| A misty cloud lingered for a second in mid-air before it disappeared, followed by another. The mouth from which the clouds were coming from smiled. "It's amazing," the figure said, hands deep in his black jacket, "how life goes on, one day at a time..." The fire crackled at him in the solitary trash can. The street was deserted. "And we never think about what's happened, or what's coming. Just what's here, now. We live our lives focused on the second, yesterday fuzzy and tomorrow misty." Clouds escaped his mouth as he talked, the cold turning his breath to ice. "Crackle," said the fire. "And somehow through it all, this." He spread his arms wide, gesturing the grey towering buildings that choked the alleyway. "Humans are idiots. They all dwell in their own stupidness, killing each other and thinking of nothing but themselves, but somehow.. they manage to create monumental works of art." Crackle. He lowered his arms, and slowly looked into the fire. "But they're plagued. They are greedy and unforgiving. They don't deserve this ability of.. creativity." He put his hands back in his pockets. A giant flash lit up the night sky, turning the night to day for a few seconds followed by a distant rumbling. The sound grew louder and louder until it was a tremendous boom that ripped down the alley, followed by wind that blew his long black jacket back, whipping it around his body. The light abated, then the sound and the wind. A siren flared up in the distance, soon joined by others of panic and confusion. The fire had gone out, and the alley was cast into shadows. A smirk had formed on the man's lips, his hands deep in his pockets. "Boom," he said, and walked away. |
| Just Looking |