I've almost got it! It is just beyond my reach, but if I can stretch a little further, it shall be mine.
I first felt its presence as I punched my time card signifying the day's end. I gathered my belongings, turned my computer off and walked towards the elevator all while a growing itch in me begged for attention. I almost started clawing at it before the elevator doors slid open, but I willed myself to wait until I was in the privacy of the enclosed descending metal box.
With my briefcase in my right hand and my coat draped over my left arm, the two gold-plated doors separated, and to my disappointment, revealed an elevator of people from offices in floors above mine all going home for the evening. The desire to drop my things and start my search right then and there was almost unbearable as I stepped across the threshold of the crowded elevator, but I stayed strong.
Like an insect delicately prancing across my skin, this presence was yelling, kicking, doing everything it could to distract me. I couldn't think of anything else. Breathing made it more noticeable. Breathing through my separated lips gave it the power; let it win, but until I was alone, I didn't have any other choice.
The elevator doors parted, revealing the underground parking lot. I could see my sedan waiting for me three rows of cars away. Without so much as a nod to the other employees, I pulled my coat in close to my body and gripped the handle of my briefcase before sprinting to my car. As I ran towards the privacy of the driver's seat, I reached into my coat pocket and felt for the key-less entry remote and unlocked the doors. The brake lights were still flashing in silence as I threw open the back door and flung my belongings on the seat.
Finally. Once I found myself safely seated behind the wheel, I reached up and clawed for the presence. I pushed and pulled. I dug and churned. I could feel it. Every time I came close, however, I just pushed it further away. Without thinking, I started the car and backed out. I continued my search of the annoyance in vain as I ascended the spiral drive towards the early evening's light.
The sunshine poured into my windshield as my car drove out from the lot and on to Spirit Avenue. I was so close to getting the pest that I didn't care who saw me now. I had to expunge myself of this devilish item. I turned left on to Main Street and then merged on to the freeway all while in my pursuit.
Once my car came to a standstill on the freeway behind the miles of stopped traffic I decided to go with a new tactic for finding the loathsome itch. I made a fist with my right hand and extended my unclipped pinky. I purposefully keep this fingernail longer than the others for situations exactly like the one I found myself in. I slowly raised my outstretched finger to my face allowing the presence one last thought. I could feel my warm exhales from my nostrils on the tip of my finger before plunging it in. Twice, I pierced my skin before I found the backside of the menace.
As I retracted the lump of dirt, dust, pollen, and mucus from my nostril, I looked over to the car in the adjacent lane. In the backseat, sat a boy in his early years of life; maybe five. He pointed back at me and was laughing uncontrollably.
Listening to Death Cab for Cutie.
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