The Night Owl

The Night Owl - Elizabeth Gonzalez

“Hey, I’m taking a walk. Tell that to Valac, since she seems to worry about my whereabouts.” I say, hand on the door knob and push open the door.

I see my brother nod, not looking away from the television which makes me roll my eyes.

“Did you listen? I said I’m taking a walk.” I say firmly, and walk out, slamming the door so it catches his attention.

I walk down the stairs from the apartment, looking ahead into the night. The lamp post was a dull yellow, barely lighting up anything. It flickers on and off as I walk past it, and I just keep staring at the sky, able to see the big dipper and other famous constellations. 

It was so quiet out today, besides the occasional chirpings of the crickets.

I walk down the sidewalk, hands pushed into my pockets as I finally look down and ahead of me.

I lightly pout, at the fact that nobody likes to take late night walks. Especially when you’re a woman. Supposedly we are more prone to danger, but nothings’ happened to me yet. I believe it's a myth, just something that people say to keep women locked inside their homes.

But.. At the same time, it’s peaceful and less awkward with people roaming around at night. I don’t have to worry about getting hurt.

The wind pushed through my hair, suddenly picking up and cooling the night.

I shiver, and shut my eyes for a moment to get used to the wind.

Once I open them, the next lamp post has a weird figure on top of the post.

It looked like a bird, but it seemed oddly chilling to look at. Its eyes were bulging out, and its beak was wide then narrowed sharp at the tip.

On top of that, it stared at me, turning and tilting its head for a better look. And I grimace openly, uncomfortable by this creature.

I have never seen such an odd looking bird, it was ugly and crazy looking. Does this thing only come out at night?

During the day there are better looking birds. 

I still push forward, deciding to ignore it. But I froze, my foot midair as I heard a heavy breath intake from above.

“I... Once was a girl..” The voice was raspy and deep, but still, I knew the bird just spoke.

“I... Used to walk... Now I fly.” It kept going, the wind turning colder.

I look up slowly, and see its head faced down, staring at me.

“I was warned... I was wrong...” It spread its wings, and within a blink of an eye, it was gone. And I remained frozen, staring at the light.

My hands wouldn’t move, then they did and everything around me began to get bigger. And I began to get smaller.

I should’ve listened.

Because I… Used to be a girl.

But now I’m on a lamp post, watching a rebellious girl walk down the illuminated path of where I once walked.