Reflections

A colt stood on an overturned bus, blinking in confusion.

Shadowy shapes loomed under a sky full of stars. The world around him lay in darkness, out of focus. Crickets chirped softly, as if fearful of being heard. Even the colt was holding his breath in the quiet, twitching with every small noise.

Even if he couldn’t see too well, he had other senses. The stench of smog that came from the bus below him. The lights on the bus were off, and it was missing a tire, but it seemed intact enough not to explode. So he sat down.

It was oddly still. The colt estimated it was four in the morning. It was cold as well. He wrapped his jacket around him a little tighter, shivering. His ears perked up as he heard the jingle of loose change in his pocket. It reminded him of the bookbag swung across his back.

Brushing strands of black mane out of his eyes, he pulled the bag into his lap. Carefully, he unclasped the bag and poked his nose in. Everything was still in there. To his delight, his glasses were still in their case, unscathed, and he put them on hurriedly.

The bus was still laying on the highway, the road stretching into nothingness. No other cars were in sight. The highway was empty and barren, the only sign of life being the occasional crumpled napkin or empty soft drink cup littered around the road. He became aware of how alone he was, but he just scrunched up his muzzle and tried to keep the thought out of his mind.

With a brown hoof, he reached back into the bag and dug out his lunch. A shiny, red apple, a little bruised but still delicious. He didn’t stare it any longer, quickly raising it to his lips and taking a generous bite.

The colt leaned back with a sigh as the beginning rays of sunlight slowly creeped over the distant treetops.