Short Stories

Gravity

The road was filled with cracks from its previous encounters with heavy instruments of transportation. The bus bumped along at a steady pace, flashing its lights as it sped down the lonely highway. The exhausted adolescents rested their heads against the shaking windows and their neighbors, opening their eyes every few minutes to see how close they were to home. An ipod fell to the floor as someone finally dozed off, and the bus was filled with a placid silence. The air from the open window filled the vehicle with a cool breeze that brought the students closer together in search of warmth.

The girl stared blankly out the window. She could not sleep. She ruffled her hair and tried not to disturb her snoozing neighbor. She lifted up on the seat and pulled the cracked window up. She leaned back against the chair and pulled up her legs to wrap around for comfort. She felt the bump as they passed onto the bridge. The stream below had been recently filled near the brim with murky rainwater from the flooding.

The driver had been awake for three days straight. His recent insomnia had taken him by surprise, and he had chosen to hide it as a last minute attempt to keep his job. He knew there was a risk in driving through this exhaustion, but he had sipped an energy drink, and hoped it would keep him alert. The sudden bump onto the bridge threw his shaky muscles into shock. The wheel slipped sideways in his grasp, and the bus hit the side with magnificent force. The rails were low and the tall bus toppled over them easily.

The girl jumped up at the sudden movement. She could feel the tipping of the bus, and watched in horror as the driver fought against the incessant pull of gravity. She held on to the window and the top of her seat as they fell helplessly over the edge. The children woke up with sudden screams and voiced fears. Many fell across the aisles as the bus flipped in the air. It hit the ground with a sudden painful force, and the muddy water filled in through the open windows. The students scrambled for escape, but few found it.

The girl pushed her way through the emergency exit and swam as fast as adrenaline would allow to the bank. She cried out in fear when none joined her. Her voice was the only sound left in the world. She could feel her heart beating out of her chest and her mind jumped from scared to suicidal. Her legs trembled, and the world fell apart. She hit the ground slowly, and her eyes closed around her muddy tears. She laid on the ground in her solitary distress, and the moon shined bright in the night sky.