The Alarm Clock

5/14/2019

“Beep Beep Beep Beep…”

It’s 7:00 the morning. A shrill and ear-splitting sound filled the entire room; Tom rubs his sleepy eyes and glances the alarm clock on his nightstand. “Only 7 now…5 more minuets…”. Tom closes his eyes and falls asleep again.

Tom is finally awake, he picks up his alarm clock. The numbers appear on the alarm clock is like a bucket of ice water pour above his head. “7:50!!! DAMN I’M SO LATE!!!”. He grabs his clothes on the chair and rushes toward the front door, the sound of the collision of bottles on the floor as if to cheer him up.

Fortunately, Tom goes to work just on time. At the same time, his manager comes to him with a file. “I need these documents to be organized and analyzed before Friday.” Tom gently nods and complains in his mind: “Why are there so many works to deal with every day.” He takes a deep sigh and checks his calendar. “Come on! It’s only Tuesday! I don’t need to worry then”. Then he picks up his phone and starts playing games. Emily, one of Tom’s colleague, comes over to Tom’s place and asks him about things that mentioned a few days ago about concert tickets. “Hey, Tom, how is the ticket-thing going? Have you asked your friend about it?”; However, Tom just forgot everything. “Tomorrow, Trust me, I will definitely ask him about that,” says Tom. Emily is so upset about his excuse; she shouts at Tom ” You’ve said the same thing for three days, I shouldn’t believe you, YOU SUCH A PROCRASTINATOR!!!”. In spite of that, Tom doesn’t feel any ashamed; He will ask about that ticket immediately if he really cares about it.

After work, Tom goes back to his home. The place where he lives can’t even be compared to a garbage dump. The floor is full of plastic bags and bottles; the sink is also full of used plates and bowls. Tom opens up a drawer and grabs a pack of instant noodles. He opens the drawer where he places the dishes and pans, and there is only one bowl left. He stares at the sink; successfully convinced himself to wash those bowls tomorrow.

“Beep Beep Beep Beep…”

The alarm clock rings at seven o’clock the same as usual. Tom wakes up earlier and goes to work on time. Manger comes to him with a file again, and he puts that file on Tom’s desk then tell him. “I need these documents to be organized and analyzed before Friday.” Tom is undoubtedly confused about it. He just got a bunch of documents yesterday; why would the manager give him another work to do? While Tom is still confusing about those works, Emily stops by Tom’s desk and asks him excitedly. “Hey, Tom, how is the ticket-thing going? Have you asked your friend about it?”. “Wait, you asked me about it, didn’t you?” Tom asked doubtfully. “No, I didn’t. Did you forget to ask about it again? I shouldn’t believe you, YOU SUCH A PROCRASTINATOR!!!”

After work, Tom rushes back home. He opens the drawer where he places the dishes and pans; he can’t believe what he just saw. The last bowl he had used yesterday is still lying on the shelf. He is so panic right now; he is so freaked out about everything that happened today.

Tom hides under the quilt and stares at his phone. “2019/5/14 23:59”, Tom is waiting for the last minute of that day and see what will happen. “2019/5/14 00:00”. “WHY IT’S STILL MAY FOURTEENTH???” Tom screams. Tom stays up all night because he is so scared. He stops the alarm right the way after it rings.

Everything is exactly the same. The same documents from manager and the same conversations with people. Suddenly, he seems to understand how to break the loop. He picks up his phone and calls his friends about the ticket; He finishes all the documents that the manager gave to him. After he gets home, he does house cleaning. Tom is too tired right now, but he is still waiting for the last minute of today. While the date and time appear on his phone is “2019/5/14 23:59,”; Tom holds his breath, and he can even hear his heartbeats.” Tick-Tock!” with a clear and brief sound. Tom falls asleep directly.

“2019/5/15 00:00”