Jerking
into a state of alert
His
environment too familiar to be known
He
fists his hands in reflexive defense
Intuitively
grasping air that feels so tangible
Alarmed,
he begins to retreat
Mouth
agape and heart thudding against worn ribs
He
makes to distance himself from this strangely serene place
His
pace, significantly slower than his neurons command
Confusion
pours over him as his sweat hits the ceiling
Attempts
at rationalizing prove futile
There
is no accounting this experience
Still
retreating, he sees that outline he has come to know
This
spice of his life
The
love of his world
Inching
towards him in a fluid movement
His
lips turn downward, defying the impulse to smile
An
uncontrollable panic erupts in his chest as she nears
Unwilling
to understand this contradictory feeling
Yet
willing himself further away still
His
heart reaches out to her
Though
his mind would have none of her
She
got too close and her face seems to emerge from the shadows
Then
he sees it...
Her
face!
Metamorphed
into a Joker’s
He
fears to look down
Away
from the mocking face
But
his neck insists
There
was no need
The
knife rose to plain sight
Reaching
for his heart
He
struggles to hold her back in his mind
His
unyielding brain ignores his desperate command to dodge the stab
He
feels a deathening pain
He
lets out a muffled scream
The
Joker’s eyes still mocking
Her
grip thrusts the knife deeper
Twirling
it while making a shrieky laughter
With
a grin of accomplishment, she fades into nothing.
Jolting
awake to his reality
Panting,
afraid and drenched
This
time he deliberately, slowly, glances to the side
Half
expecting her body with the face
Instead,
the vacuum where she belonged screamed at him
Causing
heart-felt tears to flow down his neck
It
was to be the first of many sweet dreams!
