'So what's the deal with that guy?', you asked one of the museum's guides. You'd been working there for only a short while now, but you were quick to notice some things. The other girl replied, 'Which one? You'll have to be more specific.', though she knew just who it was you meant. You motioned with your head towards where the target of your conversation stood. 'Him', you said. 'Comes here every day. Every. Single. Day. Why do you figure that is?'. The guide chuckled lightly, and said 'He's been coming here every day for longer than I've been here. Who knows what brings him here? Some days he just walks around, but most of the time he just stands there, looking at that portrait.' Then you squinted your eyes and said to the girl, 'Uh-huh. And what gives with the pocket watch? Who even uses one of those, anyway? But you want to know the weirdest thing? I swear he and the guy from the portrait look exactly the same.'. The girl looked over and squinted her eyes as well, 'You know what? I can see it. I can see it. They do look remarkably similar. Maybe he's one of those people that live forever and sometimes see something that reminds them of their life centuries ago?', said she. 'I sense some weirdness there, sure. What really bugs me is that I have this feeling... Like I know him. And I know I don't, never seen him before I started working here, and nor have I ever seen this guy elsewhere. Maybe he's just got one of those faces, I guess. Again with the pocket watch. Is he in a hurry to get somewhere? I just have to know.'
And before you knew it, you found yourself striding towards a stranger, elegantly clad in black. In the back of your mind, you already knew. You knew you were going to tell him the story, that story almost no one knows. You're getting closer, your mind racing. You have no idea what you're going to say. Please don't say anything about the pocket watch. Say something profound and witty and clever. Please. You're a few paces away, but he might as well be in another world. You notice just then how silent and still he is. You break the stillness. 'I'm sorry', you said, 'can you tell me what time it is?', and just then you noticed a subtle sound, syncopated with your heartbeat. It was the sound of a clock ticking. It was the sound of the pocket watch as it counted the seconds slowly away. He nodded his head, somewhat sadly, and said 'I can't tell you what time it is. But I can tell you that, finally, the time is right.'
He looked at you, deep in your eyes. Your gaze met his, then you both turned and face the painting. 'What does it say to you?', you asked. He thought briefly about what he wanted to say, then shook his head. 'I'm sorry, I'm not someone who immediately discerns hidden intent, or symbolism. To be honest, I am not particularly interested in what the artist meant to say.' You turned , and looked at him sideways. 'So, you just look at the painting because you see yourself in it?'. Then he smiled, the very first time you'd seen his smile. It would not be the last. He leaned closer to the portrait, and studied it closely. After a few moments, he said 'There's no mistaking it. Somehow that's me. He doesn't... just look like me. There's something else there. The body language, the eyes... and the way he looks at the pocket watch. Ah, but therein lies a weird, crazy story.' You laughed heartily at that. 'Well', you said, 'I got a pretty crazy weird story as well.' There was a moment of silence. It grew. And was then broken. 'Hmmm.', said he, 'The painting, what does it say to you?'
You looked at the man in the painting, and then at the man by your side. God damn. 'I don't know. I mean, I thought I did, but now. What is he waiting for? For the time to be right? Maybe. What does it say to me? It says that... time goes by.' He looked at you again, that penetrating gaze that pierced down to your very soul. This time you felt like he was really taking you in, drinking you in. You wanted to feel his fingers run down your long, dark curls. He nodded his head in agreement. 'Time goes by', he repeated. 'Time goes by', you said at the same time. 'It's the time of your life'.
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