p - lay in- ain

The thing in the mirror clawed at the edges. Its black fingers scraping and cutting along the sides. But the mirror didn't crack. She stood, with bare skin exposed, head tilted to the side

staring

at the mirror like it would shatter at her command.

Its hollow eyes crawled with centipedes, each leg reminding her of her own fears, scuttling down her spine.

Skin dragging along a freshly washed glass.

Grit between your teeth.

A single invisible stone in your shoe.

A price tag that scissors refuses to cut.

The only pen in the house, vacant of ink.

A single drop of black falls to the floor

Muttered words that hung on see-through threads

Who is in control

No hate, no anger, no sadness,

This feeling transcends words

You ask for an embrace but disappear as I turn the corner

I wonder if you know how I feel

A rose that has been diminished by a blade hacking at its hard-earned roots

How can you do that

Let me lay in pain