Broken City

It’s not surprising that Daniel was late for work again today. He needs to leave his apartment by at least 7:43 in order to catch the first bus, and today he left at 7:47. However, it’s a very rare occurrence for Daniel to ever catch the first bus. He stays up late due to his mild insomnia, he spills coffee on his only clean shirt, his dog makes a mess in the kitchen; it seems like there is always some force working against Daniel that prevents him from getting out of the door at the precise second he needs to. Today it was my fault, really. My power went out, and it stopped Daniel’s alarm clock from going off. I felt myself release a slight drizzle as the sentiment of guilt rushed over me. The people snapped their heads up to my sky and groaned in unison. Mr. Garvey shook his fist, and yelled out; his voice bouncing off of my buildings and echoing through my streets. I let an extra drop fall directly on his crooked nose.

This is a strange phenomenon, if you look at the map, Joe; you can see that the storm only hit right at the heart of the city. Surrounding areas were unaffected…

I sighed, creating a gust of wind that nearly knocked Rose right off her walker. It’s difficult to create those kinds of conditions out of nothing. I’m usually at the mercy of the weather, but last night we clashed; butting heads and gnashing teeth until I gained dominance. The rain became mine. I let it strike against my ground in fat potent drops. I seized the wind, and thrust it against my buildings. I was even able to force some lightning into a telephone pole. That’s when everything went black. The control was almost completely exhausted from me now. The people on my streets looked just as worn down and fatigued as I did. Their feet shuffled along my sidewalks; heads down and avoiding puddles.

Daniel ran to catch the second bus. He entered the doors, exasperated, and slumped down in the blue plastic seat in the corner. He took out his sketchbook, and began where he left off yesterday; my skyline. Daniel had been sketching me ever since I met him, four months ago. He made me feel exceptional; filling my imperfect places with a sort of unadulterated beauty. Every shady alley, every piece of trash rolling down my street, he illustrated as something seamless and pure. I felt like there was a mutual respect between us. Daniel gave me what nobody else had given me before. He gave me confidence in all aspects of myself.

I often wonder about Daniel before he came here. I wonder what his life was like when he was outside of my bounds. He doesn’t talk about it much, and it’s difficult to become familiar with him. Even I, who has access to more dimensions of his personal life than anyone, feel that sometimes he is a complete stranger. I know that he likes to eat chips and salsa in front of the TV at night. I know that he says “God, bless you” to his dog when she sneezes. I know that he sweats profusely when he gets nervous. I know that he likes to turn the lights off when he showers. But there are many facets of Daniel that remain enigmatic, and I think that is part of his intrigue.

She definitely liked it. That woman he met at the bar (what was her name, Leah?) That’s why she went home with him. You’re so mysterious, Danny. I want to know more about you. She wrapped her hand around the back of his neck, and his soft brown curls brushed against her bony fingers. His straight red lips curved up into a smile, and he pulled her hips towards his; kissing her passionately. I recoiled at the thought. She asked him to close the curtains because the city freaks her out. The city is gross. He didn’t hesitate. He went over to the curtains and drew them tight, just as the rainstorm began…

Daniel got off at his stop and checked his watch, 8:03. A trail of sweat ran down his face as he made his way to the door. He really wasn’t that late. Everything would have been fine except that the clock in Bob Endwell’s office read 8:05. Bob drummed his short stubby fingers on his desk to no certain rhythm. His upper lip curled, and he released a sort of growl as he heard Daniel enter the doors. His booming voice caused Daniel to come to a halt as he passed his office. Late again?  Daniel pressed the back of his hand to his brow, and small beads of sweat clung to his skin. Being five minutes late is unacceptable. If he was three minutes late, it would be a different story, but five minutes is irresponsible, negligent and a myriad of other things. Being five minutes late five times in one month is grounds for expulsion from the company.

Daniel rode the bus home with a box full of the contents of his desk. He spent the next few weeks checking the papers for jobs that were local to me. His pointer finger was stained black from scrolling through columns of job listings. I felt guilty that my storm cost Daniel his job, but I enjoyed this alone time with him. When he wasn’t busy looking for a job, he sketched me some more. I looked more beautiful than ever. We hadn’t seen Leah since the night of the rainstorm. She left Daniel’s apartment early in the morning, and bought a coffee before taking a train far away from us. Daniel really opened up to me. Instead of drawing in his sketchbook one day, he wrote. He wrote about his parents passing away when he was young, how he is apprehensive to take another job because he really just wants to draw, and how much he loves me. I’ve really fallen in love with this city. I was in love with Daniel too. He was the only person who walked through my streets that I genuinely cared about. I focused all of my attention on him. He was everything to me.

Then he got a call from someone in Chicago, and the next day he began packing his belongings into boxes. His dog ran at his feet, nervously nipping at his ankles as he packed. His apartment gradually became bare. The last thing he packed was his sketchbook. He tossed it on top of some books, and folded the cardboard flaps over it. The sound of ripping masking tape was almost deafening to me as he secured the final box. I tried so hard to scream. Don’t leave me! Don’t leave me! I remained silent. An overwhelming feeling of remorse consumed me when I realized that I was the one to blame for him leaving. It was my storm that cost him his job. Rain began to trickle from my clouds as I watched Daniel leave beyond my boundaries. I was trapped; cemented to one place while Daniel left my reach. He loved me, and I loved him back, and he would never know.

Author's Note

This is something I wrote for a class, but I thought I'd share it. I'm experimenting with different perspectives.

Reviews

[Carolann Dowsett]

Wow this really captivated me, a great write.

[Carly]

Thanks! I like to hear that.

[Trace]

Very interesting perspective. I enjoyed how you looked at it as the city would its occupants.
Does the city care?
Obviously it does.

Cool writing.
Trace

[Carly]

Thanks for reading!

[KeeD]

"He gave me confidence in all aspects of myself." The way you describe the city's relationship and persona in this story is fantastic Carly. I really would read a whole book written by you, you're a writer I enjoy reading. "The sound of ripping masking tape was almost deafening to me as he secured the final box." I got so emotional during this part, I could actually here the crackling of the tape whiles reading. The relationship was like none other, I've read a lot of stories of personal connections but this was by far the best. Carly don't ever stop writing you have a gift.

[Carly]

Thanks so much! That means a lot coming from you. Although I don't have much time to write while I'm at school, I promise I'll never abandon it!

[InsanityWriter]

Wow! This is so good! Your idea of personifying the city is so original! I love it. ^_^ Great work. ;)

[Whispering Pines]

I really enjoyed this. I loved reading the story from the city's point of view. It really made me think. Good job!

[Carly]

Thanks!