Thoughts from a Driver at 1 a.m.

Such a peaceful thing, driving. Some people fear it but there is something about that fear that is comforting. Almost as if the idea that every time you get in the car could be your last time you walk or talk or live makes the car ride itself a metaphorical last words: the final seek of clarity before you take your last gasp of breath your world has to offer. That's what driving is like for me. It's clarity.

1 in the morning is the perfect time to drive. It's the time between sober and drunk. The time where last call has yet to happen and the dangers that await in the next few hours are still just bad dreams. The people who drive at 1 a.m. are either crazy (me) or have a destination they are trying to reach (far from me). While driving at a time like this, my brain tends to go in this state of thinking but also staying attentive. I let my mind wander only as far as my headlights go so that I don't get lost in the darkness that has yet to be reached.

The highway is bare on this newborn day. I wonder where everyone is, what happened in their lives for them to be traveling alongside me. Then again, they would probably be asking me the same thing. I know the answer to their question just as well as I know mine. The lack of people tonight has led me to study other things. Like the fact that the road seems especially dark tonight. This catches me off guard at first. The far lane was so dark it looked like it wasn't there -- a mysterious black hole that was boarded by bright reflective dashes that protected me from my last words.

A car zoomed past and I shook out of it. My thoughts had been so absorbed by the black hole that I hadn't even seen the car coming on my right. My attention shifted. They drove with a purpose I wish I had, they knew their destination and they were getting there. Fast. I bet they don't draw parallels between the road and celestial mysteries while their driving. Oh well.

I checked my mirrors, another car was approaching but my lane remained empty. I watched the car travel up next to me and hover a car length away from me diagonally. Where are you heading? I feared that we were two of the same. He was no where near eager enough to have a destination that he cared about. Another car was fast approaching in my friend's lane, much faster than he was traveling. I bit down on my lip and took my foot off the accelerator to distance myself. Speed Racer got way too close for comfort before drifting across in front of me. I hate when people do that. Now my lip is bleeding. Great.

I'm turning a corner now. Well it's not a corner really, it's more of a bend, a curve if you will. The highway straightens out and I see that I am close to the city. More cars.I didn't realize how long I'd been driving. I'll get off at the next exit. No, the one after next. A few more minutes is all I need.

I get lost again. Not all the way gone, but just enough. I changed lanes for the first time so I could prepare for my departure. I said my goodbyes. I straighten out my back so I could get ready to actively drive once I got back to actual roads and I saw it.

Headlights.

They were getting closer.

I bit on my lip and winced.

The sound was the worst part, the darkness not so much.

Reviews

[Rockel Mansaray]

Congratulations! You won my contest. In fact it wasn't even for you're cliff hanger. It was just because this story had me thinking and feeling what the driver in this story was feeling. I could strongly connect to this feeling. It reminded me of highway hypnosis. When often times after driving for so long, your mind starts to draw blank, almost as if you're in a trance. I've experienced that way too many times to count, so I can sort of see and know how this driver felt, (besides the whole killing himself in the end I mean)

Again thanks for entering my contest.
Keep writing if you love it so

Sincerely, Rockel M.