The Hitchhiker's Guide To Romance

I’m hitchhiking through Georgetown, Indiana, when a stranger on a motorcycle pulls over and offers me a ride. We rumble past familiar landmarks—McDonald’s, Circle K, Gas n’ Stuff—kicking up dust as the engine hums beneath us. Without warning, he slams on the brakes, jolting me forward. We skid to a stop beside a food cart manned by an unexpected figure: my high school history teacher. The scent of sizzling burgers, hot dogs, and sausages wafts through the air as he flips patties with the same authority he once wielded over lectures. Moments later, a second vendor rolls up, setting up a neighboring cart stocked with chilled drinks, their condensation glinting in the sunlight.

The motorcyclist doesn’t linger. He revs the engine and swings us back toward where we started, weaving through the streets until we reach a modest house. He drops me off without a word, and I step inside to find my tutor waiting. She’s already sprawled across her bed, a laptop propped up with a video queued—something about physics or chemistry, one of those sciences that blur together in my mind. I join her, sinking into the mattress as the lecture drones on. My attention drifts. The equations and diagrams fade into background noise, and I glance at her. Her eyes remain fixed on the screen, unwavering, absorbed.

Restless, I shift closer and let my hand brush her leg. My fingers trace a soft, tentative path along her skin. She stiffens slightly, then turns to meet my gaze. Eye contact has always been a struggle for me—a quiet battle of wills against my own instincts—but I fight to hold it now. Her stare is steady, searching. My pulse quickens as my brain screams to look away, but I don’t. She reaches for the remote, her voice cutting through the tension. “Yeah, we’re done with this.” With a click, the screen goes dark, and the room falls silent.

I wake up

The Time Traveler

Dream 2/22/2016

I am in love with a girl named Beth.

The only issue is that she's eighteen years older than me. So I time travel back to where we would be about the same age. She is both a judge and a contestant on American Idol. I go and watch a taping of the show. When you're up on the stage it's so unbelievable, so unforgettable how they adore you. I watch her and fall more in love with each passing minute.

The show is then interrupted by a voice coming over the intercom. "Attention, ladies and gentlemen, we have just received information that a plane has hit the world trade center." Some ARMY guys are sitting in the row behind me. I can hear them saying, "no, no, it can't be true." Oh it is, I've been here before, I know it all too well. In a few more minutes, they're gonna come back on the intercom and tell you that the other tower has been struck by yet another airplane. Then, when you think it's all over, the voice would come on again telling you to pray for our country because the pentagon has been hit. We're under attack. The towers would fall, taking several other buildings with them, thousands would be dead, the country would be in a panic. You would question whether it was going to stop. Oh God, dear God, how did I time travel back to September 11, 2001. Why did I come back to this awful day.

I follow Beth outside. Her husband is there with her. I flirt with her. She doesn't seem to notice. Dream ends.

I wake up

AMERICAN PICKERS

Dream 10/9/2015

I've been put in charge of a garage full of antiques.

     The person that put me in charge is a picker. He travels around the country to buy antiques, then he refurbishes them and resells them. He is letting me live at his house for the time being.

     One night I am lying on my bed watching youtube videos when a beautiful girl comes into my room and lies down next to me. We watch videos together. She asks me if I want to learn electrical wiring. I do. She says that she will teach me. "You know about electric wiring?" I ask. She does. She gets up and leaves. A sad feeling comes over me. Dream ends.

I wake up

Flood

Dream 1/7/2015

I'm at my cousin DJ's house.

     My sister, Morgan, is about to run to the store. She is in the car waiting for me. I'm trying to put on my shoes as fast as I can. I look out the window and see the car leaving the driveway. I run outside to try and stop her but she speeds off down the road with DJ in the car.

     I turn around, disappointed, and see a girl I used to know from school. She comes over to me. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a metal, playground slide appears. We play on it for a bit. I ask her what kind of TV shows does she like. She doesn't answer. I sit at the top of the ladder and she climbs up the slide. We lay down, cover up with a blanket and turn on a little, portable TV that is there. I hold her close to me and feel a pitter-patter in my heart.

     Later, when my sister and cousin return, we wonder back inside. All of us are sitting around watching TV when my cousin tells me he wants me to flood the house for fun. I go into the kitchen and clog the sink. I start the water but immediately feel guilty at what I'm about to do. I turn off the water. My cousin walks in. He tells me if I can't do it, then he'll do it. He turns on the faucet and floods the house. For fun. Dream ends

I wake up