Thanks for the apple

 “Thanks for the apple mate.” As my eyes slowly start to adjust, I make out the shadow of a person standing over me. “You can speak, can’t you?” the figure asks.

“Yes. I can speak,” I say slowly. My body feels like it has been ripped apart and put back together multiple times. All things considered, that’s probably what happened. “Who are you?” I ask the figure. 

“My name is Felix and I suppose your name is Mark,” he replies happily.

“How do you know that?” I ask, my head spinning.

“Oh! It’s written on your lab coat,” he replies and motions for me to follow him. I do. “You are the one who sent the apple aren’t you?” Felix asks. I nod.

“Where are we?” I ask suddenly. Felix gives me a cryptic smile.

“You’ll see!” He leads me through a curtain. I cringe from the sudden brightness. I look up and am greeted by 25 men and 5 women all wearing white lab coats and almost all of them wearing glasses and all staring at me.

“Everyone, this is Mark,” Felix exclaims. He turns to me. “Welcome to the greatest gathering of teleporting scientists on Earth!”

Everyone continues to stare at me. I give them a weak smile.

“Oh, you must be hungry,” Felix says suddenly. “Do you want an apple?” 

I shake my head. What is his obsession with apples? I sit down at one of the tables and rub my temples to try to get rid of a splitting headache. 

The word “apple” keeps coming back. Finally, something clicks, and I remember the moment, our very own Ambrosia apple reappeared on the teleport receiver portal. With a human-sized bite missing from it. The hush of wonderment that followed. 

I remember putting myself inside the teleportation device we had worked so hard on, the blinding flash that came after and the feeling of being ripped apart. 

My stomach clenches and I start to feel nauseous.

“Mate, you really look like you need an apple,” Felix’s voice brings me back to reality. He sits down in front of me. “Good news. Martin, the scientist who’s been here the longest just got sucked back!”

I perk up and try to unscramble my thoughts.

“How long has he been here?” I ask professionally.

“Precisely 16 years, 40 days, 5 hours and 10 seconds,” Felix answers checking his watch. I feel my heart sink. “Well according to our calculations. Emma is going to be sucked back in around an hour.” Felix continues. “You should come watch! I have to go check on the apple trees but feel free to look around.” 

I watch him leave. My stomach rumbles so I reach for the apple Felix had left on the table. I sit down slowly and take a large bite out it. I feel like Alice in Wonderland.

I think I know what this wonderland is. I am eating an apple in some sort of purgatory between two time-travel portals. I am stuck in limbo.  How am I going to describe this in the Modern Science Journal? I wonder. I shake my head. I don’t need to worry about that now. After all, I have a long, long time ahead of me to think about it, as I take another bite of my Ambrosia apple.