WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.480
Julian slid his sunglasses down the bridge of

00:00:02.480 --> 00:00:04.759
his nose, squinting slightly against the

00:00:04.759 --> 00:00:07.339
brilliant midday glare bouncing off the azure water.

00:00:07.919 --> 00:00:10.720
Perched high above the concrete labyrinth, the rooftop

00:00:10.720 --> 00:00:12.179
pool felt less like a part of

00:00:12.179 --> 00:00:14.660
the city and more like a suspended oasis

00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:16.179
floating somewhere in the clouds.

00:00:16.960 --> 00:00:19.980
Around him, the luxurious atmosphere hummed with a

00:00:19.980 --> 00:00:22.660
quiet exclusivity, soft lounge music

00:00:22.660 --> 00:00:25.559
mingling, with the gentle, rhythmic lap of water

00:00:25.559 --> 00:00:26.960
against the infinity edge.

00:00:27.700 --> 00:00:30.280
Far out along the horizon, a faint city

00:00:30.280 --> 00:00:32.799
haze softened the jagged silhouettes of neighboring

00:00:32.799 --> 00:00:35.799
skyscrapers, blurring the boundary where the glass and

00:00:35.799 --> 00:00:38.000
steel towers met the pale blue sky.

00:00:38.719 --> 00:00:41.159
Julian kicked off his sandals, stepped to the

00:00:41.159 --> 00:00:43.259
edge, and eased himself into the water.

00:00:43.939 --> 00:00:47.380
The temperature was absolute perfection, a cool contrast

00:00:47.380 --> 00:00:48.859
to the baking daylight overhead.

00:00:49.619 --> 00:00:51.939
As he drifted on his back, watching a

00:00:51.939 --> 00:00:54.979
solitary hawk glide effortlessly on a thermal current

00:00:54.979 --> 00:00:57.939
far above the penthouse suites, the frantic pulse

00:00:57.939 --> 00:01:00.380
of the streets below faded into a distant,

00:01:00.659 --> 00:01:01.560
muted murmur.

00:01:02.100 --> 00:01:04.560
He closed his eyes, letting the warm sun

00:01:04.560 --> 00:01:06.939
bake his shoulders and the crisp breeze wash

00:01:06.939 --> 00:01:07.159
over

00:01:07.159 --> 00:01:07.780
his face.

00:01:08.379 --> 00:01:10.780
Up here, suspended between the earth and the

00:01:10.780 --> 00:01:12.739
sky, the rest of the world could wait.