The Misstep

Grady Huxley, a Time Keeper with a love for football that rivaled his duty to the timelines, had a secret he couldn’t resist any longer. He set his watch to 1986, the exact date and place of his favorite player's legendary goal—the one that sealed his name in history books forever.

The stadium roared as Grady slipped unnoticed into the crowd, blending into the sea of fans. When the moment came, he lost himself in the excitement, jumping up and screaming louder than anyone around him.

But his enthusiasm carried too far. The player, about to strike, caught sight of Grady's wildly out-of-place antics—a man dressed far too modernly, holding an odd glowing watch. The split-second distraction was enough. The kick went wide.

The crowd gasped, then fell silent. The player's face turned pale, and his confidence seemed to shatter. That was supposed to be his masterpiece, the goal that would define his career. Instead, his trajectory changed. The headlines the next day didn’t celebrate his brilliance—they mourned a missed opportunity. His career quietly fizzled out like an extinguished candle.

Grady returned to the present filled with dread. Sports records, once etched into his memory, now held no mention of his idol. History had erased the man entirely. Grady learned the hard way that even harmless indulgence had the power to alter fate.

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