Date: January 1, 2009
Setting: Shiva's Home, Laxmi Nagar, Delhi, India
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Shiva's eyes flickered open, his breath shallow and quick as though he had been in a deep, dark dream. His hands moved instinctively, pressing against the soft fabric of his sheets. For a moment, he lay there, frozen in place, trying to make sense of the situation. This wasn't right. The room felt unfamiliar, yet strangely familiar at the same time.
The room was small, barely enough for a twin-sized bed and a simple wooden desk cluttered with papers. A couple of faded posters of cricket stars were pinned haphazardly on the walls. The ceiling fan above spun lazily, and sunlight filtered through the half-drawn curtains. It was a typical room in an average middle-class household in Delhi.
But something was terribly wrong. The sharp sting of the sunlight hurt his eyes, and the sound of traffic outside felt so distant—so disconnected from the chaos he knew. The pieces didn't fit. This wasn't the world he was supposed to be in.
He sat up abruptly, feeling a sharp wave of dizziness pass over him. His heart raced. His body didn't feel like his own. The room seemed so small, so simple. And then it hit him like a thunderclap—he was back.
The world he had left behind—his life as a scientist in the year 2035, the tragic car accident, the hard drive filled with the world's most advanced knowledge—none of it was here. He was in 2009. But how? Why? How had he gone back in time? More importantly, why was he in his 18-year-old body?
Shiva took deep, shaky breaths, trying to calm himself. This wasn't a dream. This was real. He could feel it. The vast repository of knowledge he had accumulated in his previous life was still there, locked away in his mind. Every invention, every theory, every formula, and piece of technology from the future was still intact. But how could he use it now? In 2009?
His mind raced. He was back in his old house, with his family, his friends, his school. The knowledge from the future should have made him unstoppable, but how would he navigate this world without giving himself away? How would he explain all this?
Just as he was about to sit back and process his next move, he heard a familiar voice calling from outside the door.
"Shiva! Are you awake yet? Come downstairs for breakfast!"
His mother's voice—Vidya—rang clear and warm.
Shiva hesitated for a moment, his mind whirling with the enormity of the situation. His parents were alive, his sister was alive. He could change everything. His thoughts raced again, calculating. This was his chance. This was his second chance. And there was no turning back now.
He stood up and quickly adjusted his clothes—standard, nothing special. His uniform from school. It's 2009, he reminded himself. He was 18 again, just like before. But now, he had the entire future of the world at his fingertips.
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Downstairs, the smell of fresh parathas and tea filled the air. Vidya, his mother, was at the stove, humming a tune as she made breakfast. She looked the same as he remembered: graceful, kind, hardworking. His father, Shivkumar, was reading the morning newspaper at the dining table. Lakshmi, his younger sister, was arguing with him over something trivial, but there was a warmth in the air that made everything feel normal—like nothing had changed.
Except, everything had.
Shiva took a deep breath as he stepped into the kitchen. Vidya turned, offering him a warm smile. "Good morning, beta. How did you sleep?"
Shiva froze for a moment, his heart fluttering. How could he explain that he had just woken up in a different time, in a different body? His mind scrambled for an answer. "I slept well, Maa. Just… a bit tired. I'll be okay," he said, trying to sound casual, but even he could hear the uncertainty in his own voice.
Vidya didn't seem to notice. "Well, you better hurry up. School starts soon, and you haven't finished your homework yet."
Shiva nodded, a vague smile forming on his face. His mind was still running at a thousand miles per hour. School. It all felt so insignificant, but this was part of the plan. He needed to blend in for now. Get through school. Help his father. Build up a base. Then, he could do what he came here to do.
He quickly grabbed a plate of parathas, sitting down at the table across from his father. Shivkumar barely glanced up from his newspaper. He was the quiet, thoughtful sort, a pillar of the family. Shiva knew he could rely on him for support, even if he didn't fully understand what was happening.
"I'll be going to school soon," Shiva said, his voice calm. "I'll be fine."
Shivkumar finally looked up, giving Shiva a warm, fatherly smile. "Good. Focus on your studies, son. This year's important."
Shiva nodded. He wasn't sure what the future held for him, but he knew he had an advantage. In 2009, everything was still possible. He had time. Time to change everything.
But as he finished breakfast and headed out the door for school, he felt the weight of the knowledge he carried in his mind. What should he do first? Start small, with incremental steps? Or go straight to the big leagues?
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As he walked to school, his mind was already racing ahead—calculating, planning, plotting.
He had to act quickly. In 2009, technology was still primitive compared to what he knew. But with his knowledge, he could reshape the world. The world was his oyster, and he was ready to break it open.
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End of Chapter 1