The Bridge
It is 2:00a.m Sunday morning. The sun is still not up, and the dark lingers like an unwanted guest. Light is scarce and the only glow comes from houses faraway. The eerie presence of the unknown creeps in every corner. The cold trails me as I walk along the abandoned sidewalk. Goosebumps cover my flesh and cold sweat envelops my forehead. My steps quicken and I look around for cars or people. It seems as if I am the only sign of life around…for now.
I make my way across the street. All is quiet and that if something fell off the nearby bridge, no one would hear a sound. It was as if people were in an endless sleep, ignorant to their environment, ignorant to the fact that people could be outside, alone and distraught. I look around and everything seems distant and grey. The steel cars on the streets look cold and cruel. Their lifeless and soundless forms give an unnatural feel. These monsters of the road are now mere ornaments. I look towards the nearby houses, hoping for light or a mark of life to pull me back. There is nothing. I keep walking straight ahead. In no time I can reach the main road and then the bridge.
I see my breath as I exhale and I can feel the sweat pouring down my back. The main road is only a minute of walk, but to me it felt like a 100 years. It takes me closer and closer, to place where I am supposed to go, a place that people helped me reach. This position, the bridge, seems like an only solution. As I reach the bridge, I walk on broken pavement. Grey and cracked. I finally touch the bridge and the cold metal greets me like an old friend. I guess it knows me enough to see that this is not my first visit to the bridge. I respond to the hello by clasping harder to the railing. I hoist my self up so I am standing on the barrier. I feel like a tight rope walker, clinging on the ropes and balancing on the railing, balancing between despair and death. I look at the water below. The stream looks like a black hole, captivating every unwanted life. My hand slips a sign telling me to let go. Maybe I should. There was nothing in the world to hold on too, not even a railing. I was wet with sweat. Cold overtook me. My mind just like the water became an unknown abyss. I looked back once more, hoping for a sign, but none came. I looked down. I had made my choice.