All I could see was a very dull world, the colors were faded and the people devoid of emotions. I couldn’t notice laughter or joy not even sadness. I just saw the world in a state of numb.

 I went through the same routine everyday. I woke up on the left side of the bed at 7, I’d then get up, spend exactly 1 minute and 33 seconds stretching. After, I would go to the bathroom. In there, I brushed my teeth for 2 minutes and 17 seconds then my hair and got dressed. Always in grey. 

 I would walk down the 6 flights of stairs that lead up to apartment and out to the street where I’d wait for the bus.  I always got off the bus a block away from my office, at a coffee shop. A coffee shop that I visited on a daily basis. I ordered the same thing each time, it was so well known to the baristas there that the minute they saw me they would begin preparing my drink. There I would sit in the far right corner, for 7 minutes while quietly sipping my coffee and reading through the assignments I had to finish today. After I was done preparing my schedule I would walk to the office. 

For the next 8 hours, I had to sit in a stiff chair and look at a computer screen that gave me a headache. And finally, when the end of the work day came, I would collect all my things, clean up my desk and throw away the coffee I had been slowly drinking since the morning. I, then would walk back to the coffee shop and order another cup before getting on the bus heading home.

And that was what I did today, I walked back to the coffee shop and sat down until my drink was made. While waiting, I noticed a person walk into the shop. It was a girl. She had sleek brown hair, tied up into a bun. A burgundy sweater that seemed a size too big for her and a pair of tight jeans was what she was wearing. She went up to the counter but her voice was too low for me to hear but I imagined it to have a soft, warm feel to it. She sat across from me and I got to see her face, it was small, rounded and freckled. She was wearing a pair of glasses on her face, round ones that suited her very well. She took out a book and began to read.

I was aware that I was staring at her but I couldn’t tear my eyes away. She was full of color, she popped out from the background of people. Why did she stand out? She wasn’t grey, it felt like all the colors in the world had been sucked into this one person. I noticed the way she grimaced when she took the first sip of coffee, how her brows pulled together and formed a knot. She was beautiful. 

I got my coffee but I couldn’t pull myself out of the chair so I stayed until she left. 

She came to the coffee shop every afternoon after that day and I would always wait until she left to then go home. Sitting there today, I decided I would talk to her next time she came around. It’s been a week since she started coming here and I would hate if she noticed me staring and stopped. 

I saw her finish two books during this time. I saw the pain that flickered in her eyes every time something happened in the books, or the giddy expression when she started a new one. The way she would settle into her chair and then stay there for an hour or two. 

Today, I would talk to her, that’s what I promised myself as I walked there after work. 

Ordering a larger cup this time, I sat down in my usual place and waited for her to arrive. I waited for an hour but she didn’t show up. Another hour and still no sign of her. I waited some more. I don’t know why I was so determined to speak to her, I just knew I had to but closing time was nearing now and she obviously wasn’t coming so I left hoping that maybe I would see her tomorrow.

 A week passed and she didn’t come back again and I started losing hope. I had missed my chance. I never got to talk to her, to tell her that she stood out from between the crowd.

While I was at work the next day I overheard my coworker discussing the first time he had seen his wife. He said ‘she was brilliant, a shining beacon. I stopped dead in my tracks the minute I saw her. She was everything. I felt the whole world melt around me but there she was.’ I stood, wanting to hear what it was like, did she really stand out or was he just exaggerating but when I asked he told me exactly what I had seen with that girl. She seemed like the only thing in the world that held color. Everything else was grey in comparison. He explained that every once in a while you might pass someone that would have been more purple than grey and that those are people you could have been paired up with but when you see that one person that takes up all the color in a room you should know that that’s your soulmate.

-Monochrome Word 

Number 27

The warm scent of cookies baking envelopes me as I walk into the house. I hear bustling in the kitchen, the sound of water and the clanking of silverware together. Someone’s washing the dishes.

 I don’t hear any other sounds in the house. It’s just her. This is prefect I was hoping for an opportunity like this. I’ve been trying to find a time where she’s alone. I walk into the living room first. 

A movie is paused so that all that’s on the screen is an image of a road with a lone car. The pillows are all strewn to one side. A large fleece blanket is also there with a cup of tea placed on the side table, half empty. It’s dark in the room, only a side lamp is turned on and the blinds down. The door to the bedroom is slightly ajar, giving me a glimpse of what’s in side.

 I make my way to the kitchen, passing a long wooden rectangular dining table. It only has two chairs; one at each end. There’s a vase with flowers in the middle of the table. They’re plastic. I see pictures on the walls, of her, of her family and her friends with her. They’re all smiling at the camera. I pause to glance at one. She’s standing on a cliff with the sea behind her. It’s a vibrant picture and her smile is wide. 

 The door to the kitchen is open, her back is facing me. She hasn’t heard me come in yet. I pull my arm up. 

 She’s on the floor and there’s a puddle around the side of her head. It’s a deep shade of red and it’s slowly spreading across the floor. Two quick shots and it was over. It’s a shame. She seemed like such a sweet girl. I wonder what she did to deserve this but a jobs a job. No questions asked. I call the guy. “I finished it, when can I collect my money?” He gives me the location and I meet him there the next day. 

-Monochrome Word