I put my foot on the base of Benji's swivel chair and shoved hard. The chair rolled back, out from under him. He slumped down with a pleasing thud on the floor. He woke up with a pained expression that helped my headache a little. "Damn you, Benji," I said, "you did that out of spite, to break my date with Daisy, I bet." He yawned. "I told you you'd better not touch it." "Because you knew then I'd have to go ahead and do it. It's a wonder, with me knocked out, you didn't go try to steal my girl." "I did. I am." "You what?" "I did go out with Daisy. I am with her now." "Are you cracked? You are right here with me." "True, but I am simultaneously with Daisy." He grinned reflectively. "And I don't mind saying Daisy is much better company than you.... Now wait, Bull. I know this is difficult for you to grasp, but it is a fact that I am in two places at the same time--only on different circuits. This is big, Bull, really big! After you help me with one or two details, I am going to share it with you. Listen to me." Sometimes I can be sickeningly gullible. "All right. Start explaining." "Think, Bull! Last night you saw me go out the front door. At substantially the same time, you also saw me, dressed quite differently, come down the hall stairs. It should be obvious. I have built a time machine." I looked down at my watch and then back at him, with raised eyebrows. "No, Bull. Not a machine for telling time; a machine for traveling through time or, actually, more or less around it. You see my machine there." The jungle gym rig was still at the side of the room, blurred and shimmering. "Yeah, I see it. And don't bother telling me not to touch it again. I won't." "Your own fault. Ordinarily you could touch even one of the bars; it is perfectly safe. But just now the machine is there twice. That creates further static force fields." "Benji--" "Look at it. Looks as though you were seeing double, hm-m? And you are. You see, Bull, this coming morning at ten to seven, I took--and will take--the machine and I traveled back to ten to five yesterday afternoon. At that time the machine was already there. Actually, I should have moved it just before I used it this morning, to limit the overlaps. But I was rushed. You'll see. Daisy and I will be here shortly." He grinned. It was an expression I had never particularly cared for. "Have another drink, Bull." That was an expression I liked better. I did have one. His story was unbelievable. But I was beginning to believe it--partly because of the machine there and the fact that I had seen two of him practically at once the evening before, partly because I knew Benji would be capable of almost anything if it would let him steal a girl from me and get away from Vera besides. * * * * *