The sun didn't just set in the valley; it dissolved, bleeding orange and violet into the cracked pavement of the lookout point. Elias sat on the hood of his car, the internal speakers fighting the wind. He wasn't listening to the radio. He was listening to a memory, set to 1.25x speed. “I wish I could tell you how I feel…”
The music cut out the moment he pressed "Call." The silence that followed was the only thing slower than the song. Ring. Ring. “Hello?” vacations - telephones (sped up)
He realized then that he liked the sped-up version because it didn't give him time to sink. The original made him want to lie down in the dark and count the regrets. This version made him want to drive until the gas light came on. It turned sadness into momentum. The sun didn't just set in the valley;