Sipping his coffee at the counter by himself. The old man is pensive as he stares off into the distance. Looking out at the window and across the street to the vast open Arizona desert that lies ahead. Besides the coffee, the only thing in front of him is his keys and a pack of cheap cigarettes with a lighter stuffed into the plastic wrapping.
In a diner filled with familiar faces sits this stranger. Greetings and friendly banter shared by everyone, including staff. Yet this old man is all to himself, not caring to partake in any of the celebrations that those around him are having. His silence and demeanor making him disappear among the people and become invisible to everyone. No one takes notice or interest in this man, other than his waitress. She who occasionally checks up on him, to see if he needs anything else.
This old man comes from a different time and place where people tend to keep to themselves. He reaches into his jeans pocket and pulls out a stopwatch to check his time. A strange sight to see a cowboy esque man, only lacking the ten-gallon hat, pull out a pocket watch. He takes the last sip of his coffee and raising his left hand he signals the waitress for the check. She notices and breaks away from her conversation to bring the old man his check. She drops the check in front of the old man, while still trying to continue her conversation at the counter.
The old man pulls out a twenty and drops it on the counter. He grabs his keys and cigarettes in one fluid motion, gets up and heads for the door. The waitress doesn’t even look at the bill or the twenty until she gets to the register. The old man only had coffee that whole time he was there. She is shocked and looks out the window that the old man was staring out of. She sees him walking across the street into the Arizona desert. She is puzzled and stunned, oblivious that the people at the counter are still talking to her. A sudden dust cloud appears and covers the streets outside the diner. Once it clears she notices that the old man has disappeared into the vast Arizona desert without a trace. The strange old man was now dust among the desert floor.
Day #98 SJD
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Segundo Juan Devora 