind. When he suddenly shouted, "Hey, I'm Colton. Nice meeting you!"

"That's the first time I met him. Memories were vague, but I can still remember what he's wearing that day." Alice laughed. One girl named Cindy pulled out a picture of a group with Colton in it. All of them were wearing long-sleeved onesies. They differed in color. Colton was wearing white.

"This was our last picture before we set into an exploration," Cindy added.

Days after meeting with the stranger boy named Colton, Alice filled out the form for the new semester. A fourth-year college girl who has nothing to do aside from studying. Being a hopeless romantic doesn't give her ideas of having a prince charming even before graduation. She just wanted to end things with college so she can immediately leave the dreadful facility. For all she knows, she'll be in her 60s alone.

Not until she saw the new transferee.

"Hello, my name's Colton... O'neal. Yes, Colton O'neal."

Pretty awkward to have an introductory part in college. The professor explained that he's from another country, although his name doesn't fit right and an advanced student. Reaching the last year in college at 18. That doesn't sit with Alice when she's already 22 years old.

"I guess we're mates for a while," Colton said as he sat right behind Alice.

"I never got the chance to know your name, though."

"Well, I'm Alice. You're wearing neat clothes. That's good."

Colton laughed, making his eyes disappear with his bow-shaped curve. "That was my.."

Alice noticed how hesitant Colton was. "You're cosplaying?"

"Sort of." Colton chuckled. "Can I stick with you for a while? I'm not pretty familiar with this state."

"I guess I have no choice."

A day in a university means a day in being sucked into the depths of hell for Alice. Yet the new boy managed to get a grip of it. Perks of being an achiever. He even managed to get along with one of the terror professors. Colton was called in front to solve an equation on one of their subjects that none could answer.

"Are you a math wizard?" Alice asked while they're in the cafeteria.

"Don't you have friends?" Oliver replied as he scanned the whole room.

No one tried to sit beside them. Students were busy chattering about how men should dress in the 70s. Others were busy with their phones. An online game was released a week ago, and everyone went into chaos in purchasing it. Alice kept her mouth shut for the rest of the day. She never really had friends since she started college. Her friends from her hometown become distant when she left. Colton noticed how Alice immediately built a wall between them. He thought his words earlier were pretty rough.

The sun was about to set when the proctor decided to sum up the lesson, as he gave their take-home activities. Colton approached the snub Alice. She noticed it and quickly averted her attention in fixing her bag. She immediately headed the door and walked fast along the hallway without turning her back to the dumbfounded Colton. Ice cream can never be wrong. On her way home, she stopped by a convenience store and bought double-headed ice cream. She summarized the day's lesson on her head as she sat towards a bench near the store.

It's been an hour since she left the school and another hour until her dormitory's curfew will be lifted. Minutes passed, an old lady sat beside her. Alice noticed her different clothing.

A foreigner? she thought.

"I'm no foreigner." The old lady chuckled. "But I do have something to say to you." She continued. Alice was shocked. She thought that this lady suddenly read her mind, yet she shrugged off that idea. Alice's probably looking at her for too long, making her notice how foreign it was in her eyes. She's good with old people since her hometown was filled with one. Yet this old lady doesn't seem to radiate that kind of energy. Her fierce aura depicted a strong lady, probably when she's in her prime.

"About what?" Alice asked. "About a boy named Colton."

The next day, Alice saw Colton wandering in front of their university building. He's looking over the flowers that were personally planted by the school director itself. She just heaved a sigh as he approached him. The night before, Alice couldn't sleep. She couldn't grasp what the old lady said to her earlier that night. She rolled over her bed and reached for her phone.

"Colton, let's talk." She commanded. Noticing how dead serious Alice was, he quickly left his imaginative bubble.

"But we have classes." He replied. Alice grabbed his arms and pulled him towards the main gate. Leaving the school behind. They went to a café. She was greeted by the owner, Lucille. After picking up the seats and ordered drinks. Alice tried to suppress her overflowing emotions. Colton turned his gaze away from Alice. He started a conversation about flowers, yet Alice quickly intercepted.

"Are you a time traveler?" Alice finally asked. Colton's glowing face darkened. Alice noticed the changes; she didn't really believe what the old lady told her. She can lie to lots of people, but she can't lie to her own self.

"Colton O'neal wasn't really his name. It was Colton Wilbraham. He's from the year 2050 and a time jumper." The old lady started. "My time here is pretty enough to explain things, so listen carefully." Her statement contradicted what's happening to her body. It's like a holographic version of a human being. Alice couldn't apprehend what the lady was telling, yet the story was convincing. "If you still doubt me, just remember that I can't lie to my own self. I've made a diary from what I remember." She laid her clenched fist; as she opened it, there lies a small chip. "In our time, they made chips like this." That's what kept Alice awake.

In that chip lies a hundred entries. Starting from the day she met Colton at the bus, up to the cafeteria scene. She read a few and stopped at one point.

It was a note: "Do not trust, Colton O'neal"