I don't know how long I had been sitting here at the bus stop, my hands trembling, eyes focused on nothing. The world around me felt like it was spinning and descending into nothing. Everything felt muffled and distant, as if I were living in a fog that refused to lift. Every breath I took was shaky, uncertain. But even with the heavy weight in my chest, I didn't feel any sort of relief. I thought maybe this moment of silence, of being alone, would bring me peace. But it didn't.
The town's noises hummed faintly in the background, but they might as well have been the sounds of another life. My mind was still replaying what happened back at the coffee shop, Amelia, her smiles, the shifting to darkness behind her tone, the cruel laughter I imagined. The cruelest part was that I couldn't tell what was real anymore. Was I losing my grip on what was real? Or was this town, this place, just messing with my head?14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3dKTkfSREo
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I stood up, wiping my eyes, taking a moment to glance around my environment. I must have been here for hours, because I could barely walk forward without feeling cramps in my knees. Nothing felt right anymore; everything was just threads, red threads, blue threads, but mostly the red ones. The awful ones. The ones that twisted and pulled me down. I couldn't see anything for its value anymore, even if I had hoped to see things in a different light. I can't shake these feelings off, they're buried deep, locked away in a place I can't touch. But I threw away the key.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3y728Hm3LR
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There was a sharpness in the air as I walked down the empty streets, each step seeming heavier than the last. I tried to force myself to think about something, anything, positive that could break through the mental fog. But thoughts kept circling back to Amelia. What happened between us? Did anything happen between us? What did I do wrong?14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbcWCiCrOD
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It didn't help seeing the threads of random passersby. Seeing them judge me internally through their thoughts. Talking about me in secret. I was all too familiar with this, but I thought I was finally over it. But with me, there's no start or end, just an ongoing mess, like trash that fills up too fast, like an overflown bucket that wasn't emptied. Like rain that never seems to fully stop. The weight of their emotional impact was too strong for me to bear. I couldn't help but think about how broken I am for this town.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsyuIwNNob
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The suffocating weight was placed on my back, barely hanging on by the littlest thread. I didn't know how to fight it, but I knew I had to do something, anything, to try. So instead of facing my problems, I went back to the record store. Maybe returning here would help me figure out where to go from here. Audrey was the nicest person I had met in this town. Something about her was always positive.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMgh2Sm8Jh7
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As soon as I walked through the cobblestone streets and into the record shop, I felt like I was instantly in a better place, a better state of mind. Something I could finally accept. I could breathe, and things didn't seem so bad. Maybe it was the store, or Audrey's emotional impact. Her energy was soothing, like she wasn't judging, or talking behind anyone's back. I walked up to her, and she immediately saw something was wrong.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfLdXTO3dE0
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"Wow, are you okay? What happened to you? Your face looks drained!" she said, concerned, walking slowly over to me.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr3tZ2EY2Ki
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"It's been a lot. I won't explain further to save you the pain," I said, the pain aching through my soul.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS1jizFvp5m
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"You just need a little cleansing. Come sit on the couch. We can listen to some rock records together," she said, doing her best to comfort me.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN6i48V5fez
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"You know what? Maybe that's what I need right now," I said, taking a deep breath and sitting down on the couch. She placed a vinyl on the record player, and it began to play. She sat on the couch across from me, looking around as if searching for the right words.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWcxBOPmGr3
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"So, you're new here, and you're already experiencing the drama around here?" she said, laughing in a sad tone. "Trust me, that's why I stay away from it all," she added, leaning forward.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡat2HsEN1i0
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"You stay away from it all? How do you do it?" I asked, pain in my eyes.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy63XpuzzO9
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"I don't choose to, but I have to. They always seem to judge you when you're at your lowest before seeing your highest," she said, grabbing a newspaper from the table in front of her.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡReQOCSZzRx
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"You see, this newspaper holds the memories of the town. Nothing in bright colors, but it always has its ups and downs. So much so, this was made about it," she said, placing it back on the table, facing me.
"So, this isn't the first occurrence?" I asked, confused, leaning in to look at it.
"It's not. Not the first, and definitely not the last. Tragedies will keep happening here," she said, and I noticed a concerning thread around her.
"What do you mean by that?" I asked, a bit scared but confused.
"Just... don't get on anyone's bad side. They think they're always under attack, but Clara, I promise you, you're never alone in this store," she said, leaning in to place her hand on my arm.
"I'm still confused, but I appreciate this, Audrey. You seem so genuine compared to what I experienced last night," I said, feeling a sense of relief but also concern. But none of that mattered now.
"Anytime, Clara. I'll head back up front to count the sales I made today, but please make this your home," she said, grinning as she got up and slowly walked back up front.
I stayed seated for a while, just processing my thoughts, listening to the music playing on the record player, and unwinding. For the first time in a long while, I felt like my thoughts mattered. It was no wonder she liked staying hidden away in this shop, where all seemed normal. Nothing seemed estranged. Compared to feeling judged out there, being here felt like a no-judgment zone. Something I'd been hoping for ever since I got here.
As I walked back through the empty streets, the world around me seemed to distort. The usual hum of the town, the whispers of distant conversations, was nowhere to be found. It was like the air itself had thickened, holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. Each step felt heavier than the last, as if the pavement itself was pulling me down.
The streets, which were always alive with some kind of noise, were now eerily quiet. No cars, no footsteps, no chatter from the small shops I passed. The silence was suffocating, a sharp contrast to the emotions swirling inside me. The wind didn't even stir the trees, and the buildings loomed taller, casting long shadows that seemed to stretch further than they should.
The tension in the air was palpable, like a storm waiting to break, but never quite hitting. I glanced over my shoulder, half-expecting someone to be following me, but there was no one. Not a single soul around. The only sound was the faint, rhythmic tapping of my boots on the cobblestones, the only thing grounding me in a reality that felt like it was slipping away.
The town was holding its breath. And I wasn't sure how much longer I could hold mine.
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