Wandering Souls

“I slowed down, unable to take my eyes off the red tandem—a girl and a motorcycle. It seems I’d dreamed my whole life of buying a similar two-wheeled monster, and here’s such a gorgeous specimen. Too bad I only earn enough to keep one means of transportation; there won’t be money for a second. And I have nowhere to store it. Suddenly the girl jerked her hand up and screamed—right at me. But in the very next second, metal screeched and there was a crash. I turned around and saw a trolleybus ram into a utility pole with a huge advertising banner. And that concrete hulk was falling toward me—inevitable and strange, like in slow motion. The crowd from the zebra crossing scattered, and I ran too. But—no. The spike from a sharp turn got stuck in a crack of asphalt softened by heat. I was frantically tugging my foot, trying to free myself, and in horror I watched the banner falling on me. Impact, crash, pain… Before the white light went out, the sun briefly lit up the red ‘Kawasaki’ and the girl running toward me, ripping off the bright helmet and shaking out long black hair. Original! Someone, before dying, sees their whole lived life— and I see a girl and a shining motorcycle…”