The Perfect Night

Today was the day. The night couldn't come quickly enough. John Kane sat at his desk almost stuck in time, watching clock hands on the wall click in their usual clockwise motion. Although he could swear they were going anti-clockwise at a couple of points.

5pm.

John stood up and gathered his belongings. He wiped a couple of beads of sweat from his brow, straightened his tie and patted down his shirt that had become creased from the day of sitting. The same ritual, every Monday to Friday. However, today was different, he took longer to look at the picture of his wife and kids that sat proudly next to his laptop. A wry smile etched across his face and a tear formed in the very corner of his eye. But, no sooner had that tear formed, it was dabbed dry.

John is a 42 year old man. A wife of 15 years and three kids all under the age of 10. He enjoyed watching sports, old war films and listening to his favourite albums on repeat. He had a couple of very close friends that he'd frequent the pub with, but nothing deeper than that.

John was a reserved character. He'd reached the level of an assistant adviser to a department leader at a financial firm. Not a bad pay check, but he had no desire to reach higher. He was comfortable in the position he was in, and that suited John. His wife, Melissa Kane, would gently push her husband to go after a promotion, but to no avail. The money he made provided Melissa with a nice house, a holiday every year and food on the table. She had no complaints, especially as John was a conventionally attractive guy. He was tall, 6'3 to be precise, had a chiseled jaw line, strong piercing eyes, and his eyebrows slanted inwards. In addition to this he had short dark brown hair and a slight Mediterranean complexion due to having grandparents born in Italy. This created the tall, dark and handsome persona that initially attracted Melissa. Age and three kids resulted in a scruffier exterior, the close shaven beard became more prominent on his face, but he liked it.

To anyone on the outside looking in, John seemed to have a good life. But, life works in such a way that can destabilise the most ardent of humans.

John didn't even know how he made it to the roof of his companies building. A place that should be inaccessible to colleagues, but it's a regular go-to for those who enjoy a smoke or fresh air. Those in charge don't attempt to prevent it, using it themselves actually.

An elevator to the top floor and three flights of stairs through a side entrance lead you to the roof. Nothing out of the ordinary to see a few colleagues complete that route every day, so when a couple of workers from a different floor walked past John on the stairs, no alarm bells would ring. John casually nodded at the pair and allowed them to pass before making the rest of his journey up the metallic steps. John eventually reached the door that led to the roof, but before he pushed it open, he flung his wrist around and glanced at the watch on his wrist. It was his father's, given to him at his funeral about a decade ago. It was the same clock face, but the strap had been changed a couple of times.

Another wry smile forced its way onto John's face. He had fond memories of his father. He taught him everything he knew, but there were certain aspects of life that not even a father could prepare their son for. John pondered for a few minutes, briefly reconsidering his next few actions, but ultimately decided to press on with his goal.

The final rays of sunshine enveloped John's face. He basked in the evening sun, closing his eyes and allowing himself to feel the gentle breeze that accompanied the transition from day to night. It had been a beautiful day, which set up a warm dusk. It was enough to remove his tie, unbutton his top two buttons and roll up his sleeves. John walked slowly around the circumference of the roof, kicking cigarette buts as he went. A couple of deck chairs faced the setting sun, so John decided to take a seat. His building was the tallest in the city, so there wasn't much to look at unless you peered over the edge. John didn't mind, the scenery was ever present whenever he looked out of the office window. Nothing new needed to be examined.

The minutes and the hours started to roll by. The moon had emerged and illuminated the night sky. Without even checking his watch John knew it was roughly 9pm. It wasn't out of the ordinary for John to stay late at work, but he always sent a message to tell his wife that he'd be late home. For John, he lived outside the city. A new build suburb that attracted all of the white collar workers that spent their lives in the city. John was fortunate enough to secure his family a house within this bubble. If the traffic is light, it was roughly a 45 minute drive home, ideal for a 9-5pm colleague.

However, John had shut his phone off. He did send out a message to Melissa, but he wasn't interested in reading a reply. John had one thought in his head, his thinking was absolute. For as long as John could remember he felt out of place, like he was just a passenger in his own body and mind. He couldn't remember a time of real happiness, even on his wedding day he felt a million miles away. When you feel this way for such a long period of time, you perfect how to look normal. John had mastered it. He came across as a kind, charming man who made people feel comfortable. Not the funniest man in the room, but had a few quips up his sleeve.

Sitting up on those chairs on that rooftop, John finally felt like he was supposed to be there.

John flicked his eyes down to his watch and it had just hit 10:26pm. The warmth of the day slipped behind the veil of the evening chill. John rolled his sleeves down and buttoned back up his shirt. He slowly rose to his feet and enjoyed a huge stretch, the kind that makes you feel like your bones have moved back to where they should be. He walked a few paces to the edge of the roof and peered over the edge. There was a thick slab of concrete that made it impossible to actually look down upon the street below unless you were up on it.

John stared directly down upon the street below. Street lights punched through the night sky, only the late night shops remained open at this time. There was a couple of bars further down the road that bustled on Friday and Saturday nights. There was plenty of occasions that a few colleagues from work would head into the bar on a Friday night and blow off some steam. There was live music, darts, pool and a few other amenities. John specifically selected a Wednesday to avoid a busy street.

John was stood with his body facing the office buildings and apartment complex that dominated the skyline on the other side of the road. It was a prestigious complex that only the wealthy elite could afford, due to its location. The penthouse would take a few million to purchase outright.

Before stepping up on to the platform, John had emptied his pockets and placed his belongings on the edge where he would stand. First, his car keys. Then his watch, his phone, his wallet and finally his work key card. He placed them neatly and separate from one another. But, before stepping up to the ledge, he grabbed a photo from his wallet and slipped it inside his trouser pocket. He didn't look at it before sliding it in, but he knew it needed to be on his person.

The wind had steadily picked up over the duration of the night and it actually made it hard for John to stand there. He swayed from side to side as the wind changed direction multiple times. But, for once, he wanted to do it on his terms. He wasn't going to let the breeze make the final push, he wanted control and convinced himself that he would make the jump to establish that control.

One foot hovered over the edge. The time had come.

John closed his eyes, took a deep breath and motioned to raise his other leg to jump off. In that split second, a sudden bang pierced the peaceful night. John rocked backwards and found himself with both his feet back on the ledge, his eyes shot open and immediately set about finding where that bang had come from as well as what that bang was. Both questions were answered simultaneously as another bang rung out and it was clear this time.

A gun shot. The penthouse across the street lit up following the event. Someone had been shot in the penthouse.

John didn't know what to do, only to lower his body in case he was seen. The penthouse was a stone's throw from his office building, and if the criminal looked up then he would've certainly seen John standing there. In fact, John laid down, but kept his eyes fixated on the penthouse. The lights were off, but the door to the balcony slid open and a figure wearing dark clothing emerged. He figured the person was a man due to his size and build. The man was at least 6'5 and had clearly seen the inside of a gym. The hooded figure must've known the two bangs would alert someone. But, they must've thought there'd be time to drag the body out to the balcony. John was unsure of the reason why. The victim looked feminine from a distance. Long black hair and very slim build, couldn't have been more than 5'4 in height as they looked tiny compared to the man.

John looked on like it was a movie, and in doing so, completely forgot it was reality. Although it was hard to make out a face, the outline of the hood appeared to glance directly up John's building. John almost threw himself backwards off the concrete slab and landed on the floor below. He scrambled to his feet and attempted to grab his phone to call the police. Reception was spotty on the roof, but a call managed to get through.

John was panicked, but tried to give as much detail as possible. The police operator asked John if the attacker was still in the building, but assured him that units had already been sent. Feeling a sense of safety from his rooftop, John delicately climbed onto the ledge again and angled his head to get a look at the apartment complex. The hooded figure was nowhere to be seen, that was until a person emerged from the ground floor of the apartments and made their way across the street. They walked with intent, pausing at nothing. John was listing the second by second details to the operator, but completely froze when he realised the figure was making his way to the door of John's office building. The building itself was 24 hours of operation and had over night security that would usher in and out colleagues.

John muttered a few words over the phone.

'They... no, he's here..'

The sirens alarmed John, but realised they were almost here. John looked at his phone and it stated that it was 12:47am. The police advised John to move to an area of safety, one which would give him multiple exits if the need presented itself. John knew the person would be on his way up, or being held up by security. Either way, the lobby was the only way out. John darted for the exit from the roof and made his way down those steel stairs he climbed earlier. Heart beating out of his chest. He made it to the top floor and manoeuvred his way towards the elevator. All the lights were off, so John had to use his phone's flashlight. He slalomed between the desks and was almost within touching distance of the elevator.

Ping. The elevator coming up had reached its destination.

John had not pressed a button to call for the elevator, so there was someone about to come through those doors. John leaped to one side and ducked behind a desk, almost forgetting to turn off the flashlight. He paused his breathing, even though he thought the pounding of his heart would be heard by whoever exited that lift.

Sure enough, he could hear steps. It was carpet flooring, but whoever the person was had a big enough boot to make it quite loud. This was crucial for John as he could hear the footsteps disappear towards the back of the office, where the steps leading to the roof resided. There was a metal bar on the door that led to those steps and John heard its recognisable shunting sound. It was a tough door that needed a certain amount of force to move.

That was it, that was the moment John needed to make his move. He peered over the wall of the desk and couldn't see anyone, only that the door was wide open. John glanced at the elevator behind him and knew he had to be quick, but quiet. He tiptoed towards the button and pressed it, once again, it pinged upon arrival a couple of minutes later. John repeatedly smashed the button to the bottom floor. The man would've likely heard that ping and the commotion of the doors opening.

John was right. He could hear footsteps descending down the stairs, like the person was running. As the doors began to shut, the man was stood in the opening, his body completely filling its frame. John's heart practically stopped as he noticed the figure raise his arm, he assumed a gun would be in his possession still. The doors slammed shut, John was safe.

BANG. A bullet ricocheted off the elevator door, but thankfully didn't penetrate. This shook John to his core. The man who fired the shot clearly doesn't care about alarming anyone, and with police just below, he was fighting fire with fire. With John in the lift, there was no way the man could touch him now. He breathed a sigh of relief and slumped to the floor, allowing the lift to complete its job. The doors opened up and the lobby was swarming with police, they had their guns trained on the elevator and subsequently on John. He raised his hands and stated his name is John and that he made the call. A couple of officers rushed towards him and guided him through the entrance, but John noticed out of the corner of his eye a body bag was being zipped up just behind the security desk. A tear emerged in the corner of his eye, an otherwise emotionless man became overcome with emotion in those moments.

John sat with a couple of officers and he shared his version of events, he declined to mention the real nature of why he was up there at that time and simply suggested that work ran late and he was getting fresh air. The police took his statement and sent John on his way. As John walked to the staff car park next to the building, he took one last look at the roof and noticed something not quite right.

The man was standing where John stood and could just about make out the figure looking down, John felt that person's eyes on him. John shuddered, but turned and made his way to his car. He pulled out his keys and got in. John neglected to message his wife just yet, who had left several missed calls. He was hungry, so went in pursuit of a 24 hour restaurant which were dotted around the city. He pulled up to a fast food joint and went to retrieve his wallet. He instinctively reached for his back pocket, empty. He reached for the other one, empty. He checked all around his car and patted himself down. That's when it dawned on John.

His wallet had fallen to the floor as he made his way to the elevator, as he knew he picked it up from the ledge. Which would mean that it would almost definitely be in the possession of the murderer.

6am. Home. Melissa leaned against the frame of the front door, wrapped in her bathrobe. Dawn had crept across the sky. John shot her a look from the car, he knew their life was never going to be the same again.