Because Geoff couldn’t wait to tell Zoë what he really did for a living (after having eaten his cheeseburger, of course), he decided that the best moment to talk to her would be immediately after he’d seen her that morning when he was on his way to Canary Wharf. In his excitement, it didn’t occur to him that it might seem a bit strange for her to see him waiting on the other side of the street right after she’d just said goodbye to a past version of himself, or that he now looked quite different. Although from Geoff’s point of view he hadn’t seen Zoë for a few hours, to her, it would appear as though he’d instantly changed into a nice suit and altered his appearance so he didn’t always look like he was about to audition for a part in a film set in a world where all self-grooming products suddenly ceased to function.
But this didn’t really cross Geoff’s mind—all he wanted to do was see Zoë, and tell her the truth about himself for the first time in two years.
Geoff felt his hands shaking slightly. He had waited so long for this moment, and now it was finally here. He could show Zoë who he really was, confess to her how he really felt. He didn’t know how she would react, didn’t know if she would tell him that she felt the same way, or if she would find the whole thing a bit awkward, but right now he was just excited about being honest with her. And if this all went horribly wrong, he could always rewind time and try again.
Which was quite handy.
But how on Earth would he start the conversation? Hi Zoë! Guess what? I’m actually a time traveler! No—that sounded a bit weird. Hey! Interesting story about me that I might not have told you—did you know I saved the world once? And that I’m a time traveler? Hmm. That also sounded a bit weird. Hey Zoë! I was just thinking—how would you like to go and see a dinosaur? No, no, no. These were all weird ways to start up the conversation. But then, that was the problem with being a Time Rep. As careers went, being a Time Rep was weird.
Weirder even than those people whose job it is to separate the girl chicks from the boy chicks on farms by squeezing poo out of their bums.
Well, he needed to think of something to say quickly, because Zoë was now walking right toward him. In the end, he opted for the ever reliable “Hello,” but just as he was about to open his mouth to speak, she put her headphones in, started humming along to her music, and walked straight past, rummaging around in her bag for the next batch of mail.
She hadn’t even seen him.
Geoff turned around on the spot and watched her walk away.
Well, that didn’t exactly go as planned.
Should he go after her? Tap her on the shoulder to get her attention?
No—that would scare the hell out of her (Zoë was very jumpy), and this was a big moment for him.
He wanted it to be perfect.
Maybe he should try that again.
Rewind.