Coma #2748

Walking home one night. Any night. This night. I am walking home. The moon is big. Very big. Bigger than I’ve ever seen. It’s half the size of the sky. I can make out every crater, every dip and every peak. The town is dark. Very dark. There isn’t a light in the street. The moon is so big I can see exactly where I’m going. The walls and the pavement are blue in the silver light. They are shiny, it’s been raining tonight and they’re wet. The air tastes of rain. It’s so dark, except for the shining surfaces. Each one moves as I walk past. I turn down a familiar street. Any street. The glints on the walls are all moving with me. A thousand tiny lights, all moving smoothly with me. Each one changing as I change. It’s beautiful, and I feel part of something amazing.

But one is moving differently. No, that’s not right. They’re all moving with me. Wait… it was there again. Two of the glints moving against all the others, parallel and quick. Little glints. A pair of them, Eyes. Eyes? Yes… a pair of eyes in the shadow. Keep walking. There’s no need to worry. Air moving quickly around my body, blood pumping in my veins. Just get home. Try and restore that feeling, the feeling of all the glints moving with me. It’s coming back. They all move. I want to keep going. Just get home. What’s wrong with that? Home is where I’m going. Stop – eyes again, I’m sure of it. They don’t go this time… they’ve stopped with me. Maybe they were like the other glints? I move my head, and they move too. Relief… why so much relief? It was never going to be anything serious. Where did they go? The glints had gone. Keep walking.

Turn a corner and up the street. Not a sound. Deathly quiet. Key out of pocket.. dropped keys… damn… slowly bend down and pick them up, using the opportunity to check around. Nothing. A thousand glinting bricks, a hundred glinting windows. Get inside. Key in door, the funny little twist that makes me feel safe when I leave home – no-one could work this lock even if they had a key - and into the hall. Shut door, and lock it. Safe. Turn on the light – I hadn’t even realised they weren’t on. Then through to the living room. Chuck keys on table. Over to window to shut curtains – STOP.

Outside a thousand eyes shine at me. All the cats have followed me home.