Are You Afraid?

    It was a long day, and Joe was still at the office going through papers. His co-workers had called it quits; hours earlier. All the office lights were off except for his desk lamp, which shone brightly. As he leaned back in his swivel chair, he placed his hands to the back of his head and clasped them. Yawning, he glanced at the large-face schoolhouse clock; 11:45pm. Knowing darn well, that the papers would sit and wait for the morning arrival of proof readers, he decided to call it a night.
     Grabbing his suit jacket, he glanced  around the office, perhaps spotting something that needed to be tossed... empty DD cups?  crumbled sandwich wrappers? Nothing. He walked out of the office feeling completely drained. The elevator ride to the lobby was quick; the good-night to Sam, the security guard by the main lobby desk was quicker. His car was parked in the firm's reserved area at the below ground parking, across the street. 
     For a September night, the still air felt quite cold! Scanning his whereabouts, Joe ran to the median which separated the four lanes. He looked in the direction of the on-coming traffic, and suddenly sensed that something or someone was behind him. He turned his head to see, indeed, a young person, perhaps in his twenties, standing very near him. He was well dressed, white shirt, tie, jacket, and his altar boy hairstyle was short and neat. As soon as their eyes locked, the stranger's calm voice asked, "Are you afraid?" The question was absurd. What did the stranger mean by that, and more importantly, from where had the stranger appeared?! "I'm not afraid," Joe answered confidently. A slight pause and then.."You look afraid," responded the midnight caller. His mind racing, Joe went through pictures he kept stored in his brain. Do I know this guy?! Questions, he could have asked, were forgotten, as he looked to make his way across the street. Cars were still flying by; he stood with the unfamiliar man.
     "You are right 99.9% of the time. But the other .1% of the time..you're afraid. Why is that?" Joe searched deeply into the stranger's black eyes. His face showed no expression; no aggression. "I'm not afraid," Joe repeated sincerely. Truly, he wasn't. All he knew was that this young man was insistent with his questioning! The cars ceased to barrel down the street. Joe walked quickly across to the sidewalk, and as he did, he knew the man was half a footstep behind him. Would he follow Joe to the underground parking lot?! But before he had time to think and fret, he saw that the man was fleeting, (floating?) up the street, away from him. He watched as the stranger turned the corner and was gone.
      He shook off the weirdness of the past few minutes; got in his car and turned on his radio. "Lonely Is The Night" was on. "Lonely is the night when you find yourself alone/Your demons come to light and your mind is not your own....."
    This is a true story as told to me, by my close friend Joe. He wanted to know "my take on it." I leave it to you..my blog readers.            Peace.