Another Twenty

He felt confused, not sure where he was, or who he was with.
He seemed to be with friends and they were discussing life the universe and everything - which seemed to consist mostly of girls, groups and ganja.
Just then a teenage girl brought him a cup of milky brown liquid
"Twenty P" she said.
He found the odd shaped silver coin amongst his change and gave it to her with a forced smile and a "Thank you."

"The mirror on reflection...." sang the jukebox.

"Then somehow it was my turn" said a very attractive girl "and I had to take all my clothes off! It was so humiliating!"

"...and the signpost ceased to sign..." sang the voice to a tune very reminicent of Whiter Shade Of Pale.

His stomach was rumbling and churning, and his head was spinning.

"Twenty credits please!"

"What!" he wondered, now alarmed as well as confused.

"Twenty credits please!" said the machine."Twenty credits to continue this reality!"

He woke up in bed. It had all been a dream.
He was alone. The only remnant of the dream was the upset
stomach. He rolled out of bed. The flat was a mess. Nothing that a good vacuum cleaning and a bit of tiding wouldn't cure.
He staggered to the kitchen, opened the fridge and drank some
milk.
Today was the 20th - his birthday. Should he open a bottle of wine or perhaps sip some Jack D.
His stomach suddenly felt even more bloated and he burped and shook his head.
Who could he call? He thought of several old friend but they were
trouble.
He'd end up getting rat faced with them and they would start fighting and trash the flat!
Go to the pub - and sit on his own trying not to butt into other
peoples conversations? Call up an ex-girlfriend and get an apology that she had promised to...
Go back to bed and sleep, perchance to dream. Well at least another 20 winks.

The doorbell rang! I staggered down stairs still half-asleep.
I opened the door and a stranger said "It has been 20 years old friend and I come to take you home for a while."

"Excuse me! I think you have the wrong house!" I said.

"Mykle, I have come to take you home. You must trust me and do what I ask."

I was still half-asleep and, as always, a little paranoid of strangers
at my door.

"Come, my friend. It is time."

"Err, come where" I asked, "I'm not dressed for going out
anywhere."

The stranger laughed. "You have grown timid" He said " I only wish to go with you to the garden."

Something made me follow him. I left my door wide and went through the gate that leads to the garden at the back of our four flats - which served as a drying area and communal garden.
There was something warm and strong about the stranger. I had never understood what holy meant but now I realised it was a powerful, warm, vibrant energy that melted all worries and cares.
The stranger did something which I didn't catch and suddenly I was 12 miles high yet my feet were still on the ground.

"Time to go home for a while." he said, and I felt movement but my eyes no longer saw.

In the blackness, I sensed him opening a door.
"Welcome home, welcome, come on in and close the door."
It was a band of some sort playing the old Peters and Lee hit.
I went in and I suddenly felt more at home than I ever had.

I had always felt like a fish out of water, never quite able to fit in.
Now I was home! There was no light but it did not matter - I instinctively knew that at last I WAS home.

I stayed there for a timeless time. Home at last, at one with my own folk - a sense of contentment beyond any I had ever felt before.
All too soon, I was back in the garden at the back of the flats.
Still imbued with the joy and contentment my visit had given me.

I think the stranger had stayed behind but I heard his voice.
>
"Rome is the prostitute resting on the 7 hills." he said.
"Babylon will soon fall and her weeping will be great. Your work is
nearly done. For how could we judge without Watchers, and your watching will be over before another 20 years have passed! All those that say 'We had no choice' will be referred to the Watchers who have suffered the same provocations.
All those who say 'Everybody did the same!' will be proved liars by your testimony. Only another 20 years and you can come home again for good."

"Twenty credits to maintain this reality"...

"Twenty credits please!"

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"I'm sure he's not brain dead." said the pretty nurse.

"Well he's in trouble then." said her friend across the room "They're turning off the life support machine in three weeks."

"So unluck to be in a car accident on your birthday" said the pretty nurse.

"He's had twevle months and no sign of brain activity - he's just a cabbage." said her friend.

"I'm sure you can hear me Michael." said the pretty nurse "You've got to wake up, you've only got twenty days before they unplug you!"

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"Warning! Warning! Only twenty credits left!" said the machine.