The Boy Who Wore Boat Shoes

10⎜The Moon

10⎜The Moon

           With a final tick from the clock on Seth’s side of the room that usually wasn’t an issue, my eyes snapped open, only to be faced with the dark navy of night, light streaming in from the moon outside. The room was a lethal silence, for Seth thankfully didn’t snore (I didn’t either, for that matter). I could just barely make out the pattern of the ceiling tiles above me, and had no desire to start counting sheep or blast music in order to aid in the process of sleep.

           I had gone to bed around eleven, and then Seth wandered into the room at about eleven-thirty. Within minutes, he was fast asleep, leaving me to ponder the largest questions and concepts of life, ranging from immensity to the famous “where did we come from?” Normally, sleeping was not a problem from me. I didn’t get homesick, and I generally had the ability to shut my eyes and instantly fall into the suspending trance of slumber. Tonight, though, no matter what I did, I just couldn’t seem to fall asleep.

           “Seth?” I whispered quietly. “Are you awake?” The requested party merely let out a dazed grunt in response, probably barely hearing me.

           Seth was a strange sleeper. Some nights, he was out in seconds and slept the entire night through and was impossible to wake up in the morning. A nuclear explosion couldn’t even wake that guy up when he was determined to sleep. Other nights, he was like a hyperactive puppy, tossing and turning and talking and not sleeping. I preferred the nights when Seth was a human rock for a few hours—I tended to get more sleep then. Tonight, though, his rock-like qualities weren’t exactly working in my favor. I wanted to talk to someone, and usually Seth was just the guy for that. Alas, my roommate was asleep, and I was more awake than I had ever been before.

           I sighed, finally determining what I was going to do with myself. Generally, physical activity tired me, meaning that a walk couldn’t hurt. The chances were high that I wasn’t going to get mugged on the quad at midnight, so I wasn’t too worried about going alone. I slipped on a pair of flip-flops, and then threw a sweatshirt on so that my uncovered torso was at least somewhat more decent. It was hot out, so I didn’t bother zipping up the article of clothing, assuming that the campus was going to be a ghost town on the weekday night.

           Cautiously, I tiptoed over to the door with as little sound as possible for Seth’s benefit. My hand reached out to the doorknob, and I twisted it, pressing the door open only slightly, as to not let the light of the hallway stream into the room too much. I flitted out of our dorm room, and closed the door behind me, staring at the empty hall that lay before me.

           Typically, the hallway was a place of livelihood. Boys were always rushing in and out of rooms, occasionally dragging girls along with them. There was barely ever a time when no action was occurring in the long passageway between rooms. It was odd to see that even a place with such a reputation for energy was dead at night, like everything else.

           I strolled down the lit hall, and then jogged down the few stairs required, until I reached the front area that was the beginning of another identical hallway, and also the exit. Like upstairs, it was vacant of any inhabitants besides me. The worn leather couches that commonly served as a meeting grounds for all people alike just sat on the scratched wooden flooring, looking bulky and cushiony as they always did, but with a tint of desolation that everything seemed to possess at this hour. I made my way over to the glass double doors rimmed with black metal, and pushed only one open, recalling a time when I had thought that pulling them out from the inside was a viable option. Evidently, it was not.

           The chilled night air hit me as a surprise, considering that during the day, it had been almost too hot to function. Now, it wasn’t exactly cold out, but it was definitely colder than it had been earlier. And like everything else, the pathways that lead to the main campus were empty. From where I was now standing, on the edge of my dorm building’s steps, I could see the moon fully, and how truly bright it glowed. It was a perfect illuminated circle, and absolutely alluring to look at.