The Asphalt Promise

The town was an exhalation of one shade upon another, a grey that did not change until one day when it became greener as the skyscrapers grew taller with each passing moment. Julian had a little apartment overlooking a construction site of dirt and metal rebar that cut into the ground much like a deep scar. He had a schedule to follow each day, starting with black coffee at six o'clock in the morning. There were certain colors to the tie that Julian wore to work, while there was no life inside him. He did not feel sad or lonely since he was merely sleeping beneath the surface of his permafrost. There came a point when a crack appeared in the sidewalk of the city. Julian saw it one Tuesday during his regular routine at the bus stop. All he saw was a blade of grass sprouting from underneath the concrete. Julian started watching it. And then he would find himself taking a little water bottle with him in his briefcase and surreptitiously dumping some into the crack while those around him were scrolling down on their cellphones. He did not understand why he wanted it to stay alive; he only knew that its fight was his fight. This very night, after having worked for hours on some numbers in a spreadsheet illuminated by artificial light, Julian went back to catch the bus. The plant had started blooming. But there were no flowers; just an amazing golden dandelion, radiantly beautiful. It was so bright that it hurt his eyes. At this time, it was not only silence inside that shattered; it was unraveling. He did not make his way directly back home but rather found himself drawn to an old-fashioned hobby store that he normally passed by quickly. He purchased a set of charcoal pencils along with a sketch pad. That evening, the beige tie ended up being thrown onto the bed while Julian took a seat on his small balcony. It was not simply the skyline that he observed but rather he began to capture the essence of the city that lies within it, the tough weeds, the moss growing on the walls, and the way in which the sunsets were reflected in the glass.