Sleep story · travel, anonymous
A bus at night, after eating too much — for the hours after a late shift
Upper deck, front seat, a city going past that you do not have to join.
Lights off. Press begin and let the story read itself to you, at the pace of sleep.
Screen on or off — we suggest dimming it, or simply closing your eyes after the first paragraph.
The story, in full
The bus stops and starts with a slow, heavy movement. There are four other people downstairs and nobody up here. The heating comes through the floor and makes your feet warm.
You are on the top deck of the last bus, in the front seat, with the whole window to yourself. The lights inside are the dim blue kind that buses use at night. The city goes past below you, shopfronts and bus stops and people waiting for other buses.
Let everything you were holding today stay on the floor beside the bed. Let your breathing get slower without deciding to slow it.
Let your forearms get heavy and warm. Your fingers can stop doing anything at all.
The driver takes the corners slowly, as if the bus were full. Outside, someone is walking a dog that does not want to be out.
Let the pillow take the whole weight of your head. Feel one shoulder go heavy, then the other.
If you're bored, stay with the boredom for a moment. It's usually thinner than it looks. Notice if you've been frowning at your own thoughts.
Feel your cheeks let go. Let your thighs be as heavy as they want to be.
Just the breath. You can stop listening properly.
Just the dark. They will find their own way out. Just the weight.
Do this sitting up, not lying down, if you have just eaten.
Let this be the last thing you listen to.
12 paragraphs, roughly 2 minutes read slowly aloud. Written for travel, anonymous.