Reflection

          In the darkness of the subway, the lights were always blinding when you stepped into them. I wore a big sunhat to protect against that, but this time it was different. This time, the light was coming from the ground. Somebody had dropped a mirror on the concrete, right at the entrance of the subway. It was cracked in several places, but I could still see the reflection of a sad, thin person. Its existence was so minute that even though it was the only thing I could see in the mirror, it was like it wasn't even there. The strange figure walked toward me in the mirror. Once I picked up the broken thing, I figured out that the little silhouette of a being was me. It struck me as odd that it took so long to figure that out.

          I'm jerked out of the thought as an intimidating man bumps into my shoulder.

          "Get out of the way kid, people have places to be."

          His point was proven soon after by an endless stream of people: elderly, and adolescents, passing me. Each equally determined to get wherever it was they were going. Some of them seem to be annoyed by my presence, their arms or hands breezing past mine. I clutched the mirror and quickly moved out of their way. Why I kept the mirror I can't say, it felt like it was there for me, and it hurt me to think of putting it in the trash. I paused once I'd gotten clear of foot traffic, looking at the mirror in my hands. I stared in wonder as the cracks distorted the reflection of my face. A pale, shrunken person stared back at me through the reflective glass. The world around them kept spinning, and so did they.

          The murmurs of passersby drifted through the loud city streets. None of those murmurs were about me, they talked about their family, the date they went on last night, a restaurant they went to, a sports team they favored, the topics went on and on. That random small talk seemed so unimportant that I'd never bothered to take part in it before, but now I suddenly felt a pang of loss, I wanted what they all had.

          Of course, it's not like I never talked to anybody. I worked in customer service for God's sake, I couldn't get away from all the talking. However, those talks were different, I wasn't on the phone talking to a friend. I was talking to a very angry stranger, and my job was to fix all their problems. It's tiring being a problem solver, nobody ever told me that. Even though all I did was sit at a desk and talk to people, I felt like I hauled bricks all day. Once I got home, I could hardly bring myself the energy to cook dinner, and often I didn't. I was always so, so very tired. I spent almost all my time off asleep- even on weekends. Vacation times were never cashed in, and if they were, it was to sleep for a day, or to clean the apartment if I'd ever found myself with enough energy to do so.

          I trudged along the sidewalk. Luckily the building I worked in wasn't far from the subway. I open the doors and cold air rushes out to meet me. I greeted my coworkers as I passed them, receiving a few mumbles in return. Once on the 3rd floor, the elevator doors open to a silent room. Mornings are always the most crushing, the entire floor is deathly quiet. All the people here look the same as me: tired, sad, and cold.

          Passing the many sections of computers, I find my own and place the cracked mirror in front of the keyboard. Starting up my computer, I gaze at my reflection on the blue screen. Something in my brain nags at me, telling me to share the mirror with somebody else. I tap the shoulder of the person next to me. Her name was Laurel if I recall correctly. She looks at me with darkened eyes, like she was stuck in another world.

          "What is it?" she asks with indifference. I pick up the mirror and turn its surface towards her. She looks at it confused for a moment, but then she changes. Her eyes softened as she gazed into the mirror for a bit longer, touching her face and moving around. Finally, I turn it away from her, and set it face down on my desk. She looks up at me in awe.

          "Where did you get that? It's unlike you to take interest in anything other than your work," she asks with curiosity.

          "I think it found me; I'm going to share it with everyone."