A Wake Up Call

I decided to take a walk. Jim had left for work and the house was empty and quiet. Broken glass was still sprawled across the floor and the air felt almost as if it was suffocating me. I thought maybe if I made it out of the house, I could escape my brain for a little while. I grabbed my sweater and headed out the apartment. The doorman turned away as he spotted me walking towards the door. He always did that.
"Hello." I attempted.
"Oh, uh... Hey, miss." he said as if I couldn't see right through him- or as if he couldn't see right through me. But I guess it didn't matter what we could see anyways.
I stepped out of the building and took a deep breath. I had no idea where I was going, and to be quite honest I didn't give a shit. I was tired; tired of this town, this life, this feeling of absolute nothing that seemed to be choking me. I was tired of Jim's breath, and his voice, and his damn whispers. I was tired of his hands, his cigarettes, and I was sick of his bed. And let me tell you... I was sick of complaining about it.
After walking aimlessly for an hour or so, I headed back to the apartment. As I was about to face that asshole doorman, I heard something strange- REM's "Everybody Hurts". You have got to be kidding me. I rolled my eyes at what ever gods were trying to rub my petty misery in. But then I heard something else.
"Riddles -- all you can say are riddles, murk and darkness." It was the old man who sat there everyday. For years, I had seen him out my window. I had passed by but never even stopped to listen to him. For some reason, he had me pulled me in today. I slowly walked over, inspecting him. Each time someone dropped a coin into his bowl, he said a different line. For reasons I could not understand, I was lingering on each word so I continued to drop in coins.
CLINK
 "I have already. The truth with all its power lies inside me."
Power?
CLINK
"What will come will come. Even if I shroud it all in silence."
No more silence...
CLINK
"True, it is not your fate to fall at my hands."
My fate?


I froze, processing every single thought that had just raced through my head. My hands began to shake and I couldn't take it all in. I shut my eyes as the sound around my ears turned into a dark tunnel. Things became louder and louder... silence fate power silence fate power silence fate power


Then all the sudden, from that sad, dusty cd player I heard Somewhere over the rainbow way up high...there's a land that I heard of once in a lullaby...

It was in that very moment, that I knew what I had to do.