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🌀 The Big Blue Silence

by Jon Hansen

Ryan opened an eye. The sun had come up, but that hardly mattered. The noise was what mattered.

The whole day had been a thing. First, he'd been fired from his crap job bagging groceries. No loss, but it'd put a squeeze on him. Then he couldn't find his bus pass so the driver tossed him off, and he had to walk the fifteen blocks to the theater. During the tech run he kept missing lighting cues, until the director called him a dis. Finally, when he got home, the place was cleaned out. Chris hadn't paid their share of the rent, just up and moved out. Blocked him too, and as shitty as it was, Ryan couldn't afford the rent on his own. He'd immediately collapsed in bed, too tired to adult any more, and spent the rest of the night on TikTok.

He had half a mind to sleep for the rest of his life, if not for the noise, like sledgehammers pounding on dynamite. He pulled open a shade.

To his surprise, an army of workers swarmed outside, ripping up his street.

With an effort, Ryan pulled up the window. "Hey! Hey!" he yelled. No one paid any attention. He waved his arms, but they ignored him.

He staggered back and collapsed on his bed. All he needed was sleep. Wasn't that the joke? Does everyone hate me or do I just need to go to sleep? He hoped that was it. Everyone had been so angry at him for so long; it never seemed to end.

All he wanted was for it all to go away, to give him some peace. Well, it seemed like the workers weren’t going to stop any time soon. The theater was closed, but he still had his pass key. Maybe he could get a nap in the booth. After that, maybe things would seem better.

Jacket on over his clothes, he stepped out. To his shock, he realized the workmen finished ripping up the road, but kept on going, digging down into the earth.

Ryan hurried out into the overgrown yard. They were digging all around the house, it seemed. A workman carrying a clipboard stood on the sidewalk, inspecting the work. Ryan hurried over to him. "What the hell are you guys doing?" he yelled, and grabbed the man by the shoulder.

He didn't look real to Ryan. The workman's skin was a uniform shade of blue, like a bright Spring day. Ryan had seen pictures of some guy who'd poisoned themselves with some kind of supplement, turned their skin blue. But it was more than that. His face seemed curiously unformed, shaped from clay.

Ryan stepped back and the workman turned away. They all looked like that. He had to get help. Heart pounding, he ran back into the house to call someone.

Back in the house he dug for his phone, only to find the battery had died. He had a vague memory of the battery hitting single digits before falling asleep. He hadn't plugged it in.

As he fumbled for the cord, the power died. Outside the noise stopped. A second later the floor shifted slightly.

Outside the other houses and trees were moving down, no, he was moving up. The house was rising into the sky, untethered to the world. Ryan knew he should be freaking out about it, but somehow the whole thing felt, well, comforting. Even peaceful.

Instead, he took a deep breath, feeling it all drain away as he slipped into the big blue silence.