Everybody Deserves a 2nd Chance

July 18th, 2025 – 6:00 AM

Traveling the historic Route 66, you will find that it intersects an old desert road. Turn down that road and travel about 10 miles and you will find a broken-down Jeep. The engine is still hot, and smoke is still pouring out. It’s not hard to tell that it was recently abandoned.

If you were to continue down this road for another mile or 2, you will find Mason Fields, a middle-aged man who is a little out of shape. He leans against a rock to catch his breath. He looks off into the distance where he can see the faint silhouette of a building. It is the headquarters of Brights Industries, and Mason is running out of time.

He continues to run, rather fast for a middle-aged man. He has 8 miles to go and not that much time left. His heart feels as if it is about to burst out of his chest, but he must continue running. Still running, he enters the building ignoring all that is there. He reaches the front of the building hoping that he has enough time. He stops just long enough to get a sip of water and then continues.

The building is not at all impressive. Just a gray building with no windows and a single door. The inside of the building is equally unimpressive. Just a large gray room with exhaust fans to the left and right. In the back of the room were 3 elevator doors. He swipes a card in front of the control panel and the middle door opens. He steps in and as the door closes, a rear door opens. This is the top-secret laboratory of Brights Industries.

Mason is greeted by a beautiful lady who is only 3 years younger than he is.

“Good evening, Mr. Field. We were not expecting you so soon.”

He ignored her and continued to run. He reaches the 2nd set of elevators, but they were being served.

“Quick, Please, get me to the level 50.”

“Yes, Mr. Fields. Right away.”

With a turn of a key, the elevator slowly descends into the underground shaft.

“Quickly. I said quickly.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Fields. We are traveling at the highest safe speed.”

“Ignore safety. I give full authorization and take full responsibility.”

He opens a panel and moves a lever to the far right. The elevator starts to descend at high speed. As it drops near freefall speeds, they both stumble as they feel the floor leave their feet. They reach a lab 50 stories underground in a few seconds and Mason continues to run. In the middle of the hallway there is a small black box on the way. He swipes his card and a hidden door opens. He runs in and screams, “STOP!!!!”

But he was too late. They pulled the leaver and Mason Fields vanished.

--

But this is not the end of the story. It’s not the beginning. Let me tell you a little bit about Mr. Mason Fields.

Mason Fields graduated Magna Cum Laude from college. Ethan Horne, the CEO of Brights Industries, offered him an internship right there at the graduation. He quickly got the job and even more quickly became a junior executive. He had a 7-digit bank account. His friends were the type that would give him the shirt off their back if they thought that he was cold. He married Susan Thurman, the most beautiful woman in the world, at least in his eyes. Whatever she looked like, her heart made her even more beautiful. He was father to 3 wonder children, just as smart as him. Mason Jr. was on his way to graduating with honors as well. Johnathan was about to graduate high school at 14. In 2 years, Marry would do the same. But he felt that something was missing.

10 years ago, Mason was told that he could become a partner. But it never happened. Jeff Whitesmith was made a partner instead. Jeff was not as brilliant as Mason. He was not as dedicated as Mason. He was not as well-known as Mason. What he did have was a business degree. Mason didn’t. All of his degrees were in science and technology. He could have gone back to school 2 to 5 years, but another door was opened.

Kevin Zurn, Manson’s best friend, told him of a top-secret experiment that his company was working on. They called 2nd chance. “Through a process known as Temporal Flux, we can send a single consciousness through a rift in the STC. You pretty much end up in your younger self. Just think of something that you want a chance to do over.”

Mason, without any hesitation, accepted the invitation to join the team. He thought about it deeply, and decided to go back 20 years, so that he could spin another 5 years in college. He stepped into the machine and told them to throw the switch. Before waking up in the past, he could have sworn he saw himself come through the door.

--

June 4th, 2005 – 5:00 PM

It took Mason a few moments to overcome the initial shock. When he gained his composure, he heard his name being called.

“Mason Fields”

“It’s my college graduation.”, he thought almost out loud. He walked across the stage, grabbed his diploma, and moved his tassel to the other side.

“I’m glad I didn’t leap into the middle of the speech.”

Mason looked into the crowd and saw Ethan Horne talking to the other graduates. Their eyes locked. He walked toward Mason to shake his hand.

“Congratulations, Mr. Fields”, said Ethan. “I can see that you have a great future ahead of you. How would you like to share that future with Brights Industries? I’d love to have you in my intern program.”

“Mr. Horne!”, Mason responded, “You have no idea how great an offer that is. But I would like to get one more degree. I need a business degree.”

“I can appreciate that. I’ll tell you what. If you sign up for my MBA classes, you’ll have an entry level position when you finish. That’s better than an intern.”

“I accept.”

--

July 18th, 2025 – 7:30 AM

As Masons consciousness returned to the present, he stepped out of the machine and right away he notices a difference. Kevin Zurn spoke to him in a way that did not suggest best friends. His style of speech suggested that they were only acquaintances. This troubled Mason very much.

“OK, Mr. Fields”, Kevin said. “Come back tomorrow. I need you to document any changes that you may noticed in your life.”

“Kevin, what’s up with this Mr. Fields stuff. It’s me, Mason.”

“Right”, Kevin said. “I call you by your first name and I’ll be demoted to Trash Removal.”

It dawned on him that he met Kevin Zurn on the first day of his internship with Brights Industries. An internship that he never took. He changed that. He got his MBA instead.

He went home to get some rest. The first person to greet him Mason Jr. But it wasn’t the loving greeting that he was accustomed to. As he walked into the door, his son rolled his eyes in disgust.

“What are you doing here?”, he asked. “I was expecting Mom.”

“Where is your mother?”

“She probably saw your car pull up and left.”

“What’s with this attitude?”

“What do you care?” He turned his head in the direction of a sound at the back of the house. “Oh God! Here comes that woman you married. I’m gone.”

He pushed his father aside and walked out of the house. Susan Fields, that is Susan Thurman, was down the street to pick him up. At this point, Betty Horne, or should I say Betty Fields, came in a kissed Mason.

“Your home early, dear”, she said. “Did you already fire you daily quota.” She laughs.

Betty, as the median name suggests, was the daughter of Ethan Horne. While she was physically beautiful, her heart was as ugly as roadkill. The memory of both lives started to fill into his head.

When he finished his MBA, Mason and Ethan became friends. The word “friends” used very loosely. He still married Susan, but they did not spend much time together. At company dinners, he started to spend more time with Betty in order to get closer to Ethan. He was pushing his wife, the most beautiful woman in the world, further and further away. When Mason Jr. was only 8 years old, they divorced, and he married Betty. This secured his spot as COO of Brights Industries.

He didn’t only push away his wife. He pushed away his friends. He now associated with those that would find a legal way to steal the shirt of his back if they thought they could make any money from it.

As he contemplated what his life has become, a shocking realization came to him. While Mason Jr. grew to hate his father, Jonathan and Marry were never born. He searched through his digital photo albums, and it was true. He only had one child.

No children, no friends, a wife he couldn’t stand and that didn’t love him. Mason Fields wanted his life back.

The next day he begs to send him back. He explains that they used to be friends. He used to have 3 children. While his job was much better, everything else in his life was worse.

“I’m sorry”, Kevin said, “I can’t send you back to the same time.”

“Please. Is there anything you can do?”

“OK. There is something I can try. You’ll arrive shortly after you speak to Ethan. Tell him that you changed your mind. Take a different path.”

“Great. Thanks so much.”

To Kevin, the idea of being friends with Mason Fields was funny. But it was also something he would love to see.

--

June 4th, 2005 – 6:00 PM

Mason watched as Ethan Horne walked away. It took him a moment to regain his sense of awareness but when he did, he ran to speak with him.

“Mr. Horne. I changed my mind. I would like to take your internship while pursuing my own business degree. Would that possible?”

“I can really look up to a man who wants to find his own way. Yes, I’ll be able to do that for you. You are going to go far in life.”

Mason was able to relax. He believed that everything was repaired. He was able to set things in place for him to get his business degree and still meet the friends he made in the internship. This was confirmed when he looked and saw Kevin Zurn accept the internship.

He said, “Hey, I’m Mason. I’m in the internship also. I’m happy to see someone else from this school is going.”

--

July 18th, 2025 – 7:30 AM

As Masons consciousness returned to the present, he stepped out of the machine and right away he notices a difference. Kevin Zurn spoke to him in a way that could suggest that they knew each other their entire life.

“Alright Mason”, Kevin said. “You’ve got to tell me everything.”

“I did take the internship, didn’t I?”

“Of course. We were there together.”

“Am I still married to Susan?”

“Susan! You mean Susan Thurman. You never married Susan. You married Becky Johnson.”

“Becky Johnson. No!”

“Don’t worry, you divorced her 5 years ago. You got everything. Susan married Tommy Bowman.”

After a few seconds of silence, to let this all sink in, Kevin had a shocked look on his face.

“Mason”, he said, “How many times have you jumped today?”

“Twice. Why?”

“You really need to wait at least 7 days between jumps. It can cause unknown side effects.”

“Well, I’m going to have to take one more.”

“Out of the question! NO! I’m not sending you back.”

“Please. I have to get my life back.”

“No! Can’t do it. What ever happened when you were in college can’t be changed.”

“Why? I have to change this. Just this one last thing.”

“The farther you go back, the worse thing can get. The more you go back in a 7-day period, it accumulates. How far are you trying to go this time anyway? Not that I’m going to send you back.”

“Just this morning.”

“What do you want to change from this morning?”

“I want to stop myself from going back.”

“I got something else that you can try. This will send you, not just your mind back. But you can’t tell anyone.”

He led Mason to a secret room. He stepped inside a different machine and Mason vanished.

--

6:00 AM

Traveling down an old desert road, you will find a broken-down Jeep. The engine is still hot, and smoke is still pouring out. If you were to continue down this road for another mile or 2, you will find Mason Fields. He leans against a rock to catch his breath. He looks off into the distance where he can see the headquarters of Brights Industries, and Mason is running out of time.

He has 8 miles to go and not that much time left. His heart feels as if it is about to burst out of his chest, but he must continue running. He reaches the front of the building hoping that he has enough time. He stops just long enough to get a sip of water and then continues.

Mason is greeted by a beautiful lady who is only 3 years younger than he is. She is Susan Thurman. He would love to stop and speak to her but there is no time. So, he ignored her and continued to run.

He reaches the 2nd set of elevators, but they were being served.

“Quick, Please, get me to the level 50.”

“Yes, Mr. Fields. Right away.” His name is Bobby White, and they were once friends.

They reach a lab 50 stories underground in a few seconds and Mason continues to run. In the middle of the hallway there is a small black box on the way. He swipes his card and a hidden door opens. He runs in and screams, “STOP!!!!”

But he was too late. They pulled the leaver and Mason Fields vanished.

--

6:00 AM

Mason opens his eyes to find out the he is sleeping alone. Saddened, he gets up and walks to the kitchen. There, he finds Susan Fields, attempting to surprise her husband with breakfast in bed.

“Sweetheart, you ruined the surprise.”

“I’m sorry”, he said with a smile on his face. “I’ll go back to bed and pretend to be sleep. I won’t have to pretend to be surprised. I’m surprised enough now. By the way, have I ever told you how much I love you?”

Part of an unofficial Challenge