Well you probably don't need this anymore but I'll give it a shot anyway. Now, I'm not completely up to date with my 1996 history so I'll sort of come up with a couple of ideas about the number 1996, I'm not sure what resources you have available so...
1.) Well 1996 could represent a person...
- prisoner number 1996 in a war camp/ a prison/ an asylum etc.
- perspective of the prisoner/ perspective of some one else
- dystopian society? No names just numbers
- Less resources? The number of a student in school or employee number 1996 of a restaurant where the employees are being constantly fired by the drunk manager? Employee determined to keep the job??
-Teddy number 1996 in a production factory, from creation to destruction
-Agent 1996 from a secret service organisation ?
2.) It could represent a place...
- A room in a big office block or something
- Maybe this room doesn't exist, it goes 1994, 1995, 1997. Random cleaner gets confused or something?
- Maybe room 1996 does exist but it's locked and no ones gone in there since 'the event'?
- Maybe a day in the life of room 1996, i.e. the storage cupboard at a local law firm with some sarcastic narration. things take place, examples such as employees sneaking in for a makeout session etc.
- Or a place on a board, you know those squares that you fill in your name for one pound to get the chance of winning a teddy etc. Square 1996 is the winner, only something goes horribly wrong.
-Box turns up at someone's doorstep with 1996 written on the front of it?
3.) Or just go the classic route of 1996 seconds in the life of ...
4.) Or even separate the numbers into 1, 9, 9 and 6. E.g. the one time we met, the nine times we looked for one another but didn't find each other, the nine times we almost saw one another but didn't and the six times we... I don't know but I guess you catch my drift.
Anyway you probably don't need this now but I'll do my best to help anyway.