There he was; the man that no one understood. I often wondered if he understood himself. He never came out during the day. I’d see him out at night most of the time; only a glimpse of him, though. But sometimes, I wouldn’t see him for weeks and months at a time. I wondered where he was. I wondered if he was in his apartment all this time, or if he was exploring somewhere.
I liked to think he was exploring the universe. I imagined him soaring through the clouds, not looking down at the beautiful scenery below him, but the opportunities above him. I imagined him soaring above the clouds at night, swimming with the stars, passing earth and myself behind. I imagined him running from the sunlight, chasing the darkness.
He’d soar back down to earth and into his apartment by morning. I imagined him sleeping during the day. I wasn’t sure what he’d dream about. How could any dream compare to what he experienced when he was awake? He’d wake up right before the sun set and do it all over again.
When he was missing, or away, he stayed on the moon. He’d run around it carless and weightless. He’d jump over the moon’s creators, dance on the planets, and fly through space with the shooting stars. Once he got tired, he’d come back down. Just for a little while, though.
He was like a bird; an eagle. He was free-spirited and fearless. He could do whatever he wanted.
I’ve never spoken to him. I’ve always wanted to. My family and friends are afraid of him. They were afraid because he was different. I envied him. I wanted to go with him. I wanted to be like him. I wanted to soar through and above the clouds, swim in space, and dance on the moon. I didn’t want to be stuck on the ground. I wanted to venture the world and the universe. I don’t like being stuck here.
So I stood outside of his apartment, waiting for him. I needed to see him. I needed to go with him. I looked up and saw the faint shape of the moon in the pink and orange sky. It was going to be a full bright moon. I searched for the clouds; they were puffy purple and blue clouds. The sun was orange and was almost setting.
The apartment building door opened. He stood there in the door way looking at me. I stared at my reflection in his sunglasses. He smiled a knowing smile and turned to walk down the sidewalk. I followed him. I needed to. He looked up at the birds soaring to get back to their nests. They chirped at him. I wished they chirped at me.
He continued to walk past some people, they stared at him. He kept going. They stared at me, I wanted to die. Their stares were bullets shooting through me; knocking me down. He took my hand and led me through the judgmental onlookers.
When we were free of people I stopped, he stopped too.
“Hey Mr. Rager,”
He stood stone cold.
“Mr. Rager, tell me where you’re going,”
“Tell me where you’re headed,” I pleaded.
“I’m off on the adventure,” his voice was rough and perfect.
“Mr. Rager, tell me some of your stories,” I asked.
He didn’t say anything.
“Tell me of your travels,”
He started to walk again.
“Hey Mr. Rager,”
“Mr. Rager,”
“Tell me where you’re going, tell me where you’re headed” I yelled.
“I’m on my way to heaven.” He stated and looked up at the now navy blue night sky as if going over his plans to get to heaven.
“Mr. Rager, can I tag along? Can I take the journey?” I begged.
He grabbed my hand once again and led me up the hill. I walked with him. We stood up on the hill. The busy and judgmental city was behind us. The opportunity stared back at me. I looked up at Mr. Rager. He squeezed my hand tight. He looked up at the clear night sky. The stars were bright tonight, but it didn’t come close to the moon. Mr. Rager smiled down at me.
I closed my eyes, waiting for it to happen. Mr. Rager kept a tight hold of my hand. When I opened my eyes, we were soaring high. I gasped, as we shot through the dark cloud. We kept on going. I looked down, but Mr. Rager guided my face to look up, look up into the possibilities the night sky had for us tonight.
We kept going. We kept going higher and higher into space. We shot past the moon. The planets were a colorful blur. We raced past the shooting stars. The butterflies in my stomach fluttered around. I wondered if that was making us fly. We kept going past the galaxies. We were approaching a bright light. It was warm and inviting. I knew it was heaven. It had to be. Mr. Rager and I kept flying towards it.
I felt Mr. Rager’s hand slip through mine and I started to fall backwards. Mr. Rager looked back and winked at me.
“Mr. Rager!” I screamed.
He kept going towards heaven and left me behind. Tears started to form in my eyes. I let them fall. They poured down my face like waterfalls. They fell off of my face and into the abyss. I drifted back to earth; the place that I once knew as my home. I drifted into bed and looked at the window; the sun was starting to rise. I closed my eyes and slept. Tonight I would do it all over again.
