I opened my eyes and slowly sat up in my bed. The window in my bedroom told me that it was still dark out. My clock confirmed that this wouldn't last long. I quickly climbed out of bed and scrambled to get my clothes on. Once I was ready, I opened the window and stepped onto the fire escape. There wasn't exactly a way to access the roof, but I still got up there anyways. I was an expert of climbing this building. The three years I have spent here have given me plenty of time to practice.
Once I was on the roof, I positioned myself to face the east, perfect for watching the sun rise. Down below was silence. Any other time of day you hear the honking of horns during daily traffic. But this was that moment of peace. Hardly anybody was awake, the roads almost empty.
I don't know how long I normally watch the sunrise. I just sit and wait until I am done. It's a daily routine. I normally stop once the sun begins to peer around the buildings. That's where I stopped today.
When I was done watching the sunrise, I climbed down the fire escape and looked around my alley. I stepped out to the sidewalk that seemed to never end. There were a few people walking to work. The real traffic was about to start. I walked to a convenience store. When I walked in, I saw the Fred. He was the man who worked the cash register. Every day I he is here when I buy my bag of mini donuts. Every day he remains silent. I grabbed my donuts and set them on the counter in front of him. He gave me the look that meant he wanted my money. He gave me that look every day. I gave him my money and grabbed my donuts. As I walked out of the store I put my donuts inside of my jacket. Nobody could even tell they were there.
I was walking back to my apartment, looking up at the orange sky. The sun was still making its way into the sky, almost like it was climbing up a ladder. I wasn't paying attention to any of the people on the sidewalk. They all ignore me and steer around me. The only people I have to look out for are police officers. And my luck struck me as I ran into one. And it doesn't help the my bag of donuts fell out of my jacket as I did.
"Sorry officer," I said as I bent down to pick up the donuts.
"Did you steal those?" he asked.
"No," I replied. "I payed for them."
"Can I see a receipt?"
I shoved a hand into my pocket, digging for something I wouldn't find. I left the convenience store before Fred could give me my receipt. Today was going to be fun.
"Crap," I whispered.
"Do you have a receipt or not?" The officer was growing impatient. He looked like he was ready to kill me.
"I must have left it at the store."
"You're going to have to return those." The officer grabbed my arm. "Where did you get them?" I pointed at the convenience store down the street. The officer dragged me there.
We walked in and Fred jumped. I was dragged to the cash register and forced to put the donuts on the counter.
"What?" Fred asked the officer.
"He stole these," the officer replied.
"No he didn't. He payed for those. He left before I gave him his receipt. Look." Fred held up the receipt and saved my life. The officer let me go. I grabbed my donuts and walked out. Rushing to get to my apartment. What does it take to get breakfast around here? An arrest? What does it take to get the respect of a normal citizen? What does it take to be noticed?
I threw those questions away just as they came into mind. It's best to keep my mind clear before anything happens. The more I think, the more I regret it.
Once I got to my apartment it was the same drill. Eat donuts the leave. There's nothing to it. It's the same every day. Only once have I broken the routine. That was when I bought a box of real donuts, not the mini ones that I always get. I wanted change, and those donuts were really good.
I climbed out of my apartment and stood in my alley. The age old question rolled around: what should I do today? I've been asking myself that question for the past 13 years. Every single day. I decided I would go feed the pigeons. I would decide what to do from there.
I went back to the convenience store and bought a loaf of bread. I remembered to get my receipt, and left for Central Park. Central Park is the one place I can go that I don't have to interact with people. I'm always in my own little world. It's a small world after all, but it works. It keeps me happy.
Once I was at Central Park, I sat at my bench. The first few times I came here, I sat on this bench. Word went around that I liked that spot. Word went around and nobody ever sits here. I opened my loaf of bread, and took out one piece. I spotted a lonely pigeon flying in to get the bread. I held my hand out and he landed on it. He sat there while I tore the piece of bread into many pieces. He sat there after I fed him the bread. He sat there while more pigeons came. I named him Josh. He was always the first pigeon to come. And he stayed until I left. He was my friend.
When I was out of bread, all the pigeons left, except for Josh. I started to talk to him. I was going insane.
"Josh, why don't you find yourself a girlfriend?" I asked him. "She could get you further in life than some man who gives you bread every day."
Josh cooed as if he responded to me. Then he flapped away. I might be crazy, but I think he was going to go find a girlfriend.
As I left Central Park, I decided I would go play some bumper cars. What that really was was I would walk down the sidewalk and bump into people to see people's reactions. It's fun for me. Sometimes somebody apologizes for getting in my way. But I always tell them that it is fine.
I started to walk back to my apartment, but when I get to my alley I will just keep walking. The first person I bumped into was a large man. He had huge muscles and tattoos everywhere. He whipped around and almost punched me, but he stopped when he realized who I was. This kept going. Some people didn't even notice. I was almost directly in front of my alley when I saw this girl in a beautiful dress. Her blonde hair was average in length. He eyes were blue and she had a pure white smile. And what was she smiling at you may ask, the beautiful day. As I got closer I prepared for a good bump. I bumped into her, causing her to completely turn around. I kept going until she shouted at me.
"Who do you think you are?!" she yelled. I immediately noticed her foreign accent. Maybe from England. I turned around and walked toward her. I stopped right in from of her. "What is your deal?" she said much quieter than before.
I grabbed her arm. I didn't even grab her that hard. She could have easily escaped. I led her to my alley. A few people gasped as they saw her pitching a fit. I stopped walking once we were halfway down the alley.
"Let me go!" she screamed. I let go of her arm. "Who are you?" She looked at me with disgust.
"It doesn't matter," I said. "Don't you know?"
"No, and I don't plan on it."
She didn't walk away. She just stood there. She wanted to know more. She was intrigued.
"If you ask anybody they will tell you to stay away from me," I said.
"Why?"
"Because their heads are full of lies. Go ask anybody and they will tell you how bad I am."
"What's your name?"
"It doesn't matter. How do you not know who I am?"
"I just moved here from England a few months ago."
"Then let me do you a favor, stay away from me. That's what anybody on the street would tell you. Even though I never did anything wrong."
I started to push her back out onto the sidewalk. Once she disappeared into the crowd, I started to climb up the fire escape. I climbed all the way up to the roof. I spotted her talking to somebody and pointing to the alley. The person just shrugged and kept going. She had no idea who I was. I had somebody notice me. It felt strange to be visible to somebody.
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