InsaneJournal

It had been a long time since Clint had seen a phonebooth, at least in the US. He’d seen plenty in other cities in the world he’d visited but not too often at home. He was pretty sure that he hadn’t seen one at all since his arrival in Warkworth but today they seemed to be on every corner. Strange things popping up out of nowhere was no big deal, it was common so he hadn’t thought too much about it until he was walking past one on his way home and it rang. For a moment, he stopped and stood there, looking around to see if anyone was expected a call and would answer it but no one paid any attention. “What the hell?” he said to himself and picked up the phone. “Hello?”

“Dad? What are you doing?” It was Lila’s voice and she was trying to hold in giggles. “You know the landline doesn’t work! What did you do?”

Clint stood with the receiver in his hand thousands of miles away from his daughter and listened to her accuse him of playing a joke. “Um….I”...he had no idea what to say and then he heard her call out to Cooper. “Coop, go see what Dad’s doing! This phone just rang and there’s someone here, it’s Dad, I know it is.” She was still laughing and then Clint finally said “Lila?”

He could almost hear her roll her eyes. “Who else would it be and how did you get this thing to work? That is so weird. Where are you anyway?” There was a pause and then he heard the one thing he wouldn’t have expected to hear.

His own voice.

“Lila? Who are you talking to? That phone doesn’t work. Did it ring?” Clearly he was as confused as Clint was in the phonebooth in New Zealand. “Hang it up, it’s someone playing a prank. Or the phone company screwed something up.”

“But Dad…I swear it sounded like you!” Lila said just before he heard someone take the phone from her and once again his own voice speaking. “Well it’s not. I’m right here, silly. How could I be calling you on the phone?” Then there was a dial tone and Clint closed his eyes and hung up the phone.

How was it possible? He’d heard people talk about it but he hadn’t been entirely sure he believed it. He knew there were people that had been to other places, had other memories before coming here but this? This was fucked up. He was here but he was also there because he knew his own voice and he knew Lila’s voice and it made no sense but then again, did anything make sense here? Maybe he should just accept it and go on.

Laying a hand on the receiver, he’d just placed in the cradle, he sighed. “I miss you kid, but it sounds like you’re okay and in good hands. Not sure how it works but yeah..” He turned and headed back toward the housing area. He needed to talk to Natasha.