Dollar-store Version

Every world I visited was slightly different. However, those were only insignificant details. People living in those worlds were more or less the same, with hardly any noticeable changes.

And "I" did not exist in those worlds.

So far, there were only two exceptions.

The first time I encountered another "me" was when I was around 12, I think. Well, it wasn't much of a meeting, to be honest. I just briefly saw a kid looking just like me, when the world was already falling apart.

The second time was when I was 16. At that time, I found "myself" much earlier.

What both of those realities had in common was that the world started hunting me pretty quickly, within the first month. I guess there was not enough space for the two of "me."

Aside from "my" existence though, those worlds weren't any different from the rest.

It's quite funny, honestly. It seems I was meant to be so insignificant that over 20 years of "my" existence or lack thereof had absolutely no effect on the world. And yet, I became someone who had the power to destroy the worlds.

Anyways, none of that was important right now. Unless I wanted to start destroying this world straight away, I had to find the other "me" as soon as possible.

So I went to check out his old address. Unfortunately, neither he nor his mother lived there any longer. Well, it wasn't much of a surprise. A lot of time has passed since then, after all. But that meant I had no other leads for now.

***

My trip to the neighborhood turned out to be a success eventually.

After taking a nap at the park, I went for a meal at the restaurant nearby. It was late afternoon, and many people were coming back home from work. Who would have thought I'd spot "myself" in the crowds passing by?

I slammed all the cash I had on the table and ran out of the restaurant. Although I had no time to waste, I didn't want to leave without paying. If he lived in this area, then it wouldn't do me any good to get in trouble right from the start.

I followed after him, a safe distance behind, until he entered an apartment building. Then, I observed the windows from the roof nearby.

Soon enough, I saw him opening one of the windows. Then, he left the room.

That was the perfect opportunity for me.

I quickly jumped, landing on the windowsill, and slid into the room.

It was an acceptable-looking bedroom. Not really up to my usual standards, and a bit messy, but still quite comfortable. I didn't get to look around much though, cause I heard a sound of glass shattering.

I glanced towards the door. He was back already, with a cup of coffee, which unfortunately ended up on the floor as soon as he saw me.

Seriously, what's up with people dropping things out of shock? That has never happened to me.

"Hi," I greeted him with a charming smile.

No response. He just stood in place, completely unmoving.

"Let's just have a little chat, shall we?" I grabbed him by the shoulders and sat him down on the bed, taking a spot on the desk myself, just so I could look down at him. It might not have been necessary though. He didn't seem like a difficult target to intimidate. "So, here's the thing. I'm you from another world. I'll be staying here for a while, so I need you to help me out a bit. What do you say?" I explained everything briefly.

It should have been comprehensive enough. However, he was still unresponsive, just staring at me with wide eyes.

I sighed, ruffling my head. "I don't ask for much. Just give me all the necessary information, such as your bank details, all the passwords, Social Security Number and so on…"

"W-why do y-y-you need th-those things?" He finally managed to stutter out a response.

Damn, the other "me" was such a loser. He had my face, but that was about it. He was skin and bones, as if he'd never heard about the gym. His fashion sense, although not as bad as the guy's from earlier, also left a lot to be desired. And don't even get me started on his behavior. It was clear he had absolutely no confidence. In every way, shape and form, he was an inferior, dollar-store version of me.

Geez, we were supposed to be the same person, so how could he have ended up like that? Not that I cared, but that meant replacing him would be a tad difficult. People were bound to notice such a drastic change.

There was no need to discuss any of this with him though. "I need them if I want to live in this world for a while," I just said with a wide smile instead.

He just observed me carefully in silence.

"…No." When he eventually spoke up, his voice was quiet, but there was a certain decisiveness I did not expect.

And so I looked at him with narrowed eyes, the smile completely gone from my face. "And why's that?"

"Do you take me for an idiot? If I tell you everything, then you'll have no need to keep me around."

I guess I was misled by the exterior. Of course he wouldn't be so stupid. He was another version of me, after all.

However…

I grabbed his phone, which was lying on the desk right next to me, and unlocked it by pressing my finger on the fingerprint reader.

"You're wrong. Even now, I don't, in fact, need you at all." I turned the phone around, showing the unlocked screen to him. "As I said, I'm you. I look… more or less like you, I even have the same fingerprints as you. Do you honestly believe that I wouldn't be able to get what I want without your help?"

He gulped loudly, staring at me, visibly scared. Good, he was quick to catch on.

"Now, I'm simply offering you a choice. You can cooperate… or we can do this the hard way. So which will it be, hmm?" I gave him a wide smile once again, but it must have looked quite sinister in his eyes.

"I-I'll cooperate." He immediately sprung onto his feet and started writing this down on a piece of paper frantically.

Meanwhile, I went to the kitchen to make myself some coffee. There was no need to observe him all the time. I only had to take his phone with me, just to make sure he doesn't get any weird ideas, such as calling the police or something.

It was quite a good thing, honestly. His presence made things so much easier for me. Now I had a phone, a bank account, and a place to stay… As long as I disposed of him soon, I should have a nice, long stay in this world.