On his way home on the train, Jonathan Hughes meets Jonathan Hughes + 20 years and receives a
warning that his marriage to a lovely young bride will end in murder.
— Michael Main
Me, thought the young man. Why, that old man is. .
. me.
DEBUT
“A Touch of Petulance,” in Dark Forces, edited by Kirby McCauley (The Viking
Press, August 1980).
VARIANTS
Debut. “A Touch of Petulance,” in Dark Forces, edited by Kirby McCauley (The Viking Press, August 1980).
Wish Travel: There are hints that old Hughes wished himself into his past: “You drew me, then. Your youngness, your innocence, your good hours, your fine life still untouched, was the machine that seized me down the track.”
Themes
Ex Nihilo Obects and People: Perhaps the revolver is an ex nihilo object that young Hughes will keep until old Hughes uses it years in the future.
Self-Defeating Acts: If old Hughes succeeds in convincing young Hughes to change, then there would be no reason for old Hughes to come back in the first place.
From an unspecified place, possibly near Plandome on Long Island or Penn Central Station in NYC, 2 May 1999 ⋙ to circa 1979. Note: Its uncertain whether the old man returns to his time.
Me, thought the young man. Why, that old man is . .
. me.
1 English variant