Serenity

Light shone down on him, brilliant white light, the kind that only happens on the night of the full moon. Watching him. I’d been watching him for almost an hour now. He’d been stood in the same spot, not moving an inch; the thought hit me, so had I. I’d been so transfixed by his lack of movement, it had never occurred to me I was doing the same. Who he was, where he was from, these things were a mystery to me, but I was drawn to him. I began to move toward him, one step at a time, each step carefully measured.

His serenity was calling to me. Like an addict craving his next fix, I craved for more of him. As I drew nearer I could see his face, lifted to the light, bathing in it. His eyes were closed but he knew I was there. One last step and I was before him, staring into the face, so tranquil. Unperturbed by my presence, he welcomed me, without a word passing his lips.

I lifted my hand, reaching out to him, every part of me ached to touch him, but I held back, barely a breath separating the tips of my fingers from his cheek. My lips parted, but the words were lost before I could utter a single sound.

Slowly, he lowered his head; his eyes opened looking straight into mine. I held his gaze for as long as I could desperate to know him, to understand him. Finally I gave in, my eyes closed and I bowed my head. Breathless, I realised I had not inhaled. I took a deep breath, filling my lungs. Raising my head I opened my mouth, ready to speak now, to ask him his name, why he was here, anything to hear him talk to me.

He was gone, all the words I had longed to speak vanished, replaced with astonished questions, where had he gone, how did he go so quickly and so silently, how was it even possible?

The light that had bathed him was gone, and I looked into the sky, expecting to see a cloud obstructing the moon, but there was none. The sky was clear, stars spotting the perfect black of the night. I scanned the heavens, then saw what I was looking for, the new moon, a perfect crescent, its pale light barely reaching us.