Thin grey hair fell just above his brows, his light blue eyes taking in the calmness of the sky from just out his window. He sat in his brown leather chair soaking in the silence from the room. He was still, very still. A straight line was the shape upon his lips as the corners were slightly curved upward. His eyes went from the simplicity of the outside view to the dust floating around near the inside glass. It drifted with delicacy and laced itself with others to form a sort of intricate pattern. Together the clump grew heavy and landed on the windowsill with the sound of nothing. The man took down a warm gulp and drew his eyes back toward the outside world. His gaze now following the path of two birds making their way down, landing on top of a building just below. The man drew in a breath and out of a sort of randomness spoke in a whisperous voice.

“What a beautiful town.”

This chain of words caused a reaction in his empty head and it began to pull questions in from the depth of his ancient mind.

‘What about it made it so? Why do I adore something I have only seen from a distance?’ To these thoughts he answered, “Because at night the lights are soft, and not a single voice is too loud to bother. It is a quiet place. It is just a little town.”

Accepting his own biased response he allowed his lids to slowly close with a patient weight. “Indeed, It is just the little town down the hill.”

Not far from the old man home gruffed a woman with stubborness and impatience on her shoulders. She was pacing up the hill to his front gate where she would testify her beliefs on the old man. It is true she had never met the man therefore she was ignorant to assume his mood no matter how true she may have been.

Cold bars separated her from the man's dwelling and she began to call out to him. “Here this, The one who lives inside this home is a coward, A man who has everything but knows nothing.” She continued to rant and explore how far her anger could carry.

The man inside was awoken by her harsh tone and curiousity dragged his linky body toward the front door. In a swift motion the cold bars were released and his door was drawn open. Face to face they stood. Each examining the other in silence and tension.

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The woman spoke first, “Join me on a walk to the below.”

“Why such a mission.” the man said, feeling his voice wanting to crack. It had been a while since he had spoken to a human being.

“I dare say, you have sat upon your throne above here for many years, only examining through a glass layering. Take this chance to see the truth.”

The man in an unreadable mood nodded and together they began to walk down toward the little town. Taking his time, the man continued to watch the woman with looming eyes.

She was old like him, and the past years have been rather hard for her. Pain had ripped through her skin leaving scars, hunger had starved her to loss of muscle, and joy had been deprived of her for there are no marks near her lips to indicate she had ever sang with glee. Just indented lines proving her pain and depression that had been with her since the moment of birth.

Stepping up to the gate of the town there was peace. A child was laughing and sitting on the gate leading to the town. His head in his hands and small throat dry from the lack of moisture. The man and woman continued. With each step the man's smile faded.

They passed underneath bridges with bright red signs, they passed homes with locks, food courts with guards, schools with guns, until they had reached the end of the path. The man's eyes were drawn out onto a beautiful blue sea. The smell of salt blew past him and through his half lidded eyes the man examined a distant ship. One with waving white sails and a hard working crew. The boat was sailing into nothing but the distance.

“Why, did you do this?” The old man asked with tears coming into his eyes.

“Why do you cry old man? Isn't this just a simple town down the hill?” Her words were deep cutting but they begged for an answer. Unfortunately, they never would hear what it is they were looking for. Instead the old man stood thinking back to what he saw.

“Don’t you understand? You needed to see that child crying hysterically at the front gate. You needed to see the orphans and homeless locked inside or abandoned. You needed to see the suicidal and death, you needed to see the boat sailing away from shore carrying the bodies of the diseased.”

The woman turned away from the old man and fell to her knees. Her hands were clasped together but she refrained from shedding any sort of tear.

“This is the little town down the hill and you have ignored us. Lied to yourself saying we were ‘good’. Where were you when we needed you God? Where have you been?”