Bacteria screams down the walls. I feel myself separate, drunk on the smell of fungus. Breath as manacled as my body. A rip of velcro is amplified by the darkness. A yellow mask looms over. Injection. Hot. Suffocating. Liquid burns through my veins. Words die within me. Stillness. A seed is planted in my mind. The roots are fierce, killing my memories. I grasp after the memory of eating potted crab sandwiches with dad while our toes dangle in the sea. Gone. I can feel it inside me. I’m an echo. Not my words. Not my breath. Inseparable from it. ----------------------- Reference: Highly commended, NYC Midnight Flash Fiction international writing competition Photo by Jaël Vallée on Unsplash
The remarkable in the ordinary