“Living Under the Shade”

Mahimn Dave

“After school”

Kaitlyn Valenti

I sit in my trunk observing around me. At 2:06, the bell rings, students flush from the building, flooding the parking lot, eager to go home. Engines yell awake and friends catch up. After traffic dials down, and everyone leaves, the lot grows quiet. Small gusts of wind blow the trees, making them whisper the only song they know how to sing. Skinny stems sprout from the ground, giving the field a great deal of hair. Somewhere in the belly of the trees buzzes a soothing sound like it’s alive. I stay crossed-legged, my foot falls asleep buzzing with the trees.

• Category: Photography, Prose