Hollie Kajewski

Beyond the Gloom

Hester stepped out onto the path on the rainy Tuesday morning. He looked up and sighed loudly. The gloomy days seemed to follow each other, like darkness was the only thing to prevail over New Earth. It had been 864 days since the last ray of sunshine filled the city, and Hester was certain the next would not be around the corner any time soon. He slumped along the path, recognising his colleagues heading in the same direction as they too, looked blankly ahead. Hester could see the black building looming at the end of his street, a constant reminder that his dreary place of work stood above all else, in more ways than one. He spotted Karl in the distance, however he did not peep a word as this would have caused more issues than he wished to bargain for. Instead, he thought, I must find a time to ask him how Rita is going. If people knew he was even aware Karl still had contact with his wife, it would mean a death sentence for all three of them, a fate he did not wish to see carried out. At least not today, he decided.