angst · tragic romance · post-apocalyptic · las vegas · borderline personality disorder · trauma · yearning · mr puzzles · wpnz · toomp
The subway car shudders along its tracks, a noisy, cramped capsule of metal. Puzzles holds tight to a pole, the weight of his head a dull burden, his gaze sweeping the packed carriage with a frantic, weary hunger. Through the window of a passing train, a flicker of a familiar silhouette. WPNZ. Only for an instant. The automated voice announces the stop. Puzzles stands paralyzed, torn between weeping and wild elation. He bursts from the car and races back to his stark, barren apartment. Much later, he lies gasping on floral-patterned sheets, soiled and shaking, the phantom touch of his lover lingering in his solitude as he falls into a desolate sleep.