I eventually saw another time traveller when I was in a huddle on a sidewalk under a camouflage of trash. I appeared to be hiding. Pulling the damp paper, slick garbage bags, and soggy blanket off my head and seeing the state of me troubled me.
“How did you know?” I asked from the pavement.
“The shape was familiar. Do you… live here? Now?”
“No, I was supposed to be keeping watch on you- Me- on us. Here.”
This also gave me some heartburn. I sounded worried, scared, and I did not enjoy the suggestion in my tone of a vast conspiracy dragooning me into this external introspection.
“‘Supposed to,’ says who?”
“I can’t tell you. It would make things complicated.”
“Complicated for who? For me?”
My eyes glazed and crossed up at me a little at that. “Y- yes?”
“I mean me-now. Or me later, maybe.”
“It doesn’t exactly work like that. It would make things complicated if I told you. We should have kept the reuben sandwich quiet.”
“You didn’t tell me” I reminded myself. “You just asked.”
“What we said was enough. Maybe too much.”
“And now there’s some kind of time police looking for me?”
“No, it’s much worse than that.”
“What’s worse than time police?”
“Nothing.”
“Exactly.”
“No, there’s nothing coming for you.”
“Like, some sort of gaping void chasing me?”
“No, again, it’s much worse than that. If there was a gaping void coming for you, that would be something. There’s nothing. No consequence; no great punishment waiting. There’s no auditor suspending the axe of retribution, and no cosmic correction roiling your way. We just shouldn’t have said anything about the reuben.”
“I really shouldn’t say anything else at all,” I said matter-of-factly, standing shakily and brushing off my filthy pants.
“I shouldn’t have said that, in fact,” I said from behind me. Two of me shouldered past me and brusquely grabbed my arms. “That’s enough damage for today.”
I tried to protest as I frog-marched me away, leaving me standing on the sidewalk in the refuse pile of my hiding place. From down the block, I turned briefly and gave me a look of anger I scarcely recognized, putting a chill in me.