The Object Left Behind

What's in the box?

Word Count: 534

Coming back from the river he expected at least a half dozen cars and maybe twenty seconds of walking time between any one of them. So while Salom waited to alight the curb, eyes dashed with urgency at the amazon bicycle carrier approaching at the other side. Dressed in a neon green flash blazer, with fancy red flashing indicators attached to the back of the seat, the driver peddled like a madman toward the corner of the bridge. Salom pretended not to see, but the driver disposed of a medium sized four by four cardboard box to the very corner.
 
It took everything for Salom not to, but he feared invading the homeless encampment if he stayed walking on his side of the street. Besides, the carrier had sped off and was well out of sight. He would pass the box in just a minute and as he confirmed a clear crossing, his mind searched for what might lie inside. Why would anyone toss a well-preserved package away like that? He told himself he would ignore it and get home.
 
A sharp wind blew! Salom had to place his barka over his face and he took refuge at the foot of the container. His eyes facing the ground, he saw *Handle With Care* stamped on the top corner. The taping was a transparent blue and he thought there were faded smiley faces from that 90’s t-shirt facing him. It felt friendly. He felt compelled to at least look at the address. Maybe the kid had a long route and needed to mark that one as mia.
 
To his own surprise there were no markings on the box. Perchance it was a disposal object. Maybe an experiment? Sometimes people leave treasures in the most obvious places, his thoughts dared for a brief second. The wind would not stop. It howled at the houses which trembled at the challenge. Salom wasn’t going anywhere for a minute or two, at least. And, as he was phoneless for the fourth time in five years, he would probably open the box.  
 
He was convinced he had probably found a golden heirloom. He had been visualizing such a prize for the last year and this felt like the final confirmation. But what would he even do with such a fortune? He knew. 10 years on perhaps up to 5-7 different tropical or island-based destinations. He could vibe with distributing writings. Some gold on the way to the wizard of Oz.
 
By the time he had unscrambled the tricky tape, Salom found himself giddy with delight. There were human eras to observe from a cool distance. He smiled, and finally saw the paper wrapping around what might have been…a chalice? Imagine the odds he thought! Well as he tore the life of the leaves away, he noticed it was a vase, delicately designed from Irish porcelain.
 
Holy Saturday he shouted out loud. Where did I ever think of saying that in the middle of July he half smirked. But the reality of a shattered life lay before him. He removed the covering to see the insides half full of dust and sprinklings of gold. Was that the price of literary fame?