String of Lights

When they burned out on the tree, it was the last insult. Charlie kicked the boxes of Christmas trimmings, yanked the cord off the tree and left his apartment dragging the lights behind him. . He didn’t know how he reached the top floor or how the window opened. Then he found what he was after — a barren flagpole – where he would hang his noose.

On the street below, a woman breathed softly and felt a bubble of joy rising until it burst into a smile. Her teeth flashed catching the streetlight, and a man passing saw and his smile flashed, drawing another smile from someone else and soon there was a string of white lights blinking up and down the street.

Above, the lasso caught. Charlie wound the line tight around his neck ready to tie the final knot, but suddenly his lights were aglow. He blinked, refocused on the string, but the bulbs were dark. He looked down and saw the smiles sparkling up and down the street. Then Charlie smiled. He loosened the line and sank to his knees realizing his string of lights had been lit from the smiles below.