The Bypass

io9 has a regular feature they call Concept Art Writing Prompts. They post a piece of art and invite readers to submit stories based upon the illustration. I've started writing short—often aiming for very, very short—stories as a warm-up to my real writing. 

This one was based on piece by Alejandro Burdisio. 

The Bypass

It was the same old story. As soon as the new black hole onramp opened, traffic on the old main highway just dried up. It wasn't long before people would pull in for minor repairs and then just end up hitching a ride with someone else, leaving their vehicles—and their solar system—behind forever.

Eventually, even ol' Bob himself threw in the towel. Leaving the keys to the place on the counter, he shut off the lights and closed the door. He took one last look at the place and jumped.