The New City

The city never stopped moving.  That is the first thing that was different.  Back home, the city was bustling, to be sure.  But it also had its quiet hours.  At a certain time of night, the whole city would descend into a fairytale dream, only to emerge when the sun rose.  Here, no such sanctuary could be found.  This place did not provide even a moment to breath, to center oneself.  Steven once paused too long at a walk sign and five people brushed into him in apparent contempt of his inability to move faster.

            Everyone here had somewhere else to be.  To be rooted in one spot was apparently lethal.  It was as if the whole place was a long assembly line, and the cogs mustn’t stop, for any reason, for any amount of time.  Steven just wondered where the line eventually ended.  Not that he was interested in going there.  Steven just wanted to cope with this new world enough to not be destroyed by it.

            Susan was the reason he was here.  She got a new, well-paying job that required a significant relocation.  Of course Steven agreed to go with her, one does not easily give up a woman so forgiving of ones flaws.  The new arrangement put Steven in several uncomfortable situations, however.  He was no longer the bread winner in the relationship, and he now lived in a city of 8 million strangers. 

            The first thing was not terrible to get used to.  It just required a bit of humility, which was an easy enough emotion to feign.  The second was much more difficult to overcome.  Steven had always cherished the control he had in his life.  Back home, every little aspect of his routine was coordinated for his optimal suitability.  He found himself having to leave his apartment, and interact with people every day.  He no longer had his car, so he had to take the subway.  That was a metal death machine like no other. 

            Susan constantly told him that change is ultimately good, but Steven had his doubts.  Why did things need to change when they were already perfect?  This new world would be the death of him.  He just prayed no one would bump into him if he moved too fast.