The Silent City

     Tom Gardner stepped out from underneath the doorway and into the

pouring rain. He turned for one last look at the dark building behind him.

All of the lights were off except for the blinking neon ones in the windows.

Turning again, he began to make his way down the slick sidewalk. It was very

quiet tonight, but he could still hear the constant droning of sirens

throughout the city. Or were they car alarms? It was difficult to tell

because they were so far away.

        As he walked down the street, he looked off to the side. After the

building, there was a small patch of fenced in grass. The tiny lawn seemed to

be in disrepair. There were small spots of dirt here and there. Then he

decided they didn't because of its size. It was probably too small for anyone

to play on.

        Just past the grass was another building. This made Tom a little

upset. He liked how the lawn broke the monotony of the dark damp buildings.

The rain was really coming down now. The drops were huge and Tom winced as

some hit his face.

        He had reached the corner, and he looked at the street light to make

sure there weren't any cars coming this way. Not many people were out at

this hour. No one but him. At least that's what he thought. He failed to

hear the soft footsteps behind him.

        The light was red so he crossed the street, and was confronted by

more buildings. It seemed as if they just stretched on forever. Just rows of

windows and doors. Tom stopped for a moment to observe this newest building.

Suddenly he felt something on his back, and heard a phantom voice tell him

to hand over his wallet. To the surprise of his assailant, Tom merely let

out a sigh and turned to face his attacker. The man was short and it was hard

to see his face because he was wearing a low brimmed hat. His eyes were

just a small patch of darkness.

        Tom gave his wallet to the man, and just stood there looking at him.

The man lowered his gun and stared back. Looking at Tom, the mugger almost

felt sorry for him. He was standing there in the rain after he had just been

mugged, and he didn't seem to care in the least.

        "You are pretty weird!" the mugger said.

        "Funny, I was just about to say the same thing," Tom answered

quietly. The man gave him the finger, turned around, and got swallowed up

into the darkness from where he came. So, with a sigh, Tom started walking

again.

        After a while, he decided to cross over to the other side. Perhaps

he would find something new and exciting there. At first he didn't, but then

he found a bottle on the ground. He picked it up and looked at it. The rain

had almost completely washed off the label, so he couldn't tell what was in

it. He sniffed at the mouth. It smelled faintly of lemons. Not just lemons,

though. Maybe it was Iced Tea. He took it with him until he passed a dumpster

and tossed it in. There was nothing else in it, and as the bottle hit the

bottom, it shattered violently. The sudden loud noise shocked him out of a

daze the city had lulled him into.

        Suddenly he realized he was standing in front of his building. It was

number 39. He walked up the wet gray steps and unlocked the door. Once

inside, he felt good to be out of the rain. His clothes were all wet and

they were sticking to him. He walked down the deserted hallway underneath

that annoying flickering light. He walked until he reached his room. When he

opened the door he half expected someone to greet him, but all he was

confronted with was the darkness. He walked through the abyss as he had done

a thousand times before. When he reached his bed, he got in fully clothed and

soaking wet, and tried to fall asleep so he could do it all over again

tomorrow.