Black Cloud

Depression. Darin had learned to live with it and enjoy it. When life got blackest, he found solace in sharing his misery with that of others. Books had always been his favourite escape, but this time he wanted something stronger. He wanted to immerse himself in someone else’s despair.

The Black Cloud lived up to its name. Smoke seemed to pour from the windows and door, lit from beneath by a pulsing glow of dim light. Massive waves of technogoth music floated out, striking Darin like a heavy blanket. He entered and was enveloped.

He needed a drink. Stepping up to the bar, he had first one, then another. With fire coursing in his veins and the beat striking at his ears, he slipped into the crowd on the dance floor and at once became insignificant, drowning in a sea of bodies and noise. Every thought was excluded from his mind to be replaced by sensation. He became one with the black-clothed bodies of his peers who writhed in mindless bliss, their bodies waving with the music, like puppets on their strings.

And into the darkness, there came light. As Darin twisted and turned, the crowd parted for just a moment. A girl in white sat at the bar. It was as if the music had gone silent. Like an automaton, he pushed his way towards her. The neons illuminated her platinum blonde hair and pale skin; they caressed the silvery dress she wore transfiguring her in Darin’s eyes. He sat down next to her and motioned for two drinks, then turned and met her slightly curious look.

‘You are beautiful,’ he whispered. The noise prevented his hearing her reply, but the pout of her lips sent a sensuous shiver traversing down his spine. They drank, but did not cease to gaze into each other’s eyes. Finishing hers, the girl leaned towards him keeping her chin level with his.

‘Dance with me,’ she seemed to say.

‘Love me,’ Darin answered.

They stepped into the maelstrom of dancing shadows. Where before, Darin had felt as part of the whole, he now became enclosed in world of his own, a world that he shared with this girl. The noise and the throng belonged to him no longer. In his world, there lived only love and beauty and desire. Her dark, blue eyes were in its centre; her slender body had become his only wish. They danced forever and laughed at time.

Illustration by vhm-alex at DeviantART.com