Sweat dribbled down his face, slowly falling to the ground with a resounding splash only he could hear. Every step shook his failing body with the exertion of going on. He dragged his legs in front of him in a rhythm only he could hear, his mind no longer focused on the material world. The blazing sun was just cresting the horizon during his exertions, casting out the shadows of night. Sunlight filtered through the branches of the surrounding trees, flickering in and out of view as he continued on. The last holdouts of the night were snuffed out in the sky as the sun finally rose, shining its brilliance on the earth below.

His dogged exertions prevented him from noticing the dip in the ground as he rounded the path’s corner. That one step was all it took, his knee buckling from the force of his run, toppling over the side of the path. His head impacted the ground with a thud, stunning him as his limp body sped down the incline, the surrounding foliage doing little to slow him. He picked up speed before finally meeting with a tree, a resounding crack coming from within his chest. His labored breath grew even more so as his eyes dimmed with unconsciousness.

His eyes fluttered open slowly, before slamming shut at the bright light shining down on him. The trees swayed with the breeze, rustling in a calming manner. He attempted to take a deep breath before a lancing pain shot through his side as he cried out. Slowly sitting up, his muscles aching and joints creaking, he looked around. The vibrant green of the foliage and earthy browns of the trees were all he saw. Taking short, shallow breaths, he slowly stood up as his whole being protested this activity.

At his feet, a small shape drew his attention. Slowly bending to pick it up, he reached out. As soon as his hand made contact, a sharp jolt rocked his body and his hand lit up with pain as he recoiled. An outline of where he touched the object remained on the shape for a short second before fading away. He slowly, against all sense, reached towards it once again as it called to him in a siren’s song only he could hear.

This time, when his hand made contact, all he could feel was a warmth emanating from it, comforting his broken body and mind. He felt his broken psyche patched as he held the shape -- no, the egg -- close to his body. He didn’t know how he knew it was an egg, he just did. It was instinctual, natural. Sobs shook his body as he felt whole, complete for the first time in his memory. Salty tears ebb down his face.

He stood there for a time. As his emotions abated, he finally looked up once more. Nothing had changed with his surroundings, and yet everything had changed. His sight was clearer than he’d ever remembered, the colors more vibrant and stunning than he’d ever seen before. It was as if someone had turned up the saturation on his life.

It wasn’t only his sight that was enhanced. He could hear so much more. The rustling of the trees was pronounced now, the sounds of small woodlands animals emanating from around him. He could hear the pattering of paws against the ground, leaves crunching. He could smell the emergence of spring around him.

The ground released an earthy loamy smell. The tree he’d hit on his way down released a smell he recognized as death and decay. All around him, the smell of death was there. And yet, it wasn’t unnatural. Rather, death was a part of life and so it was just as beautiful as the sight of the foliage and the sounds of the surrounding critters. He roused from his stupor and clambered back up the incline towards the path. His body no longer creaked with his movement, and he was able to breathe deeply without the worry of pain. It seemed all his injuries were gone! Gripping the egg tightly to his chest, he followed the path with a slight smile on his face. He took slow, deliberate steps, unwilling to risk the safety of his newly found charge. The sounds of the forest echoed in his mind as he doggedly pursued the safety of his destination.

After a short while, he finally emerged from the forest path, battered and beaten. And yet, despite his appearance, his soul was light.

An audible click sounds as he turns the key in the lock. Pushing the door open, he tosses his keys in the dish to his left before closing the door behind him and engaging the deadbolt. He rushes over to his blinds, before squinting through them. After a sigh of relief, he shuts the blinds fully and shuts the curtains with a flourish. A deep sigh escapes from his mouth. Turning around, he moves to his kitchen’s island where the egg was. He finally had a moment to inspect the treasure he’d found.

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The egg was a deep red, with a scale-like pattern on the outside. It was still warm to the touch, oddly enough. The egg seemed to almost glow from within. As he gazed at this oddity, he noticed the light pulsing on and off. On, off, on, off, on, off, it flashed and he postulated it was the heartbeat. It sat there, seemingly doing nothing for several minutes before his concentration was broken. As he looked away, he was hit by a wave of exhaustion. Looking over at the stove, he saw that, to his amazement, several hours had passed. Lugging his flagging body to his bed, he flopped onto his mattress with all his clothes on and passed out.

A loud, languorous yawn escaped from his mouth as he sat in his desk chair, staring at the screen once more. A spreadsheet was pulled onto the small screen, however, he couldn’t seem to focus for the life of him. Every time he’d gone to configure something or add in values, he seemed to hear something that caught his attention. Taking another sip of his scalding hot coffee, he gazed off into the distance before the man to his left cleared his throat meaningfully.

His eyes darted over as George leaned in conspiratorily, whispering, “So, who’s the girl?”

The statement drew a brief chuckle from him before he replied, “There is no girl.”

“Suuuuuure, whatever you say, Adrian,” George said doubtfully.

Adrian scoffed before turning back to his computer.

“Well, whenever someone is that distracted, there’s usually a girl,” George continued.

“Not to worry, I’m as lonely as usual, now get back to work” Adrian responded.

After their short conversation, Adrian again looked at the computer and sighed tiredly.

Throwing the decrepit double doors opens, the two friends strode out to the tune of squeaky hinges. A cold, gray color oppressively hung in the sky. The buildings around him were dull shades of grey and on the horizon, he could see a storm brewing. Their workday now finished, they both had plans for the evening. As they were walking to their cars, George glanced over at Adrian with a weird expression on his face.

“Are you really okay though, all jokes aside Adrian?” he questioned.

“Yes, I’m just very tired,” Adrian responded mechanically. He stared down at his phone, his face a rictus of some unknown emotion.

“Are you even paying any attention to me, Adrian?” he asked, exasperatedly.

“Yes, of course! I wouldn’t ignore you, now would I?”

“You say that, and yet here you are,” George muttered under his breath.

“I heard that!” Adrian exclaimed before bumping into George’s shoulder.

Finally, Adrian reached his car and so George walked by with a wave and a goodbye. Returning them, he dips down into his car before cranking the engine on and flipping the radio on. Music blasted through his speakers as he put his car into reverse and darted out of his parking spot and continuing home.

The inane chatter of the radio host droned on, lulling Adrian to sleep as he waited for the light to turn. The rain clouds finally floated overhead as it started to pour, obscuring his vision greatly. Finally, the talk host relented and put on another song just as the light turned. Immediately hitting the gas pedal, he darted out to about the middle of the intersection before a small blue sedan shot by in front of him, horn blaring. His heart skipped a second as he took several deep breaths, eyes wide open. Slowing down, he slowly made his way across the intersection and towards his house.

Taking every corner at a crawl, he finally got home after another 20 minutes of driving. He opened the door after gathering his effects and jumped into the pouring rain. A chilling, bitter wind struck him as he was soaked to the bone in seconds. Throwing the door shut with a resounding slam, he ran towards the shelter of his home. Fumbling with his keys as he pushed up against the front door to avoid any further splash up, he finally inserted the key and pushed his way inside. Slamming the door shut, he locked the door and blew a sigh of relief.

Stripping out of his clothes, at the front door, he left them near the tiles at the entryway and continued back to his bathroom. Quickly rinsing himself off under the shower, he dried himself off with a fluffy towel as he flipped the TV on. Slipping some pajamas on, he flipped the TV on while collecting his discarded soggy clothes at the door.

After a short while of perusing his phone and watching TV, something dreadful happened. A klaxon started sounding, both from outside and within his TV. He knew what this meant. He rushed over to his windows, confirming they were all closed and covered. At the same time, a huge crack resounded around the room, forcing Adrian to flip around and stare at the egg on the counter. His stomach dropped as he noticed that the top of the egg was gone.