In the Shade of the Towers

 


The front door wobbled open.

As Niyah shuffled out a warm ocean breeze streamed through the living room.
She glanced at her phone: 19:15, and stepped onto the sidewalk.

LA was huge and full of life. A kaleidoscope of lights and shadows glossed over her eyes; smells and sounds, painted the city.

Closing her eyes, Niyah drew a deep breath and exhaled.

...

She hated Los Angeles. Everything about the city made her brackish, and she couldn't stand it. The people, the traffic, the drivers, the accents,
the list went on and on growing by the footstep, but it was home now, "a new start" she whispered under her breath.

Niyah tried to smile, but the corners of her mouth remained unmotivated.

She wanted to be happy here, she wanted to smile when she walked beneath the glass towers, but she felt nothing; as if her soul suddenly became sick of her and left, or died...or both; she couldn't tell either way.

Constantly she wondered why, or how or who did this to her; trying to piece together the imaginary puzzle she insisted was real.
She tried so hard to convince herself that it was real, she wanted it to be real, she needed it to be real, because nothing else was.

And then she yawned, letting the matter slip away in a roar of exhaustion.

She looked at her phone; 23:26..."What am I doing here?"