And
this body intends to be nowhere else but here, sitting on this chair; the one
with the legs made of saliva.
The
object of this physique is to establish whether or not the seat, supported on its
spittle-limbs, is in fact a chair or not.
These bulky
bones make an impression on this chintz cushion that is stuffed with teeth-torn
nails; jagged and ripped half-moons.
The air
is thick with terror. It passes through the investigative figure’s shaking lungs
and re-emerges as a shared joke.
Tears the size of lagoons drop to the carpet which, is no longer a nylon weave but has become instead a shaved scalp.
The
formless form places a cracked glass to its thirst, what was once clear, cool water
is now strands of hair. It chokes.
Fingerprints
litter the floor and on the bed a greasy pillowcase shows where a phantom head
shifts uneasily from side to side all night.
Sleep is impossible until the conundrum is solved. The weight of an insomniac is equal to that of a 50 litre barrel of blood.
It
tosses, scratches, rubs. Flecks of irritation permanently mess that corner. But
it is not known why this phenomenon occurs.
Neither
is it understood who or what dirties these clothes; shit-stained underwear skid-marked
with itches.
Off-white
sweat patches mapped into armpits. Mucous seepage everywhere.
Everywhere.
A
climate of effluvia everywhere.