Echolight

I walked down the empty alley, pulling my coat tighter around me against the biting wind. Forgotten newspapers fluttered around, mirroring my own sense of displacement in a city so vast. It had been a week since the layoff, and with each passing day, the weight of uncertainty pressed heavier on me.

An old man sat on the sidewalk, the weight of years evident in his hunched back and weathered hands. Before him lay an array of trinkets, their shine long lost. He hummed an old tune, his voice frail but filled with a warmth that seemed out of place in the cold.

I paused to look, though I had no intention of buying anything. Our eyes met, and he gestured towards a small pendant with a broken chain. "For you," he whispered.

"Why?" I managed to ask, taken aback.

He smiled, a gentle curve that held the wisdom of a lifetime. "Sometimes, the world can be too much. But remember, light often comes from unexpected places."

I left the alley with the pendant clutched in my hand. The weight on my chest seemed a little lighter. As I stepped out, the city lights seemed to shine a bit brighter, reflecting the echolight that now danced in my heart.