Low Hum

I dropped down the front tire of the bike to the curb and took the service stairs back up before the street got completely dark. The apartment was dead quiet, lit only by the single amber jewel light glowing on the front panel of the stereo receiver. I walked across the cold floorboards and sat flat against the lower metal chassis. A faint, steady current hummed through the brushed aluminum, blowing warm air out the ventilation slots across the tops of my platform boots. After hours of pavement noise, a low 60-cycle electrical drone is all the sound this room needs. I leaned my back against the casing and let my shoulders drop.