the subway car rattles along the track as the bulbs flicker with every subtle motion

he sits alone on the worn seat the entire car empty

a glance down the line shows no one else in the ascending and descending cars

he feels nothing

empty

outside the dingy windows things coalesce in the darkness

eyes watching from formless faces behind graffiti marked pillars that blur into one long line of tagged nothing

he leans his head back against the window feeling the jarring of heavy vibration against his aching skull searching for something in the lack of anything

if he tried to concentrate he could see the shadows slide oily hands down the side of the train

if he could concentrate he found a palpable sense of hunger oozed along the car

if he could

which he cannot

instead he rides endlessly down through the darkness

but part of him screams

what happens when the light goes out for good