Short Story: "The Horizon"

The horizon looks straight.

But in reality, it sways with the waves and is never truly straight.

In short, it is a matter of distance.

A conflict right in front of me looks larger than a war far away.

The weight of proximity outweighs the importance of the matter itself.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to eat pudding nonchalantly at home while many people are suffering somewhere in the world.

And the problem is the fact that that pudding—my pudding—is gone.

"It's a trivial thing, I'll buy you another one," my wife says lightly, wiping her mouth.

No. It's about now. I wanted to eat it now.

I imagine the horizon of caramel. I picture myself doing the crawl in a dark brown, syrupy sea.

But I know.

I know the logic of a married couple, which runs far deeper than a grudge over food.

I keep smiling, without uttering a single complaint.

While keeping my spine perfectly horizontal...

End

(373 characters in the main text)

Afterword

Peace is the best, isn't it.

#ShortStory
#Horizon
#Distance
#Pudding
#Logic
#Horizontal