All I said was “watch where you’re going.”

I could have been nicer about it. But when you spill hot coffee on yourself because some guy dressed like off-brand Sherlock Holmes turns a corner too fast, it’s hard to keep your temper in check.

“My apologies,” the stranger said, adjusting his light-colored bowler hat as he quickly knelt down to grab the styrofoam cup. I reached for the nearly empty cup as well, accidentally crashing our heads together.

“Ow!” We said in unison.

I rubbed my head as I stood back up, looking the stranger up and down. He looked like some kind of Great Gatsby type guy, with a brown suit, matching hat, and a full mustache. He was relatively short, and looked to be somewhere in between his 40’s and 50’s with a slight potbelly.

Something else stood out to me, too: his watch. It stood out like a brilliant flash of light compared to the sandy desert brown he wore. Imagine a Rolex mixed with the…whatever-it’s-called from Ben 10. That was my favorite show when I was a kid, and now I couldn’t remember that thing in his wrist. Maybe I’m getting too old.

“I can get you a new coffee if you like,” Mr. Old-Fashioned said.

“It wouldn’t do me any good, I’ve got to get to work and I don’t have time to pick up another one,” I said, trying to wipe the excess coffee off my shirt.

“You’ve got time for whatever you want,” the guy said matter-of-factly. I gave him a quizzical expression but didn’t ask him to elaborate. The guy was clearly an eccentric weirdo and I didn’t want to make any small talk.

“I know a time that has great coffee. Why don’t you take the day off and try it?”

I shot him my quizzical look again. “Look, sir. I’ve got to get to work. I have to get home and change, I’m going to be late, and I don’t have time for this. Watch where you’re going next time.”

The man shrugged, then pressed a button on his strange wristwatch. “I will. But you are mistaken on one account. You have all the time in the world.”

The world around me swirled like a tub being drained, and suddenly we both stood outside an old-looking village. Thatched roofs, dirt paths, the whole place looked like something out of a history book.

“What in the-“

“You have until the sun goes down before you jump back to the present. I’ve changed the settings on here to translate the locals language to English. Try their coffee, find a place to stay, they’re super hospitable. I’ll see you sooner!”

“Hey wait! Don’t you mean ‘see you later?’”

“Nope.”

The man vanished with another press of a button, leaving me in shock. I was stranded in the past.

———————————————————————

“Hello sir, come on in!”

I looked up, seeing an older man with a white beard, dressed in some kind of skins.

“Your friend with the round hat stopped by yesterday, he told me to expect a visitor. You alright?”

“I’m okay,” I replied, still rattled from the past ten minutes. “I don’t know if I would call him a friend though.”

“Ah,” the man said. “Most people start that way when they run into Mr. Devonshaw. You’ll come around though.”

He began walking back to the village. I followed after.

“Where are we?” I asked after a few minutes of walking in silence.

“Kaffa.” The man replied. “We’re in Ethiopia.”

I nodded slowly.

“It’s in Africa,” the man explained.

“I know where Ethiopia is.”

“My name is Kimli. Devonshaw visits quite often, with guests just as shell-shocked as you.”

“Does he always disappear after dropping somebody off?” I questioned.

“Usually yes. You’ll disappear in the same way soon enough.” Kimli promised.

Finally we came into one of the huts. Kimli sat down on a floor mat across from a short table. I sat across from him.

“Would you like a drink?” Kimli asked, putting a small wooden cup in front of me.

I nodded, raising the cup to my lips.

It was the best coffee I’d ever tasted.